Food & Drink

sparkling water

Soda water, or carbonated water, is plain water to which carbon dioxide gas has been added; it is also called sparkling water by many people. It is the main ingredient of most “soft drinks.”. This process of carbonation has a happy result — carbonic acid, enjoyed by millions as soda pop.

soda water

By using a seltzer bottle filled with water and then “charged” with carbon dioxide, soda water (also called club soda) was produced in the past in the home. Club soda is often just the same as plain carbonated water; however, in some instances, it can have a small amount of table salts, as well as sodium trace minerals. Such additives could possibly make the taste of home made soda water a bit salty. This process often produces carbonated mineral water and occurs naturally in many areas.

Sparkling mineral water can sometimes cause a little dental decay. Sparkling water’s potential affects on dental problems are somewhat greater than with non-sparkling water, but the difference is not drastic. Tooth decay seems to be stimulated much more by regular soft drinks than by sparkling water. The rate is so low it suggests that carbonation may not be a factor in causing dental decay.

Water coming from the ground – usually from artesian wells – can be filtered among layers of minerals containing forms of carbonates and absorb the carbon dioxide gas released by those carbonates. The resulting water is called natural sparkling water. On occasions when the water also picks up enough different minerals to become flavored, it becomes sparkling mineral water.

At its root, soda water is just water and carbon dioxide. One natural result of carbonation is sparkling mineral water. A jeweler, in 1794, made a device to produce an artificial carbonated mineral water.

A taste test of several carbonated drinks determined that Perrier, a sparkling natural mineral water, kept its fizz the longest.

For consumers who believe seltzer to be a bit harsh, club soda has a more gentle fizz. Club soda seemed to be milder and a little sweeter, during the taste test, than the standard carbonated water.

If you are counting calories, be aware that club soda, sparkling mineral water, seltzer, and carbonated water have none; they are a great dieter’s choice over soda pop and tonic water. Not even if flavored at home with flavor for carbonated water.

Tonic water is a carbonate drink containing water, sugar, carbon dioxide and quinine. Originally, quinine was added to tonic water for a medicinal purpose — to help cure or prevent malaria. Today it is commonly mixed with gin and lemon or lime for a popular alcoholic drink.

Soda water? These simple facts show us it’s not so complicated after all.

In 2006, Sodastream (Soda Club) tried to stop a competing enterprise from refilling “their” bottles of carbon dioxide (CO2), by claiming that the bottles were their property, not the customers’ (per contracts that all customers had to agree to).

This effort failed in Germany, and now the same could happen in other countries.

This market niche does need competition, both for the sake of the environ­ment (bottles should be refilled in the store, a mere 20 second procedure); and for price, which could easily be cut in half. More info about refilling – and home refilling – of carbon dioxide bottles for home sodamakers here.

Alert consumers are aware that sparkling water made at home can already be had at a fraction of the cost of retail carbonated beverages; many feel, however, taht things could be a lot better.

Here are the facts from bundeskartellamt in Germany:

http://www.bundeskartellamt.de/wEnglisch/News/Archiv/ArchivNews2006/2006_04_13.php

April 13, 2006

Düsseldorf Higher Regional Court confirms immediate enforceability in the Soda-Club case

Soda-Club GmbH, Wiesbaden (“Soda-Club“) may not use its dominant position abusively. Soda-Club had prevented competing suppliers from refilling Co² cartridges for water carbonating machines by claiming its ownership of the cartridges.

In February 2006 the Bundeskartellamt prohibited this conduct. Soda Club opposed the Bundeskartellamt’s immediately enforceable decision by applying to the Düsseldorf Higher Regional Court for interim measures. In provisional proceedings the court has now confirmed the Bundeskartellamt’s decision in all material respects. Soda-Club is dominant in the market for refilling CO2 cartridges. Hindering competitors from refilling CO2 cartridges represents an abuse of this dominant position. By this conduct Soda-Club prevents consumers from taking advantage of alternative refilling possibilities. Only the obligation to point out on labels on the company’s own cartridges that it is admissible to have them refilled by competitors was seen by the Higher Regional Court as a disproportionate measure.

Although Soda-Club can still appeal against the Higher Regional Court’s decision to the Federal Supreme Court, the Higher Regional Court’s decision implies that the numerous small and medium-sized bottling plants can now start to compete with Soda-Club and refill all cartridges circulating in the market.

Soda water or club soda has covered a long distance from when it was first used as a relief from indigestion. To prepare tasty drinks add flavors, sweeteners and colors. A large number of people love the flavour of soda. Some prefer it over plain drinking water and spend a lot of money buying these drinks every day. Are you one of those who might like the idea of making your own carbonated drink at home?

Carbonation is the process of dissolving pressurized carbon dioxide (CO2)into water to make sparkling water, club soda or seltzer. This water is clear with a fizzy taste. If you are looking for flavor, you might want to add some exciting fruit flavors sold at all freight free.com. Flavors are of following types. Someone who is trying to lose weight soda drink can help them as it has no artificial sweeteners and no sugar.

Guy Gilbey in 1903 in London invented SodaStream by home carbonation system. Later on it became popular in Australia, New Zealand and Germany. The equipment consists of one machine, one carbon dioxide flask and more than one reusable bottles. Pressurized CO2 from inside the canister is forced into the water filled bottle to produce sparkling water.

In the UK, the SodaStream machinewas first sold to the upper classes, including the royal household. In the 1920s flavored concentrates such as cherry ciderette and sasparilla were introduced to create soft drinks. Commercial models and those for the house were prepared in 1955 and became famous in 70s and 80s. However, some people thought that homemade brew was not as bubbly as the commercial variety.

MilkStream, an offshoot of the same company, was created for making milkshakes. It used milk with ice cream and syrup together in a big glass and inserted into the machine to get a frothy drink.

SODASTREAM

SodaStream was later bought out by Soda Club, an Israeli company that was formerly the sole distributor for SodaStreamin Israel. As of 2007, the brand has been reestablished in many countries involving the United States and Canada. It still sells its drinks under the SodaStream label but has started addressing the health needs of the public, by manufacturing a number of diet concentrates which can be used for sparkling water and sodas.

The Soda Club machine has had rave reviews from the public at large, because of its beautiful design and its easy to follow instructions. Also, the soda club machine allows you to make the drink fizzy according to your requirement. The cost of the machine together with reusable bottles and sodamix flavors works out to about 50 cents per liter. Now, how is that for a deal?

In 1903 the SodaStream brand of carbonation makers was launched.

In the 1970s and 1980s, when there were different concentrated syrups available, versions were made that could add concentrates to create carbonated drinks in popular flavors. This company then merged with Soda-Club and was relaunched as a way to make healthy drinks for kids.

The SodaStream drink maker — a small device that infuses carbon dioxide into water –converts water to a taste like soda pop. The system includes a machine, a canister of carbon dioxide, and reusable beverage bottles (suitable for pressurizing). The bottle, when filled with water, is screwed on to the machine, and with a push of the button ejects compressed CO2 from a canister into the bottle, making sparkling water (also called seltzer). There are a number of flavors which can be used to create regular soft drinks by adding a slight amount to the bottle of carbonated water. When the canister is out of CO2, you return it to the market and purchase a carbon dioxide (CO2) refill.

With so many types of concentrate, unique and different flavors of soft drinks can be made. During the period when the systems were at the height of their popularity, many well-known brands were available for SodaStream in the concentrates – such as Fanta, and Sunkist.

MilkStream, is a variation of the SodaStream, and was invented for making milkshakes. A frothy, delicious milkshake can be produced by combining Ice cream, milk and Crusha syrup, and utilizing an extended wand into the glass.

The first machines made were rather large, and were sold to the upper classes of London, including to the royal household. There were all kinds of flavors with odd names, including the famous sarsaparilla introduced in the 1920s. In 1955 the first machine for home carbonation was produced.

The popularity of the SodaStream was high during the 1970s and 1980s in the UK, and presently it’s associated with nostalgia for those periods of time. The advertising jingle in 1970s was, “Get busy with the fizzy”; the slogan was so popular that the company added it to its logo. In 1996 it was dropped after 17 years of use.

Commercially successful, there was a perception by some that the soft drinks made by these machines were a poor version of the commercial counterparts. One of the noticeable differences was that, besides slightly different flavors of the produced drink, the bubbles made by SodaStream machines are larger and shorter-lived. Today this has changed, partly because of Aromhuset flavors for carbonated water, and Sodastream now is the leader in sparkling water.

Today, SodaStream is part of Soda-Club; there are numerous websites where products can be purchased and supplies ordered, and reordered, when needed.

SodaStream appeared on the scene in 1903. It was a carbonation system which made standard water into fizzy water; invented by Giles Gilby, it was originally sold to the upper classes. Flavours were introduced in the 1920s. Cherry ciderette and sarsaparilla were two of these. In the 1970s and 80s it enjoyed vast success, becoming a big hit in countries such as the UK, Germany and Australia.

SodaStream underwent numerous changes in ownership, at one stage even being part of the Cadbury Schweppes empire. 1998 was the year SodaStream changed hands for the final time when purchased by Soda Club, which at that time was Israel’s biggest supplier of SodaStream. After Soda Club’s unsuccessful bid to rename the brand from SodaStream to Soda-Club, the name of the brand remained SodaStream.

More recently Soda Club sought to rename the SodaStream brand. Focusing on the health and diet issues that are so prevalent in this day and age, SodaStream was relaunched with a new machine and many new flavours, concentrating on marketing a healthy alternative to fizzy, sugar-rich drinks such as Coca Cola and Pepsi.

Essentially, the SodaStream product is a home carbonation kit, which allows you to change water into sparkling water, as well as allowing you to add low-calorie flavours such as cola and orange. A large assortment of calorie-free flavours to flavour sparkling water to great taste is sold at allfreightfree.com.

The SodaStream machine process forces co2 into a water-filled bottle suitable for pressurising. The co2 turns the water into sparkling (carbonated) water. Carbonation is the name we give to this process of dissolving co2. The carbonated water can then be drunk on its own as sparkling water, or mixed with flavours to create tasty, healthy treats. Once the co2 canisters have been used up they can be sent back to Soda-Club who recycle the canisters by refilling them with co2 then sending them back out.

As far as the actual health and diet benefits gained from drinking SodaStream, it is claimed that all their flavours are completely sugar-free and contain a maximum of 2 calories per 100ml, which is good news for parents concerned about their children’s diet.

The SodaStream machine adds only co2 to the water, meaning it does not have the added sugar that some bottled sparkling water contains, so there is no significant difference between it and normal water.

SodaStream have made much of their environmental and health credentials, going so far as to claim that each litre bottle of SodaStream saves three aluminum cans. The result is that over 3 years, a family of four could slash their soft-drink-related packaging usage by over 90%. This is a popular claim, one that in this environmentally conscious age will stand them in good stead. It is evident that Sodastream has developed into a realistic alternative to the big players in the soft drink world.