A few weeks ago, we were given the opportunity to review the Sodastream machine. The idea behind the machine is simple – “a smarter way to enjoy soda.” It’s pretty simple to use and you can take ordinary tap water and turn it into soda by adding fizz (via carbon dioxide carbonator) and adding a flavor of your choice! (Sodastream currently has over 100 flavor varieties!)
Not only can Sodastream save you money, it also helps to save the environment by reducing the amount of bottles and cans that you are putting back into landfills & ultimately, the environment!
I knew that the cost-benefit of this machine wouldn’t necessarily have a great bearing on our family, but the thought that we could customize drinks when we wanted to was definitely a huge plus. When the machine first came, I will admit, that I was expecting long plugs or batteries. But with a simple carbon dioxide carbonator tank and a bottle of water, you have fizzy water (to which you add syrup) quickly! I actually read through the directions and then looked up a video on YouTube to be sure that I was using it properly!
We received the Jet & Stream maker and it was incredibly simple to use! The boys love the louder sound and it actually makes them laugh! (As an adult, the sound is brief, but can be rather loud!)
Here are a quick run down of flavors we tried and our thoughts on them:
Black Currant & Pear – This was refreshing and not overly sweet. It was definitely different than anything I’ve ever tasted.
Ginger Ale – Smooth tasting and delicious!
Diet Pink Grapefruit – This tasted too “fake” for my liking and was not something my palate enjoyed.
Green Tea – Pomegranate Peach – They had me until the peach part, but I actually ended up really liking this flavor.
Diet Lemon Lime – Didn’t taste too much like diet and I actually gave this to my son when his stomach was upset a few weeks ago! He liked the “fizzy” drink.
Root Beer – This was a huge hit with my hubby & nephews. They discussed the endless possible root beer floats that could come out of this!
Cola Free – Designed to be like PepsiMax and Coke Zero, this product seemed a little “light” for me and didn’t seem to have the same sweetness that most soda drinks do.
Cola – I felt this tasted spot on. I could see, however, that if you were an avid Coke or Pepsi drinker, you may not necessarily go for it at first.
They also sent some natural water flavors to flavor regular fizzy water. I enjoyed these as a nice change of pace from the typical glasses of water I drink daily.
Each bottle of syrup can make approximately 12 litres of soda which works out to be about 50 servings. I love the fact that you can really customize the drink flavor to your own taste buds. Sweetness, fizziness and specific flavor are entirely up to you!
I did not like some of the flavors, but I simply wouldn’t buy those again. My kit came with one bottle and so in order to make new drinks, we’d either have to finish one or buy another bottle to fit and use. Not a big problem, but something to consider. We have yet to buy a new carbon dioxide carbonator which is great!
For the avid soda drinker, this will definitely save money, but then the question becomes, does your soda flavor transfer well into the Sodastream syrups? For me, the answer was that they were pretty close, but I’d encourage you to try for yourself! The customization option really can’t be beat and saving money in the long-run is always something that people like!
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