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DIY Soft Drinks

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Re: DIY Soft Drinks

#91
post #19

Perfectly Replicating Coca Cola (It Took Me A Year) - LabCoatz : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TDkH3EbWTYc This content creator used a mass spectrometer to find the flavoring used in Coca-Cola.

It is with utter disappointment that I must inform everyone that, after 3 months, there is still a complete lack of "Koala Cola" imitators popping up. I want to try one so much.

Re: DIY Soft Drinks

#92
post #62

> Made a second batch of cola syrup without caramel color. It’s much weirder to drink than I expected. Indeed the 90s were an interesting time: https://youtu.be/2za2IK8FQoM

I thought of those. I remember drinking some. It tastes like cola but somehow different.

But then again I liked new coke. And that wierd “ok soda” that doesn’t exist anymore.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OK_Soda

Re: DIY Soft Drinks

#93
I enjoy the flavor of kvass - a Russian / eastern European malt flavored soda - but it's hard to find where I live. The process involves really aggressively toasting some rye bread, boiling it with eaisans and sugar, straining it, and then brewing it with ordinary baking yeast in 2-liter bottles until it reaches your desired carbonation level. The end result is really refreshing.

Re: DIY Soft Drinks

#94

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Acetic acid is vinegar. Not something I'd like to taste in any soft drink.

I don't like vinegar much either, but vinegar in drinks does have a certain tradition e.g. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Posca

Or more recently Switchel, which was popular in 19th century America.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Switchel

I think the ready availability or citrus fruits caused their decline.

Re: DIY Soft Drinks

#95
post #41

If you want to carbonate water but don't want to buy a countertop carbonator or its overpriced CO2 refills, you can get a ball lock valve cap that screws onto 1L or 2L soda bottles for around $8-16. That valve will attach to a standard female fitting, which you can put on the end of a hose coming from a pressure regulator, which will attach to a full-size CO2 cylinder available from a brewing or gas supply shop. CO2…

Pro-tip: cold water.

Re: DIY Soft Drinks

#96
post #62

> Made a second batch of cola syrup without caramel color. It’s much weirder to drink than I expected. Indeed the 90s were an interesting time: https://youtu.be/2za2IK8FQoM

I wonder if we'd have the same reaction if cola had never been darkened. We wouldn't, right?

Re: DIY Soft Drinks

#97
post #93

I enjoy the flavor of kvass - a Russian / eastern European malt flavored soda - but it's hard to find where I live. The process involves really aggressively toasting some rye bread, boiling it with eaisans and sugar, straining it, and then brewing it with ordinary baking yeast in 2-liter bottles until it reaches your desired carbonation level. The end result is really refreshing.

How does this not become alcoholic?

Re: DIY Soft Drinks

#98

This is really interesting. I have been making my own "instant cola" with several large dashes of angostura bitters and a can of seltzer in a pint glass. The liquid should be very pink/orange. and, if I want sweetness a drop of liquid sucralose sweetner is all I need, just sweet enough for me without aftertaste. This mix scratches my cola itch very well and can be made in about 20 seconds.

wait, are those the only ingredients?

Re: DIY Soft Drinks

#99
This is surprisingly close to how commercial soda flavor bases are described in old patents — especially the oil + gum arabic emulsion part.

What I find really interesting is how little actual oil is needed for such a large volume. Makes you realize how much of “cola taste” is just perception tricks rather than bulk ingredients.

Have you tried measuring how stable the emulsion is over time? I’d be curious how long it stays homogeneous without separation.

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