Are you looking for a unique present that the whole family will enjoy? Soda Stream is a special machine that allows you to make your own soda – now that’s a present that will be used year-round!
Fountain Jet – Seltzer Starter Kit – $79.95
We love soda in our household, but I don’t buy it often – it’s not cheap, so I usually wait until I have a coupon; not to mention, we go through it very quickly, and I’m trying not to add empty calories to my diet at the moment! So when SodaStream invited me to try out one of their units along with their new, all-natural line of flavors, I was glad to take them up on the offer. Prior to reading about this company online, it never occurred to me that you could even make your own soda at home. I knew this was going to be a fun treat!
SodaStream’s machine is very simple to use. The unit is lightweight, easy to move, and does not require batteries or need to be plugged in – which is perfect for my kitchen, which is crammed for counter space!
The machine comes with two one-liter bottles and one 60 liter Carbonator. You simply insert the Carbonator can in the back of the Soda Stream unit, fill one of the bottles with water, and screw it into the machine. You then press the button for carbonation three times until you hear a loud buzz – and hey presto! Instant club soda.
Next, you have the option of adding syrup to the carbonated water to make your own soda. To do this, you take your syrup bottle of choice, fill up the cap, and pour it slowly into the one-liter bottle. I highly recommend refrigerating the syrup beforehand – and mix the soda over the sink, because I had a few eruption disasters when I was learning how to use it! You have to pour the syrup slowly to avoid the soda bubbling over, but it can be tricky to do this without slopping the syrup everywhere. However, I’m starting to get the hang of it. You add a large capful to the soda, which seemed like an awful lot, but trust the directions – it’s not too much!
SodaStream carries every kind of soda syrup you can think of: Root beer, cola, ginger ale, and many more. They sent us their new line of Sparkling Naturals to try:
Apple Mango: I love mangoes, so I enjoyed this fruity soda!
Orange pineapple: A nice orange soda with a pineapple kick.
Lemon-lime: A classic soda flavor that we enjoyed.
Grapefruit: Jai and I both thought this would be our least favorite, because we’re not huge grapefruit soda fans. But I must say, this is the best grapefruit soda I’ve ever had – it has all the tartness of grapefruit without the acidity. This actually ended up being Jai’s favorite of all the syrups we tried!
Each of the Sparkling Naturals syrups are made from all-natural ingredients and contain no artificial flavors, no artificial colors and no artificial sweeteners.
In addition, SodaStream also sent us 3 bottles of MyWater Essence Flavors, which create flavored waters with zero calories. I love this, because it makes a very enjoyable drink without the added calories!
I think the SodaStream has been a wonderful addition to our kitchen. It’s a pleasure to use and handy for so many situations – we use it almost every day now! With so many syrups, there’s a drink for every meal and mood. I even used the orange-pineapple soda in a meat marinade for steak recently! Having plain club soda on hand any time you want it is also very handy for a refreshing drink, and great to have on hand when you’ve got the flu or feel otherwise under the weather. You can even use it as a mixer for cocktails! This unit would be absolutely fabulous for parties – I can’t wait to show it off the next time we have company over. The syrup bottles start at $4.99 and make 12 liters of soda – that comes to about .42 cents per liter. Carbonator refills start at $29.99.
SodaStream is so versatile and fun, I think almost any family would be delighted for receive it as a holiday gift!
SodaStream machines start at $79.95 and are available at stores like Macy’s, Bed Bath And Beyond, and Sears – just in time for last-minute Christmas shopping! Click here to locate a retailer near you.
I love my SodaStream and even received a coupon from SodaStream for a discount on syrups. There are also some fab recipes on their website which are perfect for holiday entertaining.
We love our SodaStream. We have a store in our mall that has the syrups fairly cheap so it’s nice:)
I have always wanted to try one of these. Glad to know it’s simple to use! (My kids would love this.)
I keep hearing about this product randomly….now I’ve got some images to go with the words!! This looks SO COOL!!! I love soda….and to be able to make my own?!? Awesome.
This looks quite interesting! We’re big ‘soda’ (we say pop!) drinkers here! I’ll have to add this to my wish list! I’d love to have the variety of flavors, without having tons of cans in the closets!
Ooh I’ve had my eye on one of these. i love seltzer.
Isn’t SodaStream the best! We LOVE ours
My husband loves carbonated water – what a great idea!
just saw this in the store the other day, Rob was intrigued LOL
I love Soda Stream- We make ours each day and my favorite flavor has to be orange mango. Thanks for sharing 🙂
We love our soda stream. Fizzy water is my husband’s favorite!
We have on of these too! LOVE it!
I saw this at the store and was wondering if it actually worked. Thanks for your through review! I love that you can also make flavored water, which is good since the boys don’t need a lot of soda.
I’ve seen a couple of reviews on this, it looks so cool. I would love to try it out. I think the grapefruit one sounds yummy, it would probably be my favourite!
I would so love to try it All the reviews I’ve read have been nothing but positive.
I NEED one of these so bad for my pop-obsessed fiance! This would be such a better alternative for him!
I would love to try one of these but im a big cola snob. I only drink Coca Cola! I will drink Pepsi if it is on sale cheaper than coke but I just can’t get used to store brands and I swear I have tried them all. Other flavors Im fine with store brand or name brand, its just my coca cola i am addicted too!