Sodas

Soda, Soft Drink, Pop, or Sodapop, whatever you call it, this is a type of beverage that everyone is familiar with. Soda is refreshing for a lot of reasons. The first reason is that the mind has been programmed to think that it is refreshing due to all of the ads we see everywhere. The next reason is that the cold (nobody likes drinking warm soda) shocks our system and it makes us more attentive to what we’re drinking. The carbonation stimulates the nerves in our tongue which is sensed as pleasurable by our brains. Couple all of this with the sugar and the caffeine in the drink and you have a drink that’s super refreshing and legally addictive.

Soda Trivia

• Soda was earlier marketed as a cure-all rather than a beverage.
• Lower-income families are statistically more inclined to drink sugary sodas than higher-income families.
• The most popular product on the planet is Coca-Cola.
• Believe it or not, 7-Up’s original name was Bib-Label Lithiated Lemon-Lime Soda, we would say that this is a very good name change.
• Most people in Texas refer to sodas, any soda, as coke.
• Studies have shown that men prefer soda packaging with dark colors and without the word “diet” on it.

Soda Buying Guide

We don’t really recommend buying sodas due to the number of preservatives, chemicals, sugar, and sweeteners. If you need a soda fix then we would suggest getting craft soda.

Craft soda is a lot healthier than regular commercial soda and if you would like more information on craft soda, then you can go and check out its own article here in our real food promptuary.

Soda Production & Farming in Texas

Texas has a very deep history with soda and soft drinks. One of the first popular soft drink brands today has operated in Dallas since 1923. This brand was Dr. Pepper. The soda was first made in Waco in 1885 by a pharmacist who mixed soft drinks for customers whenever he wasn’t preparing prescriptions. The drink was originally called a “Waco” but the owner of the drug store where the pharmacist worked named the drink Dr. Pepper.  Now there are many myths surrounding the name of this particular soda, but none that we can verify at this moment.

Today, following that spirit of innovation and inventiveness, Texas has a lot of craft soda producers. Shying away from commercially produced sodas, smaller craft soda producers are slowly reintroducing sodas made from all-natural ingredients and sweeteners.

Chemicals and Additives:

While soda may seem harmless, it is loaded with a lot of chemicals and additives and we’ll list down some of the most common ones being used in almost all of the major brands.

1. Biphenol-A – This is a chemical that is not specifically added to sodas but this is found in the aluminum lining of soda cans. This chemical mimics estrogen in the body which can have various effects like reduced sperm count, increased rates of reproductive cancers, and leads to early puberty in young females. The name not familiar? How about the abbreviation, BPA?
2. Yellow 5, Caramel Color, Natural and Artificial Colors – This adds nothing to the taste of the soda. All it does is to make it visually appealing. Certain artificial colors, like caramel color, have been shown to increase the rate of tumor growth in rats. Good thing humans don’t consume that much caramel color right?
3. High Fructose Corn Syrup – This makes the soda sweet and addictive. HFCS has been liked to obesity and diabetes. If you want to enjoy soda, choose the ones that use natural sugars and not one that uses highly processed GMO crops.
4. Aspartame, Saccharin, and Sucralose – These are artificial sweeteners that are commonly used in diet sodas. It is a good idea to stay away from artificial sweeteners as studies have shown that they may have long-term health implications.

Do you really want to put all of those chemicals and additives from sodas in your body just for a drink? There are better choices out there, and if you really need to have a sparkling beverage, try getting some craft soda. Not only are craft soda tastier, but they’re also safer as well.

Packaging:

Sodas are packed in plastic bottles, glass bottles, and most commonly, aluminum cans.

Enjoying Sodas

Sodas are best consumed cold or on ice.

Storage:

Store sodas in the fridge so that they will be cool when you’re ready to drink them. Refer to the packaging for best before dates.

Make your own soda:

If you want to enjoy soda at home without all of the added chemicals then you can make your own with just a few ingredients.

Grapefruit Soda

Ingredients

1 2/3 cup grapefruit juice (for best results, buy locally grown ruby red grapefruits)
zest of the grapefruits
200g of sugar
½ cup of water

Step 1:

Place all of the ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a gentle boil until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture is boiling.

Step 2:

Lower the heat and simmer the mixture for 20 minutes until the liquid has the consistency of light simple syrup.

Step 3:

Strain the syrup through a sieve or a mesh strainer to remove any pulp and zest.

Step 4:

Store in a clean jar and store in the fridge once cooled down.

Step 5:

Add one or two teaspoons for every glass of soda water or seltzer for your own home-made soda.

*Tip: You can swap out grapefruit for any local fruit that is in season.