**** DONE DIY Soft Drinks Like Cola, Fanta and Sprite (Part 1)                             :diy:blog:
CLOSED: [2022-01-23 Sun 17:53] SCHEDULED: <2022-01-23 Sun>
:PROPERTIES:
:CREATED:  [2022-01-16 Sun 09:20]
:ID:       2022-01-16-DIY-Soft-Drinks
:END:
:LOGBOOK:
- State "DONE"       from "NEXT"       [2022-01-23 Sun 17:53]
:END:

I somehow stumbled over [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fZb_7JgcsSU][a video on how to make soft drinks with a
simplified recipe yourself]]. To my surprise, the recipes were really
simple and effort was small. That got me hooked: does this really end
up with soft drinks that taste like the commercial ones we all know?

There is only one way to find out.

My primary focus was the DIY Sprite. I was curious about the taste of
the DIY Cola especially after seeing the rather short list of
ingredients. And my wife was interested in DIY Fanta. So I had to make
all three of them myself.

***** DIY Sprite

Here is the recipe from the video:

- 🍋 Sprite Syrup Recipe (makes about 500ml)
  - 400g sugar
  - 300ml water
  - zest of 3 lemons
  - zest of 2 limes
  - 7,5g citric acid

You have to mix everything up in a pot, heat it up and cook it a bit.
Then you bottle it through a sieve and that's it. For more details,
watch the video.

#+CAPTION: Ingredients for the DIY Sprite.
#+ATTR_HTML: :align center :width 630 :linked-image-width none
[[tsfile:2022-01-07T14.02.37 DIY Sprite - Zutaten -- beverages diy publicvoit.jpg][2022-01-07T14.02.37 DIY Sprite - Zutaten -- beverages diy publicvoit.jpg]]

Be careful with your fingers:

#+CAPTION: Getting the zest from a lime.
#+ATTR_HTML: :align center :width 630 :linked-image-width none
[[tsfile:2022-01-07T14.07.36 DIY Sprite - Zestenabrieb Limette -- beverages diy publicvoit.jpg][2022-01-07T14.07.36 DIY Sprite - Zestenabrieb Limette -- beverages diy publicvoit.jpg]]

After a while, the mixed ingredients in the pot look like that:

#+CAPTION: The syrup.
#+ATTR_HTML: :align center :width 630 :linked-image-width none
[[tsfile:2022-01-07T14.28.56 DIY Sprite - durchgekochter Saft -- beverages diy publicvoit.jpg][2022-01-07T14.28.56 DIY Sprite - durchgekochter Saft -- beverages diy publicvoit.jpg]]

Be sure to use a proper sieve when bottling the syrup:

#+CAPTION: Bottling.
#+ATTR_HTML: :align center :width 630 :linked-image-width none
[[tsfile:2022-01-07T14.40.02 DIY Sprite - Filtern -- beverages diy publicvoit.jpg][2022-01-07T14.40.02 DIY Sprite - Filtern -- beverages diy publicvoit.jpg]]

The whole procedure took maybe twenty minutes or so. Even a
cooking-noob like me is able to get to the finish line without issues.
The recipe is not complicated at all.

#+CAPTION: My first self-made Sprite.
#+ATTR_HTML: :align center :width 630 :linked-image-width none
[[tsfile:2022-01-07T17.47.41 DIY Sprite - Dicksaft mit Glas und Zitronen -- publicvoit beverages diy.jpg][2022-01-07T17.47.41 DIY Sprite - Dicksaft mit Glas und Zitronen -- publicvoit beverages diy.jpg]]

I have to say that the result really impressed me. When mixed with
self-made soda water, it really resembles the original quite well or
even better.

This was definitively not the last time I do this.

***** DIY Fanta
:PROPERTIES:
:END:

- 🍊 Fanta Syrup Recipe (makes about 500ml)
  - 400g sugar
  - zest of 3 oranges
  - juice of 3 oranges
  - juice of 2 tangerines
  - top up with water or adjust by drinking until you have 300ml juice total
  - 7,5g citric acid

#+CAPTION: The ingredients for the DIY Fanta.
#+ATTR_HTML: :align center :width 630 :linked-image-width none
[[tsfile:2022-01-08T14.25.30 DIY Fanta - Zutaten -- diy beverages publicvoit.jpg][2022-01-08T14.25.30 DIY Fanta - Zutaten -- diy beverages publicvoit.jpg]]

The process for creating the Fanta is quite similar.

#+CAPTION: DIY Fanta.
#+ATTR_HTML: :align center :width 630 :linked-image-width none
[[tsfile:2022-01-08T16.07.24 DIY Fanta - mit Ergebnis im Glas -- diy beverages publicvoit.jpg][2022-01-08T16.07.24 DIY Fanta - mit Ergebnis im Glas -- diy beverages publicvoit.jpg]]

In my case, the syrup is a bit on the viscous side, just like honey.
The beverage is good but it doesn't resemble the original that well.
However, it is far from being bad. I won't change the recipe for the
purpose of getting a different taste.

***** DIY Cola
:PROPERTIES:
:END:

And now for the final one: self-made Cola:

- 🌰 Cola Syrup Recipe (makes about 500ml)
  - 400g sugar
  - 300ml water
  - zest of 1 lemon
  - zest of 1 orange
  - zest of 1 lime
  - 1/4 tsp freshly ground nutmeg
  - 1 stick or 1/2 tsp of cassia or cinnamon, freshly ground
  - 2 Tbsp coriander seeds, crushed
  - 1/4 tsp dried rosemary, or a small twig of fresh
  - 1/8 tsp ground clove
  - 7,5g citric acid

Here are the ingredients. I would not have assumed that this ends up
with something that tastes like a Cola:

#+CAPTION: The ingredients for the DIY Cola.
#+ATTR_HTML: :align center :width 630 :linked-image-width none
[[tsfile:2022-01-08T15.21.10 DIY Cola - Zutaten -- diy beverages publicvoit.jpg][2022-01-08T15.21.10 DIY Cola - Zutaten -- diy beverages publicvoit.jpg]]

The solid ingredients need to get into a grinder:

#+CAPTION: Before grinding some ingredients.
#+ATTR_HTML: :align center :width 630 :linked-image-width none
[[tsfile:2022-01-08T15.27.06 DIY Cola - Zerkleinern -- diy beverages publicvoit.jpg][2022-01-08T15.27.06 DIY Cola - Zerkleinern -- diy beverages publicvoit.jpg]]

You can get caramel color by heating up sugar:

#+CAPTION: DIY caramel color.
#+ATTR_HTML: :align center :width 630 :linked-image-width none
[[tsfile:2022-01-08T15.52.54 DIY Cola - Zuckercouleur selbermachen -- diy beverages publicvoit.jpg][2022-01-08T15.52.54 DIY Cola - Zuckercouleur selbermachen -- diy beverages publicvoit.jpg]]

Here is the final result:

#+CAPTION: The DIY Cola in a glass.
#+ATTR_HTML: :align center :width 630 :linked-image-width none
[[tsfile:2022-01-08T21.49.02 DIY Cola - mit Ergenis im Glas -- diy beverages publicvoit.jpg][2022-01-08T21.49.02 DIY Cola - mit Ergenis im Glas -- diy beverages publicvoit.jpg]]

Although the Cola recipe is far from being as complex as [[https://www.youtube.com/c/GlenAndFriendsCooking/][other people
do]], it is really a good result. It reminds me more of a mixture of
Cola and Fanta which is not unpleasant to me.

***** A Habit to Stay

With self-producing soft drinks you do have a clear understanding on
the ingredients. You can use more or less syrup to your liking. The
result is really awesome - I would not have expected this.

With rather low temperatures outside these days, I also like to mix
the syrup with 60°C water in order to get an instant hot drink.

Try it yourself and drop me a link to your result as a comment below!