How to Make Flavored Sparkling Water

Adding Flavor to Sparkling Water

Add fresh fruit to your sparkling water. Chop, smash, or blend the fruit to release their flavor, and add about a handful of fruit per can of sparkling water, or 3 handfuls for a liter. Once the fruit is added to the water, leave it in the fridge for a few hours or overnight to let the flavors infuse the drink. Try flavorful fruits like strawberries, lemon, pineapple, and raspberries, or even try vegetables like cucumbers or ginger and fresh herbs like basil or rosemary. Make sure to chop or muddle the herbs, too, before they go into the sparkling water. Add fruit zest if you want an extra citrus zing! The sparkling water can be from a can or made at home using a water carbonation machine.

Mix your sparkling water with juice. Use a ratio of 1 part juice to 1 part sparkling water. Use your favorite juice, or make a mixture of two, like cranberry and pineapple or limeade and mango. Add more or less juice according to your own taste! Juice can be high in sugar and calories, so use a juice to sparkling water ratio of 1:3 for a healthier option.

Try adding natural sweeteners like syrup or honey. Mix well at room temperature to make sure the sweetener gets evenly distributed. Sweeten to taste, but if you’re concerned about your health, keep them limited. Use their unique tastes to enhance your flavor combinations, like putting apple and maple syrup together, or lemon and honey.

Use flavorful syrups to add to your sparkling water. Add the syrups to your sparkling water according to their instructions. Keep in mind that syrups are more concentrated than juice, so a little goes a long way. Buy flavorings that are imitations of sodas or sparkling water flavors you like, available in many grocery stores and also sold by companies that sell carbonation machines. Use pre-made syrups and extracts to explore flavors you wouldn’t be able to make on your own, like coconut extract, pumpkin pie flavoring syrup, or vanilla extract. Make your own syrups using recipes that tell you how to combine, blend, and strain ingredients you like.

Flavored Sparkling Water Recipes

Mango lime chili Add a handful of chopped mango, 2 tablespoons (30 mL) of lime juice (either bottled or freshly squeezed), and a pinch of cayenne pepper to a glass. Pour your sparkling water into the glass (from a can, or from a bottle you carbonated yourself–if you’re making a whole liter, triple the other ingredients). Stir and let sit in the refrigerator for at least two hours, then enjoy your cool drink.

Orange cream Add ⁄2 teaspoon (2.5 mL) of vanilla extract and ⁄2 teaspoon (2.5 mL) of orange extract to a glass. Then, add ⁄4 cup (59 mL) of orange juice (either freshly squeezed, or store-bought) to the glass. Add an orange slice, too, if you’d like! Pour chilled sparkling water into the glass (from a can, or a bottle you carbonated yourself). Stir well and enjoy!

Pineapple mint Chop a handful of pineapple into small pieces, and chop a couple of sprigs of fresh mint coarsely into pieces, then put them in an empty glass. Pour your sparkling water into the glass (from a can, or a bottle you carbonated yourself). Then, pour 1 teaspoon (4.9 mL) of honey into the sparkling water and stir well to dissolve the honey. Refrigerate for at least two hours, and enjoy!

Making your Own Flavored Syrups

Put all ingredients in a saucepan with water. To make a syrup, you will need to include a sweetener (sugar, honey, maple syrup, or agave nectar). Add 1 cup (240 mL) of water, 2 cups (470 mL) of chopped fruits, ⁄2 cup (120 mL) of your sweetener (1 cup (240 mL) if it’s sugar), a small handful of herbs, and 1 tablespoon (15 mL) of flavor extracts to the saucepan. Some great flavor combinations include strawberry basil, cherry vanilla, blood orange rosemary, mint limeade, and raspberry lemon ginger.

Bring the mixture to a low boil in the saucepan until the sweetener is melted and integrated with the rest of the mixture.

Simmer the mixture for about twenty minutes or until the fruit is softened and the mixture has a syrupy consistency.

Strain the mixture into a sealable container. Use a mesh strainer or sieve to keep fruit chunks and seeds out. As you strain, mash the mixture into the mesh to get all the juices into the container

Chill the syrup and keep refrigerated. It should last for at least two weeks in the refrigerator.

Use the syrup to make the flavored carbonated water more than once, adding between 2 to 4 tablespoons (30 to 59 mL) of syrup per glass.