Best Soft Drink Types in the World
Chinotto is a carbonated soft drink made from the juice of the chinotto fruit. This beverage has been produced since the early 20th century in Liguria region of Italy. The chinotto fruit, a small and intensely bitter citrus fruit, imparts a distinctive flavor to the drink that balances sweetness with a pronounced bitter note.
The primary ingredients include chinotto fruit extract, sugar, carbonated water, caramel color, and various natural flavors. The flavor profile is often described as a mix between cola and citrus with herbal undertones. Chinotto is typically dark in color, similar to cola, and is carbonated.
Club-Mate is a caffeinated soft drink made from mate-extract, an infusion of dried yerba mate leaves. Compared to other soft drinks, it has a relatively low sugar content and a caffeine content of 20 mg per 100ml. It was originally formulated and marketed by Geola Beverages of Dietenhofen, Germany.
Today it’s produced by the Loscher Brewery which was established in 1924. A wide variety of flavors are available such as Club-Mate IceT Kraftstoff, Club-Mate winter edition, and Club-Mate Granat, among others.
Vimto is an iconic British purple-colored soft drink created in 1908 in Manchester, England. Originally, it was registered as a health tonic and came in the form of concentrated syrup intended to invigorate and refresh during the hot summer months.
The name Vimto is derived from the words "vim," which means energy or vitality, and "to", which is shortened form of the word "tonic". Today, there are many variations of the original drink, with Vimto Cordial (still, dilutable version, closest to its original form) and Fizzy Vimto (premixed carbonated version) being the most popular ones.
Apfelschorle is a popular beverage originating from Germany (and popular in neighboring Austria and Switzerland), consisting of a mix of apple juice and sparkling mineral water. The drink is well-loved for its refreshing taste and is a healthier alternative to sugary soft drinks, offering a natural sweetness from the apple juice tempered by the crispness of carbonated water.
Apfelschorle typically contains a ratio of about 50% to 60% apple juice to 40% to 50% sparkling water, although this can vary according to personal preference or commercial brands. This beverage is especially popular during the warmer months and is commonly found in restaurants, cafes, and supermarkets throughout Germany and neighboring countries.
MAIN INGREDIENTS
Despite its name, Italian soda is an American soft drink consisting of flavored syrups and soda. The syrups are usually flavored with spices or fruit, creating popular flavors such as cherry, raspberry, or chocolate, but they also mimic desserts or other drinks, resulting in flavors such as limoncello or amaretto.
Italian sodas will be served over ice. Sometimes, they may include cream, but the cream-based version is usually known as French soda or cream soda. Italian soda was popularized by Rinaldo and Ezilda Torre, who mixed Italian-style syrups with soda and started offering flavored sodas in North Beach, San Francisco.
Lagidze water is a Georgian soda that combines soda and natural syrups. Preparation of Lagidze soda is an authentic local experience as it is mainly prepared by mixing syrups and pouring soda directly from the soda fountain, but bottled versions are also available.
There are various flavors - typically based on local fruit and herbs. One of the most popular flavors is made with tarragon (tarkhuna). The drink was invented in 1887 by a pharmacist Mitrofan Lagidze from Kutaisi. He wanted to create completely natural syrups exclusively made from locally-sourced igredients.
Colombiana soda is an orange soft drink that tastes like cream soda with hints of bubblegum. It is a kola champagne soda, and it has been produced by Postobón, S. A., the largest Columbian beverage company, since 1904. It's a refreshing drink, best consumed after a meal.
Colombiana goes well with bandeja paisa and it's used to make the bittersweet and refreshing Colombian cocktail refajo.
Tsitsibira is the Greek term for a traditional, homemade ginger beer. It's a popular drink in Greece, particularly on the island of Corfu, where it was introduced by the British and has been made for centuries. The preparation of tsitsibira involves the fermentation of a mixture of water, sugar, lemon, and ginger.
The resulting drink is a fizzy, non-alcoholic (or very low-alcohol) beverage that's both sweet and tangy, with the characteristic spicy flavor of ginger. The fermentation process can take a few days, and the strength of the flavor can be adjusted by changing the amount of ginger or letting it ferment longer.
MAIN INGREDIENTS
Brasilena is a non-alcoholic coffee soda that hails from Calabria. The drink is made with natural coffee aromas and locally-sourced mineral water. It is a thirst-quenching fizzy drink with a characteristic dark brown color, medium carbonation, and rich coffee flavor.
This soda has been on the market for over 50 years—it was first produced in 1982, and it soon gained a loyal following in southern Italy, mainly Calabria, Apulia, Sicily, and Campania. It is also exported to several other countries. The drink is produced by a local Calabrian company Acqua Calabria.
Gassosa al caffè is a Calabrian specialty – a soft drink that is best described as coffee-flavored soda. The drink is sparkling, refreshing, and subtly sweet, with hints of caramel and a distinctive coffee flavor and aroma.
There are several brands of coffee-flavored sodas, some of the most notable are Brasilena, Siesta, Bibicaffè, and MokaDrink. The first variety that appeared on the market was Bibicaffè. It was introduced in 1941, but its history goes back to the beginning of the century.
Gassosa al caffè is usually sold in glass bottles, and many companies use vintage and retro advertising.
VARIATIONS OF Gassosa al caffè
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Pixley Berries emphasizes sustainability in its farming and production processes.
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