I purchased a Sodastream Power Machine about a year ago to help me curb my addition to sodas. Many of you have probably seen the commercials and for some of us, the addiction is real. I was looking for a way to lower my sugar intake or eliminate drinking as many sodas. I was able to find one in the clearance bin at a local department store, but they are readily available through most retailers and Amazon.
I started by using the SodaStream mixes which were hit and miss. I couldn't get the soda mixes to taste right, probably the best one was the Lemon-Lime Mix which was a pretty close hit to no-name sodas. I liked it. The drinks I really liked were the fruit punches, the berry punch I couldn't get enough of, the Lemonade was pretty good. I tried something different which was the iced tea which came out tasting a lot like Brisk bottled Iced Tea. The problem I had is that even though the drink tasted great, it didn't give me increased energy, which would cause me to fall back to buying sodas, which was the whole reason why I bought the machine. I was discouraged...
In checking out the website where I bought vitamins, I found this product called REV3, which is produced by a company called USANA. I noticed that the product came as a canned product as well as a powdered product which is called a REV3 Surge Pack. I purchased some of each of the product and instantly fell in love with the canned drink. However, they do come in a case of 12 cans which does cost a bit in shipping to get the product to me. I then wondered if by using the REV3 Surge Pack I could use my SodaStream to create an energy drink which uses healthy ingredients to give me the energy boost that I needed.
I had my Sodastream Power Machine at my work. My theory was I could keep the packets in my desk drawer and would take up less room in the shared work fridge than the Sodastream mixes. You have to keep the mixes refrigerated after you open them. Using the powdered REV3 Surge Pack instead should be less mess and more convenience. I decided to find out a way to make a healthy energy drink using a SodaStream machine to carbonate water using REV3 Surge Packs.
I ordered up a Rev3 Surge Pack and I received 28 packages of powder in a small plastic bag. As well, it included an ingredient list (please read to make sure this product is right for you) that shows that they are using natural teas to create an energy drink. I first tried by just simply dumping the mix into plain water, stirring it up and drinking it. The taste of this product is definitely different than the canned product, it was more like an iced tea drink rather than a fruit punch soda and definitely did not have the fizz that the canned drink had. That is when I came up with the idea of using my SodaStream to create a carbonated energy drink using The REV3 Surge packs.
It took me a few experiments to get this to work right. In reading the instructions on the package, it states that it is flavouring for approximately 400ml of water. At first, I tried carbonating a SodaStream container of water with two packs and poured it directly into the bottle. DO NOT DO THIS...the product foamed up and overflowed and made a huge mess. Was disappointed and thought that maybe this simply would not work. However, I kept trying and found that if you first poured the carbonated water into a glass and then added the mix to the glass, it wouldn't foam up as much. So here is the process I came up with to make a healthy tea-based energy drink using a SodaStream and REV3 Surge pack.
1. Purchase the REV3 Surge packs. In the USA they also sell 14 packs as well as 28. In Canada they only sell the 28 packs, other countries may vary. The online store will give you a variety of shipping options, choose which is right for you.
2. Once you receive the mix, create a carbonated SodaStream bottle of water. On the SodaStream Power unit, I used the level 1 of carbonation. However, if you like your drinks more carbonated you can boost it higher. The manual units, start with however you carbonate your drinks and adjust to suit taste.
3. I found a cup that holds 400ml/13oz of water with a bit of space at the top to allow a bit of foaming Shake the mix packet before opening it to eliminate clumps then cut and pour the mix into the water. With a spoon slowly push the mix under the water and wait about 15 seconds while the product foams a bit. In the end, it should look something like this:
4. Stir the mix for about 1 1/2 minutes. You may experience some foaming and that is why we didn't fill the cup to the top. If it gets close to the top of the cup stop stirring for about 15 seconds then continue to stir. Once you stir it for about a minute and a half, you shouldn't feel any graininess at the bottom of the cup and the foam should have settled until you can almost see the water.
5. Let sit for one minute. The rest of the foam should go down and you should end up with a drink that looks like iced tea. You may also notice some staining at the top of the cup, don't worry it washes out.
6. Enjoy your drink. In the testing I've done, it tastes a lot like Brisk Iced Tea, but feel free to comment on how you liked it.
After playing around and adjusting the measurements I believe I have found a way to make a tasty carbonated Ice Tea drink that uses natural teas to give you a boost of energy that lasts long and shouldn't give you a crash like some of the sugar-based energy drinks on the market. The cost per packet is around $2.50-$3.00 which brings it right around the same cost of a canned energy drink, but with less harmful effects to your body. I think its a great alternative and uses the great SodaStream Product to give the fizz that we all crave.