Orgeat Lemonade Soda – Recipe & History

Orgeat Lemonade Soda
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Orgeat Lemonade Soda

0 from 0 votes Only logged in users can rate recipes
Course: DrinksCuisine: American
Servings

1

servings
Calories

100

kcal
Total time

3

minutes

How to make a classic Sparkling Orgeat Lemonade

Ingredients

  • 1.5 oz Lemon Juice

  • 1/2 oz Simple Syrup

  • 1 oz Orgeat

  • 8 oz Soda Water

Directions

  • Technique: Saxe Soda Shake
  • Combine all ingredients into a cocktail shaker except for the soda water.
  • Add one medium or two small ice cubes to the cocktail shaker and shake until the ice fully melts.
  • Without a strainer, pour the chilled and aerated drink into a glass.
  • Top with soda water.

Featured Video

What Does The Orgeat Lemonade Taste Like?

The orgeat lemonade is a fantastic drink. The orgeat syrup adds a sweetness that offsets the tartness of the lemonade and gives it a wonderful nutty cherry flavor. Orgeat lemonade has been popular for almost 200 years and for good reason. It enhances the lemonade and makes for a drink that is more than the sum of its parts.

History Of The Orgeat Lemonade.

The oldest orgeat lemonade recipe I can find comes from the 1862 book “The Bartenders Guide” by Jerry Thomas. Listed as a temperance drink and has both a still water version and a sparking water soda version. Presently the orgeat lemonade is called a mocktail, but in the past, it was simply seen as a drink or soda. I personally hate the term mocktail because it’s clear alcoholics invented it. A Coke without rum is not a mocktail. It’s a soda. A person drinking orange juice is not drinking a mixer. They are drinking orange juice. When your only tool is a hammer, everything looks like a nail, and the term mocktail is an example of that. The oldest reference I found to an orgeat lemonade comes from an 1820 issue of “The Dublin Magazine,” where the author describes how a hotel he stayed at in Paris, France served orgeat lemonades. I wouldn’t be surprised if this drink originated in France, as orgeat (and later grenadine) was wildly popular in France during the 19th century and added to many drinks.

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Orgeat Lemonade – Recipe & History

Orgeat lemonade
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Orgeat Lemonade

0 from 0 votes Only logged in users can rate recipes
Course: DrinksCuisine: American
Servings

1

servings
Calories

100

kcal
Total time

3

minutes

Learn how to make the 1862 Orgeat Lemonade

Ingredients

  • 1.5 oz Lemon Juice

  • 1/2 oz Simple Syrup

  • 1 oz Orgeat

  • 8 oz Water

Directions

  • Technique: Tiki Dirty Pour
  • Combine all ingredients into a shaker with crushed ice.
  • Vigorously shake for 10 seconds.
  • Dirty pour the whole shaker into a glass. Crushed ice and all.

Featured Video

What Does The Orgeat Lemonade Taste Like?

The orgeat lemonade is a fantastic drink. The orgeat syrup adds a sweetness that offsets the tartness of the lemonade and gives it a wonderful nutty cherry flavor. Orgeat lemonade has been popular for almost 200 years and for good reason. It enhances the lemonade and makes for a drink that is more than the sum of its parts.

History Of The Orgeat Lemonade.

The oldest orgeat lemonade recipe I can find comes from the 1862 book “The Bartenders Guide” by Jerry Thomas. Listed as a temperance drink and has both a still water version and a sparking water soda version. Presently the orgeat lemonade is called a mocktail, but in the past, it was simply seen as a drink or soda. I personally hate the term mocktail because it’s clear alcoholics invented it. A Coke without rum is not a mocktail. It’s a soda. A person drinking orange juice is not drinking a mixer. They are drinking orange juice. When your only tool is a hammer, everything looks like a nail, and the term mocktail is an example of that. The oldest reference I found to an orgeat lemonade comes from an 1820 issue of “The Dublin Magazine,” where the author describes how a hotel he stayed at in Paris, France served orgeat lemonades. I wouldn’t be surprised if this drink originated in France, as orgeat (and later grenadine) was wildly popular in France during the 19th century and added to many drinks.

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Matcha Tea – Recipe

Matcha
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Matcha Tea

0 from 0 votes Only logged in users can rate recipes
Course: DrinksCuisine: Japanese
Servings

1

servings
Calories

3

kcal
Total time

3

minutes

Learn how to make a matcha tea

Ingredients

  • 1/4 tsp Matcha Powder

  • 2-3 oz Hot Water

Directions

  • Technique: Whisking Method
  • Combine matcha powder and hot water in a tea bowl and whisk together till foam forms.
  • Technique: Shaking Method
  • Combine matcha powder and hot water in a BlenderBottle and shake for 10 seconds.

Featured Video

How Is Matcha Prepared

Matcha is traditionally whisked with hot water till foam forms at the top. A bamboo matcha whisk(chasen) and tea bowl(chawan) can be bought for around $30, and it works well, but I found shaking the drink in either an insulated thermos or plastic shaker bottle works better. The simple BlenderBottle, most people already have made the best matcha, and those only cost $10. Shake the drink as you would a cocktail and enjoy. Alternatively, the whisking method is simple too. Using the bamboo whisk, whisk the matcha in hot water till foam forms, and enjoy.

While traditional matcha is just matcha powder and hot water, mixing it with milk and sweeteners is popular today. Starbucks has a bunch of bright green matcha lattes and Frappuccinos, and many trendy tea stands sell matcha milk teas with boba. These drinks were my first exposure to matcha and personally turned me away from liking it. I thought I didn’t like matcha until I had traditional Japanese-style matcha. If you have never had plain traditional matcha, give it a try.

What Is The Difference Between Drinking Matcha vs Green Tea?

Matcha is generally considered healthier than green tea alone. It has all the same health benefits as regular green tea but at higher levels, since you also consume the tea leaf. There is more caffeine, vitamins E and B, zinc, and L-Theamine. The extra L-Theamine is the most significant benefit of drinking matcha over green tea. L-Theamine provides mental focus and alertness without additional energy. It has the cognitive benefits of a stimulant without being stimulating. Matcha contains around 25mg of L-Thamine, whereas green tea has about 5mg.

Eat Something Before Drinking Matcha

I learned this the hard way, but drinking matcha on an empty stomach first thing in the morning will make you vomit. I don’t eat breakfast. I typically drink a couple of cups of coffee after I wake up and eat around 11 or 12. It’s not for everyone, but It’s how my body works. I tried replacing coffee with matcha one morning, and 30 minutes later, I vomited. I took to Reddit and asked my fellow r/tea folks if this was normal, and the overwhelming response to how I consumed it was yes. Matcha is very high in tannins, and it can be too much for your body to handle on an empty stomach. Mixing matcha into a latte helps, but eating something beforehand is necessary. Please don’t do what I did.

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Arnold Palmer – Classic Recipe & History

Arnold Palmer
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Arnold Palmer

0 from 0 votes Only logged in users can rate recipes
Course: DrinksCuisine: American
Servings

1

servings
Calories

100

kcal
Total time

3

minutes

Learn how to make a classic Arnold Palmer

Ingredients

  • 5 oz Lemonade

  • 5 oz Iced Tea

Directions

  • Technique: Simple Combination
  • Add ice to a glass.
  • Simply combine the ingredients and stir to combine and cool the drink.

Featured Video

History Of The Arnold Palmer Drink/Temperance Lemon Tea

The official Arnold Palmer website states the Arnold Palmer was first invented in the late 1960s when a customer overheard the famous golfer order a mix of lemonade and iced tea. The customer said they would have what Arnold Palmer ordered, and thus, the drink was invented. These neatly packaged and simple origin stories are often false and created without knowing how something came to be. Perhaps this did happen, but I cannot find any reference to mixed lemonade and iced tea being called an Arnold Palmer till the early 1990s. Mixed lemonade and iced tea drinks date back to American prohibition. In the 1922 book Home-Made Beverages and American Drinks by M.E. Steedman, Lemon Tea is the equal mix of lemonade and iced tea. In a 1954 Life Magazine advertisement, Sunkist states that American children prefer the taste of Sunkist lemonade to others and that it tastes great mixed with iced tea. So did Arnold Palmer invent the drink? Of course not, but his name has become synonymous with the mix of lemonade and iced tea.

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Horchata De Chufa – 1874 Tiger Nut Horchata Recipe

Tiger Nut Horchata
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Horchata De Chufa

0 from 0 votes Only logged in users can rate recipes
Course: DrinksCuisine: Spanish
Servings

1

servings
Calories

120

kcal
Total time

3

minutes

Learn how to make old-fashioned tiger nut horchata.

Ingredients

  • 1 oz Tiger Nut Flour

  • 10 oz Water

Directions

  • Technique: Tiki Dirty Pour
  • Combine all ingredients into a shaker with crushed ice.
  • Vigorously shake for 10 seconds.
  • Dirty pour the whole shaker into a glass. Crushed ice and all.

Featured Video

Tiger Nut Horchata

The most common type of horchata is rice horchata, often called Mexican, but tiger nut horchata is popular in Spain. If you have never had a tiger nut, they are small little root tubers from the yellow nutsedge plant and are more similar to potatoes than tree nuts. They are fantastic to eat and taste like a mix between coconut and pecan. They are sold dry and can be rehydrated to eat straight, but they can be bought as ground-up tiger nut flour for making Horchata. The process for turning them into horchata is the same as rice, but they make for a horchata with a muskier and more earthy-tasting flavor than rice.

The History Of Horchata

I will start by saying I am not a doctor, and you should consult a professional for medical advice. The information that follows is from a historical perspective. Horchata-style drinks originated in ancient Greece as a drink called “Kykeōn” (Greek. κυκεών) which means to stir or mix. Kykeōn was a drink made by stirring barley flour and water to make a simple health drink. The Romans adopted the Greek barley and water health drink and called it “Hordeum,” which is the origin of the present-day word Horchata. As the Roman language splintered, the Occitan dialect would refer to barley water as “Orjat,” which is where the French term Orgeat comes from. The Italian dialect would use the word “Orzata,” and the Castilian/Spanish dialect used “Orchata.” Since this is typically a Spanish drink, I will use the Spanish word Horchata to refer to this style of drink and its many variations from here on.

Horchata traditionally was only barley flour dissolved in cold water. It was seen as a tonic/health drink that anyone could make at home without a technical understanding of measuring and extracting medicines from various medicinal plants. Essentially any mother or nanny could make this for a sick child. They didn’t have to be a pharmacist to be able to make it effective and safe. As other starchy mineral-rich food became more common, they were ground up and mixed with water to create new styles of horchata. Horchata de arroz (Rice horchata), Horchata de chufas (Tiger nut horchata), lentil horchata, carrot stem, rye, foxglove, etc. (Although, unlike the others, foxglove can be dangerous.) and regular barley water horchata became known as common horchata or “Horchata Comun.” These drinks are similar because they are mineral-rich, starchy drinks that can easily be made by stirring the ground flour with cold water. Today the most common horchata is rice horchata, which is seen as more of a fun, sweet summer drink than a healthy drink. Traditional barley water is still a healthy drink, while the others have mostly fallen off. Tiger nut horchata is still prevalent in Spain too. Rice horchata typically has sugar and spices added for flavor, but its oldest form was just rice flour and water.

Horchata In English

Horchata doesn’t translate to English as it doesn’t exist outside of Spanish influence in English cultures. Even in English, it’s just horchata. The oldest kind of horchata was made from barley, so the English equivalent would be barley water. Therefore the closest match of horchata made from rice would be rice milk, horchata made from tiger nuts would be tiger nut milk, and horchata made from grains and cereal would be oat milk.

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Horchata De Arroz – 1874 Rice Horchata Recipe

Mexican Horchata
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Horchata De Arroz

0 from 0 votes Only logged in users can rate recipes
Course: DrinksCuisine: Spanish
Servings

1

servings
Calories

40

kcal
Total time

3

minutes

Learn how to make old-fashioned 1800s-style rice horchata. Seen as a quick and easy health drink in the past, they were not sweet or flavored as they are today.

Ingredients

  • 1/8 tsp Ground Cinnamon (Optional)

  • 1/2 oz Simple Syrup (Optional)

  • 1 oz Rice Flour

  • 10 oz Cold Water

Directions

  • Technique: Tiki Dirty Pour
  • Combine all ingredients into a shaker with crushed ice. Optionally add ground cinnamon for flavor and simple syrup for sweetness.
  • Vigorously shake for 10 seconds.
  • Dirty pour the whole shaker into a glass. Crushed ice and all.

Featured Video

Rice Horchata

While there are other kinds of horchata, horchata made from rice are the most popular and common. So much so that most people don’t even know different types of horchata exist. In its most basic form, horchata de arroz (rice) is rice flour blended with cold water. See the history of horchata below for more information. This horchata has no spices or added sugar and was once considered a healthy drink. Presently horchata is more of a sweet summer dessert-like drink that no longer retains its older healthy image. I live in the southwest, where horchata is very popular at Mexican restaurants, and here we think of horchata de arroz as Mexican horchata. Many Mexican recipes have cream, evaporated milk, vanilla, cinnamon, and sugar. These are cooked and are very sweet. That is different from the kind of recipe I have here. The recipe and method I am providing are how horchata was prepared in the 19th and 18th centuries.

The History Of Horchata

I will start by saying I am not a doctor, and you should consult a professional for medical advice. The information that follows is from a historical perspective. Horchata-style drinks originated in ancient Greece as a drink called “Kykeōn” (Greek. κυκεών) which means to stir or mix. Kykeōn was a drink made by stirring barley flour and water to make a simple health drink. The Romans adopted the Greek barley and water health drink and called it “Hordeum,” which is the origin of the present-day word Horchata. As the Roman language splintered, the Occitan dialect would refer to barley water as “Orjat,” which is where the French term Orgeat comes from. The Italian dialect would use the word “Orzata,” and the Castilian/Spanish dialect used “Orchata.” Since this is typically a Spanish drink, I will use the Spanish word Horchata to refer to this style of drink and its many variations from here on.

Horchata traditionally was only barley flour dissolved in cold water. It was seen as a tonic/health drink that anyone could make at home without a technical understanding of measuring and extracting medicines from various medicinal plants. Essentially any mother or nanny could make this for a sick child. They didn’t have to be a pharmacist to be able to make it effective and safe. As other starchy mineral-rich food became more common, they were ground up and mixed with water to create new styles of horchata. Horchata de arroz (Rice horchata), Horchata de chufas (Tiger nut horchata), lentil horchata, carrot stem, rye, foxglove, etc. (Although, unlike the others, foxglove can be dangerous.) and regular barley water horchata became known as common horchata or “Horchata Comun.” These drinks are similar because they are mineral-rich, starchy drinks that can easily be made by stirring the ground flour with cold water. Today the most common horchata is rice horchata, which is seen as more of a fun, sweet summer drink than a healthy drink. Traditional barley water is still a healthy drink, while the others have mostly fallen off. Tiger nut horchata is still prevalent in Spain too. Rice horchata typically has sugar and spices added for flavor, but its oldest form was just rice flour and water.

Horchata In English

Horchata doesn’t translate to English as it doesn’t exist outside of Spanish influence in English cultures. Even in English, it’s just horchata. The oldest kind of horchata was made from barley, so the English equivalent would be barley water. Therefore the closest match of horchata made from rice would be rice milk, horchata made from tiger nuts would be tiger nut milk, and horchata made from grains and cereal would be oat milk.

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Vanilla Cream Syrup – Old Fashioned Recipe

Sweet Cream Syrup
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Vanilla Cream Syrup

0 from 0 votes Only logged in users can rate recipes
Course: DrinksCuisine: American
Servings

20

servings
Calories

80

kcal
Total time

15

minutes

Learn how to make an old-fashioned vanilla cream syrup. This recipe makes 3 cups (700 mLs) of syrup.

Ingredients

  • 1 cups Whole Milk

  • 1 cups Heavy Cream

  • 2 cups Granulated Sugar

  • 2 tsp Vanilla Extract

Directions

  • Combine all ingredients together.
  • Stir till the sugar fully dissolves and refrigerate.

Featured Video

Homemade Old Fashion Vanilla Cream Syrup.

Vanilla cream syrup is a fantastic addition to almost any soda. A small half-ounce of vanilla cream syrup adds wonderful texture and creaminess from colas to fruit-flavored sodas. Vanilla cream syrup is straightforward to make too. Two cups of milk, heavy cream, sugar, and two tsp of vanilla extract make a lovely syrup.

If you want to learn more about this topic and make your drinks better, check out De Forest Saxe’s 1894 book “Saxe’s New Guide Hints to Soda Water Dispensers.” and the 1906 book “The Standard Manual of Soda and Other Beverages.”

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Lemon Cream Soda – Old Fashioned Recipe

Lemon Cream Soda
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Lemon Cream Soda

0 from 0 votes Only logged in users can rate recipes
Course: DrinksCuisine: American
Servings

1

servings
Calories

60

kcal
Total time

3

minutes

Learn how to make an old fashion lemon cream soda

Ingredients

  • 1.5 oz Lemon Syrup

  • 1/2 oz Vanilla Cream Syrup

  • 8 oz Soda Water

Directions

  • Technique: Saxe Soda Shake
  • Combine syrup and vanilla cream syrup in a cocktail shaker.
  • dd one medium or two small ice cubes to the cocktail shaker and shake until the ice fully melts.
  • Pour the chilled and aerated syrup into a collins glass without a strainer.
  • Slowly pour the soda water down into the top of the drink. This will build both body and a foam head.

Featured Video

What Does A Lemon Cream Soda Taste Like?

The lemon cream soda is fantastic and tastes like a lemon custard pie. The mild tartness of the lemons blends perfectly with the sweet vanilla cream syrup. And using homemade fresh lemon syrup provides a complex and deep lemon flavor that artificial lemon syrups can’t match.

How To Make Lemon Syrup

A basic lemon syrup is made of:

  • 2 cups Lemon Juice
  • 2 cups Granulated Sugar
  • 1 tsp Lemon Extract

You can add two optional ingredients: 1/4 tsp citric acid and 3 grams lecithin powder. The citric acid adds additional acid and lemon flavor that helps retain the lemon flavor once the syrup is diluted. While it doesn’t affect the flavor, a small amount of yellow food coloring helps with the appearance of the soda. Simply add 3 drops of yellow food dye to 3 cups of lemon syrup. The lecithin powder acts as an emulsifier and a foaming agent. It helps add a nice stable foam head to your soda or cocktails. For more information about old fashion homemade lemon syrup check out my full article

How To Make Vanilla Cream Syrup

A nice vanilla cream syrup is:

  • 2 cups heavy cream
  • 2 cups whole milk
  • 2 cups granulated sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract

How To Get A Nice Foam On Your Sodas.

It was typical for high-end sodas in the late 1800s to have a nice foam on top. Similar to high-end molecular gastronomy restaurants today, a nice soda fountain would ensure that some drinks had an air or foam on top as you sipped your drink. The foam provides both a creamy texture and olfactory stimulation. These were called foaming agents, and in the 1800s, soap bark or other extracts were added to syrups to provide foam when shaken and mixed with soda water. A popular one today in the United States is propylene glycol, and while it is “generally recognized as safe” (GRAS) in the US, it is banned for consumption in the EU. Another modern alternative, and the one I use, is adding lecithin to my syrups. Lecithin is flavor neutral, a natural emulsifier that provides a nice foam, and is often taken as a health supplement. It is also the foaming agent many high-end restaurants use to make foams for food. So I’ll add 0.5% of the total syrups weight of lecithin powder to my syrups as a foaming agent. Check out my vanilla cream syrup recipe for exactly how that is done.

If you want to learn more about this topic and make your drinks better, check out De Forest Saxe’s 1894 book “Saxe’s New Guide Hints to Soda Water Dispensers.”

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Lemon Soda – Old Fashioned Recipe

Lemon Soda
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See how to make a fantastic lemon soda

Lemon Soda

0 from 0 votes Only logged in users can rate recipes
Course: DrinksCuisine: American
Servings

1

servings
Calories

48

kcal
Total time

3

minutes

Learn how to make an old fashion lemon soda

Ingredients

  • 1.5 oz Lemon Syrup

  • 1/2 oz Lemon Juice

  • 8 oz Soda Water

Directions

  • Technique: Saxe Soda Shake
  • Combine syrup and juice in a cocktail shaker.lemon soda
  • Add one medium or two small ice cubes to the cocktail shaker and shake until the ice fully melts.lemon soda
  • Pour the chilled and aerated syrup into a collins glass without a strainer.lemon soda
  • Slowly pour the soda water down into the top of the drink. This will build both body and a foam head.lemon soda

Recipe Video

Making A Old Fashion Homemade Lemon Soda

An old fashion lemon soda is very different from today’s store-bought lemon-lime sodas. It tastes more like a sweet sparkling lemonade than a sprite. Adding a little lemon juice adds a bit of extra sourness to offset the sweetness and makes for a complex and flavorful lemon soda.

How To Make Lemon Syrup

A Basic lemon syrup is made of:

  • 2 cups Lemon Juice
  • 2 cups Granulated Sugar
  • 1 tsp Lemon Extract

You can add two optional ingredients: 1/4 tsp citric acid, yellow food coloring, and 3 grams lecithin powder. The citric acid adds additional acid and lemon flavor that helps retain the lemon flavor once the syrup is diluted. While it doesn’t affect the flavor, a small amount of yellow food coloring helps with the appearance of the soda. Simply add 3 drops of yellow food dye to 3 cups of lemon syrup. The lecithin powder acts as an emulsifier and a foaming agent. It helps add a nice stable foam head to your soda or cocktails. For more information about old fashion homemade lemon syrup check out my full article

How To Get A Nice Foam On Your Sodas.

It was typical for high-end sodas in the late 1800s to have a nice foam on top. Similar to high-end molecular gastronomy restaurants today, a nice soda fountain would ensure that some drinks had an air or foam on top as you sipped your drink. The foam provides both a creamy texture and olfactory stimulation. These were called foaming agents, and in the 1800s, soap bark or other extracts were added to syrups to provide foam when shaken and mixed with soda water. A popular one today in the United States is propylene glycol, and while it is “generally recognized as safe” (GRAS) in the US, it is banned for consumption in the EU. Another modern alternative, and the one I use, is adding lecithin to my syrups. Lecithin is flavor neutral, a natural emulsifier that provides a nice foam, and is often taken as a health supplement. It is also the foaming agent many high-end restaurants use to make foams for food. So I’ll add 0.5% of the total syrups weight of lecithin powder to my syrups as a foaming agent. Check out my lemon syrup recipe for exactly how that is done.

If you want to learn more about this topic and make your drinks better, check out De Forest Saxe’s 1894 book “Saxe’s New Guide Hints to Soda Water Dispensers.

Recipe Resources

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Orange Soda – Old Fashioned Recipe

Orange Soda
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Orange Soda

0 from 0 votes Only logged in users can rate recipes
Course: DrinksCuisine: American
Servings

1

servings
Calories

45

kcal
Total time

3

minutes

Make an old-fashioned orange soda.

Ingredients

  • 1.5 oz Orange Syrup

  • 8 oz Soda Water

Directions

  • Technique: Saxe Soda Shake
  • Add syrup to a cocktail shaker.
  • Add one medium or two small ice cubes to the cocktail shaker and shake until the ice fully melts.
  • Pour the chilled and aerated syrup into a collins glass without a strainer.
  • Slowly pour the soda water down into the top of the drink. This will build both body and a foam head.

Featured Video

Check out our latest video

What Does An Old Fashion Orange Soda Taste Like?

An old fashion orange soda made with fresh orange syrup taste so much better than any other orange soda you can buy at a store. The reduced orange juice and orange extract syrup flavors are complex and deep without overwhelming. If you are curious about how to make fresh orange syrup check out my orange syrup recipe.

How To Get A Nice Foam On Your Sodas.

It was typical for high-end sodas in the late 1800s to have a nice foam on top. Similar to high-end molecular gastronomy restaurants today, a nice soda fountain would ensure that some drinks had an air or foam on top as you sipped your drink. The foam provides both a creamy texture and olfactory stimulation. These were called foaming agents, and in the 1800s, soap bark or other extracts were added to syrups to provide foam when shaken and mixed with soda water. A popular one today in the United States is propylene glycol, and while it is “generally recognized as safe” (GRAS) in the US, it is banned for consumption in the EU. Another modern alternative, and the one I use, is adding lecithin to my syrups. Lecithin is flavor neutral, a natural emulsifier that provides a nice foam, and is often taken as a health supplement. It is also the foaming agent many high-end restaurants use to make foams for food. So I’ll add 0.5% of the total syrups weight of lecithin powder to my syrups as a foaming agent. Check out my Cream of Coconut recipe for exactly how that is done.

If you want to learn more about this topic and make your drinks better, check out De Forest Saxe’s 1894 book “Saxe’s New Guide Hints to Soda Water Dispensers.

Recipe Resources

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