# Honey Soda Pop



## Barry (Dec 28, 1999)

Yep, it's a winner! I got his permission to post it years ago:

http://www.beesource.com/resources/elements-of-beekeeping/honey-soda-made-the-easy-way/


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## sqkcrk (Dec 10, 2005)

I believe that John is from Maryland. Is he still around?


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## Barry (Dec 28, 1999)

Good question, I have no idea. I haven't seen anything from him for a long time by way of article or web posting. He was out east somewhere.


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## power napper (Apr 2, 2005)

We made another batch yesterday and am patienly waiting on the plastic bottles to get ridgid so I can put them in refrigerator. This stuff is truly addictive, everyone loves it.
Wife wants Cream Soda so have to purchase some of that extract to try. Hope we have enough honey to make it through winter!


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## Bee Bliss (Jun 9, 2010)

Power napper.... can you give us your online source for the yeast and extract. Thanks!


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## power napper (Apr 2, 2005)

Williams Brewing is where we buy our extracts and yeast.

williamsbrewing.com


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## Ethfol (Jun 25, 2010)

So would this be alchoholic?


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## Ben Brewcat (Oct 27, 2004)

Technically it'll have a trace amount of alcohol, less than .5%. But yes. 

I'll offer my perennial curmudgeonly safety post: using ale yeast is the most reliable way to stop fermentation with refrigeration; wine yeast may continue at a slow pace (potentially causing grenades). Using plastic bottles greatly reduces the damage a burst bottle will cause, and also (as noted) allows you to test carbonation by squeezing.


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## Ethfol (Jun 25, 2010)

Is there a way to make something like this without any alcohol?


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## Ben Brewcat (Oct 27, 2004)

Not without force-carbonating, which requires some expensive equipment (CO2, regulators, fittings, keg and counterpressure filler). 

Note that this much alcohol is considered a "trace" amount, and barring religious/allergic considerations is negligible. Until recent quality-control problems, you could buy naturally-carbonated beverages such as kombucha for your 4-year-old (with a clean conscience too ). You couldn't drink enough to develop any level of intoxication (you'd suffer hydrotoxicity first).

An alternative for those with strict dietary considerations could be to make up the syrup and drink it with a splash of carbonated water.

As an aside DON'T try to use dry ice chips. While some smarties will try to tell you that this-many grams of dry ice equals this-many volumes of CO2 (and they're right about that), what they are missing is that the CO2 from the dry ice sublimes much faster than the gas dissolves into solution. Meaning that there's a dangerous buildup of pressure until the gas dissolves. Boom. Hope you used plastic, and did it in a room where you can mop the ceiling.


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## Idahobeek (Jun 11, 2010)

Ethfol said:


> Is there a way to make something like this without any alcohol?



Actually yes.

You can buy carbonated water and just use that as a replacement for the water. I do this with the ginger ale we make here when I just want to do small 2 liter batches. I don't see why a person couldn't cut this back to that size batch. The trick is getting everything mixed without losing all your CO2. 

Remember to chill the carbonated water a cold as you can, cold liquids hold dissolved gasses better than warm ones, add the ingredients to water and close the container before trying to mix them, then allow them to sit until everything equalizes and dissolves. 

Using honey might be a little tricky and take longer to dissolve without a large amount of shaking and stirring but I bet it would work.

I no longer use ANY yeast in soda, I either use the above cheat or force carbonate it. One batch of rootbeer bottle bombs changed my perspective about yeast in soda forever.

Edit: One other thing to possibly keep in mind, your honey may in fact contain some wild yeast and by hydrating it allow fermentation. I would consider using a pasteurized honey to eliminate that possibility.


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## power napper (Apr 2, 2005)

We are now drinking a batch of Cream Soda made with knotweed honey, it is awesome!

I am going to try to have a batch made and aged for Thanksgiving this year, a treat in an ice filled glass for all to enjoy.

"Here is a toast to bees and beekeepers" will be my words.


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## wolfpenfarm (Jan 13, 2009)

Heres a simple solution, why not take a soda cannister you use for a fountain drink, add co2 to it and dispense it. They make low cost fountain machines for this. All you have to do then is pour your mix into the cannister and then hook up to the co2 and water line.


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## GaSteve (Apr 28, 2004)

Since we're always looking for new things for the craft shows in addition to the honey and candles, does anyone have any experience selling honey sweetened soda either by the cup from a keg or by the bottle? I have beer brewing equipment to force carbonate it. Although I've never used them, I've read about a beer gun and other gadgets to bottle carbonated beverages from a keg to avoid sediment and overpressures -- not sure how well they work. I also wonder if the honey would ferment if the soda wasn't kept refrigerated all the time.


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## Ben Brewcat (Oct 27, 2004)

Counterpressure bottle fillers take a bit of finesse to dial in but work fine. Kind of labor-intensive, certainly you wouldn't want to do very many for packaged soda sales; if they took off you'll be kicking yourself :doh:. But if you're kegging it to serve cups (draft) why bottle? And yes, unless pasteurized I suspect that honey-sweetened soda would likely start to ferment at room temp though I've not tried it.


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