To ask whether Sodastream is any good these days?

[walkingtheplank]

In an effort to reduce plastic usage, we're thinking of getting a Sodastream, mainly to make sparkling water.
Does the sparkling water taste OK and what are the syrups like - I recall them being rather disgusting when I was a kid, especially the Cola one.

Any insight would be good as they're quite expensive and will take up worktop space.

Also, is there a specific model that is recommended?

Sodastream bought out by Pepsi

www.theguardian.com/business/2018/aug/20/pepsi-buy-sodastream-health-conscious-drinks

I love mine
It comes with 1 litre bottles, you can get 1/2 litre ones in Argos. Argos also recycle the old gas cartridges and sell the strips. Dunelm used to but they aren't in my local shop any more.
I use it mostly for water but the children occasionally make a fizzy drink with the syrups.
Just a little warning. I once thought it would be a good idea to use it to revive a 2 day old opened bottle of Prosecco. Only I didn't put it in a bottle, just tried to "jujj" it in the glass. Big mistake. It was like ruddy Vesuvius. Hit the ceiling.

Sodastream’s headquarter is still in Israel and will stay there according to articles after the Pepsi takeover.

For me this is enough not to buy one despite only drinking sparkling water.

Had very happy Sodastream memories as a child and was going to buy one until I read about the Palestinian issue, thanks for the heads up.

I would love a soda stream but will never buy one for the ethical/political reasons stated above.

@FixItUpChappie You can get glass bottles for sodaStream x

Thank you to those who have been helpful about the machine/bottles/syrups. Really useful and am going to buy one this week.

For those who just want to voice their anti-Semitism , I was aware of the controversy and remain comfortable with the purchase.

I'm going to wait until they're £20 again then I might 😁

Someone just has to mention politics even in soda stream discussion. Jesus wept. I personally don't care and I'll buy what I want. There are always two sides of the story in politics.

@orange, so you continued to buy goods from South Africa during Apartheid did you? Oh.......

walkingtheplank boycotting goods that are produced in an occupied territory is not anti Semitic

I come from a third world country where your type of people wouldn't have bought our goods at some point because of politics. I can tell you it made people suffer. A job is better than no job and people cant be blamed for their government policy. HTH and get off your high horse.

Don't underestimate the power of consumer pressure Orange. Just coming from a developing nation doesn't give you the last word on how people should react to injustice. You can live in the UK and simultaneously be aware of international issues.

While we're here, can I ask how everyone goes about getting their gas canisters renewed?
I was going to buy a sodastream or similar last year but got put off by the potential faff.

Loads of sad do gooders who have no idea what real world out there is like. Do what you want and I do what I want. HTH.

@orange, so is my family. I fully get the complexity, but if you want change you hit companies where it hurts, in the £.

I am actually interested in what the wine was like once put through the soda stream

I LOVE ours. We've had it about 10 years and mostly use it for sparkling water. I go through lots so the saving on plastic is significant.

I've tried the syrups. They're awful, best avoided.

I have also used it to make homemade lemonade and turn wine cocktails fizzy. The results were pleasing

I am too. Having owned one I was imagining a burst soda stream bottle spraying my kitchen with eau de plonk.

Canisters can be replaced in Argos. It is a faff tbf.

I have the glass one with 3 bottles and 2 canisters. That means one in the dishwasher, one fizzy and getting cold in the fridge and one being drunk. We will get through 2-3 bottles a day, sometimes more. The two gas canisters means that there is always one canister ready or it's waiting for us to go past Argos to get a replacement, but we still have gas in the machine from the other.
It was expensive but brilliant. We don't use syrups but do add the water to orange or Apple juice sometimes after we have fizzed the water.

Buying a new canister is as much faff as buying anything.

1. Go to shop (Argos)
2. But item (canister)
3. Return home

Only difference is you need to take the empty one with you then you pay less for the new one.

I’ve got one, but they’ve discontinued making the diet cola/ cola/ Fanta syrups as they’ve rebranded into being a “healthy” sparkling water so have stopped making them. You can buy some of the syrups online but they’re very pricey :(

Blue Nun in a sodastream makes a sparkling dessert wine. Don't knock it till you've tried it. Inspired by Heston Blumenthal

Stop believing in all the rubbish written by bds people! Have you ever been there have you ever lived there?! It's not perfect but not the helll hole that's often implied.

The SodaStream plant provides employment for Israeli citizens of all walks of life. Mostly secular and a complete mixture of Palestinian/Arab and Jewish. They all live and work happily together.

That is the case for the majority of people in Israel. Go to any major hospital and you'll be treated by Palestinian and Israeli medics all working together. Tel Aviv is gloriously multi cultural with everyone all living together ranging from Muslim people to black Ethiopian Jews and all in between. No fighting no conflict. It is the same throughout most of Israel. People live together and mostly get on together. Don't believe everything you read. Of course there is conflict there and unhappiness on both sides, but the majority of people from both sides are decent and just getting on with their lives.

... and, not buying a SodaStream doesn't solve anything.

It is a great product made by great people.