Jane, email me with your address and I’ll
forward it on to Cultures for Health for your prize!
Pardon the insanity of this post, although I would imagine that you’re used to my craziness by now, right? You already know that I am obsessed with jars, that I buy hundreds of pounds of wheat at one time and that I love my butter and cream. But did you know that I also really love fizz?
You might have had a clue that fizz is my friend if you remember my former Pepsi addiction. After I gave up Pepsi, I’ve really missed the fizz, which led me to figure out some healthier alternatives to soda. But healthier yet is making water kefir soda, which not only has fizz…it’s wonderful for your digestion!
If you want a little fizz in your life and you also want a healthy gut, try making water kefir soda!!! It’s inexpensive, easy and look…there’s lots and lots of fizz!!
If you’re not a big fan of fizz, you can still use Water Kefir Grains to make a very healthy digestive drink, just don’t allow it to become fizzy. I’ll work on a post in the future with a step by step picture tutorial of how to make water kefir, but really, if you get the water kefir grains starter kit, all of the instructions are right there and very simple to follow.
Now, just to prove that you can make an incredible amount of fizz with homemade water kefir soda, I took a short video of my fizz. I could have captured one of my children doing something amazing on the soccer field to show you, but no. Instead, I made a movie of my fizz. Be sure to turn your volume up so that you can hear the fizz doing it’s fizzy magic.
Weren’t the bubbles beautiful?
So how about the taste of this grape water kefir soda? Eh, it’s gonna need to grow on me a little bit. I can’t say that I just love how it tastes. But it’s not bad, and because I know it’s so good for me and because of all the wonderful fizz, I am drinking it happily.
Do you love fizz, or would you rather a drink be free of bubbles? Fizz lovers, seriously, it’s all about the burn, is it not?
You can find a very reasonably priced Water Kefir Grains Kit through Cultures for Health. If you purchase through this link, I’ll earn a small percentage of that purchase. But that’s not the reason I’m telling you about this great product. It’s about healthy digestion, and of course, it’s really all about the fizz.
Wow, Laura! That is fizzy! I don’t think I ever got mine that fizzy, but I’ve only used quart jars. Would that make a difference? Some yummy flavors are lemon and ginger. I have a serious weakness for the ginger kefir! It’s like drinking Vernors (my favorite ginger ale)!
Yes, I think if you put it in a really air tight container, it will get much fizzier. I use 1-liter bottles with a screw on lid. I’ll have to try making ginger ale!
Hi Laura, I like the video
of you opening the fizzy
grape soda. But I can’t
find anywhere that tells
me how much grapes or juice
you put it the bottle and
how big the bottle is.
I would like to make it.
I love fizzy grape soda.
Thanks.
Jeannette
Very cool. I want to make ginger ale as I hope to get pregnant again soon and think it would help with morning sickness.
My favorite is using lime juice. I don’t always have limes on hand, but you can add the lime juice that’s available at Azure and that’s good as well.
It doesn’t taste like pop and I’ve never seen the fizz like you have, but I still like it. I wonder if the narrow opening is the key? I always use a quart canning jar.
I’ll have to try the ginger…Anna – do you add grated ginger? If so, do you know how much? I’m assuming you add it on the second ferment?
Yes, I think the narrow opening makes the fizziness. I was afraid the whole bottle would explode it was so fizzy!!
WOW! I am going to have to check this out. I am addicted to Coke-a-Cola and am weening myself off of the stuff. I have missed the fizz so much! This looks like my answer to my “fizzy love”. Thanks Laura : )
Prunes and using sucanat = something close to the taste of Dr. Pepper.
Oh, and if you live anywhere near Southern Oregon, I share my water kefir grains for free, so just contact me if you are interested.
Kris,
I have just been doing a little research on kefir, and I have decided I need to do this RIGHT AWAY!!
I live in Central Point, and I was searching for where I could buy
kefir grains locally. Do you still have some available, or do you know where I could buy some??
Thank you SO much,
Janel
I have dairy and water kefir grains and I give them away for free. Email me at krismays at aol dot com
Do you have any water kifer to give away? I would be willing to pay for the postage. Could you spare a half cup?
Thank you,
Margi
I don’t currently have water kefir grains, but I couldn’t ship them anyway. Sorry!
I actually hate fizz. I’ve never liked soda or kool-aid or naything like that. If I screwed the cap on loosely, would it “go flat”?
What makes the fizziness is what’s called the “second fermentation”, which is when you close the beverage up in an air tight container. If you were to simply make the water kefir and not do the second fermentation, you’d get a pretty fizzless drink that is still very good for the tummy!
I don’t have very much fizz if any when I use my quart canning jar. I don’t care much about the fizz, but my family would love fizz!
You could actually not ferment it as long and have the cap loose, yes. It would still be beneficial for your gut.
I stored mine in one of those tall cork top bottles from Cultures for Health, and one time, well, lets just say the fizz hit the ceiling! I always just added in a little juice with it before the second fermentation and my kids loved it!
I would like an orange flavor like diet sunkist. I do not like grape. I think I am going to have to try making some water kefir. I bought some peach flavored in the health section of Kroger one time. I can’t say I really liked it.
Looked for kefir grains on my local craigslist and found some! Is there really a difference in water kefir grains and milk kefir grains? I thought I remember reading that the same grains can be used for either-is that true?
It is my understanding (although I could certainly be wrong!) that milk kefir grains and water kefir grains are different and can’t be used interchangeably. My milk kefir grains look different from my water kefir grains.
I was just reading on this the ohter day. I have a friend who is addicted to the fizziness of pop and my hubby still like a mountain dew ever great once in a while. Here is the link to what i found. she converted milk kefir grains and used them to make her kefir soda pop. Thinking I may have to try this :)
http://marly67.wordpress.com/2010/03/05/converting-milk-kefir-grains/
that is correct they are different and cannot be interchanged
Is this the same thing as Kumbucha?
No, this is different from kombucha. Kombucha is made with a mushroom and tea and sugar, this is made with water, sugar and kefir grains. It tastes much different to me, BUT the way you make it and give it a second ferment IS very similar.
I love fizz too! I also have given up soda and SO miss the fizz (it IS all about the burn!). I want to try kefir water. So far I have been getting my fizz from Synergy kombuchas from the store which are quite fizzy and my friend’s homemade kombucha which is not quite as fizzy but still wonderful.
Blessings,
Courtney
Hi Laura!
This is something I’m going to have to try! I love fizz! Have you ever tried kombucha?
I LOVE kombucha! It had to grow on me and now I crave it.
I tried making milk kefir with milk grains but couldn’t keep up with how much it produced. Is there a way to store the water grains if we go away on vacation and I can’t use them for a week or two?
Yes, I just put them in a little bit of milk in a small jar in the fridge. This slows their growth until you need them again.
Is the bottle plastic? I wonder about chemicals that get leeched into the bottle during the fermenting process. When I make Kombucha, all the websites say to say away from store in or brewing in plastic.
I’ve never read that plastic is NOT okay for this, but you’re right, I’ve heard the same about kombucha. I’ll have to look into this!
Hey Laura –
I use the leftover glass bottles from our basalmic vinegar and olive oil to make my water kefir in – and it always has a great fizz! I do think it’s the narrow neck that helps with that. Our favorite water kefir flavor is sassafras and sarsaparilla, using maple syrup as the sweentener – it’s like root beer gone wild! SO tasty! I love the flavoring options that water kefir allows (we also like to toss a vanilla bean in a gallon of water kefir – it’s like creme soda!). I love kombucha, and I usually always do a second ferment on my kombucha as well, but the water kefir has such a neutral profile, I think it works better when adding flavors.
I made water kefir for about 6 months before all of my grains
fell dormant or started smelling like paint thinner. I had some dried
stored in the fridge but to no avail. I would love to have the recipe
for sassafras, sarsaparilla and creme soda…I may start making it again.
I just started making water kefir soda
and would love to try sasparilla.
Could you please send me your recipe?
much thanks!
jakah at verizon dot net
Laura,
Have had wonderful results with water kefir until hot months. Grains seem to be doubling so rapidly I can’t keep them happy. Also taste is now like vinegar. Any advice would be wonderful.
Myra
I’m brand new at water kefir making, so I’m not sure. Warm weather does really make everything grow and culture faster though! You might want to email the gal at Cultures for Health to see what she might suggest.
I have the water from my 1st ferment in these grolsch beer bottles with the air tight lids. Why didn’t you put the method you used to make the fizzy water in here? It’s great seeing you got alot of fizz, but I don’t see the instructions. Kind of a teaser doing that.
In the 2nd ferment, you don’t have grains in the bottles, right? Just the water from the first ferment? Did you add any baking soda at all?
I didn’t post the instructions because they came from package of Water Kefir Grains from Cultures for Health. Since those instructions belong to them, I didn’t want to steal them to post here.
Correct, for the 2nd ferment, you don’t have the grains in the bottle. No baking soda added. :)
Grolsch top bottles are perfect for making great kefir sodas! I got mine from Amazon, but they are also sold at brewing stores for people who bottle their own beer.
I found it cheaper to buy grolsch beer in the bottles at beer store than to buy the empty bottles, but sometimes you can pick up used ones at a good price.
I’ve been attempted to make kefir soda several times but its ALWAYS flat. I use a bottle with a flip top and let it sit for 2 days. When I open the lid it pops like its under pressure, but there is just no fizz. What do you suggest? (As a side note my batch of kefir leaves about six inches of airspace.)
I’ve only tried it once, so I’m definitely not an expert. Somehow, I was able to make it work the one time I tried it! :)