Once upon a time, there was a lonely girl who loved animals.
Unfortunately, her apartment building forbids pet-owning.
One day, Michelle received a heavy box in the mail! A Pet PENGUIN from the folks at SodaStream.
So…What does Michelle and Pengu do to get to know each other? (Yes I named him)
Pengu is a magical creature who whistles and farts to turn still water into FIZZY water! In other words, Pengu makes Perrier/La Croix at home!
This Pet penguin has a rear end that opens up (like the Bat-mobile’s fancy doors) so you can place a beautiful glass carafe filled with still water into.
His belly is made to encase a tall, skinny carbon dioxide “carbonator” that is hidden once you snap his tummy shut. This metal cartridge belongs to SodaStream and needs to be exchanged/refilled once it runs out. It can make over 50L of fizzy beverage!
When everything is in place, all you have to do pump Pengu’s beak so he whistles (and silently farts).
One whistle = a big fart = slightly bubbly drink
Two whistles = 2 big farts…you get the idea
Once you reach the appropriate fizziness, release the CO2 by pressing a button. Open up his rear end and remove the glass carafe to enjoy your homemade La Croix! Do you see the fizziness?
It gets even better! You can make your own flavored (sweet) drinks from mixers!
For example, SodaStream also sent a diet ginger ale mix that tastes AWESOME….yes, even though it is sweetened with Splenda. (Pictured here with a home-cooked meal.)
The regular (sugar sweetened) beverages from SodaStream actually only have 1/3 the calories of leading store brands because they are mixed with Splenda. For example, the SodaStream Cola has 34 Calories for every 100 calories in a classic Coca Cola.
Click here for a catalogue of drink flavors (including unsweetened)!
- Classics Ginger ale/Root Beer/Cream Soda/Cola/Tonic
- Fruit flavors: Cranberry Raspberry/Orange/Lemon Lime/Peach Mango (Nick’s favorite)
- Lemonade/Lemon Iced Tea/Peach Iced Tea
- Interesting flavors such as: Pete’s choice and Energy Drink
The diet version is also available for most, if not all flavors. They are all sweetened with Splenda.
If you don’t like sugary beverages, there are other unsweetened alternatives called “flavor essences”. Think La Croix! These include flavors such as:
- Orange
- Lemon
- Berry
The Final Low Down:
Pro’s:
- Once you buy a penguin, you’ll never spend a dime on Perrier’s and La Croix’s again (Nor will you ever have to lug it back home from the grocery store)
- Taste – Whether you buy the syrups/flavor essences sold online or not, you have total control over the taste of your beverage. I definitely recommend the syrups because the 2 flavors I’ve tried (diet ginger ale & regular peach mango) are awesome.
- Eco friendly – You eliminate the packaging waste from cans and bottles, and the pollution produced in transportation of the bottled beverages! I can’t stress this one enough because I’m guilty of those LaCroix cans. 😦
- Waist-line friendly. No calories in water, no calories in carbonated water with flavor essence. 1/3 the calories in “original” SodaStream syrup itself compared to leading store brands.
- The sleek look of the device itself (who doesn’t want a pet penguin?)
- Freedom!!! Make whatever carbonated beverage your heart desires. Literally, anything. You can make pumpkin cider and apple pop using ingredients at home!
- It makes for a fantastic gift!! You know what to ask for for X’mas! or Enter the giveaway to win it!!
Con’s:
- Start up cost – Penguin’s starter kit is $199. However, if you would like to buy a pet that looks less like a penguin but performs the same function, SodaStream has sets that start at $89.95.
- At first, the CO2 carbonator freaked me out a little simply because they look like fire extinguishers. But I’ve gotten over that now. hehe
- You have to exchange the CO2 canisters once they run out. One whole carbonator carbonates 50L+ of water. It’ll last me a while, but may not for die-hard soda lovers.
Where you can find Pengu and his cousins: Online. Sears. Williams & Sonoma, Sam’s Club…Check out the website for more information.
***
SodaStream Giveaway Time!!
Win this for yourself or make this THE perfect X’mas gift for a loved one!
THE PRIZE: The Ultimate Fountain Jet Soda Lover’s Start-Up Kit (~$100 retail value)
Including,
- Your choice of Black/Silver, White, or Red/Silver Fountain jet soda maker
- CO2 carbonator to make over 200 liters of soda
- 2 Reusable carbonating bottles
- A sample pack of beverage flavors to mix into your soda
- Your choice of 3 full-sized beverage flavors
To do (each counts as1 entry and let me know if you’ve completed each or ALL of them):
- Visit the Sodastream website and comment below with 2 things: 1) pick your 3 full sized beverage flavors if you win!!! 2) Design your own soda beverage and be as creative as you want!
- Follow me on Twitter @ LuckyTasteBuds
- Twitter My giveaway with a link back to this post!!
- Link back to this giveaway on your next post!
- Add me to your Blogroll or Google reader if you haven’t already
Deadline: Midnight Central time on Monday November 30th! (The best month of the year!)
Contest open to continental US residents only, but you don’t need a blog to enter!
Not a soda drinker? Check out my simultaneous all-natural Krema/Crazy Richards’s Peanut butter giveaway here!!!
Lucky Taste Buds! 
1. My three flavors would be Diet Peach Iced Tea, Diet Orange, and Diet Cola.
2. My own flavor would be Diet Orange Mango since they only seem to carry Regular Orange Mango.
I follow your blog on google reader!
1) I want diet pink grapefruit, diet orange, and the mywater flavors.
2) My flavor would be Diet Orange – Cream Soda!
1) lemon-lime, berry and orange.
2) what about green tea or coffee?
this is so fun!!! 😀
Diet lemonade, diet pink grapefruit, diet gingerale all sound great.
My own flavor would be diet blueberry limade.
I just added you to my blogroll
And now it has been tweeted.
i already follow you on both twitter and youre on my google reader, obvi!!
fave flavors would be (all diet) orange, ginger ale, cran/rasp, and pinkgrapefruit
dude, i cant stop, i want em all!!
Ha, the gadget looks pretty cool! I love sparkling in my water:-)
I love diet pink grapefruit, ginger ale and raspberry 🙂
1. Diet Pink Grapefruit, Ginger Ale, and Cran/Rasp
Wow, I think I would love this gadget.
You are of course on my reader!
1. Ginger Ale, Pink Grapefruit, and Lemon-lime! This thing would be so fabulous 🙂
2. Mmmm, I’d go with Chocolate soda. Haha!
3) I’m following you on twitter! I’m defygravity425
4) I tweeted here: http://twitter.com/defygravity425/status/5906695082
You’re already on my blogroll AND google reader 😉
Thanks so much for the opportunity! I checked out their website and the 3 flavors I’d choose would be Cola, Orange, and Fountain Mist. I would make a Berry Pomegranate Lemonade flavor!
I would go for the diet pink grapefruit, the lemon-lime essence and the orange essence.
A ginger green tea flavor would be good!
I’d pick diet pink grapefruit, diet cream soda, diet ginger ale. Some new creations could be mango cream, ginger peach, and watermelon ice!
And you’re on my google reader 🙂
This is really cool, Michelle! I’ve never used one or had anything like this!
I’m already following you on twitter and you’re already on my blog roll. I twittered a little bit ago @ you!
hmmm i would be ALL up on that diet orange and prrrooobably the ginger ale too 🙂
i would want something that tasted like pineapples and blueberries 🙂 maybe not together though..
you know i’m all about your stalkerage on every account haha
The flavor essences are my type of drink. And how about a peaches and cream flavored soda? That’d be either really awesome or really yuck, haha
You’re on my blogroll/reader
And I linked this morning http://foodmakesfunfuel.com/2009/11/21/i-go-back/
I love carbonated water! This would be a great gift for my parents because they go through so many cans of the the stuff. I’m not really a soda girl but I do like the flavored water types, so any of those, and I’d get the lemonade because my brother is obsessed with lemonade.
1. The beverage flavors I’d like if I win are diet cream soda, diet pink grapefruit, and diet root beer.
2. My own beverage would be bubbly iced mint tea!
You are in my google reader.
1) Diet lemonade, diet cranberry raspberry, and diet ginger ale
2) Hmm…pomegranate and mango maybe?
1. Diet Lemon-Lime
2. Diet Cranberry-Raspberry
3. Diet Ginger Ale
Mmmm! This machine looks awesome! I love your review of it!
My three flavors would be: diet cranberry raspberry, diet gingerale, and diet peach sodas – yum!
My mix would be the Diet Cranberry Raspberry with the Diet Gingerale!
Thanks for the great giveaway!
I linked back to the giveaway in this post: http://joggingmymemory.com/blog/julia/2009/11/thanksgiving-at-melrose/
I would lovvve to try this. I love sparkling water but unfortunately I don’t buy it.
I would like to try the diet peach tea iced tea, diet cola, and ginger ale! =] YUM!
Fantastic giveaway!
I would love the essences as my family are huge seltzer drinkers!
I would design a flavored gingerale – like cranberry or raspberry gingerale!
1) I prefer unsweetened so berry, orange, and lemon! 2) I love raspberry and ginger together (hehe, one of my favorite kombucha flavors!) Thanks for the giveaway, Michelle!!!
What a fun giveaway! I would choose these 3 beverages: root beer, cream soda and orange.
My concoction would be an orange-mango energy drink.
Diet cran/rasp, diet cream soda, orange
I would make a banana/mango/orange gingerale
I would pick Pete’s Choice, Fountain Mist, and maybe Peach Iced Tea too. 🙂
My invented flavor would be Black Raspberry Cream Soda! Yum!
I’ve been trying to win one of these things and each time I don’t get picked as the winner I have to go find another to enter for. I have entered and LOST 8 so far. Hoping this is my lucky win! Lol!
I do live in the US and have blogged about your giveaway here: http://everypreciousjoy.blogspot.com/2009/11/my-frivolous-wish-list-item.html
You didn’t specify whether to make seprate posts for each entry so hopefully all in one is cool? Thanks for the giveaway!
mamamirage at yahoo dot com
This is waaaay too cool! I would go for the pretty red soda stream with my 3 flavors being the diet cola, root beer and ginger ale! YUM! I think you could add some cherry juice to those and really create a tasty drink!! 😀
I linked back! 🙂
http://nutritiousisdelicious.blogspot.com/2009/11/supply-and-demandfoodie-style.html
First things first – Happy Birthday! Secondly – ooh my gosh.. so cool!
Favorite 3 flavors: diet cream soda, diet gingerale, and diet lemonade!
My own flavor: not “original” in the least. But effing NO ONE makes it (as far as I have found). DIET GRAPE SODA!!! Please!?!
1. ginger ale, grapefruit, and lemon-lime would be my picks.
2. i’d love to make a ginger green tea soda.
I would pick ginger ale, lemon lime and orange!
I drink lots of soda, and by far some of the best I have had are from latin america… I would want a Rosa De Jamaica flavored soda… or tamarindo. I can get these through the Mexican cola importers, but have to travel quite a ways to get them…I would LOVE to be able to make them in a sodastream machine!
micaela6955at msn dot com
twitter follower @micaela6955
1. Just blogged about your giveaways: http://tinyurl.com/y8erb87
2. also Tweeted via @lindaole
3. I would pick ginger, lemon and grapefruit
4. My soda design – pomegranate soda with lime
5. Added you to my Google Reader
I would choose root beer, cream soda, and orange mango if I won. I think a good mix for them to make would be blueberry, I haven’t seen that in a soda and we really like blueberries 🙂
Lemonade, ginger ale, and cream soda! I wish there was a regular grapefruit flavor. I am pregnant and can not have artifical sweetners.
Lemon-lime, root beer, and cranberry-raspberry. I would love a pineapple flavor.
Choices: Diet Cream Soda, Diet Grapefuit, and Diet Pete’s Choice.
My creation: a chocolate strawberry soda, just like the good old days!
I follow you on twitter (memmalo)
Diet Orange, Diet Cola, Diet Ginger Ale!
I linked here: http://www.harpingonfitness.com/2009/11/i-just-want-my-flu-meds-i-swear-i-wont.html
oooh, ooh, I want a farting penguin!!
I’d like to try the diet orange, the diet cran/raspberry, and the diet cream soda.
And I’d love to create a diet raspberry/mango
1. I would like the Cranberry Raspberry, Cream Soda, and Lemon Lime flvvors.
2. I would create a mango and passion fruit soda.
i would love to try the lemon lime, the cola and the tonic.
i would make a citrus soda, with lemon lime and grapefruit. yum 🙂
i’m following you on twitter @ellen1214
tweeted: http://twitter.com/ellen1214/status/6005252764
My 3 flavor picks would be Diet Root Beer, Diet Cream Soda, and Diet Orange.
I would make a Diet Chocolate Cherry flavor, ala the limited edition Diet Dr. Pepper from a few months back. Yum!
Also added you to my Google Reader!
Since I refuse to join twitter, I’ll just do the first one! Gingerale, Sprite Zero (or Diet sprite and diet coke. I would love to make fizzy orange juice, apple juice, and POM juice!!
I follow you on my google reader!
I am a very boring soda drinker. I would love to try the root beer and cream! Those are my favorite flavors.
My own flavor would be a Strawberry like the Fanta kind. I know that sounds gross but it is yummy!
Posting the giveaway in tonights post!
Following you on twitter (WendiP).
tweet:
i would pick diet ginger ale, diet root beer, and mywater berry!
my drink: ginger raspberry 😀
ooh, this is so cool!!!
my flavors: orange essence, berry essence, and… diet pink grapefruit
how about a pomegranate ginger ale??
you’re on my google reader 🙂
Me, me!! I want one!! I loved your description of making homemade La Croix! What a dream that is.
1. Diet Pink Grapefuit
2. Diet Cream Soda
3. Diet Tonic (helllllo, gin & tonics?!)
And my homemade flavor would be Diet Pomegranate!
Of course you are already on my reader and blogroll, and I already stalk you on Twitter, too 🙂 I will spread the word, don’t worry! 🙂
Oh, and HAPPY THANKSGIVING, missy!
I tweeted 🙂 And I will officially be a US resident again on Monday! Can you tell how much I want this sucker?!
I would choose gingerale, tonic and orange.
My creative beverage would be a concoction of orange soda with a touch of vanilla almond milk and cream soda !!!!! I think (or hope) that would taste like an orange creamsicle.
1) i would pick the lemonade, orange and peach iced tea flavors
2) i’d love to see a blackberry flavor.. thats kind of boring i know, but i would love love love this flavor.
thank you so much for the giveaway!
following on twitter
added your blog to my google reader
1. I would love to try the orange, lemon lime and berry essence.
2. My flavor would be a caramel apple soda.
Following on Twitter @UncoveringFood
Linked back at http://whoiamuncovering.blogspot.com/
You are now in my Google reader!
I’d love to try Root Beer and Cream Soda, but the combo I would make would be Orange Mango and Lemonade. Mmmm!
I follow you on Twitter (EFandFrugal)
And Tweet! http://twitter.com/EFandFrugal/status/6178060907
I’ve added you to my Google Reader
My 3 favorite flavors are creme soda, rootbeer, and lemonade. I would make an ice tea soda.
I also added you to my google reader
I’ve been wanting one of these forever! The flavors I’d choose are diet root beer, diet cream soda, and diet pink grapefruit.
I think the flavor I’d make would be vanilla coconut.
I would choose Ginger-ale (diet), Lemon-Lime, and Peach Mango if I win. If I could create one, it’d be Lychee-Mango!
I’ve also added you to my Google Reader.
Love your blog and great giveaway!!!
I would choose cola – the ultimate test- and root beer and lemonade. My 8 year old daughter would go crazy mixing flavors as she is always making some kind of potion concoction! I think a grape lemon lime combo sounds great. Old fashioned egg creams with Hersheys syrup or even mixing fresh honey and ginger right into seltzer sounds yummy! What fun would this be on Christmas morning!!!
Following you on twitter as cillymoosh.
Tweeted
I subbed to your rss feed.
I am sssoooo excited about this giveaway! I have been wanting one of these for awhile! hm ok….3 flavors…Diet Pink Grapefruit, Diet cream soda and the orange essence. I would make a fruity grapefruit vanilla soda!
I posted this contest on my blog…http://livingfitdaily.blogspot.com/
I added you to my blogroll!
I would have to say diet rootbeer, regular root beer, and diet peach iced tea….my favorites!!
And I linked back here http://eaternotarunner.wordpress.com/2009/11/30/sweat-it-out/
And you are already on my google reader 🙂
yum. love sparkling water plain but would love to try root beer, cream soda, and orange. No diet for me!
I would love to try the Lemonade, Cranberry-Raspberry and gingerale.
I would mix the Lemonade and Cran-Raspberry together! I also don’t drink diet soda.
I just added you to my google reader too!
My flavors would be Ginger Ale, Diet Pink Grapefruit, and Cranberry Raspberry.
My design-your-own flavor: Ginger Vanilla
I follow you on twitter.
@sharonjo2
I tweeted!
I subscribed via Google reader.
cream soda, cranberry raspberry and cola flavors.
cream cola could be tasty.
lkish77123 at gmail dot com
Did you visit the official YouTube channel? Check it: http://www.youtube.com/user/SodaStreamGuru