Moxie is the official state drink of Maine and is said to be a somewhat acquired taste. Still, for most modern bartenders and cocktail enthusiasts the bitterness of the drink is pleasant and makes for a more interesting soda. If you like Negroni’s, amari, shots of Fernet or dashing cocktail bitters into your drinks, you’ll like Moxie. Moxie was originally […]
Soda
Fix the Pumps: Ten Year Anniversary
It has been roughly ten years since Fix the Pumps came out; the ebook came out in December 2009, and the print edition came out in May 2010. In 2011 it was nominated for “Best New Cocktail Book” at the Spirited Awards, though it didn’t win. Looking back, I can see the effect the book had on the bar industry, […]
Maple Phosphate
Every year as winter cedes into the past, the maple tree sap starts to run. A time-honoured tradition in the north is to tap a spile into these maples and siphon off a few buckets of sap, then boil it down into a syrupy brown liquid and drizzle it on everything. That is the taste of spring. Since I’m in […]
History of the Malt Milkshake
As ice cream became the mainstay of the soda fountain, malt milkshakes became so popular that they started to change the name of the establishments to Malt Shops.
History of the Milkshake
The milkshake was a simple drink, but unique and there are a few drinks that resemble it today.
The Origin of Cream Soda
Cream soda has a long history and was the soda fountain drink that influenced the ice cream float and the milkshake.
Lemon Phosphate Soda
When flavoured soda water became a thing, lemon was the preferred choice. In fact, it was the most popular flavour for 30 years. Modern variations of this classic flavour include Sprite and 7-Up.
Beverage Business (1886)
These old newspaper articles about soda fountain provide a glimpse into the period and city they were written. This article comes from the Rocky Mountain News in Denver circa 1886. Reporters would just report on the happening of the local soda fountain and the new drinks being served. Cocaine, again, makes an entrance to a new city via the soda fountain, […]
Talk with the Soda Men of Atlanta (1885)
This is a great article from the June 7th, 1885 Atlanta Constitution detailed the state of affairs at the local soda fountains. The reporter interviews a local soda proprietor and gets all the goods. One of the great things about this article is that it mentions Coca-Cola for the first time, though the reporter spells it “coco cola”. If you […]
Horsford Acid Phosphate
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X6cs6at18QQ The most popular drink in the world was once made using Acid Phosphate. Today, Coca-Cola no longer uses this unique ingredient, instead, they have simplified their formulation by using phosphoric acid, which still makes it a phosphated soda, but not the classic version. The “phosphate drink” was the most popular drink at soda fountains for over 70 years, but […]
Rum and Coke
Though not known as a classic, this drink has been around for almost 120 years.
Open Cola Recipe
The Open Cola project started as a way to promote software but quickly took on a life of its own. This open-source recipe lets you make a Coca-Cola-like soda.