Summary
Staying sober on a night out can be a limiting experience with the soft drinks choice on offer in many places. But with an increasing number of 16-24 year olds staying teetotal, demand is increasing for more interesting, varied and healthier choices. Dan Saladino explores the traditional, quirky and novel drinks putting some fizz back into the market.
Reports say a resistance to heavy sugar and artificial sweeteners has seen soda sales drop off in the USA. 'Craft sodas' are making a play for some of the market by offering alternative flavours and drinks flavoured with cane sugar rather than corn syrup. Tristan Donovan heads on a mission to scour the soda fountains of the US and find some of the wackiest drinks available. How about a lactart or phosphate?
But in the UK too those with brewing skills are applying their knowledge to create soft drinks low on sugar and strong on flavour. Dan looks into the future of fizzy pop to see what the future might hold for those who still sparkle at the thought of a refreshing glass of pop.
Presented by Dan Saladino Produced by Anne-Marie Bullock.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | It's 216 BC. |
| 0:03.8 | The mighty Hannibal is crossing Europe with 46,000 soldiers. |
| 0:10.4 | Elephants are in tow. |
| 0:12.3 | Battle with the Roman army awaits, but first a detour to |
| 0:15.8 | Vigares in southern France. There's talk of a spring gushing a magical water that |
| 0:20.9 | fizzes. They stop, they sip, and no doubt they feel a sparkle in their mouths. After that, well, the Romans didn't stand a chance. Or at least, that's how the story goes. |
| 0:32.5 | We've always had a fascination with naturally visiting water. |
| 0:36.0 | It goes back thousands of years. |
| 0:37.7 | People have always fought these waters to be magical, capable of healing people, |
| 0:42.2 | giving them extra strength. |
| 0:44.0 | Over millennia, our interest in bubbles grew. |
| 0:47.0 | An English scientist would discover the secrets of making water fiz. |
| 0:51.0 | Medicine men and pharmacists would experiment with exotic flavours and then |
| 0:56.3 | the all-conquering ingredient would be added. Sugar. The soft drink would go on |
| 1:01.6 | to change the world. |
| 1:03.0 | 2,000 years after Hannibal Sip, |
| 1:10.0 | even our adventures in space would be carbonated. |
| 1:14.0 | One, and lift on, lift off, and it is closed the town. |
| 1:19.0 | By 985, the Kola wall got so intense. |
| 1:22.0 | Both Kola and Pepsi had a battle to get their soda into space, |
| 1:27.0 | getting on board a space shuttle flight. |
| 1:29.0 | Kolkola developed their own space cannon. |
... |
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