Sparkling Coffee Is Way More Simple To Make Than You Might Think

Sparkling coffee is one of those "new trends" that actually date back a lot longer than yesterday's TikTok. The idea of cold, fizzy coffee was around back in the 19th century, as Manhattan Special, the NYC espresso-flavored soda, was first manufactured in 1895, while Coke introduced the ill-fated Coca-Cola Blak in the mid-00s. Unsweetened coffee seltzer, too, is so well-established as a product that Aldi was even offering its own store brand of the stuff by early 2022.

Even if coffee seltzer is still a fairly rare commodity where you shop, though, it's ridiculously easy to make the stuff in your own kitchen with no more than a few minutes (or possibly seconds) worth of effort. All you need to do is mix strong cold coffee with the fizzy water of your choice in equal amounts. If you don't want to bother making coffee or espresso and letting it cool, you can always use pre-made or store-bought cold brew. 

As for the fizzy stuff, plain seltzer would result in the most coffee-flavored of drinks, but in Japan, tonic water is also a popular add-in. You could also experiment with different flavors of sparkling water such as raspberry or coconut, although more assertive flavors like grapefruit or lemon might fight against the coffee more than they complement it. If you like your coffee sweet, you could also consider using soda. Colas, in particular, tend to work well with coffee, but cream soda or root beer can be good, too.

In addition to mixing and matching the fizzy element in your sparkling coffee, there are a couple of other ways to change up the standard drink. One way is to add milk or cream, which is a pretty natural thing to do if this is how you typically drink your coffee. You could even mix in some flavoring syrup, thus transforming your sparkling coffee into a hybrid French soda (or dirty soda, if you prefer this less elegant nomenclature).

Some people like to add a sweet, yet fruity element to their fizzy coffee with yuzu, Meyer lemon, or orange juice or add dried citrus peels to the drink. Those who prefer sweetened coffee may like to infuse a simple syrup with flavoring elements like the aforementioned citrus peels or perhaps some dried lavender buds.

Of course, there are those who prefer to turn their sparkling coffee drinks into cocktails, despite the fact that boozy coffee soda or seltzer is something that appears never to have gone commercial to any great extent. Even the non-carbonated hard coffee market share has dropped pretty drastically in recent years, although many such drinks don't even seem to be carbonated. Still, it's simple enough to make your own by adding a small amount of your chosen booze to your bubbly coffee. A drink called the Siciliano could also be considered a boozy coffee soda of sorts as it's made with sweet vermouth, simple syrup, cold brew, and seltzer.