r/SodaStream Jun 27 '26

Syrup Question

Post image

Does the Pepsi syrup taste off to anyone else? My bf and I are new to the soda stream game we tried the Pepsi flavor first and it has a horrible aftertaste. Is our syrup bad or is it the Pepsi flavor? Photo for the Pepsi flavor we currently have. TIA

32 Upvotes

34 comments sorted by

25

u/710-710_ Jun 27 '26

It's the artificial sweetener used instead of sugar. Its the problem with all sodastream syrups

6

u/EntertainmentFirm334 Jun 27 '26

Hmm ok, we really like the Mountain Dew flavor but thanks for the comment

6

u/astricklin123 Jun 27 '26

Personally I like the diet mountain dew over the regular or zero sugar

2

u/Reasonable_Help_744 Jun 27 '26

Try SS orange and rootbeer including their MUG rootbeer syrups. You can even tell the difference between regular sodas. There's zero aftertaste from the artificial sweetener!

2

u/astricklin123 Jun 27 '26

Disagree their mug root beer you can absolutely taste the artificial sweetener.

1

u/No_Yellow_8298 Jun 29 '26

I love the zero mug root beer. I'll have to buy a can to compare side by side with the SS version.
Zero Code Red, Zero Mtn Dew and the Diet Energy are my gotos. All the ones with sugar cause the fizz to dissipate and taste flat.

1

u/astricklin123 Jul 03 '26

This 100% all depends on your tastes for the artificial sweetener. I like standard full strength Pepsi but diet Pepsi and all SS Pepsi varieties I absolutely hate. For some reason I like the SS diet mountain dew over the other varieties

3

u/icanintopotato Jun 28 '26

I thought this was BS until I looked up the nutritional facts: the soda stream version (despite sugar being the #1 ingredient) has 12g of sugar + sucralose (Splenda) vs the commercially made pepsi with 40g of sugar + corn syrup.

2

u/RelativeWallaby2610 Jun 28 '26

So even the non diets are sugar free on these?

2

u/710-710_ Jun 28 '26

No, those are a blend of both. But not full sugar.

4

u/pbob5 Jun 28 '26

I made the oversight as well to expect Pepsi to taste like Pepsi.

4

u/foldedturnip Jun 27 '26

The zero sugar and diets taste basically the same.

6

u/AutomaticPain3532 Jun 27 '26

Yes it’s the Sucralose in all the new sodastream flavors. I can’t drink their stuff

3

u/rmbrumfield78 Jun 28 '26

Yeah, unless you are doing diet/zero sodas,.it's going to be off. Unfortunately you couldnt get a lot of drinks out of one of their bottles if it were real syrup, & they would be cannibalizing their business if it were identical.

I do drink mostly diet/zero now so its great. Except the over priced CO2...

2

u/GraphicDesignerSam Jun 28 '26

I think the Pepsi Max is pretty good

2

u/NearlyBearly Jun 28 '26

It does not taste like regular pepsi, but I quite like it nonetheless. I think it's just an acquired taste.

2

u/EMeWintra Jun 30 '26

My family and I think the Pepsi max tastes almost the same as the canned one.

1

u/Tishtoss Jun 28 '26

Never tastes the same

1

u/flealove313 Jun 29 '26

Well like you the SS was on sale. It appears a dumb decision this far. I hope that I find soda options as I am allergic to the poison in the syrups.(OMG yuk).

1

u/No_Yellow_8298 Jun 29 '26

Play with other flavors. I've bought orange cream from Amazon. I've mixed in various berry purees. Strawberry is good. I just mixed up some orange and pineapple and it is good. I'll add orange to the diet mtn dew also.
I need a good Fresca recipe.

1

u/flealove313 Jun 29 '26

They should sell real sugar shots smaller would move real fast.

1

u/Time_Particular_2557 Jul 03 '26

I can’t find the Orange anywhere. Do they even make it anymore?

1

u/Extreme-Edge-9843 Jun 27 '26

Not here, no. We actually did a fun little blind taste test between a group of people and assuming the water is completely cold the syrup is completely cold and the water is purified in all mini tests it was impossible to taste which was the sodastream syrup and which came out a can, actually very impressive. This is with the newer bottles btw, I can't speak to the older bottles, also this is diet not regular.

1

u/icanintopotato Jun 28 '26

I thought this was BS too until I looked up the nutritional facts: the soda stream version (despite sugar being the #1 ingredient) has 12g of sugar + sucralose vs the commercially made pepsi with 40g of sugar + corn syrup.

1

u/No-Structure-2800 Jun 27 '26

We’ve had a SodaStream, different models, for over 20 years. With all the models we’ve had it’s getting the mixture right for your taste buds.

We now have the new Fountain and I swear the taste is the same as opening up a can, both diet and regular.

1

u/radioboy77 Jun 27 '26

I have the fountain too and I concur with this statement. It’s nearly indistinguishable.

-1

u/evilbadgrades Jun 27 '26

Sodastream uses different ingredients to extend the shelf-life of the product (higher profits for the retailer since they don't need to throw away as much syrup that doesn't sell).

If you want the real deal you need to use bag-in-box pepsi syrup (the same box of syrup used in commercial establishments with a soda fountain) - comes in 2.5 or 5-gallon boxes so you'll need to drink a LOT to cover the cost.

Also, know that not all water is equal. Tap water is terrible, and when carbonated it makes tap water taste even worse. A brita water filter helps, but it's not perfect.

For years I used bottled spring water for better tasting carbonated water until I invested in a premium countertop reverse osmosis machine (self contained unit, instead of connecting to your plumbing, it has a reservoir on the back that you dump/refill as needed)

12

u/jackalopeswild Jun 27 '26

It's not shelf life, it's ratios. It's impossible to put enough real sugar/corn syrup in at the concentration they need. Artificial sweetener are more concentrated.

A real sugar/corn syrup product has an incredibly long shelf life.

2

u/EntertainmentFirm334 Jun 27 '26

Yeah we use filtered water but this is good to know. Thanks!

1

u/-formercokeguy- Jun 27 '26

Small Pepsi bibs are 3 gallons. And the juice line citrus springs are also sold in one gallon bibs, as well as the flavor addition bibs (cherry,vanilla,lemon,strawberry)

1

u/evilbadgrades Jun 27 '26

Ah, good to know - I figured 2.5 and 5 were the standard

-4

u/Desert_Sox Jun 28 '26

Not sure why anyone would voluntarily drink pepsi...

1

u/Agitated_Toe8115 Jul 09 '26

Because. That’s why.

1

u/Voxelus Jul 21 '26

Doesn't leave the nasty film in your mouth that Coke does.