Craft soda is a

soft drink A soft drink (see #Terminology, § Terminology for other names) is a class of non-alcoholic drink, usually (but not necessarily) Carbonated water, carbonated, and typically including added Sweetness, sweetener. Flavors used to be Natural flav ...

that is produced in small quantities from natural ingredients. Craft soda is in most cases made with sweeteners other than

sucrose Sucrose, a disaccharide, is a sugar composed of glucose and fructose subunits. It is produced naturally in plants and is the main constituent of white sugar. It has the molecular formula . For human consumption, sucrose is extracted and refined ...

(sugar) or

high-fructose corn syrup High-fructose corn syrup (HFCS), also known as glucose–fructose, isoglucose, and glucose–fructose syrup, is a sweetener made from corn starch. As in the production of conventional corn syrup, the starch is broken down into glucose by enzy ...

and contains sparing amounts of preservatives. Craft soda is often innovative in terms of raw materials and flavors. Some of the literature adds that craft soda producers need to be authentic and small, or even local market only, and independent of major soft drink companies. Still, those big companies are trying to capitalize on the popularity of these types of drinks with craft soda-like products. Craft soda is a certain trend in the U.S., with a market share of 1% in 2015, but in 2018 it also became noticeable in the Netherlands and Belgium. An American market researcher estimated the world market value for craft soda in 2016 at USD 537.9 million and expected sales in this segment to increase sharply.

Small quantities

Craft soda is typically associated with small quantities that are sometimes only sold locally. The German

Fritz-kola Fritz-kola (stylized as fritz-kola) is a soft drink made in Northern Germany, north Germany and shipped to many nations in the European Union. It has a relatively high caffeine content and is sold in glass bottles with labels which were originally ...

started out in Hamburg in this manner, but is now sold throughout Germany and shipped to many nations throughout Europe. There are a wide variety of small brands in the US, often sold locally or within one state. Occasionally such a brand reaches a larger market, such as Ozark Mountain. Whether such expansion occurs is highly dependent on whether or not a local brand is picked up by larger distributors, such as retail chains.

Notable producers

For much of its history,

Ale-8-One Ale-8-One, colloquially Ale-8, is a ginger- and citrus-flavored soft drink bottled by the Ale-8-One Bottling Company in Winchester, Kentucky, United States. It is distributed primarily to brick and mortar retailers in Kentucky. History The formu ...

in Winchester, Kentucky, established in 1926, was only available in central and eastern portions of Kentucky. In April 2001, the Ale-8-One Bottling Company expanded its distribution to areas of southern Ohio, and southern Indiana, through an agreement with Coca-Cola Enterprises. Later, distribution to eastern Tennessee and far western Virginia was added. It is also available in some parts of West Virginia. Brooklyn Soda Works is a small-scale artisanal craft soda company based in Brooklyn, New York that operates out of a commercial kitchen in Bedford-Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn. Fordham & Dominion Brewing Company is a brewery in Dover, Delaware that produces a line of craft sodas in addition to its beer production. Sprecher Brewery is a brewery in

Glendale, Wisconsin Glendale is a city in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 13,357 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. A suburb north of Milwaukee, it is part of the Milwaukee metropolitan area. History The Glendale area has ...

that produces its own line of beers, craft sodas and flavored malt beverages. In October 2021, the company acquired the Chicago-based WBC and Green River craft soda brands.

Small quantities

Notable producers

See also

References

Further reading