Alcohol-free · alcohol-free
Italian Soda
Made with strawberry syrup · Rinaldo and Ezilda Torre, North Beach, San Francisco, 1925
- collins
- cubes
- build
Italian Soda
- 1½ oz45 ml fruit syrup (strawberry, cherry, lemon or similar)
- 8 oz240 ml chilled sparkling water
- 1 oz30 ml half-and-half (optional, for an Italian cream soda)
- Fill a tall glass with ice.
- Add the syrup, pour in the sparkling water and stir.
- For a cream soda, float the half-and-half on top and stir it in just before drinking.
Garnish: none, or a piece of matching fresh fruit
The syrup
In this recipe
Strawberry Syrup1½ oz45 ml
Strawberry syrup is sliced strawberries simmered briefly in a 1:1 sugar syrup, steeped off the heat, then strained without pressing.
1 1/2 oz of any of our fruit syrups. Homemade syrups are usually used a little more generously than Torani's 1 oz; adjust to taste.
As printed: 1 oz Torani syrup per 8 oz sparkling water (Torani); 1-2 oz (Food.com); 2-3 tbsp (Smith Brothers, Ripple).
Or use
Cherry Syrup1½ oz45 ml
Cherry syrup is pitted cherries simmered in 1:1 simple syrup, mashed, strained and sharpened with lemon juice.
1 1/2 oz; Food.com suggests pairing 1 oz cherry with 1/2 oz vanilla for a cream soda.
As printed: Same formula.
Or use
Lemon Syrup1½ oz45 ml
Lemon syrup is simple syrup flavored with lemon zest and finished with fresh lemon juice.
1 1/2 oz.
As printed: Same formula; lemon was one of Torani's five original 1925 flavors.
Or use
Vanilla Syrup½ oz15 ml
Vanilla syrup is simple syrup infused with vanilla: dissolve 1 cup sugar in 1 cup water, steep a split vanilla bean in it for 30 minutes (or stir in 1 tbsp extract once cool), and use 2 tbsp per 12 oz latte.
Add 1/2 oz to 1 oz fruit syrup for a creamsicle-style cream soda.
As printed: Used as a flavor blender in Food.com's combinations.
Where it comes from
Rinaldo and Ezilda Torre, immigrants from Lucca, Italy, began making syrups in San Francisco's North Beach in 1925 (anisette, grenadine, lemon, orgeat and tamarindo). Mixed with soda water, the syrups became what Americans call an Italian soda, a drink that despite its name was born in the U.S.
Source: Torani Italian soda formula by R. Torre & Company (Torani).
Checked against: Wikipedia: Italian soda (history only) · Torani: Our Story (1925 founding) · The San Francisco Standard: The untold SF origins of the flavored coffee revolution · Food.com: Italian Sodas · Smith Brothers Farms: Italian Cream Soda · Ripple Foods: Italian 'Cream' Soda
Gear for this drink
OXO SteeL Angled Measuring Jigger
Zulay Kitchen 2-in-1 Metal Lemon & Lime Squeezer
Best for Fresh citrus for sours and lemonade