Fermented soda is a delicious and naturally bubbly way to get some healthy probiotic action. Adding herbal ingredients to naturally fermented soda makes them even more health-beneficial and tasty. These 12 fermented natural sodas have variety and light bubbly flavor you’ll love!
Fermented Drinks for Health
Fermented sodas are fun to make, and are a delicious way to get some probiotics and herbal health in your diet regularly. With natural fizz, these recipes for fermented drinks that resemble sodas are easy to make and adjust to your herbal health needs.
These recipes are perfectly varied and are all natural. Many of them use a ginger bug as a starter, which adds probiotics and fermented bubbly goodness to get it going.
Another option is to use a turmeric bug, which is similar to a ginger bug but made with turmeric root instead. It’s a little bit more orange, and bubbles just the same!
A ginger bug and a turmeric bug both have their own flavor that adds to the fermented sodas, and they both have the natural yeast present to make lovely bubbling starters.
Foraged Fermented Sodas
Many of these natural sodas use foraged and homegrown ingredients, from flowers and pine needles to berries and rhubarb. Each has its own yummy flavor and benefits!
Pine Needle Soda
A super popular choice is this pine needle soda. It is perfect for winter foraging, and makes a fermented drink that tastes like Sprite!
Pine or other edible conifer needles are ok to use in this recipe, just make sure you identify them properly and stay away from any toxic families, most notably Yew trees.
Dandelion Soda
When it’s springtime, dandelions are out in full force! They are easy to forage for and have tons of uses.
This spring, make sure to use some of your lion-faced beauties to make dandelion soda though. It tastes like sunshine and will refresh your afternoon with dandelion goodness!
Elderberry Soda
This elderberry fermented soda is full of immune-boosting health benefits! This natural soda can be made either with a ginger bug or using a wild yeast starter made with foraged elderberries.
This fizzy drink is super tasty, and turns out a beautiful color too! I always make this one in the late summer or fall, it’s perfect for the season!
Homegrown Fermented Sodas
When it comes to making fermented drinks, whether it’s mead, sodas, or otherwise, I like to use up what I have growing in my yard. Sometimes it’s berries, sometimes it’s roses, and sometimes it’s herbs. I haven’t had one turn out bad yet!
Strawberry Rhubarb Soda
I don’t know about you, but I’m a major fan of rhubarb. Plant it once, and it’s like a gift that keeps on giving!
Strawberries are a perfect pairing with rhubarb, and that is no different in this fizzy strawberry rhubarb soda. It has a perfect sweet and tart taste perfect for springtime!
Raspberry Soda
If you have raspberries growing in your yard or somewhere nearby, you must make this fermented raspberry soda.
It has a delicate floral sweetness, paired deliciously with a hint of ginger from the ginger bug. It’s a perfect fermented drink for summer!
Yarrow, Rose, and Strawberry Soda
Also made with a ginger bug, this fermented soda with yarrow, rose, and strawberries is perfect to make if you have wild roses climbing somewhere in your yard.
These seasonal ingredients make this drink taste refreshing and delicious, and it’s just as beautiful as it tastes. Plus, health benefits!
Lemon Lime Soda
If you have citrus trees or access to fresh lemons and limes during the citrus season or the summer, this lemon-lime lacto-fermented soda is a great way to use them!
What I love about this soda is that it is a natural and healthy copycat version of high-sugar lemon-lime sodas, and is just as refreshing!
Root Based Fermented Sodas
Of course, many of these sodas begin with ginger and turmeric starters, which are root herbs. While many include other fresh herbal ingredients, these two focus mainly on roots.
Fermented Root Beer
I didn’t drink much soda as a kid, but as a treat, I’d always choose root beer, hands down! What I didn’t know then is that root beer was traditionally made with actual roots.
Once I learned that, I HAD to put the root back in root beer with this amazingly delicious traditional fermented root beer soda. Trust me when I say you’ll love this one as much as I do!
Turmeric Soda
Turmeric is a popular anti-inflammatory root, with a beautiful orange color that lends itself really nicely to this fermented turmeric soda.
This soda is vibrant, naturally bubbly, and is a great way to access the benefits of turmeric root.
Kvass and Kefir Fermented Sodas
Slightly different than other fermented sodas, but still fermented and lightly fizzy, kvass and kefir sodas have probiotic goodness.
These don’t use a ginger bug, because the vegetables have the yeast needed to bubble these sodas up in no time!
Sweet Potato Kvass
Also called sweet potato fly, this sweet potato kvass is simple to make and brings the delicious sweet and earthy flavor of this root veggie to your glass.
This drink ferments quickly and is a great place to start if you’re interested in making a kvass.
Winter Herb Kvass
This winter herb kvass uses radish and easy-to-find cold-weather herbs. This recipe is super simple, ferments on its own, and gives a lovely fresh winter flavor!
Water Kefir Soda
Water kefir is easy to make, whether you’re interested in an herbal water kefir or a fruity, strawberry water kefir soda these fermented sodas are loaded with probiotics. Water kefir is similar to kombucha, but uses tibicos which are like tiny SCOBYs (symbiotic cultures of bacteria and yeast).
This recipe uses herbal tea to infuse the water kefir and then ferments it into a delicious lightly bubbly soda. It’s healthy, full of probiotics, and has herbal benefits!
Fermented Soda FAQs
Is fermented soda good for you?
Yes! Fermented sodas are full of healthy bacteria and probiotics. Once you add in herbs and the vitamins from veggies used, this is a very healthy drink and a perfect replacement for store-bought soda pop.
Does fermented soda contain alcohol?
All fermented drinks have a small amount of alcohol as a byproduct of fermentation. It is usually a trace amount, and fermented sodas are not considered to be an alcoholic drink. However, if you have concerns, it’s best to use discretion for what is best for you.
What does a ginger bug do?
A ginger bug is a simple beginner fermentation recipe that works as a starter or base for a variety of naturally fermented soda drinks. This also applies to a turmeric bug.
