Very briefly, here are a few of the flavors I’ve made with our carbonation system. Or seltzer maker. Or beer recarbonator. Or whatever you want to call it, depending on how we’re using it at the moment. They do contain sugar (sucrose), and I vary the amounts, but I’m not ingesting high fructose syrup or many of the unpronounceable ingredients on food and drink labels these days. Still, probably the lesser of two (or more) evils. The basic idea here is to make a simple syrup.
Clementine
2 1/2 clementines
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 cups water
Peel the clementines. Using the skin of all of them, and the flesh of half of one, add them to a small sauce pot with the other ingredients.
Simmer for 20 minutes. Chill and add to water mix for seltzer.
Note: I used 1/2 of clementine because the other half was rotted. Adjust as you desire.
Cranberry
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup water
1 cup fresh (previously frozen) cranberries
Heat the water and sugar over high heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves.
Add the cranberries. Simmer 10 minutes.
Strain the solids and add the syrup to your seltzer.
Note: I found that 3/4 of a cup per 2 liter bottle was sufficient for a hint of flavor but not overwhelming.