there's something about aranciata ... and pellegrino, generally.

of course i like limonata, but there really is something about the orange that i like (my love for orangina has already been documented). aranciata is very popular in italy, where san pellegrino has been produced for six hundred years. the company has been the number one beverage company in italy since the seventies and its water now sells for about ten dollars a bottle in restaurants on this side of the pond. i have always preferred the softness of their frizzante to perrier's difficult hardness, but it's pellegrino's style that really catches the eye: the light blue label, the harsh red star. and the new matte-coloured aranciata/limonata/chino bottles in the deps/cafes are very modish and colourful. certainly, i used to enjoy the aranciata cans on hot days in italy, but the glass bottles add to the genuineness of the taste, offering less harsh carbonation, and an easier and cooler sip from the tip. (the drawback is the bottle holds less, and the price is higher. and one needs a bottle opener; though cool its annoying). but still, frizzante drinks are very refreshing - they're the first choice in italy - and the aranciata is the icing on the cake. aaaaaaranciatah!

for nik ... (boylan's: the best soda on earth?)

boylan's, another something i picked up from my brother. one of the oldest bottling companies, founded in 1891 and still using original recipes with the most expensive extracts and essences, as well as cane sugar, which enhances the flavour rather than leaving a syrupy aftertaste, unlike most soda-pop companies, who've switched to corn syrup and plastic bottles, which, unlike boylan's stylish glass bottles, don't ensure freshness and high levels of carbonation. boylan's. with birch beer as their flagship drink for over a hundred years, have a wide variety of different original flavours, as well as seltzers and diets and 100% natural sodas. boylan's. which nik ran all over town trying to find for me because she's just that nice. boylan's. for prodigal profligates like me.

"It’s quite a shock to compare a bottle of Boylan’s—whatever flavor you like—to a mass-marketed brand of the same flavor. Most taste buds are not accustomed to clear, complex natural flavors and pure cane sugar shining through the lower level of carbonation of an artisanal soda. Big brands are largely artificial flavors and lots of chemicals—not to mention high fructose corn syrup—with a high level of carbonation to cover the inferior flavors."

O-rangina!

acid-pleasure pure-leisure bell-bottle pulp-brothel.