Drink Syrup / Trinksirup

At the end of the first semester, one of Peter's students who was returning home dropped off a box of assorted odds and ends that she wasn't taking with her. Included were a few little packets of Hawaiian Punch powder - Sugar Free Hawaiian Punch Singles to Go! - which Nikolas thought were about the most exciting thing because those red crystals turn into a red drink, like magic. The concept behind it is that you can simply add a little packet to a bottle of water and you've got a delicious and refreshing drink. No way. Even Nikolas, who delights in making it, won't drink it. It's far too strong, and even if you water it down with a gallon or so of water, it tastes like...well it tastes like Hawaiian Punch - a mysterious chemical concoction that resembles nothing that you might find in nature.

You won't find the long aisle in the grocery store with bottles of Hawaiian Punch or fruit punch or any of those other artificially created juicy juices here. You can, of course, buy all kinds of juices (in far more interesting flavors and combinations that in the US), and they all look and taste like they come from real fruits (because they do). But in addition to ready-to-drink-from-the-carton juices, in perhaps an even greater volume and variety, you can also buy juice syrups: concentrated syrups that you add to water. I have gotten completely hooked on juice syrups.

The greatest thing about the juice syrups is that you can determine how strong you want your juice. The directions on the bottle, mixing 1 part syrup to 6 parts water is actually pretty strong, and so we make it to taste which is far weaker than that. You can also have plain old juice made with tap water or mix the syrup with a sparkling mineral water if you want to dress it up a little bit. Depending on the brand that you buy, they all boast a plethora of vitamins and minerals without added sugars, and most also include no artificial colors or preservatives.

One of my favorite flavors is Holundersaft, syrup made from the blossoms of the elderberry bush. I know it sounds a bit weird, and I remember throwing away a partially full bottle of the stuff left in the apartment when we arrived because the flower picture on the label threw me. About a month or so ago, I was intrigued and tried it. It is light and refreshing and just the thing when I don't want something sweet but I do want more flavor than water. Happily, I realized the other day that Ikea has elderberry drink syrup (as well as lingonberry drink syrup) in their Sweden shop, both here and back home. So even if we can't find some other source of drink syrups when we get home (last year's family found a Slovenian variety in an odd little grocery store near their home in Maine), we'll at least be able stock up on two varieties at Ikea!