Sparkling Water Round Up

After trying the Ariel Brut, I couldn't help but think "I wonder if I could simply use sparkling water to mimic this taste." So, I bought a bunch of sparkling waters to test the theory!

Big K Lemon Lime

Tastes like bitter sugarless 7-Up. Big bubbles, soda-like texture.

Perrier Lime

Much less fizzy, smaller bubbles, smoother to drink, not as harsh on the tongue, not as bitter and a little more lemony.

S. Pellegrino

Not as bitter as the first two. Much more watery, i.e. very lightly carbonated, and tiny tiny bubles. I prefer the taste and feel of this one.

The Perrier is ok on its own, but if you want to add sparkle to a drink, I'd grab the most strongly carbonated club soda you can find, because the other two are simply too weak to combine with something else and not simply water it down.

I thought the lime / lemon taste would be good with mexican food but it's not. Neither my wife nor I really like any of these.

When I tried the Ariel Brut, it had me wondering just how close it was to just a glass of sparkling water, and I can confidently say it's very, very different. These sparkling waters, flavored or not, are not substitutes for the complexities, taste, and craft of the Bruts.