Raspberry sparkling water, three ways
The unsweetened infusion, the syrup, and the ratio that makes the finished drink.
In season: Two crops most places, June and again in September. Frozen raspberries work as well as fresh for syrup.
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Infused, unsweetened
Use
1.5 cups raspberries per 1 litre of water
Method
Raspberries are hollow and give up flavour fast. Drop them in whole, cover with cold still water, refrigerate. No muddling.
Time
2 hours is enough. 4 hours is the ceiling.
Sparkling
Still water. Raspberries collapse into mush in carbonated water and you end up straining pink sludge out of a flat drink.
Keeps
1 day. Raspberry infusion turns over faster than any other berry. Pull the fruit at 4 hours and drink it the same day.
The syrup
Ratio
2 cups raspberries : 1 cup sugar : 1/2 cup water
Method
Warm gently to about 180F and hold 5 minutes without letting it bubble. Steep 20 minutes off the heat, then strain through a fine sieve and a coffee filter to catch the seeds.
Keeps
10 days refrigerated, the shortest keeper of the berries. 6 months frozen.
Note
Raspberry perfume goes above a simmer. If the pan bubbles you have made a decent red cordial and lost the raspberry.
The finished soda
1 part syrup to 5 parts sparkling water, over ice, no garnish needed
A squeeze of lemon per glass keeps it from going candy-sweet.
The shrub version
2 cups raspberries and 1 cup sugar, covered in the fridge 2 days, strain, stir in 3/4 cup white wine vinegar, rest 5 days. Raspberry wants a milder vinegar than blackberry does.
What doesn't work: Long infusion. People leave raspberries in overnight expecting more flavour and open the fridge to a jar of grey mush floating in pink water. Two hours does most of the work and four is the limit.
Goes with: LimeMintPeach