Boston-area businesses are bubbling with summertime flavors

WITHOUT THE FAMILIAR LABELS. FOR DECADES, COKE AND PEPSI HAVE BEEN THE BIGGEST NAMES IN THE SODA WORLD, BUT ONE LOCAL RESTAURANT GROUP IS THINKING OUTSIDE THOSE WELL-KNOWN BOTTLES. THERE’S NOTHING LIKE A FRESH SODA THAT’S LIKE, JUST MADE FRESH ISN’T THE ONLY SURPRISING WORD. CEO AYR MUIR USES TO DESCRIBE THE SODAS AT CLOVER FOOD LAB. IT’S JUST FULL OF FLAVOR. IT’S VIBRANT. IT’S MORE EXCITING. IT’S MORE FUN. ON THE DAY WE VISITED CLOVER’S NEWTONVILLE RESTAURANT, THOSE BOLD FLAVORS WERE GINGER, VANILLA AND BANANA. IT’S NOT A FLAVOR I WOULD HAVE THOUGHT OF. SO THIS IS GREAT. IT’S VERY GOOD. YOU MEAN YOU DON’T THINK BANANA AND SODA AS A COMBO? NO, NOT NOT NOT AT ALL. BUT I KEEP DRINKING IT. SO IT’S. HOW’S THE BANANA FLAVOR? YEAH, BUT IT ALSO WAS REFRESHING AND CARBONATED. HOW MANY DIFFERENT VARIETIES OF SODAS DO YOU HAVE ON YOUR MENU? WE PROBABLY HAVE, YOU KNOW, 80 OR 90 TO MAKE THESE UNIQUE SODAS FLAVORED. SIRUPS ARE COMBINED WITH CARBONATED WATER. RESTAURANT STAFF MAKE THE SIRUPS IN-HOUSE EACH DAY. MUIR SHOWED US HOW THE GINGER ONE COMES TOGETHER. WE’RE GONNA PUT A HALF A CUP OF THE GINGER IN THERE, AND THEN WE’RE GOING TO PUT ONE AND A HALF CUPS OF SUGAR, A LITTLE LEMON JUICE, AND SALT ROUND OUT THE FLAVORS. THEN IT ALL GETS BLENDED. THIS IS GOING TO MAKE TWO AND A HALF CUPS OF SIRUP. AND THEN IN EACH CUP OF SODA WE’LL USE LIKE A COUPLE TABLESPOONS OF THAT. SO IF YOU WANT TO JUST TASTE A LITTLE BIT OF THE SIRUP. SO THIS IS THIS IS WITHOUT THE SODA WATER. SO IT’S GONNA BE A LITTLE SWEET. BUT IT’S BURSTING WITH FLAVOR. YEAH YOU DEFINITELY TASTE THE GINGER. WE’LL JUST PUT SODA WATER IN FIRST. SO WE’VE DESIGNED THIS SIRUP. SO THAT IF YOU POUR IT ON TOP OF THE SODA WATER, IT ACTUALLY MIXES IN THERE REALLY NICELY. CHEERS. THIS IS OUR FRESH GINGER SODA. REFRESHING. YEAH. AND IT TASTES SO MUCH DIFFERENT FROM JUST THE SIRUP. WHY IS A DRINK PART OF THE MEAL AND THE EXPERIENCE FOR US? DRINKS ARE PART OF THAT CULINARY SPHERE. SO FROM THE DAYS OF THE FIRST FOOD TRUCK, WE WERE MAKING OUR OWN DRINKS. THESE ARE MADE ON PREMISE EACH DAY FROM FRESH INGREDIENTS. IT JUST TASTES NOTHING LIKE SOMETHING YOU’RE GONNA GET IN A CAN. DOWNEAST CIDER MADE ITS NAME ON A SIMPLE IDEA CIDER. WE THOUGHT, SHOULD TASTE LIKE FRESHLY PRESSED APPLE JUICE. AFTER MORE THAN A DECADE IN BUSINESS, THIS EAST BOSTON BASED BREWING COMPANY IS EXPANDING ITS RANGE. IN 2021, WE STARTED EXPLORING BEYOND CIDER AND LOOKED INTO JUST OTHER BASES THAT WE COULD MAKE INTO ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES TO PUT IN CANS, MARINA ROBERTS IS RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT MANAGER AT DOWNEAST. HER JOB IS TO TAKE AN IDEA AND TURN IT INTO SOMETHING DRINKABLE. SUMMERTIME FAVORITES HELPED INSPIRE ONE OF DOWNEAST BEYOND CIDER OPTIONS. THE INSPIRATION BEHIND THE SLUSHIES WAS JUST NOSTALGIC SUMMER FLAVORS, SO WE DOVE INTO CLASSIC RED, WHICH IS CHERRY, A LEMON, ITALIAN ICE, AND A BLUE RASPBERRY. DEFINITELY THE BLUE SLUSHY. THAT ONE WAS MY FAVORITE. IT TASTED LIKE THE SLUSHY, EXACTLY LIKE AN ICEE. THERE’S NO APPLE IN THE SLUSHIES. INSTEAD, DOWNEAST USES A BASE MADE FROM FERMENTED SUGAR AND YEAST. THE COMPANY’S EAST TAPROOM AND WATERFRONT POP UP BAR ARE THE SPOTS TO GO FOR A SNEAK PEAK AT DRINKS IN DEVELOPMENT, ROBERTS SAYS EXPERIMENTAL FLAVORS ARE OFTEN ON TAP. I HAD A STRAWBERRY CRANBERRY TROPICAL SMOOTHIE, GUAVA PASSIONFRUIT. I HAVE THE TROPICAL SMOOTHIE. I’M ALREADY A SUCKER FOR MANGO IN LIKE, PINEAPPLE AND TROPICAL FLAVORS. SO THEY JUST DID THAT AND IT WAS JUST LIKE PERFECT BEFORE CUSTOMERS CRACK OPEN A CAN OF DOWNEAST ROBERTS WANTS THEM TO DO ONE THING, TURN IT UPSIDE DOWN. NOT ONLY DOES THAT RELEASE ANY NATURAL SEDIMENT IN THE UNFILTERED CIDERS, BUT THEY MIGHT ALSO DISCOVER A FUN MESSAGE AND DOWNEAST LETS US IN ON IT ON THE BOTTOM OF OUR CANS. IT’S POSSIBLE TO WRITE A LITTLE NOTE. PERHAPS PROFESSOR LOVE TO SOMEONE IN KIND OF A CUTESY WAY. OUR HEAD CIDER MAKER, ERIC, RECENTLY ASKED HIS GROOMSMEN TO BE HIS GROOMSMEN ON THE BOTTOM OF A CAN. ALL RIGHT, DOWNEAST WANTS YOU TO KNOW THAT THEIR SEASONAL FLAVORS DO ROTATE IN AND OUT. SO WHAT’S ON TAP? ONE WEEKEND MIGHT NOT BE ON TAP THE OTHER WEEKEND. JUST SO YOU KNOW, IF YOU’RE HEADING OVER THERE AND BACK TO CLOVER FOOD LAB. WHILE THEY’VE HAD A LOT OF SUCCESSFUL SODA FLAVORS OVER THE YEARS, FOUNDER AYR MUIR SAYS THEY’VE ALSO HAD SOME MISSES, INCLUDING COFFEE, CUCUMBER AND SEAWEED. I DON’T KNOW HOW I’M FEELING ABOUT THAT ONE. THEY DID SHARE WITH US THEIR