How To Decarbonate A Drink With One Sweet Addition

As a famous quote goes, it takes all kinds to fill the freeway. A trip out to dinner with friends quickly reveals just how different we all are — and that's only in reference to food. For instance, pineapple on pizza is a controversial topping; some love it, and others, to put it mildly, don't. In the realm of beverages, some folks absolutely can't have carbonation while others think there's nothing better than a super-fizzy drink. If you're in the first camp, there's one sweet trick that can quickly de-fizz your soda and flatten it out.

To take your beverage from fizzy to flat, simply drop in some table sugar (a spoonful will do). This will make the soda bubbles go crazy, rise to the surface of the glass, and deflate. How it works is the addition of sugar allows the supersaturated carbon dioxide (which just means that there is a whole lot of carbonation) in the drink to dissipate. The CO2 essentially hitches onto the nucleation sites (aka the textured exterior) on the sugar grains and hangs on as it bubbles and ultimately leaves the beverage. The result is an effectively uncarbonated soda that no longer has those extreme bubbles. Once the sugar has settled to the bottom, if you sip carefully you can avoid getting a mouthful of it.

Salt can have the same effect on your soda for the same reasons — though salt may be a less-welcome flavor addition. Just a shake or two will do the job — be careful you don't add too much, or your beverage will be rendered undrinkable (nullifying the need to remove the bubbles in the first place).

Whether you're drinking one of Utah's most popular sodas — root beer — a cold Coca-Cola or something in the lemon-lime family, pouring your beverage over a glass of ice can also help deflate the fizz, and restaurants are typically more than willing to oblige with a cupful. Crushed or pebble ice is ideal, as they both provide the greatest amount of surface area over which the soda bubbles can dissipate. The faster you drizzle your pop over the ice, the more effectively you will agitate and thus un-fizzle it. Just be careful you don't overflow your glass with bubbles.

Most of us have experienced the de-carbonating effects that shaking a soda can or bottle can have, but this is obviously a dangerous enterprise as your drink can produce a volcano-like explosion when you open it. The tapping trick can stop your soda from exploding after it gets well and truly shaken up, but it's not a failsafe, and it's probably not a risk you want to take in a public dining establishment. A similar effect can be achieved by just rapidly stirring the beverage with a spoon until the bubbles pop.