My recent obsession has been beverages. It all started with limoncello. Now, I’m creating cocktails at home and ordering unusual cocktails when I'm out. I’m buying shrubs and making my own. I’m also diving into many styles of beers that I’ve never tried before and hounding my beer-brewing friends to let me try everything they make.
While playing with drink recipes, I realized I have never explained the difference between club soda, seltzer water, and tonic water. People wonder what is in each mixer and if they’re interchangeable. They all look the same—can they all be used the same way? Here's what to know.
Club Soda
Club soda is carbonated water that has added minerals like potassium bicarbonate and potassium citrate to enhance the flavor. It can also have added sodium, but not all club sodas contain sodium.
Seltzer Water
Seltzer water is also carbonated water, but it doesn’t have any additives, such as sodium. You can purchase flavored seltzers, usually in a citrus flavor, but plain seltzer is simply water that is carbonated.
Tonic Water
Tonic water is the least water-like of the three. It does contain carbonated water, but it has quinine to give it a bitter flavor and also a sweetener, usually high-fructose corn syrup or an artificial sweetener to make a “diet” tonic water. It’s more of a soda than a water.
Club soda and seltzer water are interchangeable in beverages, but tonic water will add sweet and bitter to whatever you’re creating. You shouldn’t substitute tonic water for club soda or seltzer water, nor should you substitute club soda or seltzer water for tonic water.
There you have it—a simple explanation about these three common drink mixers. Did you already know this, or did I teach you something?
Carbonated water in its many iterations can be confusing. There’s seltzer water, also known as soda water, (not to be confused with its boozy sibling, hard seltzer) and its whole host of flavored seltzer off-shoots. Then there’s club soda. And then there’s sparkling water, or sparkling mineral water, with its subtle flavors that range from salty to metallic. But are all of these refreshing, fizzy drinks the same? And where does tonic water fit into it all?
Though each of these bubbly beverages appears identical, each contains different flavor profiles and is made using different processes. To help understand the differences between them, we’ve compiled this, the complete guide to carbonated water, so you can know the differences between club soda, seltzer water, and sparkling water — plus tonic, too — once and for all.
What Is Seltzer Water?
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What Is Club Soda?
Popular club soda brands include Canada Dry, Seagram’s, and Schweppes.
What Is Sparkling Water?
Every brand of sparkling mineral water contains a distinct dose of flavor-giving minerals, so they all taste slightly different. Sparkling mineral waters don’t mix well in cocktails, but they do produce remarkable effects when paired with wine.
Popular sparkling mineral water brands include Perrier, San Pellegrino, and Topo Chico.
What Is Tonic Water?
Tonic water is the only style on this list that contains calories, because of its sugar content, but “light” versions are increasingly popular. In these styles, sweetness is provided by less-caloric, natural-fruit sugars.
While popular brands like Canada Dry, Schweppes, and Seagram’s also make tonic water, you’re likely to find Fever-Tree stocked at the world’s best bars.
Published: January 28, 2022