I’ve written about water a couple times in the past.  Here, and again here and here.   Water is great.  ”Water is life.” (A point for anyone who can identify the quote.) But drinking plain water, especially tap water, can get kind of old.  That’s why, despite the relatively high cost and seeming utter absurdity of the purchase, I agreed to buy a Penguin.  Even more surprising is the fact that I love it.

The concept is pretty straightforward.  You fill a small glass bottle (20 ounces, or about .6 liters) with tap water, place it in the machine, lock it closed, hit the lever in short 2-second bursts, release the excess pressure, unlock the machine, and voila you have sparkling, bubbly seltzer / soda water.  (Seltzer or salsa?) The machine sort of looks like a penguin.  Hence the name.

Here’s a short video I recorded of the device in action:

As you can see, this appliance has lots of stainless steel, and it feels nicely solid in your hands.  There are no wires or cords, and it requires no electricity.  It comes with 2 glass carafes, and two Co2 cartridges.  The Penguin does use large carbon-dioxide cylinders, each of which lasts for about 6 months (depending of your frequency of use – each cartridge fills about 60 carafes.)  Also, the thing is just fun to use.  I like to squeezer a little lime juice into the carafe, after I pump it full of gas.

Now, if you prefer flat water, this is obviously not for you.  But if you like the fuzzy-nosed tingle of sparkling water, this is a cool, cool device.  I wouldn’t ordinarily buy Pelegrino or another sparkling water brand, so I can’t argue that it’s saving me money long term.  But if you do buy sprakling water at the store with any quantity or frequency, this machine will probably pay for itself in less than a year.  And this is a gadget that I definitely consider “eco-friendly” – especially compared with the possibility of an endless stream of glass or plastic bottles from the store.  You’re cutting down consumables by a huge margin, despite the recyclable carbon-dioxide cartridges.

Speaking of money, this is device is not exactly cheap.  it runs $200 at Williams Sonoma (that’s where I got mine.) Re-fill cartridges run $30, so they’ve set themselves up with a nice, repeating revenue stream. But I think the costs still bear out in your favor, depending on the variables mentioned above.  However, there’s no value you can really place on joy – and this device is joyful.

The WS website (and other locations around the web) offer other video demos, all of  which probably have greater artistic merit than mine (read: better lighting, a superior camera, and a better looking spokesperson.)  But I had fun making my video.  The company behind the Penguin is called Soda Stream USA; you can choose to purchase it directly from them, as well as finding additional recipes on their site (for those that crave flavor.)  There’s another excellent review of the device over at Uber Review if you want a second opinion.

If I were forced to give this appliance a numeric rating between 1and 10, I’d call it a 9.  It’s pretty, it’s functional, it’s green, it’s simple, and it’s fun to use.  If I have a complaint, it’s on cost.  Not because it’s not worth it, I just like my money in my own wallet.

Share on Facebook

Tweet This Post

At last, the long awaited follow up to the earth shattering first post about the big blue. The Pacific Ocean. The largest body of water on earth.

This post is going to focus on a couple of the less savory aspects of the Pacific Ocean – subjectively speaking.

One thing I don’t love is swimming out in the ocean. Or rather, I do love swimming in the ocean, but sometimes it creeps me out. Especially if I don’t have a snorkel and mask, and I am solely swimming on the surface. That is kind of scary. I always think there’s some creature underneath me, either patrolling for a snack, or just waiting to “slime” me. It’s creepy.

The other thing that is less than wonderful about the Pacific Ocean is… well, the smell. Especially at low tide. The smell when you’re out on the open ocean is great. But at a beach, at low tide, with dead creatures and seaweed drying in the sun the smell can be unpleasant.

Now, all of my negative commentary is eminently debatable, and all of it comes with qualifications. Please do not look at today’s rating or these negative aspects as the sum of my outlook on the Pacific Ocean. They are merely a snapshot, one small slice of the big blue pie, and really are more reflective of my current mood than of the ocean as a whole.

Does this call into question my ratings? Does this mean that my ratings are not objective and based partly on mood, feeling and instinct? Totally. That is exactly what it means.

Thanks for reading, and for your continued support.

The big salty blue gets a rating of 4 today.

Share on Facebook

Tweet This Post