The SodaStream home carbonation system has been around long enough to become a beloved kitchen companion for many — but the device is famous for one very stern rule: It is only to be used to carbonate water.

Of course there are myriad other beverages out there that could stand the fizzy treatment. If you want to make a spritzy margarita, carbonated coffee, or some faux-secco, officially you would be out of luck with the SodaStream. (That said, scofflaws abound.)

Enter the Drinkmate, which has no onerous threats of voiding your warranty if you put anything besides water in it. In fact, Drinkmate encourages fizzy mixology (“carbonology,” they call it) and provides a variety of instructions on how much CO2 to pump into various types of drinks.

In practice, Drinkmate works a lot like SodaStream, though it lacks the maturity and finish the older device now offers. A can of CO2 pops into the back. A custom container clips onto the front, and the user presses a button up top to inject bubbles into the canister. The trick is a special adapter fitted with a release valve that prevents disastrously messy over-foaming, a problem that many cite when trying to use the SodaStream to carbonate things other than water.

It takes some doing to carbonate a lot of beverages. I spent nearly 10 minutes turning still rose into sparkling rose, with only so-so results to show for it. A sparkling margarita was much more successful from a technical standpoint — and more fun to drink too.

While Drinkmate runs about $20 more than a SodaStream (CO2 canisters are also pricey) and lacks some of the bells and whistles of the more mature device, for mixology tinkerers who want to push the boundaries of what they can carbonate, it’s a reliable and capable device that works as advertised and won’t make a mess out of your bar.

And of course, you can also use it to carbonate water should the mood strike.

B+ / $110 / idrinkproducts.com [BUY IT NOW FROM AMAZON]

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