Jefferson students learn art of soda making

School projects have rarely been this tasty.
A group of Jefferson Elementary School fifth-graders were shown how to make homemade root beer, a lesson served up by Iolans Brian and Traci Plumlee.
The Plumlees have mixed their own soft drinks for years, Traci Plumlee said.
“When you have two teen-aged boys, and they come over with their friends, drinks can be expensive,” Plumlee said. “They drink a lot.”
The Plumlees mixed up 5-gallon vats of root beer, the easiest amount to make because full containers of sugar and vanilla extract can be used without extra measuring, Traci said.
A special ingredient — yeast — is the final component.
The yeast triggers a chemical reaction within the root beer that creates carbon dioxide — the fizz.
As long as the brew is kept at room temperature or warmer, the yeast continues to react, creating more carbon dioxide.
The root beer was poured into freshly disinfected bottles, then a bottle cap is added by using a press. Special caps with distinct colors and flag designs were used.
The Plumlees allow the root beer to stay warm for a day or two, but no longer, because the carbonation process would continue unabated until the bottle shattered.
“But once you put it in the refrigerator, it kills the yeast and stops the carbonation process,” Brian Plumlee explained.
That gives the tasters the “fresh” taste of fizz once they eventually open the bottles.
Each fifth-grader was allowed to decorate adhesive stickers — labels — to add to their respective bottles of root beer. They also took turns disinfecting the bottles and pressing the bottle caps into place.
While root beer is the family’s favorite, the Plumlees have created other types of soft drinks using the same process, Traci said, from ginger ale, cream soda and lemon lime.
Even with the rising cost of glass bottles — a case costs $16 — the price is held down because the bottles can be reused.
“I figure it costs us about 10 cents per bottle to make it,” Traci said.
The Plumlees took Monday’s concoctions home for storage, first to allow the carbonation to build up, then to put in the refriger to complete the process.
They promised to have the root beer back at school at the end of the week for the students to enjoy their handiwork.