We recently caught up with local legends Six Barrel Soda Co. one of our wonderful customers who have been making delicious drinks for over 11 years! 

Six Barrel Soda Co. make small-batch syrups using real fruit, high quality ingredients, and fair-trade cane sugar. They offer a fantastic Sodastream alternative - The Sparkler - and recently released (our personal favourite) sugar-free Seltz Drops. Seltz Drops are a cool way to make delicious flavoured sparkling water, without all the waste of individual cans or bottles. 

We caught up with General Manager Amy Alexander to learn more about Six Barrel Soda’s commitment to sustainability, as well as where they find flavour inspiration and how they source ingredients. Here's what we found out...

What’s your view on sustainability at Six Barrel Soda?

Since day one we’ve been committed to reducing waste, particularly with regards to plastic bottles.Soda was originally made to order in soda fountains and drug stores in the USA and many other communities have traditions of mixing drinks for special occasions. Somewhere along the way we became accustomed to sculling back drinks from plastic bottles whenever we want. Using concentrated products (bottled in glass) and making your own sparkling water you can drastically cut your plastic consumption. Glass is much easier to recycle so even if you can't return your bottle to us for reuse (we have a bottle return program at our cellar door), you've saved a good stack of plastic from getting made. 

What’s the craziest soda syrup you’ve ever made?

There have been quite a few crazy ones over the years, but the two that spring to mind (which were before my time) are the Pickle Juice syrup we made in collaboration with McClure’s pickles, and the mushroom syrup we made for a Wellington On A Plate event a few years ago. They were both surprisingly popular!

Where do you get inspiration for new flavours?

We’re lucky to be part of an incredible food and beverage industry in New Zealand, and there’s endless inspiration everywhere. We have an amazing small team and everyone is always coming up with great ideas - we love testing new things in our little soda kitchen and you’ll often find us releasing limited small-batch experimental syrups. 

How do you source your ingredients?

We love using real ingredients, like New Zealand citrus, organic ginger, Central Otago cherries, and Fair Trade organic cane sugar. Our drinks are free from preservatives and artificial sweeteners, colours and flavours and contain around 30% less sugar than most sodas. Many of our ingredients are organic, including our ginger, flowers and honey. We prefer to use single strength, NZ grown juices to imported organic juice concentrates. People are always blown away by the real, fresh flavour of our drinks - you can really taste the difference!

What made you choose Little Yellow Bird for your aprons? 

We’ve been big fans of Little Yellow Bird for years and we love the quality, feel and look of the aprons. Our shared commitment to ethics, sustainability and craft makes you a perfect partner for Six Barrel Soda and we also love that you're just down the road from us.

Where can we find you?

You can find us online, at stockists throughout NZ and internationally or you can also pop in to our cellar door on Lukes Lane (just off Taranaki Street), where you can have a complimentary tasting of the full range of soda syrups and Seltz Drops!

Are you a biz looking to wear your values on your sleeve? You’ve come to the right place. At Little Yellow Bird we make circular uniforms, for work, home and play. We've collaborated with hundreds of companies, large and small, to produce workwear without compromise. 

Supply your team with long-lasting and durable clothing, aprons and accessories that are sustainably sourced, ethically made, and Fair Trade. We manufacture, supply and brand workwear with full traceability back to the source and the option to recycle them (for free) at the end of their useful life. 

Make an impact, join the flock. You can shop our range or get in touch with us here.