Lacto-Fermented Cream Soda

3-4 TBSPs vanilla extract organic, or 2 vanilla beans 1 – 1.5 cups cane sugar organic, or dehydrated cane juice or rapadura 1/2 cup ginger bug OR 1/2 cup whey OR 1/8 teaspoon champagne yeast 2 quarts water filtered

* Bring water to a boil, add 1 cup sugar, stir and dissolve and let cool until the water is warm to the touch. Taste. Add another 1/4 – 1/2 cup sugar for additional sweetness, if desired. * Transfer sugar water to a 2 quart ball jar (or two-quart jars) or demijohn and add 3 TBSPs vanilla extract, mix well and taste. This will be a good approximation of how your fermented cream soda will taste. Add another TBSP vanilla extract, if desired. Add your chosen starter culture, mix it in well and let it ferment for at least 3 days at room temperature. Stir it every day to prevent mold from forming on the surface. Look for visible signs of fermentation via a slight fizziness. Even a slight fizz is a good sign that the carbonation will build rapidly when transferred to the soda bottles. You can let it ferment longer than 3 days if you’d like a less sweet soda as the bacteria will continue to feed on the sugar (similar to kombucha). Taste it as you go to get the sweetness you desire. * Transfer to soda bottles using either a funnel or a pourable measuring cup. * Keep the soda bottles at room temperature and CHECK EVERY DAY. Open the bottles carefully to let some of the gasses escape. Do this over the sink as sometimes you’ll get a bubbling over, like in this video of me opening my fermented blueberry soda. Once it’s carbonated, transfer the bottles to the refrigerator where the fermentation will dramatically slow down.