Customer Reviews

Harold Import Company Jokari Soda Dispenser

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(11)

 

 

I missed the old fashioned soda bottles. They made sense. No need to open the glass container and especially no loss of gas at each serve. Jokari's Soda Dispenser brought back old memories and, except for the fact that you have to make a little space in the bottle in the beginning (by pouring your first half-a-glass the regular way)....IT WORKS !

I am buying more. I love to give useful gift gadgets.

Unlike the other air pump bottle cap contraptions ( see my review of them Jokari Fizz Keeper Pump Bottle Cap and Fizz Keeper ) THIS actually works because you only open the bottle to atmosphere ONCE to change the original cap to this dispenser. Just be sure that the soda bottle is refrigerated COLD before you switch the cap to this dispenser because carbon dioxide is much more soluble in COLD water than in warm water. And DON'T shake the bottle after you get this in place to force the carbonated soda out of the bottle until the gas pressure builds up in the bottle again. In both cases, you want to keep as much of the carbon dioxide DISSOLVED in the soda as possible, not drive it out just to build up pressure in the bottle to dispense the soda. Just squeeze the soda bottle by pressing it with your hip against the kitchen counter top while pushing on the lever to dispense the soda drink.

With some cola drinks that may not be overly carbonated at the start, you may find that eventually the bottle will never regain enough gas pressure to dispense the soda by itself, and you have squeezed the bottle as much as it is practical to do so. In that case then you have to loosen the dispenser to let air into the bottle. But unscrew the dispenser just enough to let air into the bottle while gently coaxing the bottle back to round again. Then tighten the dispenser back down and go through the squeezing routine again. DON'T under any conditions remove the dispenser from a partially used bottle or soda or ever pour any soda out of the bottle while the dispenser is loose unless you will be using ALL of the remaining soda up at that time, because you do NOT want to lose any of the carbon dioxide gas that is still in the bottle and let in any more air than you absolutely have to. And don't just press the dispensing lever while coaxing the bottle back into round again to let the bottle suck air in through the soda dispensing tube, because this bubbles the air through the soda and causes the air to even more violently drive the remaining dissolved carbon dioxide out of the soda. With beverages that are not highly carbonated to start with, this is the best you can do -- NOTHING outside of a carbonating machine itself will work better.

Forget it, this is useless, worse than useless.

I wanted something to help pour soda from the typical 2-liter bottles. I'm getting a bit of arthritis & sometimes it's hard to serve one-handed. Of course I held no hope the carbonation would last long, but at least while the bottle was fresh, right?
Well, I tried with regular Coke, the most carbonated soda I drink, and yes, this thing poured just fine, even if after the first few ounces you need to shake the bottle a few times to get enough pressure to serve more. More or less as advertised.
Except that a couple of hours later I found a large puddle of soda under my fridge, with more dripping from the door. From my new bottle (minus one glass) almost half had *poured itself* out.
The bottle was on the door of my fridge & I thought, perhaps I didn't tighten the nozzle enough (arthritis, right?) so I cleaned up, carefully washed the outside of the bottle, & set up the dispenser again, really, really tight this time. In case the top had been squeezed with other stuff in my fridge, I left the bottle on my kitchen counter. Watched it for a while, no fizzing, no bubbling, nothing. By morning though I had soda all over the counter, almost all that remained in the bottle. Remember this is by itself, without even shaking the bottle.
This dispenser cannot hold even the little pressure that builds up on a half-empty unshaken bottle for more than an hour or so, that little whoosh of carbonation that escapes when you unscrew the cap cap is enough to have it trigger by itself.
Don't waste your $$$.
The only way I see this dispenser as practical is if you have a kids' party & plan on serving ALL the soda. The bottle will be fresh & still with enough fizz & the kids will get a kick out of a different way to pour their drinks, just as long as they don't go home & want to buy one too.

This Jokari Soda dispenser is the best device ever for keeping your pop (that's what we call it out West) fizzy until the last drop! Maybe the reviewers who gave less than a four star didn't follow the directions, but if you do, this will work perfectly for you too! It's best to start with a fresh, cold bottle of your favorite. Pour yourself a glass and then insert the dispenser making sure it's snug, but don't over-tighten. It states to shake the bottle, but I've found that just the mere action of placing the bottle back in the 'fridge does the trick. The only other thing one needs to do is to depress the button fully to dispense. If you don't, you will get a bit too much head/foam and thus, less fizz in your drink. Also, if you find you still have too much of a blast with a fully depressed button, merely unscrew the device some to vent out the gas a bit. I just wish I bought one of these sooner. Works so much better than the Fizz keeper pump thing Jokari makes. I hope it lasts, but I'll get another just in case!

The screw cannot be tight enough and it pops - I removed the cap ring and still it won't stay on a pepsi bottle.
The inside straw should be a straight hard plastic straw, one that goes to the bottom - the current one is all curled up at the top of the bottle when in use. Obvious design issues going on here. It was returned.Harold Import Company Jokari Soda Dispenser

The negative reviews here may have some valid points. However, I have been using one of these soda dispensers for about 8 months now and am quite satisfied with it. I only use it with 2 litre seltzer and can't comment on the use with soda. All the time I have been using it, I have seen only one leak. May have have been caused by my not screwing on tight enough (Don't over-tighten!) And usually he last inch or two of seltzer does not have enough pressure to dispense properly. Before buying the dispenser I bought only 1 litre bottles because the 2 litre bottle would be flat before I finished it.

The only minor complaint I have is that the dip tube did not straighten out all the way and doesn't quite reach the bottom of the bottle.

If the idea of keeping the fizz longer appeals to you why not take a chance and see if it works for you. At under 5 bucks it is less than you would pay at a supermarket. I have purchased 2 more from Amazon for spares.

I owned one these prior to purchasing these two. I think they are a good product but to pricey from Jokari. The price plus shipping made these a good value. The only problem with this is the hose comes coiled up and is not easily straightened. The product arrived promptly and as described.

I expected it just to work as a dispenser so my kids could pour their drinks. the worst ever.
The materials are very poor and cheap.

Follow the instructions, and it works as advertised.

Only took away 1 star due to the low stream that occurs after 1/2 bottle is used up, but that's really not the fault of the product I guess.

Unless you enjoy flat soda and a sticky mess dripping all over your counter and fridge, don't bother.