I don't drink any kind of soda. I like ice tea.
I like iced tea, too, when I'm not drinking beer. I've already posted this on an earlier thread, but I'll repeat my iced tea recipe here:
1. Boil 1 gallon of water on the stove in a big pot.
2. While you're waiting for the water to boil, get 16 regular-sized tea bags and cut off the strings and tags. You can also use the large iced tea bags, in which case you'll need four of them.
3. When it reaches a boil, turn off the heat and throw in the tea bags. Stir with a slotted spoon and let them steep for 5 minutes.
4. Fish out the tea bags and discard. Cover the pot and let cool for an hour on the stove.
5. Pour the tea into a gallon glass bottle with a spigot at the bottom. Cover the bottle and place in the refrigerator. It will take a few hours to cool fully.
Now you have a gallon of pure iced tea, and you can drink it any way you want. You can pour it over a glass of ice and drink it straight, or add lemon and/or sugar. But the best way is to add a shot of grape juice instead. That's the secret ingredient. Iced tea and grape juice is the most refreshing beverage in the world. You only need a little grape juice; it adds both flavor and sweetness.
I learned about the grape juice from my parents, who got it from their parents. So it's sort of an old family recipe.
A box of 50 tea bags costs around $3, which is enough for three batches. I get spring water delivered in 5 gallon bottles, so a gallon costs $1.50. A 48 or 64 oz. bottle of grape juice will last a long time if used in this manner. Add in the energy needed for boiling the water, and the total cost is in the neighborhood of $3/gallon. That's enough for at least ten 12 oz. glasses. The stuff is nearly free!
For the last couple of years, I've been making it with green tea instead of the usual black tea. Green tea is supposedly healthier than black tea. I don't notice a difference in the flavor, since the grape juice tends to be dominant.
Once you get used to this, any kind of soda is icky by comparison.