Shadowing Practice: I Tried Turning a Tree into Soda - Learn English Speaking with YouTube
B2
I'm going to try turning pine trees into drinkable soda.
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I'm going to try turning pine trees into drinkable soda.
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Why?
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Because I love a nice,
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refreshing, carbonated beverage on a hot summer day.
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But unfortunately, I don't have one.
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Now, I could do the normal person thing and just go buy some from the store,
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but come on, what fun is that?
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Instead, I'm going to test a homemade recipe with a tree as the main ingredient,
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which will take me on a quest traveling over 300 kilometers,
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and you'll see why soon.
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Thanks to Milanote for supporting my weird adventure.
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But let's start at the very beginning.
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Pine needle pop or soda,
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whatever you want to call it,
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is a naturally fermented fizzy drink made from pine trees that apparently taste just like Sprite.
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Now, Google taught me that there's actually a lot of different types within the pine category.
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And thankfully, I did some research because I also learned that apparently some of them are toxic.
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So yeah, this is my official disclaimer that please,
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if you're going to try this,
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make sure that the tree you're using is edible and safe.
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Out of curiosity, I went to my local Home Depot to see like,
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can you just accidentally buy a toxic pine?
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And yeah, you sure can.
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Oh, and what's this?
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Just another one, which after a quick Google search, honestly seems pretty terrifying.
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That's pretty crazy.
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Also, if you're thinking to yourself,
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oh, I'm gonna turn my Christmas tree into a soda,
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probably don't because commercially grown Christmas trees are treated with chemicals and pesticides,
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which you really don't wanna be drinking.
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Not gonna lie, now that I know that this whole thing involves a bit of danger,
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it actually kind of makes it more fun.
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So let's get this process going.
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First thing we need is this.
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There's gonna be a bunch of pressure that will build up inside of it.
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So make sure that you use a bottle like this or a mason jar,
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something that can withstand a high amount of pressurization or else it'll just explode.
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It's the cold hard facts.
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So you make sure you use a good, good bottle.
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Next, our main ingredient is obviously pine trees and more specifically the pine needles.
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I have a few growing in my yard,
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and I use a tree identifier app to make sure it wasn't toxic.
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All right, we're good.
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Eastern white pine.
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This one is safe.
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Which meant I could now begin my harvesting mission.
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It's pretty crazy to think that these little spiky guys are going to become a refreshing,
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smooth beverage, but I'm just going to trust the process here.
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So I just kept on collecting pine needles until I had enough.
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At least I hope it's enough.
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It seems like a lot.
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Oh, there's a little spider web piece in here.
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Don't want that.
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And we're just cruising right along.
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So on to the next step.
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Into the bottle they go.
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Pulled up actually.
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I just had an idea.
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So I'm going on a family trip soon to the ocean
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and I'm thinking how fun would it be to do a
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comparison test of the regular backyard version versus a shore pine which only grows in coastal environments.
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Will this salty ocean air make it more flavorful?
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Which one will be better?
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Or maybe they both taste terrible.
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These are the questions I got to find the answers to.
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And so the next day I packed up the car
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and we started our journey with a ferry ride across the ocean
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And Then a few more hours of driving a nice little road trip,
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until we reached the cozy coastal town of Tofino.
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As luck would have it,
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the trees right at our campsite were not shore pines.
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And so I began searching.
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I was checking out every single tree I saw,
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hoping it would be the one.
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But unfortunately, it was a lot harder to locate than I thought.
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Days were passing by and don't get me wrong,
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we were having an amazing trip,
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but I was determined to make soda from a shore pine tree,
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but I legit couldn't find a single one.
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Ruby did find these two shells though.
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She was very proud.
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I hate to say it,
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but my confidence of finding shore pines is unfortunately pretty low.
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I don't know if it's going to happen.
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There was only two days left before we had to return home.
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And so I increased my search efforts.
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I studied every single leaf and branch, but still no luck.
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It was the very last day of our trip and I was ready to admit defeat.
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But then, okay, I couldn't believe it.
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So I had to drive all the way here to see if it's true.
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There's a trail literally called Shore Pine Bog.
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Like what are the chances just down this path?
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Apparently there's going to be just a whole bunch of them.
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And there absolutely was.
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Ain't no false advertising here.
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This trail is very adequately named.
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Oh, this is amazing.
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Look, there's one, there's one, there's one right there.
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They're literally everywhere.
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We hit the jackpot.
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It honestly felt like I had won the lottery.
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After many hopeless days, unable to locate this very tree,
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here they all were in one place.
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I was going to achieve my goal of transforming this rare tree into pop after all,
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and I couldn't be more excited.
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My container was filled with pine needles,
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it was the perfect way to end our trip.
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And just like that, we made it home.
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And before we continue with the soda making process,
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let me share with you a little secret project that I've been working on.
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Six months ago, next to the studio,
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there was this boring, underutilized,
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empty area, and I transformed it into this.
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A beautiful outdoor wellness space,
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complete with a sauna, cold plunge, and a hot shower.
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It's legit the best thing ever.
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I'm so grateful for this space,
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and it's truly been a labor of love,
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spending many days out here just getting sweaty,
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building it, learning landscaping stuff,
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and overall bringing this vision to life,
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which was definitely possible thanks to today's sponsor, Milanote.
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Typically planning my projects look like this, just an unorganized mess.
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But then a few years ago I learned about this organization tool called Milanote,
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and now the planning stage looks more like this, way better.
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Legit, all you need is a phone or laptop,
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and that jumbled up mess becomes so nice and organized.
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And I actually was using Melanote to plan this whole outdoor space.
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So when their team reached out, I got very excited.
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So let me show you what it's all about.
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This is what the main page looks like.
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You can upload photos, have to-do lists,
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links, take notes, a ton of different stuff all in one place.
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It's really easy to use.
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You just click, drag stuff around,
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You can zoom out, infinite room to play with.
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Oh, you wanna add a little note right here?
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Click, drag, boom, there it is.
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Oh, what about a little arrow?
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Okay, sure, boom.
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It's so intuitive and simple.
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And every time I would complete a task,
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it was so satisfying coming back and crossing it off the to-do list.
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And then you can also have different boards within your main one.
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So I've got this one for the landscaping inspo and kinda the look that I was going for.
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And then one over here for the shower build,
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which was a fun challenge.
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Definitely never built anything like this before.
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And fun little hack that I did.
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Instead of spending a bunch of money to get a water line put in,
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I used this propane water heater with a buried garden hose and bam.
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And yep, you guessed it.
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I was organized for the cold plunge too.
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I wanted to do a DIY style build like this,
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but I wanted to go for more of a textured look.
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So I used micro cement,
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which involved lots of materials and different videos to help teach me how to do it.
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There's also a really great mobile app that syncs with your desktop board so that wherever you're at,
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you can take them with you out and about.
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And if you're like, what the heck,
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where do I even begin?
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Don't worry, they've got like over a hundred templates to help you get started.
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From start to finish, Milanote has been a part of this project.
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I really recommend it.
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It's also free to sign up.
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So go click the link in the description.
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Thanks to Milanote for keeping me organized and for supporting this video.
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Now back to it.
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All right, ladies and gents.
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It is finally time to turn these spikes into Sprite.
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And yes, I did have to go back in the yard to pick new ones
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because the ones I got earlier were all dried out while I was away on the trip.
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So basically restarting this whole thing.
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But here we go.
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So you already know this first part.
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Just filling up the bottle.
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Was that a struggle to get these tiny pine needles into this tiny hole?
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Yes, yes it was.
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Thanks for asking.
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This is probably where a mason jar would be a better option,
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but we did it.
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This is the backyard pine tree and then this here is the elusive shore pine,
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which I'm very happy that I was able to find some.
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And now for the next step,
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I'm going to add in a few spoonfuls of sugar.
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So what happens is that the yeast in the pine needles creates a reaction with the sugar,
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and that's what makes the carbonation,
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which is the bubbly flavor that we know and love in pop.
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Another fun fact, since starting this project,
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I've learned that there's also health benefits from pine needles.
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There's immune boosting qualities of vitamin C,
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there's vitamin A, and even pain relieving properties.
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If this works out, that's pretty crazy.
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A delicious and good for you drink?
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Sign me up, yes please.
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All right, the final ingredient is water,
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and it has to be natural spring water.
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Not because I'm bougie, but because we don't want the chlorine that could be found in tap water.
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There's just sugar and pine needles everywhere now.
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All right, here we go.
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This here is live footage of me realizing that I should definitely use the funnel.
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It's pretty amazing how it only takes three ingredients to make this natural soda.
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It's like a wise man once said.
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Even with the funnel, I still end up spilling it and making a mess.
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Now there's sugar, pine needles, and water everywhere.
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And bam.
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Now we just seal the bottle,
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give it a little shake to melt some of that sugar,
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and that's pretty much it, honestly.
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It's pretty darn simple.
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And now we just wait for the fermentation process to happen.
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So I'll see you in three days.
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Look at the bubbles.
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Oh yeah.
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I think that means that the carbonation process was a success.
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Woo.
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Let's open them up and find out.
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Whoa.
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That's crazy.
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It's literally fizzy like regular pop.
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What the heck?
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All right, I gotta get a glass and some ice.
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All right, so up first for our taste test is the backyard pine tree.
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Right away, It smells more like a tree than Sprite,
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but let's take a swig and find out what it tastes like.
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Whoa!
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Okay, that's pretty crazy.
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There's definitely some citrusy flavors going on.
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It's like subtle and really smooth, not too fizzy.
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That's actually so good.
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What the heck?
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That came from a tree.
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I'm not kidding.
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This is way better than I thought it would be.
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I had some skepticism that it would just be like chewing on tree bark,
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but this is actually a delightful beverage.
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But it's time for some competition.
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Will the shore pine taste better?
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Let's find out.
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Got a little pine needle in there.
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I'll be honest I did have a whole system I was gonna use this strainer
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and strain it through here to catch all the pine needles
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but I just got too excited
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and I just started drinking it straight from the jar
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so you should probably strain it
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so you don't end up with pine needles in your cup but but I'm just gonna drink around them,
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or maybe extra protein.
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Now taste test time, let's do this.
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Here is the elusive shore pine.
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Traveled over 300 kilometers to get this.
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Let's see if it was worth it.
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Oh, very different.
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Wow, I gotta go one more.
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I don't like it as much, honestly.
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I don't know what it is, but it's definitely different.
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And this one tastes way more like a classic Sprite.
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I don't know what's going on here, but decent.
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It's just not as good.
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I have one final idea that I think will improve the taste even more.
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So I sliced up a lime and lemon,
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squeezed them in, and now we're talking.
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Oh wow okay new flavors unlocked I mean it tastes just like Sprite now
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so it's not that new
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but that's crazy oh come on whoa finally I can get outside in that sun and enjoy my refreshing
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homemade pine needle pop.
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Oh yeah it's nighttime.
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Well that'll have to wait until tomorrow.
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For now let me show you what's inside these big mystery boxes.
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It is hats!
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You've actually seen me wearing them throughout this whole video and I've spent the past bunch of months designing,
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refining, redesigning and manufacturing them.
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It's a project that I'm so excited and proud of.
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To have a physical product,
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like a wearable thing that I can share with you guys who support me,
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it means a lot.
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I'm so pumped up.
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I'm going to be doing a limited drop on September 27th.
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More details to come and that's all I got for you.
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Woo, that's so good.
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Go drink a tree, but make sure it's a safe, not toxic one.
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Oh, I'm finishing this.
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About This Lesson
In this lesson, you will immerse yourself in the fascinating world of homemade soda made from pine trees, a unique topic that combines nature and culinary experimentation. By listening to a transcript about the journey of creating this drink, you'll not only enhance your comprehension skills but also practice English speaking with an engaging subject. As you follow the narrative, you will work on your pronunciation and intonation—essential components of effective communication. This lesson focuses on the learning techniques known as shadowspeak and shadowing technique, which are vital for improving your English speaking practice.
Key Vocabulary & Phrases
- Pine trees - Trees of the genus Pinus, known for their needle-like leaves and cones.
- Fermented - A process that converts sugars into acids or alcohol through the action of microorganisms.
- Carbonated - Infused with carbon dioxide gas, giving a fizzy quality to a beverage.
- Toxic - Something that is harmful or poisonous, often in relation to plants and substances.
- Mason jar - A glass jar used for preserving food that can also withstand high pressure.
- Collecting - The act of gathering or picking items, in this case, pine needles.
- Identifier app - A mobile application used to recognize and provide information about various species of plants or objects.
Practice Tips
To make the most of your learning experience, consider using the shadowing technique during this session. The content of the video transcript may have a conversational yet adventurous tone, creating a great opportunity for practice. Here are some focused tips to enhance your English speaking practice:
- Listen closely: Pay attention to the speed and natural rhythm of the speaker. Try to match not only the words but also the emotional tone of the narration.
- Pause and repeat: After each sentence or key phrase, pause the video and repeat what you heard. This helps to engrain the correct pronunciation in your memory.
- Record yourself: Use a recording device to capture your voice as you practice. Compare your pronunciation with that of the speaker for self-assessment.
- Embrace variations: Experiment with different speeds—slow down if needed, or try to catch up to the original tempo as you gain confidence.
- Engage with the context: Imagine yourself partaking in the adventure during the lesson. This mental imagery will improve your engagement and help with retention.
By incorporating these strategies into your practice routine, you will significantly improve English pronunciation and gain confidence in your speaking abilities. Enjoy your lessons and happy practicing!
What is the Shadowing Technique?
Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.
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