Tried giving them a bath, that smell (and I'm assuming taste. Not wasting a carto to find out) is definitely still there. From what everyone is saying it sounds like it's there by design, and I will admit that it probably does make it feel more like drinking a soda. I guess I'll just avoid the carbonated beverage flavors for now and maybe experiment more if/when I wind up playing with the DIY stuff. I don't think I'm quite to that point yet
Thanks for all the suggestions and recommendations guys.