Water is not Water. At first glance, waters may not seem to have the individual characteristics that distinguish wines, but distinct differences become apparent when the attention is focused on water.

Like wine water has terroir and it is a natural product that originates from a particular place with unique properties. That is of course if you drink premium bottled water. About 40% of the bottled water sold in the US is purified tap water and available from brands like Aquafina, Dasani and many others. If it says municipal source on the label it’s not premium water and highly processed.

There is nothing wrong with tap water and in most places its save to drink and in some instances it actually does not taste too bad. Tap water is for hydration while premium bottled water deserves a place at the table in an epicurean context.

Enjoying bottled water is not a new trend as many belief. In the Roman Empire earthen jars filled with naturally carbonated water from Northern Germany (today’s Apollinaris) whas transported to Rome at great expense and the 11 aqueducts streaming water into the city were rated according to the taste and quality of the water.

All these waters have special characteristics and we can now think of integrating it into the epicurean context similar to wine in what I like to call the Bottled Water Etiquette.