Fine Bottled Water

Key Concepts

Minerality +

Super Low <50mg/l
Low 50-250mg/l
Medium 250-800mg/l
High 800-1500mg/l
Very High >1500mg/l

Balance (carbonation) +

Still
Effervescent
Light
Medium
Bold

Orientation (pH) +

Acidic pH 5-6.7
Neutral pH 6.7-7.3
Hint of Sweet pH 7.3-7.8
Alkaline pH 7.8-10

Hardness +

Soft
0 - 17.1 mg/l

Slightly Hard
17.1 - 60mg/l

Moderately Hard
60 -120mg/l

Hard
120 -180mg/l

Very Hard
180mg/l & over

Virginality +

Superior 0 - 1mg/l
Very Good 1 - 4mg/l
Good 4 - 7mg/l
Acceptable 7 - 10 mg/l
Potable10 -50 mg/l

Added Carbonation +

Most artificially carbonated waters have 1 to 10g/l of carbon dioxide. Current carbonation techniques involve pressurizing carbon dioxide before adding it to the water — the pressure increases the amount of carbon dioxide that will dissolve.

Natural Carbonation +

Certain rare geological conditions can produce naturally carbonated water. The origin of the CO2 is either organic matter degradation, interaction with carbonates, metamorphic devolatilization, or magmatic degassing (volcanic activity).

Sources of Water

Spring +

More bottled waters claim springs as their origin than any other type of source. Spring waters vary widely in their mineral composition and TDS level, both of which are influenced by the geology of the local area. What all true, free-flowing springs have in common is that they're gravity-driven.

Artesian +

An artesian aquifer is under pressure. The aquifer is usually surrounded by impermeable rock. The pressure built up in an aquifer will push water to the surface and create a permanent fountain when an artesian aquifer is tapped.

Well +

Non-artesian wells need mechanical pumps to bring water from the aquifer to the surface.

Rain +

Recently, companies began bottling rainwater falling in remote, unpolluted parts of the world. Several of these waters come from Tasmania and Chile, where air pollution is exceptionally low.

Hardness +

About 20,000 years ago, the Earth was one-third covered by glaciers, the remains of which are now being tapped as a source for bottled water.

Iceberg +

An exciting new source for bottled water is melted ice from icebergs. Most icebergs in the North Atlantic Ocean come from the major glaciers of West Greenland.

Clouds +

We also have water from condensation bottled and sold. In Chile, fog forms on the shore and then moves inland in the form of cloud banks. The locals call it "camanchaca." Fog is basically tiny drops of water that are so light they don't yet fall as rain.

Deep Sea +

As they do today, icebergs near Greenland melted thousands of years ago, and the water produced was of a different temperature and salinity than the surrounding seawater. This difference kept the water separate from the surrounding water as it sank to the ocean floor. It now circles the Earth every several thousand years.

Condensation +

The production of drinking water from humidity is an innovative water extraction solution that tackles the growing problem of access to clean and safe drinking water in remote areas. Entrepreneurs have used the technology to bring us exotic waters from remote and pristine regions of the planet.

Curated +

Probably as old as winemaking itself is the idea of a cuvée. We can now also have water cuvées. Nevas from Germany is probably the first water cuvée, with two mineral waters blended and carbonated, in a stunning champagne bottle with a wire-cork presentation.

Latest Additions

To end the sorry state of the "glass culture" surrounding premium bottled water, FineWaters has designed an exclusive series of water glasses produced by Rogaška and aimed at the new and emerging trend of enjoying water —like wine — in an epicurean context.

Today, a water glass is usually an afterthought. I don't mind paying $10 for a bottle of water, but I want it served in an appropriate glass. Instead, I've been served water in all possible vessels, from a heavy whiskey tumbler to a tall highball glass and the dreaded lemonade glass. A wide variety of wine glasses are also often used as water glasses. This is unfortunate, as it confuses the waiters, and you need to remind them constantly not to pour wine into your empty water glass. I usually consider myself lucky if I get a water goblet — a glass with a base and short stem. Still, unfortunately, these are traditionally heavy glasses and look like second-class citizens of the table setting.

Rogaška is one of the world's leading producers of crystal ware, with almost 350 years of crystal-making tradition in Slovenia. Interestingly, the glass-making tradition in Rogaška is associated with the famous spa in the village of Rogaška. The spa and its thermal waters have been well-known for centuries. Starting in the 17th-century, glass bottles were manufactured in the village to accommodate the drinking and taking home water from the rejuvenating source.

FineWaters has developed a series of glasses for premium waters and, in 2013, the first of a series was launched. The initial glass is a hand-blown, lead-free crystal glass designed for the water connoisseur to feel equal on a table with premium wine glasses present. Additional offerings in the future will include machine-made glasses at a midlevel and a further segmentation into still and sparkling glasses expressing a slightly different shape to accommodate the characteristics of the water. If your main drink with a meal is premium water, you need appropriate glassware.

Your first impression will be the tactile sensation of a fine, hand-blown glass. It is tall and thin, and you can feel the weight of the water. The visual impact is commanding as it is amongst the tallest glasses on the table. Such a presentation elevates the experience of drinking water from hydration to epicurean.