A water sommelier is someone who is able to detect, recognize and differentiate different types of natural waters based on their different natural characteristics such as minerality, carbonation, vintage, hardness, orientation, virginality, hardness and various other elements. "A water sommelier has extensively trained on the subject and basis his/her expertise can suggest on how to pair different waters with different cuisines, wines & spirits in the culinary environment," shared Ganesh Iyer, Managing Director at Veen Waters India Pvt Ltd. and India’s 1st Water Sommelier. Read what he has to say on his journey as a water sommelier: 

What motivated you to pursue a career as a Water Sommelier?

Well when I joined this HORECA industry two decades back, there was just one local bottled water brand and subsequent years saw the advent of India’s first natural mineral water brand followed by the first imported water brand. Cut that to the current scenario there are close to half a dozen brands of natural mineral water and just one premium brand of natural mineral water in Quality Glass Bottle. Times have changed to the extent that in the current context when globally there is clarion call given against plastic and plastic bottles with consumers becoming more aware of the health hazards faced on account of consuming from plastic bottles and therefore are moving to healthier packaging containers like glass and stainless steel sippers. Also there is growing awareness about the importance of TDS (Totall Dissolved Solids) and pH level of the water that is being consumed. After having spent close to 2 decades plus in the field of alcobev and non alcobev and having had the distinction of being part of teams that launched 6  different brands of natural mineral waters and sparkling waters in India from the 90”s with VEEN being the 7^th water brand, I believe that it was a opportune time to validate these learnings through DOEMENS Academy Munich in Germany which is rated as one of the best Academy to get yourself accredited as a Water Sommelier.

How do you go about discerning, identifying, and distinguishing between various types of water? What are the nuances of water that you look for?

At the elementary level I would submit that  the similarities are akin to that of a wine tasting process which is your ( A) Sight ( B) Smell ( C) Taste + Haptic Sensations. However the similarity ends here. In the Wine tasting eco system, flavours and tastes are in a common understanding or taste space. Its easier to relate to a vanilla or a gooseberry flavour as compared to detect the level of magnesium or potassium or silica in a mineral water. So there are a whole range of off flavours in water which are helpful and detrimental in defining the taste of the water. In some cases the mineral content of a said water can also help in determining the taste of the water. For eg waters with low mineral composition are likely to have a bitter taste. But this bitterness should not be equated with traditional bitterness. They are best described as haptic bitterness. Since the taste profile is so nuanced you can experience the difference only when one consumes water that is entirely in contract taste profile as that of the earlier one.

What is the definition of natural mineral water, and what qualities does it possess?

For this lets go back  in the late 90’s from a regulatory aspect with regard to water for sales there wasn’t a clear cut clarity to differentiate between purified water/bottled water and mineral/spring water, so much so that all water manufacturers had in their labels mineral mentioned which was inaccurate. Not only that in early2000 based on a study Conducted by Centre for Science & Environment( CSE) showed that most of the brands of bottled water which were certified by BIS in the form of ISI Mark that were sold in the market had high levels of pesticides had actually let the cat amongst the pigeons. In order to make amends and to create a unified regulation for water, the (BIS) Bureau of Indian Standards is an apex standard setting body in the country. It has statutory powers and was set up under the Bureau of Indian Standards Act, 1986) in lines with the CODEX Alimentarius- International Food Standards created and defined the following categories for commercial water in packaged containers. BIS is one of the regulatory body that monitors the overall water category for purpose of sale, the other body being that of FSSAI (The Food Safety And Standards Authority of India).

How do natural mineral waters from different regions vary?

The key characteristics or the differentiators are ( A) Vintage ( B ) Terrior – a French Term used to describe the environment or the soil of the place ( C) Hardness ( D) pH level ( E) TDS – Totally Dissolved Solids. Having said that no water is alike. Each spring water source is unique given its overall mineral composition.

What are the differences between still and sparkling natural mineral water?

Still Water typically comes directly from the source of springs. While not all mineral waters are sparkling, the bubbly ones get their effervescence from either naturally occurring gases or artificially carbonated using Co2

How do you distinguish between the tastes of different waters?

There is something known as Gustatory perception which are you basis tastes which are Sweet, Bitter, Salty and Sour. And two unknown ones are Umame and Fat rarely experienced. These gustatory perception define the elements of water tasting.

When trying to define water you got to look at the Threshold values.

(Detection Threshold) –This has the lowest stimulation towards a particular taste

(Recognition Threshold) – This has a minimum stimulus intensity

(Difference Threshold) – Intensification of the stimulus.

(Saturation Threshold) – This level has a maximum sensation and one cannot taste water beyond this level.

With this you define, the basic character of water, its flow, the mouthfeel and finally the aftertaste on your throat.

How many types of water have you sampled, and which one is your favorite, and why?

I have been fortunate to have tasted close to 150-155 brands of waters over the last 20 plus years. Fine Waters as a category is as diverse as one can get because each of the fine waters represent that is extremely unique in its offering and therefore it would be quite a tedious task to single out any one particular brand. However, apart from our Home Brand that is VEEN bottled in the Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan and which is Nicknamed as a Michelin Star Water and also was the first in the Indian market to offering natural mineral water in premium packaging , I am quite impressed with Svalbardi from the Svalbard Region. Svalbarði is an award winning ultra-low mineral, superior purity, still Artic Iceberg Water. Another personal favourite of mine is Ferrarelle a  naturally carbonated with low and soft bubbles  Water - from Teano  a town in the province of Campania in Southern Italy .It has the best of both worlds of still and sparkling and so much so that they had a campaign on the lines of Still or Sparkling or Ferrarelle

What specific factors make VEEN water unique?

VEEN Nicknamed as “Michelin Star Water” has been complementing culinary tables across India for a decade now with extremely unique features one of that being of the most awarded Natural Mineral Water brand in the Fine Water Category for the past 5 years at Taste & Award Show. Being Bottled in the world ‘s first  and only carbon negative country in the Himalayan Kingdom of Bhutan and the first brand in India to bottle  Natural Mineral Water in Premium Glass Packaging remains the brand’s USP in the brand holding its dominant position in the HoReCa Market for the past decade.

As a beverage specialist, trends you see in the coming years?

On the CSR and ESG level, I hope to see more indepth innovations in the field of (A) sustainable packaging and environmentally safe packaging on a relative scale such as biodegradable PET, biodegradable Tetrapack, dissolvable mini packs for beverages. (B) Companies going in for B Corp and similar certifications that would stress up accountability, transparency on the 360 degree axis of business. To reduce carbon footprints and carbon emissions, beverage companies would strive for “Going Local” and stress upon for Fresh Ingredients. I see more and more water brands investing in tech, for optimizing innovations like “Water from Air” etc.

Tips for Restaurateurs to choose best sparkling waters.

With the emergence of fine waters in the global hospitality scene, its imperative or rather just a matter of time that restaurateurs will have to up their game when it comes to water. The old vanilla style of offering just a water on the table is soon going to be eclipsed. Different types of waters (still and sparkling) and their complementing cuisines are already up and running in the international market. Restaurants are offering bespoke water paired menus with different cuisines. For eg a sea food salad paired with a low sparkling with medium bubbles works wonderfully well on the pairing note.Or a medium TDS water paired with a wholesome Biryani does provide a great experience to the discerning consumers and so does a Vichy Catalan Sparkling Paired with a Rogan Gosh. On a general note water ought to be paired with food basis the acidity and salinization.