Sommeliers Put Welsh Waters To The Test

Two of Wales’ best known water producers are celebrating success in an international water tasting session. Talsarn based, Llanllyr Water Company, and fellow Ceredigion producer, Ty Nant Spring Water Ltd from Bethania were among 26 waters from across the world which were put to a blind test by drinks magazine, Imbibe.

The waters were rigorously tested by an expert group of sommeliers, who switched from their usual wine and spirits to put the various waters divided into still and sparkling varieties - through their paces.

Those which stood out had both character and complexity. Minerality was a key issue, as was balance and the supporting role of water during a meal.

A number of criteria were used by the panel to evaluate the waters. In addition to marks for overall reaction, the waters were judged on their food friendliness and compatibility with red and white wine.

In the sparkling water category, the judges raved about Llanllyr’s “excellent bubbles” and notes of “green fruits and sherbert” that “make the mouth water”.

Scoring 80 points (which is classed as ‘excellent’) it was a very close runner-up to the category winner the Italian San Pellegrino, and was the highest point scoring UK water in the whole tasting session.

Llanllyr was also judged to be the Best Newcomer, scoring 72 points for overall food, red wine and white wine friendliness.

Said Llanyllyr’s Dirctor, Patrick Gee, “We think there are two critical elements to our product, taste and design, so we were delighted to read that what has been said about our water’s taste so many times before, was endorsed by the sommeliers and it completes a recent set of awards having also won Class Magazine’s design award for Best Soft Drink.”

In the still section Ty Nant Spring Water Ltd’s latest brand, TAU - a True Taste gold award winner - made the top four with its “strong and diverse mineral content” and “very good paring with a wide variety of wine”. While the company’s iconic brand Ty Nant still also made the top 10.

The sparkling category again saw Ty Nant Spring Water Ltd highly placed with both the Ty Nant and TAU brands’ sparkling varieties pleasing the judges who remarked the latter would “go well with spicy foods”, and put both in the international top ten.

“We were delighted to read that the Imbibe taste panel enjoyed TAU's delicate taste and commented on how it compliments a wide variety of wines,” said Ty Nant’s Brand Manager, Laura Dodds. “They also detected the elegant simplicity of Ty Nant's low mineral content and clean, neutral taste, which we have always known to enhance any fine dining experience.”

Director of the Welsh Assembly Government’s Food and Market Development Division Norma Barry said, “Wales’s geography and environment make it an excellent natural water source, with the varied landscapes creating its different tastes and properties.

“This taste test has proved that Welsh still and sparkling waters are more than a match for their international counterparts.”

Sommeliers Panel

Nathan Evans, operations manager for Boisdale restaurants.
Nicolas Angelina, group wine buyer and development director, Noura.
Karl Kessab, tea sommelier, The Lanesborough.
Mike Stocks, bar and training manager, Caluccio’s.

For further information visit Llanllyrwater.com.