All water tastes the same, Right? Actually wrong.  While many people think of water as a tasteless liquid that is necessary for survival, the truth of the matter is that water does vary in taste considerably due to many factors.

We don’t usually realize it, but during a single day, we can drink water from three or four different sources.  For instance, if you drink tap water at home, you will notice that it tastes much different than the water you will find at work.  For those that drink bottled water, you will find the taste to be much more different than the tap water available and lastly for those that drink water that has been filtered either by a home filtering connected to a faucet or a small charcoal filter that fit in water pitchers, you will notice the taste varies as well.

While many water drinkers only use tap water for cooking, tea and coffee, there are many individuals that truly value the taste of their water no matter which source it comes from.  While the sense of taste is the main sense we use when processing the taste of water, when we actually taste water we use a variety of senses including; the sense of taste, the sense of smell and sometimes even the sense of touch. For instance, when drinking water you may take into consideration the temperature of the water, the texture of the water (whether it is smooth or gritty) and even the smell of the water.  All of these factors play a part on how we perceive different sources of water.

Tap Water
For many people, tap water is unpopular for drinking.  Not because it is unsafe to drink (although it is sometimes perceived to be), but rather the taste of tap water usually precedes it.  Many people dislike the taste of tap water due to the processing that it has gone through.  Many municipalities add lots of chlorine to the tap water to ensure that it is clean of various bacteria.  Tap water can also pick up minor tastes such mineral and metal deposits that it picks up along the way to a home’s tap source.  While there are obviously bad tasting tap water sources around the country, there are also tap sources that usually earn high marks such as the NYC’s tap water – which generally comes fresh from Upstate New York vast mountain springs and reservoirs.

Spring Water
Also known as mineral water, spring water is perhaps the most popular choice of water for drinking due to its pleasant taste.  Springs are water deposits found deep within the earth, they usually come from fresh sources such as underground glaciers, mountain springs and fresh lakes.  Mineral water is water that is bottled from select springs which include certain minerals that add taste to the water.  In addition to pleasant tasting water, many brands of mineral water also state that consuming their water can enhance one’s health- presumably due to the special mineral make up.

Filtered Water
While municipalities use chlorine, oxidation and other processes to clean water to source to taps, filtered water also uses special techniques to process water.  Whether you drink filtered water that is cleansed at home by a small charcoal filter attached to your sink or purchase bottled water that has been filtered of many of its impurities, filtered water in general terms is just a way to remove most substances.  Practically all soft drink makers use filtered water and some bottled water are generally filtered as well.  While many bottling companies do use tap water as their source, the final product has been processed further and undeniably will have a different taste.