Bluefield Daily Telegraph, Bluefield, WV

Latest Updates

Discussion

February 18, 2013

Only 4 states yet to enter W.Va. water tasting

Associated Press

BERKELEY SPRINGS —  The founder of the world’s largest and longest-running water tasting competition says she’s closing in on her goal of having sampled tap water from every U.S. state.

“It’s like collecting the state quarters,” Jeanne Mozier said as she gears up for the 23rd annual Berkeley Springs International Water Tasting competition on Feb. 23.

“We’ve had water from Tasmania but not Rhode Island, from Ecuador but not Oklahoma ... from South Korea but not South Dakota,” Mozier said. “I want a full set of states.”

Mozier recently put the word out that she was looking for more contenders before time to register ran out, and a North Dakota town stepped up. The entry from the Southwest Water Authority in Dickinsen, N.D., has cut the number of states yet to compete to just four — Rhode Island, Oklahoma, Nevada and South Dakota.

“I don’t know if there’s this big rivalry between North and South Dakota,” Mozier said, “but if there is ... South Dakota better perk up because they just got one-upped.”

This year features two new international competitors as well. Submissions from Chile and Thailand bring the total number of nations that have competed to 44.

Contest categories include municipal waters, purified drinking water, and still and sparkling bottled waters. Judges are trained by the event’s longtime water master, Arthur von Wiesenberger, to rate every glass on appearance, aroma, taste, mouth feel and aftertaste.

Last year, they declared tap water from Greenwood, British Columbia, the best tasting municipal water internationally. In the U.S., that honor went to St. Henry, Ohio.

Other past municipal winners have included Los Angeles and Desert Hot Springs in California and Atlantic City, N.J.

The event is held in an Eastern Panhandle town also known for its water.

Natural warm springs produce water at 74.3 degrees, once attracting American Indians, settlers and George Washington.

Washington, who first arrived in 1748, helped build Berkeley Spring’s reputation as a getaway for the health-conscious. A stone bathtub serves as a monument to his visits.

Text Only
Latest Updates
AP Video
Probe Begins After Conn. Commuter Trains Crash NTSB Begins Investigation Into Conn. Train Crash Lotto Fever Sweeps the Country Conn. Commuter Trains Collide; 60 Go to Hospital Coffee Run Leads to Hatchet Hitchhiker Arrest Fmr. IRS Head Insists No Politics in Targeting CDC: Fecal Bacteria Common in Swimming Pools $1 Million in Jewels Stolen at Cannes Film Fest NM Mom Chases Down Child Abductor Raw: Crash Sends Car Into Fla. Pool Raw: Obama Sits Down With Elementary Kids Raw: Bear Falls From Tampa Tree Ousted IRS Chief: Errors Not Caused by Politics Terror Suspect Due in Court in Idaho Friday Raw: Driver Ejected From Truck, Over Bridge Could Tobacco Be the Next Biofuel? Wash. State Releases Draft Rules for Legal Pot Dying Man's Blinks Lead to Murder Conviction Officials: Texas Tornado Likely Had 200 Mph Wind Brothers Arrested in NOLA Parade Shooting
Business Marquee
College Sports
Pro Sports
Facebook