BIG WINS AT OLYMPICS OF WATER
IN BERKELEY SPRINGS
The 35th Berkeley Springs International Water Tasting, the world’s most prestigious, gave out awards tonight to waters from three continents. Four continents total had waters among the over 80 entered.
Ten media judges spent hours tasting and selecting from waters sourced in nineteen states, four Canadian provinces and eight foreign countries. “There were municipal entries from Canada, Australia as well as across the United States. The total of countries over the life of the event is 59, including waters from Tasmania, Turkey, Bosnia, Greece and New Zealand,” said Jill Klein Rone, event producer.
The Gold Medal in the Purified category went to DrinkMore Water, Gaithersburg, MD. Multi medalist Le Sage Natural Water, Lesage, WV took Silver. The Bronze went to a previous multi Gold medalist, Ophora Hyper-Oxygenated® Water, Santa Barbara, CA.
“It was another wonderful year for the largest and longest running water tasting in the world,” said von Wiesenberger. “Berkeley Springs is the Academy Awards of Water.”
The ten media judges selected by Klein Rone included The WV Food Guy, representatives from Academic Travel Abroad and Insider’s Guide to Spas, as well as various regional and national media including newspapers, websites, blogs, and online and print magazines. They were trained by von Wiesenberger to look, sniff and taste each water under guidelines similar to those in a wine tasting. The waters were rated for each attribute including appearance (it should be clear – or slightly opaque for glacial waters), aroma (there should be none), taste (it should taste clean), mouth feel (it should feel light), aftertaste (it should leave you thirsty for more).
The judges’ job is crucial and so is their training. All judges are presented with a diploma designating them as a Certified Water Taster.
The event was produced by Travel Berkeley Springs and held at The Country Inn. The 36th annual Berkeley Springs International Water Tasting is scheduled for Saturday, February 21, 2026. The event seminar on Friday and Saturday’s award ceremony were live streamed and are available for future viewing on the BerkeleySpringsWV Facebook page. For more information on Berkeley Springs or its water tasting, call 304-258-9147 or check the website.
