Apparently it's not just water...

Remember the days when Evian water bottles were the rage and all the "cool" people (no pun intended) drank Evian water? (Now, everyone carries a Nalgene water bottle. If you're unfamiliar with Nalgene, let me just say that it's The North Face of water bottles. What's so great about Nalgene? Unless you loose it, you shouldn't ever need to buy another one. Check out the standard bottle's specifications here.)

What's the new water of choice? If you frequently have lunch at Collegetown bagels, you'll probably find Fuji, Evian, and Nirvana bottled water in stock. The Nirvana brand water has a very creepy and cheap looking label. Of course, you know what that means--there must be something creepy and cheap with the water. I have seen a few people take the plunge and consume a 16.9oz bottle of Nirvana water. Wait a minute! Isn't there something wrong with using Nirvana to describe water? Oh, OK my thesaurus tells me that nirvana is a synonym for paradise, heaven, bliss, ecstasy, joy, peace, serenity, etc... But, wait what's the definition of nirvana? Here it is:

a transcendent state in which there is neither suffering, desire, nor sense of self, and the subject is released from the effects of karma and samsara. It represents the final goal of Buddhism.

So, if you have reached nirvana, then there is no desire. Should not desire include a desire for water, too? Why, then, should you reach for a bottle of water instead of plain tap water or, better yet, water directly from a stream (or melt an icicle if you're in Ithaca)? What are the Nirvana people thinking I am after when I look for a bottle of water among all those different brands? Perhaps, I am seeking escape from the mundane drone of the real world. Maybe by drinking this water I'll transcend my current state of being. That's a lot of expect from a bottle of water. Isn't it?

Enter Voss water. Voss is advertised as the pinnacle of water. Voss water was the idea of a student (Christopher Harlem) from Norway who attended the University of San Francisco. He noticed that students always carried bottled water, but he felt that he could never find bottled water comparable to Norwegian water. Eventually, he and his long-time friend (Ole Christian Sandberg) decided to bottle artesian water from Norway and distribute it around the world. Add Voss to the lengthy list of bottled waters.

Have you ever had Voss water? I have a few times, and it's definitely different. The most notable characteristic about Voss water is its smoothness. Of course, you won't find people lugging Voss bottles around, since it is bottled in glass rather than plastic. Plus, why not just dump your Voss into a Nalgene? Is that a sacrilege to bottled water?

You think I'm crazy with this long discussion about water? Check out Via Genova in Chappaqua, NY (just a little north of Manhattan). This is a water bar owned by Diane Felicissimo a proclaimed water connoisseur. I have even heard that people do water tastings, which probably is easier than wine, which impairs the discriminating power of the taste buds of the "non-spit backers."

Well, I suppose people do what makes them happy. If having a keen sense of distinguishing things with no taste is your forte, so be it. I wonder if there is a similar following for saltine crackers? This is scary enough...