Where to find the country’s best-tasting tap water

Councillor Keith Price, chairman of Napier City Council’s Delivery and Regulatory Committee, said they were stoked to be named as one of the suppliers of the best-tasting tap water in New Zealand.

Manawatū has scooped Napier City Council in the grand finals of a competition to find New Zealand’s best tap water.

Councillor Keith Price, chairman of Napier City Council’s Delivery and Regulatory Committee, said they were "stoked to be named one of the best-tasting tap water suppliers in New Zealand".

“Napier has a real natural advantage with the Heretaunga Plains aquifer, which provides a premium source of water,” Price said.

Napier was up against Rotorua Lakes District Council, Manawatū District Council and Western Bay of Plenty District Council on Thursday night in Rotorua at the annual Water Industry Operations Group of New Zealand (WIOG) conference and awards.

But it wasn’t Napier’s night, with Manawatū District Council’s Stanway-Halcombe water scheme taking out the title.

Judges congratulated the finalists, saying the high standard of water delivered by them made their task of selecting the winner challenging.

“While it was a close competition, our decision was unanimous.”

Price said Napier’s water had a natural quality and was backed by consistent investment and responsible management from the council to ensure it continued delivering reliable drinking water to the community.

“This result reflects the work that goes on every day across our water network to maintain infrastructure, protect source water and deliver a service people can trust,” he said.

“We are keen to keep entering in future years to benchmark ourselves nationally and continue showcasing the quality of Napier’s drinking water.”

Judges look for colour (completely translucent without any white or brown tones), clarity (crystal clear, not cloudy), odour (nice scent) and taste (pleasing to the palate).

WIOG chairman Joshua McIndo said a lot of people turned on taps for a drink, to cook and to shower, with little thought about the complexities involved in operating and maintaining the water infrastructure.

“This competition highlights the dedication of individuals and organisations that work tirelessly to provide their communities with safe, high-quality drinking water every day.”

During judging, water samples are subjected to a blind taste test – think wine tasting without needing to spit out the samples.

In the ultimate showdown, the New Zealand champion went on to compete against Australia’s top drop in the IXOM Trans-Tasman Water Taste Test, the “Bledisloe Cup of tap water tasting”.

In a closely fought competition, Manawatū District Council’s Stanway-Halcombe water scheme lost to Northern Territory’s Katherine water treatment plant.

LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.