Pursuing High-Water Mark

0

If you’ve been guilty of washing down a delectable bite of filet mignon with a glass of regular bottled or even tap water, Jon Gluck would prefer that you stop.

The founder and president of Beverly Hills Drink Co. in that city, Gluck launched the “champagne of waters” recently and calls it Beverly Hills 9OH2O. It’s sold in a one-liter glass bottle, was crafted with the help of a “water sommelier” and costs $12 in stores and $16 at restaurants.

“This isn’t a gimmick,” Gluck said. “We wanted to totally change the industry and you can’t cut corners. This whole fine-waters movement – this is a thing. The United States is just coming around to the idea that water can and should be taken seriously.”

Gluck said while eating at several fine-dining restaurants that offered great atmosphere, food and wine, he was put off by the taste of their water.

“It was just so underwhelming,” Gluck said. “Something clicked in my head and that’s where the idea to create the ultimate water started.”

The water comes from a Northern California spring with minerals added to give it what Gluck refers to as a smooth, light and clean taste. The company collaborated with Martin Riese, water sommelier and general manager of Ray’s & Stark Bar on Miracle Mile, to come up with the recipe for the water.

The hexagonal-shaped bottle is hand-finished and triple-sealed so that the water maintains its freshness.

Gluck contracts out for manufacturing in limited quantities of 10,000 numbered bottles. His company distributes the water locally and on its website. Beverly Hills 9OH2O went on sale in May at 20 locations across Los Angeles including Montage Hotel in Beverly Hills and Monsieur Marcel, a gourmet market and restaurant chain in Los Angeles. Gluck is negotiating with a distributor to have the water sold across the United States and in China, France, Germany, Canada and the Middle East.

The Beverly Hills water certainly isn’t alone in the realm of premium bottled water and isn’t even the most expensive.

For example, Bling H2O by Bling Beverages LLC in Westlake comes in a plethora of customizable glass bottles that can be decorated with crystals from Swarovski Elements. One frosted glass bottle, the Original Baby Bling, sells for $21 online. The company’s most expensive bottle sells for $2,600 and features 10,000 hand-applied crystals.

Marc Sittenfield, general manager of Monsieur Marcel in Beverly Hills, said the 9OH2O water has only been in the store for two weeks and has stirred customers’ curiosity.

“People are interested by it, but kind of skeptical because they think, ‘It’s just water,’ ” he said.

– Subrina Hudson

No posts to display