Photo by egbphoto

How confident of the quality of D.C. tap water are the folks over at D.C. Water? So confident that they’re betting that you wouldn’t be able to tell the difference between the stuff you get out of your tap and the stuff you buy in a bottle.

Starting today and running through October, D.C. Water is running a series of blind taste tests, pitting your taste buds against glasses of tap and bottled water. The first one takes place from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Sweetgreen at 2221 I Street NW today. (The rest of the dates and locations are below.)

For D.C. Water, it’s not only a matter of pride, but also a matter of quality and saving the environment. “D.C. Water is promoting tap water, protecting the environment and saving people money. Hundreds of water samples are tested each week throughout the District to ensure the delivery of high quality tap water. Bottled water involves significant economic and environmental costs. D.C. tap water is only a penny per gallon and bottled water costs 100 times more,” it said in a press release.

Despite a sordid history under its former identity—the D.C. Water and Sewer Authority—the newly branded D.C. Water has widely promoted itself and its only product. From offering Congressional Republicans reusable bottles filled with D.C. tap water to creating a utility mascot (Wendy the Waterdrop!) and partnering with local restaurants that use water as an ingredient, D.C. Water under the leadership of General Manager George Hawkins has relentlessly preached that D.C. tap water is safe.

The message is getting across, albeit slowly—late last year a high-end D.C. restaurant said it would not serve tap water. (The decision was eventually reversed.) And it didn’t help that the D.C. Inspector General reported earlier this year that former D.C. Water managers lied to the EPA about how it tested for lead in the water between 2001 and 2003. Still, Hawkins now says that D.C. tap water is safer and cleaner than in the past.

So if you think you’re taste buds are that discerning that they could tell the difference, take the test. But be forewarned: the last time D.C. Water ran one of these, most people couldn’t pick tap water out from bottled water.

Every Wednesday between August 22 — October 10, 2012
11 a.m. to 1 p.m. (weather permitting)

Where:
Ward 1 — October 10, 2012
Columbia Heights Metro
3030 14th Street, NW

Ward 2 — August 22, 2012
Sweetgreen
2221 I Street, NW

Ward 3 — August 29, 2012
Whole Foods (Tenley Circle)
4530 40th Street, NW

Ward 4 — September 5, 2012
Petworth Metro
3700 Georgia Avenue, NW

Ward 5 — September 12, 2012
Home Depot
901 Rhode Island Avenue, NE

Ward 6 — September 19, 2012
Southwest Waterfront
1100 4th Street, SW

Ward 7 — September 26, 2012
Penn-Branch Shopping Center
3220 Pennsylvania Avenue, SE

Ward 8 — October 3, 2012
Ward 8 Constituent Building
2100 Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue, SE