Water Reviews: Ethos Water (700ml)

Water: Ethos Water (700ml plastic bottle)

Type: Bottled drinking water

Rating:  Two Drops (out of five)

Review: In the realm of drinking waters, Ethos Water is about as mundane as it gets. This is the Bic ball-point pen of waters. The Diet Coke of waters. The mashed potatoes of waters. Tasteless (which, I suppose, "bottled water" is supposed to be (maybe?)) and barely remarkable in any sense other than the company's pledge that for every bottle of Ethos Water "you" buy, Starbucks will donate 5¢ to (and I quote): "support humanitarian programs in coffee growing communities, providing clean, safe water to those in need."

That's great, and apparently the company has already distributed something like $10 million in this project, but...if you buy this water, you are essentially buying tap water from California for $1.95 per 700 ml bottle. And even if tap water costs more in California than it does in the rest of the country (which...I'm guessing it does these days) you are over paying by about 1,000%. Is it a lot to pay for Californian tap water, even if it's maybe going to a good cause? Mmm...yeah. I think so. Furthermore, the bottles don't even contain recycled material.

There are only two reasons to buy this water:

1.) You are dying of thirst and Starbucks is not serving tap water.
2.) You are about to make a multi-mile trek through hostile country and need a water container that won't spill, in which case the Starbucks plastic cup won't do.

If neither of these apply, I'd say stick with Starbucks' triple filtered tap water and just donate some money to the charity of your choice.