GOETZ & PREVOS | 108:12 • JOURNAL AWWA | DECEMBER 2016 47
A
manda Finnis was the natural choice. A wine enthusiast, she is
one of 200 employees of Coliban Water, which serves largely
regional consumers in north-central Victoria, Australia. Finnis
dabbles in winemaking and is no stranger to taste tests, so she
was intrigued when a colleague asked for volunteers to sample
and critique water from various communities. She volunteered with the enthu-
siasm of a sommelier from Hunter Valley, Australia’s oldest wine-growing region
and a premier tourist attraction. Of course, water is not wine, but by participat-
ing in this taste test, Finnis would be contributing to the quality of life across
the region; besides, it would be fun to be a part of “Tap Crawl,” Coliban Water’s
planned “palate journey” of its widely dispersed water systems. So she stepped
forward along with dozens of her fellow utility employees.
As part of Coliban Water’s Tap Crawl, employees joined in for a taste
tour of the waters of the 19 distribution systems. Seeing the event as more
than an entertaining byplay, management staff hoped these employees might
shed insight on the experiences of customers at the delivery point—in short,
what do customers think of the water’s taste and smell when it comes
through their faucets?
EMPLOYEES OF A WATER
UTILITY IN AUSTRALIA TOOK
TIME TO STAND IN THEIR
CUSTOMERS’ SHOES BY
PARTICIPATING IN A TASTE
TEST; THE RESULTS
REVEALED DIFFERENT
ASPECTS OF THE UTILITY’S
19 TAP WATERS, AND
MUCH MORE.
MELANIE K. GOETZ AND PETER PREVOS
Tap Crawl From Down Under
2016 © American Water Works Association