In the D.C. region, conversations often start with, “What do you do?” WTOP’s “Working Capital” series profiles the people whose jobs make the D.C. region run.
Light-bodied. Silky in texture. Creamy and velvety. Mineraly. Peppery. Maybe even a little bit of a “sting on the palate.”
Those descriptions might sound like they belong at a wine tasting. But Cameron Smith is talking about water.
At The Inn at Little Washington in Washington, Virginia, Smith is doing for water what sommeliers have long done for wine: exploring where it comes from, how it tastes and even what foods might pair best with it.
Related stories
- 8 Halloween pop-ups and other spooktacular events in the DC area
- Chevy Chase’s Pati Jinich’s new cookbook finds connection in the US-Mexico borderlands
- WATCH: Testing the limits of ARTECHOUSE DC’s AI penguin
That includes bottles such as Vellamo Natural Mineral Water from Finland, sourced from water connected to ice age glaciers, and Three Bays, an Australian mineral water drawn from hundreds of meters below Victoria’s southern coast.
The Inn carries about 15 waters with some seasonal, limited-supply selections designated as its “Waters of the Moment.” For Smith, offering diners a water menu is an extension of the choices already expected at a fine-dining restaurant.
“Why do we give guests a selection for every single beverage in the world, except for the most important beverage of our lives?” Smith said.
“The water is the only beverage that every single guest gets when they come to dinner. So wine is an option, cocktails are an option, beer is an option, everything else is an option, but water is a given.”
And choice, he said, is part of what makes an experience feel luxurious.
“To have a choice of water is really an important thing,” Smith said. “And then the other concept here was actually that water, like wine, can be paired with food.”
What is a water sommelier?
Much like a wine sommelier, a water sommelier is trained to recognize how factors including a water’s source, age, mineral content and geology affect its taste and texture. It also lends to figuring out how those characteristics can complement food.
At The Inn at Little Washington, the title is only one of several roles that Smith has accumulated.
He calls himself the Inn’s “cheese whiz,” having earned certification as a fromager through the American Cheese Society and helping curate its cheese selections. He is also a certified tea master through the International Tea Masters Association and curates the Inn’s tea menu. And after training through the Fine Water Academy, he became a certified water sommelier, a role that also includes training other staff members on the Inn’s water selections.
“I’ve been here for almost 20 years,” Smith said.
Now, guests can experience some of that training themselves.
On Sundays, Smith leads the Inn’s “World of Water” experience, a 45-minute guided tasting for $75 per person. Guests taste still and sparkling waters sourced from springs, glaciers and aquifers around the world, while learning how characteristics such as minerality and mouthfeel can change what they experience in the glass. Food pairing is part of the discussion, too.
Water also plays a role in the Inn’s “Wellness Wednesday” experience. The program includes a visit to the Inn’s gardens, a “Goose Walk,” canapés and mocktails and a guided “Waters of the World” pairing.
The response from guests, Smith said, has been enthusiastic despite how ordinary and simple water can appear at first glance.
“It’s been very, very popular,” Smith said. “And the reason why is because people have seen beautiful restaurants, people have seen great wine, people have seen great food, they’ve seen great beer, they’ve seen great cocktails and they’ve seen great mocktails. But now they’ve never seen how water works and pairs and can be so interesting.”
Finding the right water for the right dish
Smith approaches pairing water and food somewhat intuitively.
“To me, the way that I do it is I taste the food first and I let my mind tell me what I think would be really nice with that water,” Smith said.
The process involves searching for a combination that simply clicks.
“I’ll just find this moment where in your heart and in your mind, and you say, ‘This is a great pairing,’” Smith said.
Among the pairings in Smith’s repertoire are waters served alongside Chantilly cream with blueberries or a washed-rind cheese. The bottles can also range widely in price, from around $9 up to $75 a bottle.
But for Smith, the fascination goes beyond finding an unusual addition to a luxury dining experience.
“As far as water goes, I’m just very excited about it, and I want to spread the news, and I hope that we can have more water sommeliers across the world and that everyone gets excited about it,” Smith said.
“And I just think of how many waters are all over the world as well. So it could be something that we trade from country to country.”
Then Smith takes the idea one step further.
“Maybe it could lead to world peace,” he said. “So that’s what I think about the natural water sources of the world.”
Water is the new wine: Meet The Inn at Little Washington’s water sommelier 2026
IUSTITIA.BG – Investigations 2009-2026 2026-10-05 09:48:34
Latest news World news Country news Most important news latest news most important latest of the day Justice Petar Nizamov Feathers Petar Nizamov- Feathers Justice bg iustitia.bg iustitia iusticia usticia investigation Burgas Bulgaria news news of the last hour news of the day news of today Bulgaria news The news from Bulgaria blitz news top news most important most commented latest news Boyko Borisov news weather coronavirus news news weather facebook youtube facebook instagram news today news of the last minutes news today today news news bg news leading news hot news bg news site for news all news news bg news of the last hour latest latest news bg news of today news today news today news of the last hour latest news today news bg news news 24 hours news vesti bg novini news world bird bg bivol bg bivol trud bg novini latest news today novinite bg news hello bulgaria political party coat of arms delyan peevski scandalous Bulgarian National Television Free Europe Television scandal exclusive live tv live right now tv tv online tv program bg live now tv news online tv online live court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas district court Burgas appellate court Burgas prosecutor Burgas prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Prosecutor General Ivan Geshev Prosecutor Geshev Tsatsarov Ministry of Internal Affairs Burgas ODMR Burgas ODPR Burgas police Burgas district police Burgas prosecutor Tsatsarov SGS cases Varna court chairman of the SGS court decisions on civil cases decisions on cases Plovdiv court decision of the court decisions cases Varna court criminal cases district district court decisions work in the court SGS chairman of the SGS judges Sofia court post judges Plovdiv court Plovdiv judges Plovdiv Supreme Court Inspectorate Supreme Court Supreme Judicial Council lawyer lawyer criminal cases lawyer civil cases lawyer marriage cases lawyer administrative criminal law criminal process civil law civil process administrative law constitutional law
