H₂.O

Rebranding tap water to sound like something it's not is nothing new (Pepsi has been doing it for years), but as John Clarke Mills points out, Magnolia Brewery's latest attempt to sex up the government mind control that comes out of our faucet is particularly literal:

This town has lost its mind. For those of you who don't speak bourgeois, Hetch Hetchy water comes from your faucet.

Clever joke, or cunning way to dupe tourists into thinking they're getting something special?  Either way, well played, Magnolia.

Comments (17)

Yes, this town has lost its mind: it apparently can’t take a joke.

Now, if they were *charging* for the Hetch Hetchy, that might be something to whinge about, but since they’re not …

I don’t think it’s whinge-worthy; it’s brilliant.

seems like truth in advertising. sf’s tap water is pretty fancy.

My water comes out of a faucet, not a facet. It would be facety to state otherwise.

Ace

Clever joke, or cunning way to dupe tourists into thinking they’re getting something special?

Hetch Hetchy water is special. I’d wager it’s better tap water than what most tourists have back home.

Drink some tap water next time you have to go be in LA for something and see if you still talk shit about Hetch Hetchy.

When I lived in Montreal in the mid-’70s many people called the local tap water “St. Laurent frappé” (St. Lawrence on the rocks).

It might confuse tourists and newcomers, but the term Hetch Hetchy has been in common parlance for San Francisco tap water at least for the 34 years I have lived here. And probably has been since 1934 when the first Hetch Hetchy water flowed from San Francisco taps. And Magnolia is not “sexing it up” It’s already sexy. Some of the best municipal tap water in the world, and well worth the price they are charging for it!

It’s only as good as your pipes.

I guess, but unless your pipes are not made of mercury-lined lead, with asbestos solder, I think you’re probably coming out ahead of the bargain.

it is filtered. and then you get it still or fizzy. plenty, i repeat, plenty of places already do this. it is normal. filtered water is what they are doing and that costs money. they are giving the filtered water to you for nothing. why is this even a thing on your blog? yes, the name is cute, but c’mon, get over it.

Stay outta the Haight!

Incanto has been doing the same thing since they opened

Thank you. This is the first place I saw this too, about 10 years ago, but many upscale restaurants do this now.