My question echoes erkals.
Some of us for a multitude of reasons I’m sure only use either tap water or bottled water. So, whilst I know there are many brands out there, which if any of the bottled waters people on here have used would be the lesser of evils for our machines?
In my Sage I have only ever used Waitrose own (Lockhills?) and in the past in my Gaggia have used Tesco’s Ashbeck basically because those were mentioned on the forum.
Pompeyexile The two you mention (which are currently the same thing) plus Volvic.
@MediumRoastSteam mentions these brands just 3 posts back.
It’s my understanding that 50/50 Ashbeck and Volvic is about the perfect mix 🤔
Volvic is too high in something to use exclusively.
Happy to be corrected though 🫣
Couple of cut and pastes from a coffee forum in a previous life …
So have I understood correctly? If I’m using Ashbeck in my Elizabeth, shall I still continue replacing the tank water filter as well, or is that not necessary anymore?
This is Ashbeck that I bought about a week ago
I used to use Tesco’s Ashbeck as it was recommended on here and then someone mentioned Waitrose bottled water, so I thought I would give that a go and have been using it ever since. But, as you posted the picture of the Ashbeck minerals, I thought out of interest I would see what the difference was against Waitrose water. The result?…. Not a thing. Every mineral content is exactly the same. So, as I have been having to travel 13 miles to go to Waitrose and only a mile and a quarter to Tesco, I think I will be going back to Ashbeck.
Pompeyexile - they have changed recently/. They are now exactly the same (this was mentioned last week - can’t remember which thread).
Both Tesco Ashbeck & Waitrose Essentials Lockhills are Cumbrian water from Armathwaite. At some point in the past it was softer/lower pH/lower alkalinity.
It’s definitely a more recent thing, they weren’t always the same
Lockhills same as Ashbeck I think
I found this one from Sainsbury’s preferable to Ashbeck for espresso. 
Flair 58, Mahlkonig EK43, Kinu M47, 1zpresso ZP6.
JimmyP - you have a Flair - so you should be good. I wouldn’t put that into the boiler of my coffee machine. It would be a white rock in no time. 😊
Chase Spring is also very high in alkalinity, so tends to mute acidity and make coffee chewier in body, it’s pretty typical of hard UK tap water.
IIRC they show the composition of it per 100ml when most others do it per litre so at first glance it looks low scale until you realise you need to multiply by 10 to compare!
MWJB To be fair I prefer Chase Spring to Ashbeck because it does tend to balance the acidity of the lighter roasts I enjoy for espresso, but I’m not sure it’s highly alkaline with ph7? And I’m also not sure one can regard uk hard tap water as uniform? Chase spring contains a small fraction of the minerals I have in my tap water at home.
Flair 58, Mahlkonig EK43, Kinu M47, 1zpresso ZP6.
