The American Water Works Association announced Monday that the Alderwood Water and Wastewater District of Lynnwood has won the 13th annual Best of the Best Tap Water Taste Test.

Second place in the taste test went to the City of Sherbrooke, Quebec. Third place in the competition went to the City of Moline, Ill. The People’s Choice award winner, as determined by the conference attendees, was awarded to the City of Hamilton, Ohio.

Incorporated in 1931, the Alderwood Water and Wastewater District (AWWD) is an organization with 140 employees. AWWD provides water and/or wastewater services to more than 250,000 people in Snohomish County and has more than 53,000 water accounts.

The District also has a popular Artesian Well. The origin of the Artesian Well dates back to its original drilling in 1956. Alderwood’s artesian well site is a popular attraction in Lynnwood. People often come from significant distances to the well and wait in line for their turn to fill up their bottles and haul away the free water.

AWWD provides water and wastewater services from Mountlake Terrace to southern Mukilteo, including Lynnwood, as well as Bothell, Mill Creek and unincorpoartated areas to the east. To view a map of the district, click here.

An esteemed judging panel rated each water system on its flavor characteristics. Judges included Ari Copeland, operations specialist for Black & Veatch; Jonathan Cuppett, research manager for The Water Research Foundation; and James Naylor, associate and project manager with Freese and Nichols, Inc.