(1888PressRelease)
February 18, 2008 - Taking a cue from Target’s Paul & Joe pop up boutique that opened last summer on the corner of La Cienega Boulevard and Melrose Place, Algabar and AquaBar are joining forces to create a distinctive shopping and tasting experience unlike any other in LA. Launching on Feb 14, 2008, AquaBar provides gourmet bottled waters and other unique beverage products for retail purchasing, events and distribution to fine restaurants and hotels across the nation. They search the globe for the best resources, most unique qualities and finest packaging of gourmet water. They judge each brand they select based on purity, taste, quality, value and aesthetics similar to wine and tea. “Our passion is to bring exceptional products, beautiful objects and unique experiences together in our shop. With this “pop up” concept, AquaBar offers our customers a well curated collection of interesting and unique waters and another way to indulge at Algabar,” said Gail Baral, Algabar Founder and Creative Director.
AquaBar is the brainchild of Jason Boarde, a creative businessman with a diverse background in dance, technology and marketing. Modeled after the famous water bar at Colette Paris, Boarde started the company four years ago in Los Angeles as an e-commerce web site. He quickly was called on to create Hydration Bars at events for HBO, Disney and Creative Artist Agency and fashion shows for Cosa Nostra by Jeffery Sebelia and jewelry designer Erica Courtney. Home delivery is a big part of AquaBar’s business. VIP home delivery clients include Vanessa Williams, Andrea Bowen, Jane Kaczmarek, Gabrielle Union and Adrian Grenier. Many restaurants and hotels such as the Little Next Door, Bloom Café and Boulevard 3, Four Seasons Beverly Hills and The Ritz Carlton buy premium-bottled waters from AquaBar to elevate brand association and enhance the culinary experience.
Jason not only conducts extensive research on the brands he selects for AquaBar, he travels the globe to visit the actual sources of water and to meet and learn from his suppliers. One of AquaBar’s most unique waters is Glace, the source of which is melted icebergs in the North Atlantic. Iceberg water is considered the most pristine water in the world as it dates back ten of thousands of years, having been locked away in glaciers, and due to the limited availability and challenges of harvesting the icebergs, this water is very rare. Jason experienced the rush of sourcing an iceberg by helicopter in the waters between Canada and Greenland. Upon locating an iceberg of manageable size and proportion they radioed its position to a waiting barge which then lassoed the huge piece of floating ice with a harness. A crane pulls the iceberg onto the deck of the barge and then transports it into port where it is filtered and packaged.
Another unique water offered by AquaBar is called Cloud Juice, the source of which is rainwater from Tasmania. This refreshing bottled water has a crisp, clean taste and with each sip takes you back to childhood while playing in the rain. Then there is Mahalo, a de-salinated deep-sea water, from the deepest, purest parts of the Pacific Ocean. It is rich in real electrolytes, natural sodium and high in potassium so it replenishes and nourishes your body.
"The partnership with Algabar was an easy assessment. They are to tea, what we are to fine water. In realizing the Hydration Bar concept we're able to provide more access to our brands and to have direct interaction with customers. Before customers were only able to access our products via web and consequently, to purchase by the case. At Algabar we can showoff our product range and our capabilities while offering a great tasting experience. In addition, we can make our products available by the bottle so customers can, if they wish, experiment and taste several waters at home. After four years in business, customers can finally experience AquaBar as it was originally intended," said Jason Boarde, Founder and Owner of AquaBar.
Early last year, Gail Baral and Robert Wain, launched Algabar Home & Life, a lifestyle boutique experience unlike any other in Los Angeles. From elegant home accessories, to tabletop and glassware, to gourmet foods and teas, Algabar is not only positioned as L.A.’s go-to destination for the exceptional gift, it is the place to go for an extraordinary retail experience. Baral and Wain love to entertain and they have created an elegant comfortable space where they host frequent get-togethers, parties, and events. There is always something out of the ordinary to experience at Algabar. From food tastings at the vintage Chinese “Tasting Bar” to formal cupping events geared towards the tea connoisseur to guest chefs offering a tasting from their latest cookbook. With the launch of their catering business, Fête du Thé by Algabar, they offer their custom marTEAni’s and hors d'œuvres for parties and events and with the launch of their partnership with AquaBar, they plan to collaborate on events that feature water and tea tastings at hydration bars.
