Martin Riese
Born	Aventoft, Schleswig-Holstein, West Germany
Occupations	Water sommelier author educator
Known for	America's first certified water sommelier

Martin Riese (born 1976) is a German-born water sommelier, author, and educator based in Los Angeles, California. He is widely recognised as the first certified water sommelier to practise professionally in the United States and is considered one of the leading figures in the global premium water industry. Riese has appeared in international media and on television programmes including the Netflix series Down to Earth with Zac Efron, and has been featured by outlets including National Geographic, the New York Times, and CNN.

Riese was born in 1976 and grew up in Aventoft, a small village in Schleswig-Holstein, in the far north of Germany.The town sits near the North Sea coast, and Riese has described his childhood surroundings—rivers, lakes, and coastal waterways—as formative in shaping his affinity for water.^[1]

Riese began his professional training in the hospitality industry as an apprentice at the Relais & Châteaux Hotel Stadt Hamburg on the island of Sylt in northern Germany. He subsequently worked in various culinary and hospitality roles in Hamburg before relocating to the United States.

While working in the German hospitality industry, Riese developed a specialised interest in mineral water and its sensory characteristics. In 2009 he co-authored Die Welt des Wassers (The World of Water), a book on premium water culture that is regarded as a leading European reference on the subject.

In 2010, Riese received formal certification as a Mineral Water Sommelier from the German Mineral Water Trade Association (Verband Deutscher Mineralbrunnen), joining a group of approximately one hundred certified professionals worldwide at that time.^[2]

In 2011, Riese relocated to the United States after being granted an O-1 visa, a category reserved for individuals with extraordinary ability or achievement in their field. He is described by multiple sources as the first certified water sommelier to practise professionally in the United States.^[3]

In 2013, Riese introduced a curated water menu at Ray's and Stark Bar at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), one of the first such programmes at a major American cultural institution. In 2014, he extended his water programme to Patina Restaurant at the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, operated by the Patina Restaurant Group.

Also in 2014, Riese launched the Water 101 Class, a consumer and professional education programme covering the qualities, chemistry, and characteristics of mineral water.

In 2018, Riese co-founded the Fine Water Academy alongside Michael Mascha, founder of the Fine Water Society. The Academy offers a fully online certification programme for aspiring water sommeliers, structured in Foundation, Advanced, and Certification levels. Graduates of the programme receive the title of Certified Water Sommelier.

Riese has appeared across a wide range of international media. In the United States, his television and media appearances include:

• Good Morning America (ABC)
• CNN
• The New York Times
• Bon Appétit
• Los Angeles Times
• NPR
• Conan with Conan O'Brien
• Bill Nye Saves the World
• Most Expensivest with 2 Chainz and Diplo
• National Geographic^[4]

In July 2020, Riese appeared in the second episode of Down to Earth with Zac Efron, a Netflix documentary series on sustainability and wellness hosted by actor Zac Efron. In the episode, Riese conducted a water tasting session for Efron and actress Anna Kendrick in Los Angeles, introducing a mainstream global audience to the practice of structured water evaluation.^[5]

Riese also co-hosts the podcast Planet Water: The H2Know Podcast with co-host Chance Sanchez, in which they discuss premium waters from sources around the world.

• Die Welt des Wassers [The World of Water] (2009) — co-authored; regarded as a leading European reference on premium water culture
• Water: A Field Guide to the Types, Tastes, and Textures of Water Around the World (2016) — authored by Riese; presents a consumer taxonomy of natural waters and their gastronomic applications

Riese has consistently framed his work within a broader environmental and public health context, arguing that greater consumer awareness of water quality encourages more thoughtful engagement with water as a finite natural resource. He has advocated for reduced reliance on commodity processed waters and has expressed support for sustainable sourcing practices within the bottled water industry.

He has been quoted by AFAR magazine as positioning premium water awareness as a gateway to wider concern for planetary water resources, noting that consumers who develop an appreciation for the origins of bottled water are more likely to consider issues of water scarcity and conservation.

Riese has received both significant media attention and sceptical coverage. Supporters credit him with raising consumer literacy around water quality and legitimising the sensory evaluation of water as a professional discipline. Critics, including writers at Vice, have questioned some of the health claims associated with mineral water as presented in his media appearances, and have noted inconsistencies in factual claims made on Down to Earth with Zac Efron.^[6]

• Water sommelier
• Fine Water Society
• Fine Water Academy
• Mineral water
• Doemens Academy
• Down to Earth with Zac Efron

• Official website
• Fine Water Academy