The £5 a bottle mineral water - from a cloud in the South Seas

A plastic roof on a tiny windswept island off the Australian coast is the unlikely source of the most expensive bottled water ever to arrive in the UK.

Rainwater collected on King Island, near Tasmania, will be sold under the name Cloud Juice for more than £5 a bottle once it makes the 11,000-mile trip to Britain.



King Island water is claimed to be the purest in the world because the trade winds carrying the rain clouds travel 7,000 miles from South America without passing over any land, and therefore encounter little or no pollution, before arriving at the island.

King Island Cloud Juice is the brainchild of Tasmanian-born Duncan McFie, 40, who noticed the quality of the water when he arrived on the island in 1991 to begin a teaching career.

Now a tiny factory on the island produces 100,000 bottles a year but demand could soar further if it is selected by Claridge's hotel in London for a new "water menu", featuring 20 waters of the world, complete with tasting notes.



The water costs about £5 per 750ml in shops abroad, but is likely to go for substantially more if chosen by Claridge's, where it would be listed on a menu like wine, including details of its origin.

Claridge's Renaud Gregoire said: "We created the water menu following demand from American customers, who are used to the choice. I treat it like tea or wine, as each tastes different depending on where it comes from. Different water can accompany different food, depending on its flavour."