The story of Värska Originaal

Since 500,000,000 BCE

On one spring day in 1967, under the leadership of geologist Vladimir Tassa, drilling works began at the southern protrusion of the Gulf of Värska, on the shore of Lake Õrsava, with the goal being to reach the unique underground body of water. The drilling lasted the whole summer and reached a depth of 470 metres. That was the precise depth at which the big natural stone bowl under the Gulf of Värska, the deepest water horizon of which had formed 500 million years ago, was discovered. The crystal clear water hidden within has absorbed the necessary minerals from the rocks over the course of millions of years. Doing so in a natural way and in just the right amount. The geologists’ prediction turned out to be right. And so, a few years later, a factory was established near the borehole, where the natural mineral water, which became known as Värska Originaal, was bottled. To keep traditions alive, we are once again bottling this same crystal clear Värska Originaal, which is just old enough – a worthy 500 million years – into the quality glass bottles it deserves.