S.Pellegrino® Sparkling Natural Mineral Water, which dates back as early as the 12th century, became part of the Nestlé Waters Canada family of brands in 1999. For food enthusiasts, S.Pellegrino® Sparkling Natural Mineral Water adds unrushed pleasure to the simple joys of sharing good food with people we care about.
The properties of S.Pellegrino® Sparkling Natural Mineral Water were renowned as early as the 12th century. Legend has it that Leonardo da Vinci visited the source while living in Milan.
The use of the water for therapeutic treatment did not begin until the 18th century, due to the difficulties in reaching its remote location.
In 1842, the town decided to sell 75 percent of the spring to Ester Palazzolo, on the condition that the remaining shares be given to the residents of San Pellegrino Terme, who could draw the water from an external tap free of charge. This is still done today. In 1899, the spring was purchased by Societá Anonima delle Terme di San Pellegrino who managed the activities of the spas and the bottling of water.
In 1900, the first year of the company’s activity, 35,000 bottles were bottled and delivered around the world. In 1905, a new bottling plant was built, enabling them to increase output to 50,000 bottles a day. By 1908, three million bottles had been sold.
In 1928, the spa facilities were renovated and equipped with all of the most modern diagnostic tools, such as a radioscopic room, radiograph room, microscopes and chemical analysis laboratory.
With a bit of intuition and luck, mineral water was used to produce a new sparkling fruit beverage called Aranciata. Made up of a combination of simple and healthful ingredients like Sicilian oranges, S.Pellegrino® Sparkling Natural Mineral Water and sugar, it was successfully launched in 1932. In the 1950s, another bitter-tasting beverage, Chinotto was created. The beverage took its name from a particular citrus fruit that, outside of China, grows only in Sicily, on a plantation located on the slopes of Etna. They later added Limonata, a tart-sweet sparkling lemon beverage.
On April 20, 1970, the company changed its name to Sanpellegrino SpA and continued to grow throughout the 1970s and 1980s.
In 1999, Sanpellegrino SpA became part of Nestlé Waters. Today, S.Pellegrino® Sparkling Natural Mineral Water is the number two sparkling bottled water brand in Canada and is the brand of choice within Fine Dining Restaurants.