Perrier is a French brand of naturally carbonated mineral water sourced from a spring in Vergèze, in the Gard region of southern France, and now owned by Nestlé.

What Perrier Is

  • Sparkling natural mineral water, originally from the Les Bouillens spring near Vergèze, France.
  • Characterized by high carbonation and a distinctively crisp, clean taste that comes from its particular mix of minerals and natural gas.
  • Sold worldwide as a premium, non-alcoholic, refreshing alternative to soft drinks and juices.

Quick history snapshot

  • The spring was developed as a spa in the 19th century and later purchased by Dr. Louis Perrier, whose name the brand still carries.
  • British businessman John (St John) Harmsworth acquired the spring in 1903 and turned Perrier into an export product, first in Britain and then more broadly.
  • Nestlé took control of the Perrier company in the early 1990s, integrating it into what is now its global bottled-water portfolio.

How it’s made and what it tastes like

  • Perrier’s source water filters through layers of rock and clay, picking up minerals, while volcanic-origin carbon dioxide naturally carbonates it underground.
  • For consistency, the water and gas are captured separately and recombined during bottling to maintain the same bubble level in every bottle.
  • The result is a sharp, vigorous effervescence often described as more intensely bubbly than many other sparkling waters.

Flavors and formats

  • Available unflavored and in multiple flavored varieties such as lemon, lime, grapefruit, mint, and various fruit blends (exact line-up can vary by country).
  • Packaged in glass and PET bottles and cans, in various sizes aimed at both on-the-go consumption and at-home drinking.
  • The broader Maison Perrier range extends this positioning with additional sparkling products inspired by the original brand.

Cultural and market role

  • Perrier was one of the first widely imported sparkling mineral waters in the US and helped popularize bottled mineral water as a lifestyle drink in the late 20th century.
  • It has long been marketed as a chic, cosmopolitan choice, and at one point even sponsored the well-known Perrier Comedy Award at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
  • Today it remains one of the world’s best-known sparkling water brands, with production in the hundreds of millions of bottles per year and distribution to over 100 countries.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.