The full mineral analysis of Kostilatas

Natural mineral water from a mountain spring in Epirus, Greece, at an altitude of 1,450 meters. These are the full values, according to the official label on the product. Everything is out in the open, as it should be.

What these numbers actually mean

The total minerals on the label stand at only 44.18 mg/L, a light mineralization that makes Kostilatas an oligomineral water, that is, a light water with a clean taste. The exceptionally low sodium (1.12 mg/L) gives a sense of softness, and the balanced pH (7.7) completes a delicate and precise water that does not weigh down the taste of the dish, the coffee or the wine.

How to read a mineral water label

Four values tell most of the story, and most of them appear on every mineral water label:

• Total minerals (TDS): the amount of dissolved minerals per liter. Some brands state a single total number, and others, Kostilatas among them, itemize each mineral separately. Up to about 500 mg/L the water is considered low-mineral; below about 250 it is usually classified as oligomineral, with a cleaner and more delicate taste.
• Sodium (Na⁺): the main influence on the feeling of softness on the palate. The lower the value, the softer and more neutral the water feels alongside food, coffee and wine.
• Total hardness: the concentration of calcium and magnesium, expressed as CaCO₃. It affects the feeling of texture, and in the coffee world also the brew.
• pH: the measure of acidity-alkalinity. Natural mineral waters usually range between 6.5 and 8.5; the Kostilatas value, 7.7, is at the soft and balanced end of the range.

With the table above you can stand in front of any shelf and compare for yourselves, value against value.