WATER OF THE GODS
The word HYDRA, or Ύδρα in Greek, means "water snake."
In Greek mythology, the Hydra lived in the swamps near Lerna, a town in the eastern Peloponnese. Ancient authors claimed that the creature haunted a spring named for Amymone, a lover of Poseidon, until it was finally killed by Heracles.
The spring from which HYDRA is sourced is located in a historic village, southwest of Chania, Crete.
For centuries, the ancient Greeks collected this crystal clear water in casks and distributed it across the Mediterranean Sea.
It is from this spring of antiquity that HYDRA is sourced.
OUR COMPANY
Our story starts with an intrepid teenager seeking the American dream.
In 1952, Stratis Skenderis emigrated to America from Greece at just 16-years-old. His sister Anna, and parents Frank & Maria would follow him a few years later. The family settled in Washington D.C. where Anna and her husband, Mike Sardelis, would open a restaurant on 17th Street, N.W. in 1963.
The success of the Sardelis family business was founded on Yiayia Maria's core principle value- that good healthy food is made with love and ingredients straight from the Earth. Yiayia Maria was a master chef in her own right. Without using any written recipes, she could cook, bake, and marinate in ways that no one could replicate.
Anna and Mike's son Phil eventually took over the family business. One restaurant grew to over a dozen restaurants and a successful catering company. Always with Yiayia Maria's core principles in mind, Phil continually sought healthier and more natural ingredients.
Unsatisfied with the corporate bottled water options, Phil reached out to a cousin in Greece in search of a clean, healthy offering. What he discovered was a natural water source in the Greek Islands. Phil’s customers immediately responded to the crisp, clear taste of this natural spring water. Phil handed a bottle to Stratis’ son Loui, who immediately recognized the exceptional and distinct quality.
From our ancestral homeland of the beautiful Greek Islands - we bring you water that is naturally alkaline and unaltered in any way, just as the Greeks have enjoyed it since the times of Socrates and Aristotle.
HYDRA was born.
OUR WATER
Naturally occurring electrolytes and minerals
At an altitude of nearly 8,000 ft
HYDRA cascades from the White Mountains (Λευκά Όρη) of Crete.
Naturally occurring pH level of 8 without any processing or additives.
HYDRA comes in 16.9 oz (500mL) diamond PET bottles and in 33.8 oz (1L) glass bottles.
Άριστον μεν ύδωρ
“The best, however, [is] water”
Pindar 522-438 BC
