Some Facts About the History of AS Tallinna Karastusjoogid

Consistent history of AS Tallinna Karastusjoogid starts from year 1896: Mr. Viktor Auster was granted the permission to launch production in the ‘factory of artificial mineral waters, including seltzers, soda water and lemonade’. The first  production premises were situated in Gregory’s House on the corner of Suur-Karja and Müürivahe streets, which today is known as Suur-Karja 15.

View of the corner of Suur-Karja and Vana-Posti streets at the end of the 19th century.

The factory-produced fruit lemonades were warmly welcomed, and the fruit lemonades manufactured by Viktor Auster were awarded with the Little Silver Medal at the exhibition of agricultural and industrial production that took place in 1897 in Tallinn.
Gregory’s House was not large enough for the successful expansion of production and therefore the owner found a new location for his factory at Suur-Kloostri Street (nowadays known as Nooruse Street), on a purchased piece of land next to the Golden Feet Tower. Production was launched on 22 February 1899 at the new premises. Only some time before, a break in the Medieval town wall had been created at the very same place to provide better connections between the town centre and the Baltic Railway Station.

View of the break in the town wall at Suur-Kloostri Street. In the middle you can see the fence and entrance gate to the factory.

The factory was still operating at the very same place in the 1980s, after numerous reorganisations and expansion efforts. Viktor Austin died in 1922 and his heirs rented the company to a group of businessmen. They soon converted the company into a private limited company. From 1924 it was known as the ‘Tallinn Soft Drink Company Limited”.
In 1928, as Estonia was adopting the  ‘kroon’ as its new currency, the limited company was for the first time named Talko – an abbreviation made up of the first letters from the full company name: Tallinna Karastusjookide Osaühisus.

View of Talko’s production premises in the middle of the 1930s

In 1935, a certificate was obtained from the Republic of Estonia’s Patent Board, granting the company excusive rights for the use of the abbreviation and it soon appeared both on bottle labels and caps.

Talko’s porcelain bottle cap and wire fixture
Old bottle labels

In 1940, Talko was nationalised along with banks and all the other large-scale industries and was made subordinate to the People’s Commission of Local Industries.
As the industries developed, Tasüt carbon dioxide factory, Vellamo, and the Soft Drink workshop Tervis (Health) were all merged with Talko. In 1945, Talko was ordered to take over the premises formerly used by Tartu Brewery, located at Suur-Patarei Street. In 1951, the Minister of Foodstuff Industries of the ESSR issued a resolution, re-naming the Talko Soft Drinks and Carbon Dioxide Factory as the Tallinn Soft Drinks Factory. This concluded a long period in the history of the company that could be described as its period of establishment and formation. In 1964, the Jõhvi Brewery was merged with the factory with the intention of launching the bottling of imported grape wines.
In the 1970s the name was changed again to match current economic policies: the Tallinn Soft Drinks Factory became the Estonian Experimental Soft Drinks Factory.
In 1976, the building of the new factory was begun at Mustamäe. The new factory was completed in what was a very short period of time for this era, and was already in production in 1978. The bottling of Pepsi Cola was also begun in order to meet the requirements of local trade organisations, this being attributable to the Sailing Competition at the Moscow Olympic Games which took place in Tallinn.

The first bottle of Pepsi-Cola off the new factory’s bottling line

In 1991, private limited company AS Tallinna Karastusjoogid was established - one of the first of its type in the Estonian food processing industry. The shareholders were 100% the company employees. AS Tallinna Karastusjoogid concluded a contract with the state for renting production premises and facilities both at Mustamäe, Tallinn, and in Jõhvi. This was the first step in the privatisation of the company.
On 5 May 1992, after intense negotiations, AS Tallinna Karastusjoogid and COCA-COLA GETRÄNKE HOLDING signed documents of association, establishing AS Eesti Coca-Cola Joogid. The private limited company was now established - Eesti Coca-Cola Joogid – and gave both partners 50% of the company shares. This was the beginning of the triumph of coca-cola drinks in Estonia. New production premises and warehouses were built in Mustamäe in Tallinn.

The relics also include the very first bottle of Coca-cola, bottled on the production line of AS Eesti Coca-Cola Joogid.

Simultaneous to the development of AS Eesti Coca-Cola Joogid and the building of the sales network, the production of traditional lemonades was continued; first in the production premises at Mustamäe, and later in the factory in Jõhvi.
In 1995 an independent limited company – AS Viru Joogid – was established on the site of the Jõhvi factory; AS Tallinna Karastusjoogid held all the company shares.
In 1997, the company’s participation in the Eesti Coca-Cola Joogid limited company was sold in order to focus on production development at the Jõhvi factories.
In 1997, reconstruction of the Jõhvi factory buildings was begun. The laboratory, wine production premises, staff premises and administrative building now comply with all modern requirements; the bottling facilities have been reconstructed.
In 1998, AS Tallinna Karastusjoogid bought a 90% participation in AS Valtu Vein with the objective of developing the production of wine made from local ingredients – fruits and berries. In 1999, production of vodka was also begun in the Valtu factories. Today, AS Tallinna Karastusjoogid holds all of the AS Valtu Vein shares.
The marketing system of AS Tallinna Karastusjoogid was completely reorganised in 1999. Marketing of the production of Viru Joogid and Valtu Vein became the task of the AS Tallinna Karastusjoogid sales centres, located in Tallinn and Jõhvi.
In 2004, the Tallinn sales centre was relocated to the premises of AS Valtu Vein in Kaerepere, the main purpose being to obtain more efficient logistics. These centres are used as the basis of a sales network covering the republic as a whole. The clients can order the required products from the wholesale centres either by phone or contacting our sales representatives who are paying regular visits to the shops. Vehicles operated by AS Tallinna Karastusjoogid deliver goods to the customers.