The rum used in the first Piña Colada and a brand that has been passed down through six generations of the Serrallés family over 150 years, Don Q Rum is a leading Puerto Rican rum brand.
The story began back in 1820 when Juan Sebastián Serrallés swapped Spain for Ponce, Puerto Rico. He founded the Hacienda Teresa, a sugar cane plantation, and started a family in Ponce. In 1861 his son, Don Juan Serrallés, founded the town of Mercedita, named after his wife, Mercedes, vastly expanded the family sugar cane business, and established the Serrallés rum-making tradition. Not bad.
Using a copper pot still imported from France he produced the first casks of rum sold under the Serrallés name. In 1934, the Don Q brand was launched for the first time. It was named after Don Quixote, because that was the family’s favourite novel. A year later, a new large-scale distillery featuring modern equipment was built at Mercedita.
The head bartender at the world-famous Beachcomber Bar at the Caribe Hilton Hotel, Ramon ‘Monchito’ Marrero is credited with creating the Piña Colada using Don Q Rum, which happened back in 1954, further propelling the brand into the spotlight. Then in 1985, the family bought Puerto Rican Distillers, expanding its range of brands. By 1998, Don Q introduced its first flavoured rum, Don Q Limón. Today, the family-owned business boasts a large range of rums that are well worth checking out.