Juan Serralles
Encyclopedia
Juan Serrallés Colón was the founder of Hacienda Mercedita
in Ponce, Puerto Rico
and what was to become Destileria Serralles, producers of "Don Q", a world renowned brand of Puerto Rican rum
.
and went into the sugar
business. Juan Serrallés was raised in Ponce and educated in Spain
. When Juan Serrallés returned to the island, he returned to lead the work in his "hacienda" (plantation
).
which he purchased in France
and produced his first few casks of rum
. He named the rum Don Q
in honor of the legendary Spanish fictional character Don Quixote. Soon after, the "Don Q" brand of rum became very popular in Puerto Rico and the family business began to grow.
In 1903 the Serrallés family, under the leadership of Juan Serrallés, installed the first continuous still in Puerto Rico. Juan Serrallés died in 1921 just as the production of rum was being halted because of the United States
Prohibition
Act of the 1920s. Juan's family continued to run the sugar side of the business but for the destillery side started to produce medical alcohol
instead of the outlawed rum. It was called Alcoholado Superior 70.
Juan Serralles Colon married Mercedes Perez (1845–1922), after whom he named his sugar plantation. They had three sons and two daughters. His eldest son, Juan Eugenio Serralles, became the head of the Serralles family business after Juan died in 1921. Juan's grandchildren—through Juan Eugenio's marriage to Rosa Maria Sanchez—were Rosa, Juan Eugenio, and Felix Juan. Juan Eugenio built a huge castle in Ponce, called the Serralles Castle
for his three children some ten years after his father's death, a testament to the prosperity of the plantation business that Juan Serralles had started the previous century. Eventually one of these grandchildren, Felix Juan, became the next in line to run sugar plantation and rum destillery businesses, which he did until his death in 1985.
Hacienda Mercedita
Hacienda Mercedita was a sugarcane plantation in Ponce, Puerto Rico, founded in 1861, by Juan Serrallés Colón. The Hacienda was the administrative center of the large sugarcane mill called Central Mercedita as well as that of its cane sugar refinery plant which packaged the Snow White brand sugar...
in Ponce, Puerto Rico
Ponce, Puerto Rico
Ponce is both a city and a municipality in the southern part of Puerto Rico. The city is the seat of the municipal government.The city of Ponce, the fourth most populated in Puerto Rico, and the most populated outside of the San Juan metropolitan area, is named for Juan Ponce de León y Loayza, the...
and what was to become Destileria Serralles, producers of "Don Q", a world renowned brand of Puerto Rican rum
Rum
Rum is a distilled alcoholic beverage made from sugarcane by-products such as molasses, or directly from sugarcane juice, by a process of fermentation and distillation. The distillate, a clear liquid, is then usually aged in oak barrels...
.
Early years
Juan Serrallés, born in Ponce, Puerto Rico, was the son of Sebastian Serrallés, a wealthy Spaniard who settled in Ponce in the early 19th century. He was the owner of Hacienda MerceditaHacienda Mercedita
Hacienda Mercedita was a sugarcane plantation in Ponce, Puerto Rico, founded in 1861, by Juan Serrallés Colón. The Hacienda was the administrative center of the large sugarcane mill called Central Mercedita as well as that of its cane sugar refinery plant which packaged the Snow White brand sugar...
and went into the sugar
Sugar
Sugar is a class of edible crystalline carbohydrates, mainly sucrose, lactose, and fructose, characterized by a sweet flavor.Sucrose in its refined form primarily comes from sugar cane and sugar beet...
business. Juan Serrallés was raised in Ponce and educated in Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
. When Juan Serrallés returned to the island, he returned to lead the work in his "hacienda" (plantation
Plantation
A plantation is a long artificially established forest, farm or estate, where crops are grown for sale, often in distant markets rather than for local on-site consumption...
).
"Don Q" rum
In 1865, Juan imported a stillStill
A still is a permanent apparatus used to distill miscible or immiscible liquid mixtures by heating to selectively boil and then cooling to condense the vapor...
which he purchased in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and produced his first few casks of rum
Rum
Rum is a distilled alcoholic beverage made from sugarcane by-products such as molasses, or directly from sugarcane juice, by a process of fermentation and distillation. The distillate, a clear liquid, is then usually aged in oak barrels...
. He named the rum Don Q
Don Q
Don Q is a Puerto Rican rum, distilled, manufactured, bottled, and distributed by Destilería Serrallés from its corporate facility in Ponce, Puerto Rico. Don Q is the top-selling rum in Puerto Rico, where over 70% of the rum consumed in the United States is produced. The rum is named after Don...
in honor of the legendary Spanish fictional character Don Quixote. Soon after, the "Don Q" brand of rum became very popular in Puerto Rico and the family business began to grow.
In 1903 the Serrallés family, under the leadership of Juan Serrallés, installed the first continuous still in Puerto Rico. Juan Serrallés died in 1921 just as the production of rum was being halted because of the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Prohibition
Prohibition
Prohibition of alcohol, often referred to simply as prohibition, is the practice of prohibiting the manufacture, transportation, import, export, sale, and consumption of alcohol and alcoholic beverages. The term can also apply to the periods in the histories of the countries during which the...
Act of the 1920s. Juan's family continued to run the sugar side of the business but for the destillery side started to produce medical alcohol
Alcohol
In chemistry, an alcohol is an organic compound in which the hydroxy functional group is bound to a carbon atom. In particular, this carbon center should be saturated, having single bonds to three other atoms....
instead of the outlawed rum. It was called Alcoholado Superior 70.
Personal life
Serralles Castle
Serrallés Castle is a mansion located in the city of Ponce, Puerto Rico overlooking the downtown area . It was built during the 1920s by Juan Eugenio Serrallés, son of businessman Juan Serrallés, founder of Destilería Serrallés...
for his three children some ten years after his father's death, a testament to the prosperity of the plantation business that Juan Serralles had started the previous century. Eventually one of these grandchildren, Felix Juan, became the next in line to run sugar plantation and rum destillery businesses, which he did until his death in 1985.
Currently
The sugar cane business ceased to operate in 1994, with only the rum destillery that Juan had spearheaded decades before still operating. Today, Juan Serrallés Colon's great-grandson, Felix Juan Serrallés, Jr., presides over Destileria Serralles, Inc.Legacy
The Government of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico has honored the memory of Juan Serrallés Colon by naming both a grade school and a high school in Ponce after him. There is also an intermediate school named after his wife Mercedes.See also
- List of famous Puerto Ricans
- Serrallés CastleSerralles CastleSerrallés Castle is a mansion located in the city of Ponce, Puerto Rico overlooking the downtown area . It was built during the 1920s by Juan Eugenio Serrallés, son of businessman Juan Serrallés, founder of Destilería Serrallés...
- Destilería Serrallés
- Don QDon QDon Q is a Puerto Rican rum, distilled, manufactured, bottled, and distributed by Destilería Serrallés from its corporate facility in Ponce, Puerto Rico. Don Q is the top-selling rum in Puerto Rico, where over 70% of the rum consumed in the United States is produced. The rum is named after Don...
- Ponce, Puerto RicoPonce, Puerto RicoPonce is both a city and a municipality in the southern part of Puerto Rico. The city is the seat of the municipal government.The city of Ponce, the fourth most populated in Puerto Rico, and the most populated outside of the San Juan metropolitan area, is named for Juan Ponce de León y Loayza, the...