Justerini & Brooks was established in 1831 when Alfred Brooks acquired the business founded by wine merchant, Giaccomo Justerini, which had been located in Pall Mall since the mid-18th century. The company was quick to catch on to the emerging popularity of whisky after blended Scotch was introduced by Andrew Usher in the 1880s. They acquired great stocks of whisky from Scotland and introduced their own blend for their clientele in London. This blend evolved into the now classic J&B Rare expression, introduced in the 1930s and specifically designed to capture the newly re-opened American market following the repeal of Prohibition. By the 1960s the brand had become a huge success, aided by associations to cultural icons like the Rat Pack who were seen drinking it on stage. The company amalgamated with W&A Gilbey to become International Distillers & Vintners (IDV) in 1962, giving it a portfolio of four distilleries in Scotland; Knockando, Strathmill, Glen Spey and later, Auchroisk, all of which still provision the J&B blend to this day. In 1972, IDV was acquired by Watney Mann, and six months later, by Grand Metropolitan, the high-profile merger of which with United Distillers in 1997 made Justerini & Brooks a subsidiary of Diageo, who continue to operate it as the fifth best-selling blended Scotch brand in the world.

This 20 year old was introduced by IDV in the 1960s.

Officially imported onto the Italian market by Riviera, Milan.