Justerini and Brooks was founded in 1749 by Giacomo Justerini from
Bologna, the son of a
distiller, and English
investor George Johnson. Together, they founded the wine merchants Johnson & Justerini. In 1760, Justerini returned to his native land after selling the business to Johnson. Johnson continued to grow the business, naming his
grandson, Augustus, as a partner, and building relationships with European suppliers from
Bordeaux,
Cadiz, Mayence,
Reims,
Genoa,
Dijon and
Palermo. The firm received its first
Royal Warrant from
King George III the next year. In 1831, the Johnson family sold its interest in the business to Alfred Brooks. The firm was renamed Justerini & Brooks and its headquarters were established in
Regent's Park. The New York office opened in 1866. In 1997,
Guinness merged with Grand Metropolitan to create
Diageo and International Distillers & Vintners was merged with
United Distillers to create
United Distillers & Vintners, forming the spirits division of Diageo plc. Today, the company has four offices: the head office in St James's Street, a further office in London's
Golden Square, and sales offices in
Edinburgh and
Hong Kong. Justerini & Brooks is also the main user of the Octavian Vaults, a giant, thirty-acre high-security cellar in
Wiltshire. The company operates three other storage warehouses in Bordeaux, Hong Kong, and in Hertfordshire. == Wine and spirits ==