J and R Bottling

Generations of Commitment and Excellence

Ralph Santora established J and R Bottling & Distributing, Inc. a family owned and operated business in 1972. Ralph is a third generation soda pop man. Ralph, along with his father, Anthony, and his grandfather/namesake, Ralph, were sales/delivery drivers for Pepsi Cola in New York. In 1960, Ralph moved his family to California and continued in the soda pop business. Shortly there-after, Ralph started his own delivery business reaching small “Mom & Pop” stores.

In 1970, as his distribution business grew, the younger Ralph recognized that there was something missing from the delicatessens in California. He acquired the rights to produce Dr. Brown’s kosher soft drinks from the parent company in New York. In 1972, Ralph bought the Nu-Grape Bottling Plant. Distributing various soft drink brands was the bulk of the business for many years with custom bottling taking up the slack. As the years have gone by, many small companies have come along needing a bottling company to produce their products. J and R Bottling has been able to accommodate them with high quality packaging and fast turn-around time to meet their needs. Hence, the main bulk (99%) of the business has shifted to custom bottling and packaging.

The family tradition continues to thrive at J and R Bottling and Distributing, Inc. with Ralph at the helm. And among Ralph’s children and grandchildren, his daughter, Mariann serves as his right-hand person while his son, Anthony, Sr. and grandson, Anthony, Jr. oversee tasks in the plant and in the warehouse. Through five generations of hard work and integrity, we are still here and happy to accommodate your beverage and bottling needs.

Ralph Santora Founder/President
is semi retired leaving the day to day operations to Mariann and Anthony but is always on hand to offer his considerable experience and guidance.

Mariann Santora
Vice President and Chief Operations Officer started with the company in 1995 and handles most day to day operations.

Anthony Santora Sr.
Plant Manager -
has grown up in the business working in various capacities for the past 30 years, until becoming plant manager in 2003.

Linda Valenzuela
Office Manager
started working at J&R in 1985. She is our Office Manager and handles accounts receivable and most importantly, acts as Mariann's assistant.

Evelyn Cardenas
also started in 1985. She handles accounts payable, payroll and is Assistant to the Controller.

Francisco Quezada
began with J&R in 1982. He is our QC Manager and resident magician. He can formulate anything and tell YOU if your formulas are incorrect and how to fix them to get the desired product; he’s truly magical.

Tomas Ibarra
began at the beginning of J&R 1974. He was our Dr. Brown’s driver for over 20 years and is now our Warehouse Manager.

Jorge Aguiar
has been with J&R since 1983. He is our Maintenance Manager and can also work miracles with machinery. Jorge can fix just about ANYTHING!