14/10/2026
Seventy-five years ago, as “Tú, Solo Tú” played on the radio and “Salón México” packed movie theaters, something was brewing, literally, in the heart of Mexico City. The year was 1950, when World War II was finally a memory, the baby boom was underway, and the nation was optimistic. In the midst of it all, a little-known inventor named Don Francisco “El Güero” Hill, with the quiet support of his wife and young children, was on the verge of creating one of Mexico’s most iconic flavors. He was about to invent Jarritos.
Born in 1913 in Mexico, the devoted father and aspiring chemist, Francisco “El Guero” Hill (affectionately known as “Coco” by his 18 grandchildren.) was a relentless tinkerer. “He was very restless, extremely creative, and ahead of his time,” one of his sons, Francisco Hill, explains. “He was an inventor, essentially. He specialized in beverages, but everything he invented was ahead of its time.”
In the late 1940s, Mexicans cherished their traditional aguas frescas, refreshing drinks made from fruits, flowers, and seeds. But cola-flavored sodas were quickly gaining ground, especially in urban centers. This is where Francisco Hill saw an opportunity.
The inventor wanted to offer soda drinkers something better. From his family’s home in the Del Valle neighborhood of Mexico City, and with the constant support of his wife, he began experimenting with
natural flavors and carbonation. It was something he knew well.
“When my dad started working at a juice plant, an essential oils factory, he met Dr. Ernest Günther, a scientist who noticed he had an exceptional palate and memory,” his son explains. “Günther became his mentor and taught him the scientific side. His books on essential oils are still used today.”
Hill’s time under Günther’s guidance sharpened his technical skills. But it was his natural gift that made the difference. “He was a supertaster,” his son says. “He could tell the difference between an orange grown in Veracruz and one from Jalisco … not just by smell, but by how it sat on his tongue.”
That extraordinary sensitivity guided Hill as he developed what would become the core of the Jarritos brand.
But it was very much a family affair.
