I was 'introduced' to the 9m/m as a duty sidearm in the early 1990s. First loads were Winchester 115gr JHP +P+ . . . ehhh, so, so. I still have a few boxes of the stuff for some unknown reason. (note to self - shoot it up!)
Around '95 or so we got the Federal 9BPLE 115gr +P+. It's Federal's flagship and 'bread & butter' defense load. The banana peel (which is what the BP is for) comes apart inside the one shot. Federal never made it a boutique load, nor has it been marketed as something other than what it was. Federal has improved the powders, etc, but that round will do the job if you place it right. It's still widely used in LE circles that use the 9m/m. A few folks have mentioned SGAmmo - and they have the best civilian price out there.