by Sarah Mock on
WHEN REACHING for “the good stuff” in the Land of Enchantment, many drinkers think agave liquors like tequila or mezcal. But Major Arcana Spirits, founded in 2024 by three longtime friends with Santa Fe roots, is championing a different option: aguardiente rum. Traditionally made in Oaxaca from fresh-pressed sugarcane juice and fermented with ambient or wild yeasts, aguardiente is grassy, bright, and complex in a way that molasses-based rums rarely achieve. Co-founder Max Rosenstock sees the spirit as part of a distilling tradition that spans North America. “Mexico and New Mexico, they’re part of the same landscape,” he says, pointing to a linked history that predates modern borders. While the sugarcane is grown and distilled in Oaxaca, the team bottles it in New Mexico thanks to the state’s craft distiller license. In time, they hope to do more aging and distilling in the state itself. Rosenstock, Dustin Flannery-McCoy, and Jack Burns draw on their combined years of experience in distilling and hospitality to shape the lineup, which includes a crisp, blended white rum; an aged expression with bourbon-like depth; and their house blend—a spirit built for cocktails the founders hope appeals to professional and home bartenders alike.