Aqara Agave de Los Andes Reposado
Aqara Agave de Los Andes Reposado is a 40% ABV Peruvian agave spirit from Caraz, in the Ancash region of the Andes — a reposado-style agave distillate that has nothing to do with Mexico. Wild agaves (Agave americana expansa gentry and Agave cordillerensis) grow at 7,000 to 7,200 feet in the Cordillera Blanca foothills, are hand-harvested at around ten years old, and travel to a distillery at 2,256 meters. After a seven-hour steam cook and a three-day fermentation, the spirit is double-distilled in copper pot stills and rested four months in new American oak. This 750mL bottle is one of the most decorated agave spirits from outside Mexico — Gold at the 2020 San Francisco World Spirits Competition, Double Gold and Best of Class in New York, Gold in Tokyo, and Gold Best of the Best from the American Distilling Institute. Order it online at Del Mesa Liquor, San Diego, CA.
- ABV: 40% — Peruvian agave distillate (not tequila/mezcal)
- Size: 750mL
- Aging: 4 months in new American oak barrels
- Agave: Wild A. americana expansa gentry + A. cordillerensis, harvested ~10 years at 24° brix
- Production: Hand-cut, steam-cooked 7 hours, 3-day fermentation, double-distilled in copper pot stills
- Origin: Caraz, Ancash, Peru — distillery at 2,256 m
- Awards: Gold, 2020 SFWSC; Double Gold + Best of Class, 2021 NYW≻ Gold, 2022 Tokyo WSC; Gold Best of the Best, 2022 ADI
The Andes Grow Agave Too
Founder Marco Suarez Lara grew up in Caraz and first saw agave as a sacred plant on a 1996 trip to Mexico — twenty years later he was distilling Peru's own agave spirit from it. The name comes from the Quechua "Qaaray," meaning "place of agaves," the old name for the Caraz area, and the operation replants three agaves for every one harvested, with QR-coded bottles tracing each batch. The highland terroir shows in the glass: the Plateado's bright floral and tropical character picks up light caramel, vanilla, and butterscotch from the new oak, with a more robust, smoked-and-toasted middle that stays unmistakably agave. Explore beyond Mexico in our tequila collection or browse the Aqara range.
Tasting Notes
Light caramel, fresh oak, and vanilla on the nose with butterscotch and almond underneath. The palate is rounder and more robust than the Plateado — toffee and butterscotch over vanilla, coffee, and stone fruit, with smoked and toasted notes woven through. Clean, warming finish.
How to Enjoy
Sip neat in a copita or snifter at room temperature — four months of new oak makes this a sipping spirit first. It also takes a reposado-style cocktail well: try it in an agave Old Fashioned or a high-end Paloma where the caramel and vanilla can play.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Aqara a tequila or a mezcal?
Neither — it's a Peruvian agave distillate with no tequila or mezcal legal status. It's made from native Andean agaves (A. americana expansa gentry and A. cordillerensis) in Caraz, Peru, so it can't carry a Mexican denomination of origin. Think of it as its own category.
How is the Reposado different from the Plateado?
The Plateado is rested at least three months with no wood; the Reposado is the same double-distilled spirit aged four months in new American oak, adding caramel, vanilla, and toffee.
What awards has Aqara won?
Gold at the 2020 San Francisco World Spirits Competition, Double Gold plus Best of Class at the 2021 New York World Wine & Spirits Competition, Gold at the 2022 Tokyo Whisky & Spirits Competition, and Gold Best of the Best from the 2022 American Distilling Institute.
For an agave spirit from entirely unexpected terroir, order Aqara Agave de Los Andes Reposado online from Del Mesa Liquor — 750mL of high-altitude Peruvian craft, shipped in San Diego, CA.