Mexican luxury: the six brands you should know

Casa Dragones: a legendary tequila

The commitment to quality, its Mexican artisan character and the desire to take tequila beyond the limits of the category in an extremely competitive industry have been the factors that have positioned Casa Dragones as an ultra-premium brand in little more than 10 years.

Co-founded in 2008 by Bertha González Nieves, who also serves as CEO, the house introduced its first expression, Casa Dragones Joven – a blend of blanco tequila with 100 percent blue agave extra-aged tequila – in 2009. Casa Dragones Blanco, With a fresh and smooth flavor ideal to be enjoyed on the rocks or in signature cocktails, it hit the market in 2014; The most recent addition to the family was Casa Dragones Barrel Blend, an aged tequila matured in French oak and American oak barrels, introduced in 2020.

González Nieves' great experience in the distillate sector allowed him to create a universe characterized by innovation and its modern production processes and with a focus on sustainability, since they use less water, less energy and generate less waste. Details such as the bottles, made of lead-free glass and individually engraved, their unmistakable blue boxes, customization services or the fitting out of spaces such as Casa Dragones, where you can take tours to learn about the history and legacy of the brand, or its Tasting Room, located inside Dôce 18, both in San Miguel de Allende, are just a sample of the brand's ambitious and elegant vision.

Xinú: the eccentricity of nature

Perceiving a pleasant aroma is a way to stimulate our sensory memory and enter universes that would sometimes be difficult to access otherwise. Xinú, the perfume brand founded in 2016 by Verónica Alejandra Peña, seeks to synthesize, through its creations, the aromatic botany of the American continent and it does so based on three fundamental axes: documenting the wealth and exhibiting the inspiring beauty of its multiple species aromatic; the passion for design and craft processes; and, finally, the commitment to sustainability and the use of the best raw materials.

This is how the pirul berries, the Papantla vanilla, the Mexican tuberose, the cedar and the cempasúchil become protagonists of perfumes contained in containers that evoke abstract pre-Hispanic sculpture, myths, traditions and sacred geometry. Designed to be reused, they are made of blown glass –developed in collaboration with Nouvel Studio– and certified wood.

"Literally, Xinú put on the table a daring proposal that, without hesitation, expressed itself in a different way, taking important risks and trusting that a frank message would arrive in a more forceful way if it was not transmitted in a traditional way," explains Peña and adds , "this position has served to encourage other brands to make decisions different from the conventional, thus promoting their potential".

In this way, visiting the brand's spaces –in Mexico City, Mérida, San Miguel de Allende and Tulum– is equivalent to immersing yourself in an intimate universe that speaks of exuberance, mystery and diversity through its perfumes and candles.

TANE: with silver letters

Sergio and Natalia Leites, two French immigrants who came to Mexico fleeing World War II, established a leather goods boutique in Mexico City's Zona Rosa in 1942. With the intention of giving a unique touch to their designs, they began working with local goldsmiths, to whom they commissioned the silver details of their bags and accessories.

A decade later, in 1953, convinced of the potential of silver jewelry, they began to produce pieces inspired mainly by pre-Columbian art and towards the beginning of the 1960s, taking traditional cockfights as a reference, they unveiled the famous Roosters. TANE –handmade pieces in silver, yellow gold vermeil and rose gold vermeil with ruby ​​eyes– that have become one of its emblems to this day. In 1974, the son of the founders, Pedro Leites, promoted the development of object art pieces in collaboration with important figures from the world of design and plastic arts such as Mathias Goeritz, Leonora Carrington, Luis Barragán, Juan Soriano and Francisco Toledo, among others. .

“TANE is one of the great representatives of the world of luxury in the country, both in jewelry and in pieces of art. Throughout its existence, it has masterfully mastered the language of silver with international quality standards," says Rocío Bilbao, the house's marketing director. In this way, the launch of recent collections such as the so-called Animals and Embroidery, are a preparation to celebrate its 80th anniversary and a sign of its commitment to extol the natural and cultural wealth of our country.