The Arizona craft gin scene just picked up a legal twist. Maynard James Keenan, best known as the frontman of Tool, has been hit with a civil lawsuit by a former business partner who says he was pushed out of their gin venture and shut out of the business he helped run. The complaint, filed last Saturday (June 6), claims Keenan and other co-managers at Potions LLC retaliated after the partner raised workplace concerns, stripping him of responsibilities, blocking his access to business records and product, and prompting him to ask a judge to force the company to open its books while seeking punitive damages and legal fees.
According to the complaint filed June 6 and posted by Courthouse News Service, plaintiff Dave Sanclemente was one of four co-managers, holding roughly a 22.8% ownership stake, and was originally designated by the board to oversee day-to-day operations. He says that changed in November 2025, when he was effectively frozen out. The filing lists Keenan with about a 31.6% interest and names co-managers Tim White and Calvin Arnold as additional defendants, describing a series of alleged moves that cut Sanclemente off from company counsel, bank accounts and access to product.
The complaint says PotionsG produces the Thirteen Moons Gin brand and alleges the internal fallout followed formal complaints Sanclemente lodged about Keenan on Sept. 30 and Oct. 10, 2025. As reported by Phoenix New Times, the suit claims that repeated written demands to inspect Potions' books and records were rejected.
What Sanclemente Is Asking The Court To Do
In the complaint filed June 6 and posted by Courthouse News Service, Sanclemente asks the court to order access to the books and records of both Potions and PotionsG for inspection and copying and to formally declare his rights as a manager. The filing seeks specific performance or damages, including punitive damages and attorneys' fees, and invites the court to craft whatever additional relief it sees fit to address what Sanclemente describes as a freeze-out from the company.
Legal Context
Under A.R.S. 29-3410, Arizona law gives LLC members and managers a statutory right to inspect and copy company records when their request is reasonably related to their rights and duties. The company must respond within ten days by identifying which records it will produce. The same statute also allows courts to award reasonable expenses, including attorneys' fees, when disputes over inspection rights end up in litigation.
What's Next
For now, the case sits at the complaint stage following the June 6 filing, with no court schedule or formal responses from the defendants yet posted. Representatives for the parties did not immediately respond to requests for comment, Phoenix New Times reported. Keenan's broader Arizona ventures, including Merkin Vineyards and Caduceus Cellars, mean the dispute lands not just in the niche world of craft gin but in the middle of a larger local business footprint that fans and neighbors will be watching closely.
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