Exclusive Interview with Mrs. Karen Hoskin, co- founder, co-owner, and CEO of Montanya Distillers in Colorado
Karen Hoskin CEO of Montanya Distillers
Q: What is your full name, title, company name and company location?
Karen Hoskin, co-founder, co-owner, and CEO of Montanya Distillers, Crested Butte, Colorado.
Q: How did you first get started in the spirits industry? What was the inspiration behind Montanya Distillers?
I began my career as a bartender and bar manager back in 1984. I worked my way through college and graduate school tending bar and managing bars and restaurants. In 2008, I opened my own craft distillery, rum bar and eventually a restaurant, which is now celebrating its 10th anniversary.
Copper Pot Stills at Montanya Distillers
Q: You have been working very hard to make your operation environmentally friendly. Which obstacles were the hardest to overcome and how did you do it? Has this been a rewarding process? What message do you have for distillers that are NOT taking any steps towards reducing their environmental footprint?
My greatest hurdle has been keeping our environmental commitments from being unraveled by my 23 staff members when our growth becomes hard to manage. When we are in coping mode and running around, environmental commitments can feel hard to attend to. For example, we recycle all of our plastic film through a partnership with the company Trex, but when everyone is flying to fill orders and keep customers happy, I occasionally find plastic film in the trash. I may be the only craft distillery owner who rifles through the trash can to remove recyclables. We are trying so hard to reduce and eventually eliminate solid waste from our distillery, but on some days, it is just brutally hard to keep everyone on the same page. This year, we put all of the expectations in our policy manual and made them a part of performance evaluation. That has helped so much! I highly recommend that any distillery wanting to improve their environmental commitment make a step by step plan, put it into policy incrementally, then evaluate it regularly. The worst kind of sustainability is the kind that proves it isn’t sustainable on a busy day.
Ad for Montanya Distillers
Q: What rums do you currently have in your portfolio?
Montanya Platino is a barrel aged rum, distilled from American Sugar Cane. The Platino is aged for one year in an American White Oak barrel that previously held laws Colorado whiskey and then aged our Montanya Oro rum. The Platino is then filtered through a coconut husk charcoal filter to remove color but leave behind most of the natural flavor. Unlike many light rums, the Platino has the smoothness contributed by barrel aging in addition to the complex flavors of an aged rum, while it is free of the cloying sweetness of added sweeteners and flavorings. The Platino does receive a tiny touch of Colorado Rocky Mountain honey at bottling time, which brings out the natural flavors of the barrel and the rum itself.
Montanya Oro is also a barrel aged rum, aged for one year in an American White Oak barrel that previously held laws Colorado whiskey for two-five years. The Oro goes into the barrel when it is wet and fresh from the whiskey, so it is more full-bodied and picks up more flavor from the oak. The Oro also receives a tiny touch of Colorado Rocky Mountain honey at bottling time, but is never filtered to remove color. The natural color of the barrel remains, along with a slight bit of color from the caramelized honey. Unlike many dark aged rums, the Oro never receives molasses caramel or artificial colorings/flavorings. The flavors in the Oro emerge naturally from the sugar cane and barrel aging process.
Montanya Exclusiva, our limited release only available in Colorado as of October 2015, is barrel aged for a total of three years - two and a half years in an American White Oak barrel that previously aged Colorado whiskey. The rum is then transferred for an additional 6 months to a French Oak barrel that previously aged Sutcliffe Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon and Port. This three year aged rum is wonderfully unique, with a dry, tannin finish that is very rare in aged rums. The smoothness from being longer aged at altitude and proofed with mountain spring water from a well under our facility makes it a connoisseur’s sipper.
Montanya Aniversaria, our limited 10th Anniversary release, is only available in Colorado at our Tasting Room (325 bottles total in first release) as of April 2018. This rum is barrel aged for four years - three and a half years in an American White Oak barrel that previously aged laws Colorado Bourbon. The rum is then transferred for an additional four months to a French Oak barrel that previously aged Sutcliffe Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon and Port. The final finishing barrel for the last several months previously held Peach Street Bourbon in American White Oak. This four year aged rum is wonderfully unique and smooth, with a slightly sweeter finish than the Exclusiva, with fruity notes - tart cherry and peach. The flavor profile is extremely complex and long lasting.
Montanya Distillers Products
Q: Where are your rums currently available for purchase?
44 U.S. states, 7 countries, Drizly, 1000 corks.com, and 800spirits.com and many more online locations.
Q: Do you offer tours of your distillery?
Yes, we offer daily tours, free rum tastings, and a full rum bar with artisan cocktails, farm-fresh appetizers and small plates. we are open seven days a week. We also host live music on many evenings during the ski and summer seasons. in addition,we have a gift/bottle shop. We are kid friendly and handicap accessible. We do not take reservations, but try our best to seat guests within ten minutes of their arrival. You’re welcome anytime! If you want to take a tour with a distiller while rum is being made, give us a call or send us an email before your visit. We have two outdoor patios at our tasting room. In the winter, we seat customers in the tasting room on two floors where it is warm and cozy from the stills!
Distillery and Tasting Room at Montanya Distillers
Q: Do you have any signature cocktails? Which is your personal favorite and why?
Our most popular cocktail at my rum bar is The Maharaja. I created this one almost 20 years ago because my love of rum began on a beach in Goa, India. This cocktail is a tribute to all of the flavors of India, yet like nothing you have ever tasted before. My personal favorite is The Basil Paradisi. Our Montanya Platino infused with Basil served with fresh grapefruit and lime, with a tiny touch of simple syrup. so light and refreshing.
Signature Cocktails from Montanya Distillers
Q: There are not many women who own and/or operate rum distilleries. What advice do you have for women who may be intimidated by this industry and who are afraid to try?
Join The Women’s Distillery Guild! I founded this non-profit organization to help women in the industry step out of their lonely corners into collaboration, mentorship, and mutual support. having a community and a network makes all the difference. We are developing so many cool programs to support women and their success in this industry.
Q: Congratulations are in order for your recently-published second book on cocktails! Could you tell us a bit about this book, including the inspiration behind it?
Thanks! So many people ask me for cocktail recipes, and they usually want photos too. I tried putting them on our website, but I never kept it up to date enough as new favorites were added to the menu at my bar. So I decided to create a book series so people always could have recipes at their fingertips all the time. I completely forgot to put hot cocktails in the first book, so people were a little salty about that. Where is The Hottanya? Where is the Rum Wassail? It was clear from the moment the first volume came out that a second volume was going to happen. We keep adding new rum expressions (the Exclusiva and the Aniversaria), so I needed to add recipes for those too. Hence a new volume. Maybe someday it will be a boxed set!
Q: Where is your book currently available for purchase?
You can buy the book online at Montanyarum.com and then click on shop. You can also buy it at our tasting room in Crested Butte, Colorado.
Q: If people want to contact you, how may they reach you?
They can send an email to info@ montanyadistillers.com, or call our distillery at 970-799-3206. we are also active on Facebook and instagram.
Q: Is there anything else you’d like to share with our readers?
Hold on to your hats. Rum is so exciting right now. What a moment for our noble spirit. I hope we can all keep our geekiness and general fun-loving spirit as the rest of the world finally gets excited about this category that we have been loving for a long time. Just don’t start breaking our tiki mugs!
Margaret: Again Karen, thank you so much for the opportunity to interview you. I wish you and your team much success.
Cheers!
Margaret E. Ayala
