Ten years ago this month in the tiny Colorado town of Silverton, in an 800-square-foot stone building that played host to a brothel 100 year prior, Karen and Brice Hoskin hatched an idea to start a craft rum distillery called Montanya Distillers.

DENVER – While Colorado might be best known for its beer, the state’s pristine water has helped launch dozens of distilleries in the Rocky Mountains.

Distillers range from large commercial operations like Stranahan’s to family-owned stills tucked into industrial parks. Styles range from whiskey and bourbon to rye, moonshine, gin, vodka and rum, and most distillers offer tours and tastings. While some of the distilleries simply offer small tastes of their products, many have turned their tasting rooms into full-fledged bars offering handcrafted cocktails.

Last month, Hearts & Trails Spirits Festival kicked off the Colorado Spirits Trail. The event will be an annual affair to celebrate an industry that has seen tremendous growth not only in Colorado but nationwide.

Rum isn’t often associated with the Rocky Mountains, but the Crested Butte, Colorado-based Montanya Distillers is taking a pass at changing that. Led by owner and distiller Karen Hoskin, Montanya produces three rums—a silver rum, a dark rum, and a limited edition expression that is finished in port barrels. All are made with sugarcane from a family-owned mill in Louisiana.

I was introduced to the craft beer movement in college where I spent more than a few hours throwing back pints at Boundary Bay Brewery in Bellingham while attending Western Washington University in the late 1990s. To say it’s been fun to watch the industry grow is an understatement. It’s been outstanding!

While people have been distilling alcohol for hundreds of years, the industry is constantly evolving.

Lately, more females have been taking leadership roles in founding forward-thinking distilleries that push the boundaries of spirit-making.

No longer just a craft beer destination, Colorado now has more than 50 distilleries leading a craft spirits revolution across the state. Recently, these producers teamed up with the Colorado Distillers Guild to create a comprehensive and traveling drinking guide.

A fun video interview from Happy Hour with Buca!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wun35GnxsPc&feature=youtu.be

Karen Hoskin is a 20-year entrepreneur based in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. She started her first company in 1998 and recently founded her fourth company, Zoetica. Each company has had a sustainability ethos. She built a LEED-certified preschool between 2001 and 2005. Then in 2008, she built one of the USA’s first green craft distilleries, Montanya Distillers. In 2017, she turned her personal commitment to zero waste into a company by launching Zoetica, which designs and makes zero waste systems. These systems are ideal for consumers, like herself, who want to refuse convenience trash.

When we think of rum, our minds wander straight to the white-sand scenery of the Caribbean—palm-tree-lined distilleries located next to docks, waves lapping against the shore. But the fact is rum can be produced anywhere in the world, including the mountainous regions of North America, Nepal, Guatemala and Brazil. (Well, Brazil produces cachaça, but we’ll get into that.) More importantly, it turns out that making rum in the mountains versus the lowlands has an impact on the flavor and character of the spirit

by Brent Rose
December 13, 2017

The laid-back town in the Rocky Mountains is having a moment.

It's just 24 miles from Aspen as the crow flies, but Crested Butte feels a world away. You won’t see any furs or fake tans, for one thing—and that’s how the locals like it. With a distinctly small-town feel, Crested Butte’s historic downtown looks like it was stolen out of a snow globe, but it’s also home to world-class skiing and mountain biking, and some memorable restaurants and watering holes. In other words: all the beauty and nightlife, none of the pretense. You might want to hurry, as the secret is starting to get out.