Montanya Distillers

Crested Butte, United States

4.4

Open now

20 reviews

Accepts Credit Cards

Contacts

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Telephone:
+1 970-799-3206
Website:
www.montanyarum.com
Address:
212 Elk Ave, Crested Butte, CO, 81224
Categories:
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Bussiness info

Takes Reservations
No
Take-out
No
Accepts Credit Cards
Yes
Parking
Street
Bike Parking
Yes
Good for Groups
Yes
Ambience
Trendy
Noise Level
Quiet
Music
Live
Good For Dancing
No
Alcohol
Full Bar
Happy Hour
Yes
Best Nights
Tue, Wed
Coat Check
No
Smoking
No
Outdoor Seating
Yes
Has TV
No
Has Pool Table
No

Today

Today 11:00 am – 9:00 pm
Open now
Local time (Crested Butte) 5:28 PM Tuesday, July 1, 2025

Business hours

Monday 11:00 am – 9:00 pm
Tuesday 11:00 am – 9:00 pm
Wednesday 11:00 am – 9:00 pm
Thursday 11:00 am – 9:00 pm
Friday 11:00 am – 9:00 pm
Saturday 11:00 am – 9:00 pm
Sunday 11:00 am – 9:00 pm

Description

Specialties

Artisan rum cocktails, small plates, appetizers, live music, distillery tours, free tastings, gifts, bottles for sale, logo merchandise.

History

Established in 2008.

Founded in 2008, Montanya Distillers is one of the original craft distillers in Colorado. We specialize in making American rum, and from our rum, we make artisan cocktails, infusions, liqueurs, bitters, truffles, and delicious foods. Join us for a distillery tour, free tasting, cocktail, farm to table appetizer, small plate and exceptional live acoustic music.

Meet the Business Owner

Karen H.

Business Owner

Karen Hoskin began bartending when she was 18 years old in a busy Maine tourist town. She has been making craft cocktails from her favorite spirit, aged rum, since her early years behind the bar. Her love affair with aged rum ratcheted up a notch on Baga Beach in Goa, India, where she was served her first taste of Old Monk Rum, a vestige of the British Raj. This rum, a navy style, was her early introduction to the depth and breadth of the rum category.

In 2008, Karen opened the doors of her own rum bar in Crested Butte, Colo., housed within her artisan rum distillery, Montanya Distillers. One of the goals of Karen’s cocktail program, for which she and her co-​workers develop more than 100 new recipes a year, is to encourage drinkers to think differently about rum and the cocktails made with it. She likes to nudge consumers out of their «rum and coke» comfort zones with paradigm-​shifting rum cocktails like those in her book new book «Elevated Cocktails»

Vicinity

Near this location:
20
ft
Jesse Ebner - Crested Butte Real Estate
211 Elk Ave
20
ft
Doug Kroft - Red Lady Realty, Inc.
215 Elk Ave
20
ft
The Last Steep Bar & Grill
208 Elk Ave
20
ft
Eldo
215 Elk Ave
30
ft
Princess Western Design
218 Elk Ave
30
ft
Princess Wine Bar
218 Elk Ave

20 reviews of Montanya Distillers

No registration required
Place rating: 5
Traverse City, MI
Cool vibe. Friendly people, super knowledgable. They’ll start you out with a free tasting of 3 different rums and then let you order from their diverse menu of drinks. Fun place to hang out, and you can walk upstairs and see how the whole process happens. Very cool stop!
Place rating: 5
Boulder, CO
Delicious unique cocktails and tapas to die for. Their take on the jalapeño popper is amazingly good. We did not need dinner after noshing on their yummy small plates. Gluten free paradise as most of their menu is naturally GF and the are ver knowledgable to the problem.
Place rating: 5
Albuquerque, NM
Amazing execution of food and drink. There are flavors and textures that set them so far apart from the ordinary.
Place rating: 5
Chapin, SC
While in Crested Butte over President’s weekend, we ate at Montanya Distillers twice and enjoyed one evening with musician. We had read that you must try the Tapas, PLEASE NOTE they are wonderful. There were 4 of us and we shared 6 plates. They did not bring out all at same time. Instead, they brought out separately which gave you a chance to enjoy each one. This is a small place and the wait can be long or if you are lucky, you walk right in. The drinks, food and truffles are great. Get a chance sit upstairs and the rum expert will give you a lesson on the brewing process. You get to try the rum samples. Be careful, you will be walking away with a bottle. They close early so do not expect a late night drink. This is a small place and the wait can be long or if you are lucky, you walk right in. The people waiting will be like vultures looking for you to leave. Highly recommend arriving before 6:00 p.m.
Place rating: 4
Arlington, VA
I definitely recommend stopping by for at least one drink. The drinks are very good but like most rum drinks there is a lot of sugar so have more than a couple could be tough. Service is pretty good, not great but good enough. All the drinks here are $ 10. Live music while we were there was certainly a plus.
Place rating: 5
Manhattan, NY
A must do in CB. The best drinks in town; friendly service and an interesting food menu with some outstanding features.
Place rating: 3
Colorado Springs, CO
Good ambiance supplemented by high-​priced cocktails. If you’re a rum-​fan, you’re psyched! Otherwise, prepare to pay to yell at your company and receive bad service from inattentive waitresses.
Place rating: 1
Aurora, CO
I miss the old Montanya. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy the Oro, Snake Oil, and Rum Crème. But as a business they’ve changed.
In the old building they had a neat rustic feel, affordable drinks, and on top of a rum flight before your cocktail you heard the full story of the distillery, you had an attentive server who checked on you from the time you walked in, and the cocktails were affordable because they remembered you were there to try their rum in cocktails.
They new building is much different. It’s smaller, feels cramped, and the service has gone downhill, and the drinks are very expensive. The last two times I’ve been in it takes almost five to ten minutes from the time you sit down at the bar before a bartender acknowledges you’re there. There’s no personal experience, because they just want to make your drink and be done.
On top of that the drinks are now quite expensive, very weak, and very small (and really, you make the rum, there’s no reason for that, you don’t need a markup). I remember when the bartenders would ask me if the drink was too strong, not leave me wanting more. They also now have a restaurant. which is fine, but he focus isn’t on the rum, and that’s where it should be.
Montanya used to be part of every trip the three or four times we came up to CB a year. But alas we’re not coming back to Montanya again. I’ll drop my $ 200 for our group’s drinks for a better experience somewhere else.
Montanya, you’re not what you used to be and because of that, we won’t be back again.
Place rating: 4
Denver, CO
I was very impressed by the food and mixed drinks but man, idk if I’m the type of person that can just taste pure rum like they do with their samples. They have great shirts too.
Place rating: 5
Denver, CO
What a wonderful find in an already wonderful town! If you happen to find yourself in Crested Butte, you would be remiss not to visit here. The distillery is small, but has comfortable seating and an extensive bar. Since neither myself or my significant other know too much about rum, we asked our friendly bartender who gave us the entire history of this couple owned/​started business — along with their process, the distinctions between their rums, and a quick unofficial tour upstairs to see just where everything is made. It was a truly fun experience. My boyfriend and I both ordered their version of the Old Fashioned (made with rum, of course) and it was d-​e-​licious. Every drink that came from the bar looked delicious though! We also got to do a small taster or their rum, straight up, which was smooth and flavorful!
Not only will I stop in the next time I’m in Crested Butte, but I will probably look for a bottle of Montanya Rum at my local liquor store!
Place rating: 5
Denver, CO
Wonderful venue. The drinks are inventive, sophisticated. We had mid-​day drinks and small plates. Great experience. Wade provided fantastic recommendations.
Place rating: 5
East Village, Manhattan, NY
Wonderful, attentive, friendly service. Free run tastings. Amazing cocktails. Reggae music and then live music later. Best place ever.
Place rating: 5
Longmont, CO
Our second visit here was even better — loved the back patio and the super-​friendly waiter. The bacon-​wrapped dates were awesome! Found Painkiller drink on the menu — hadn’t seen that since the bars in the British Virgin Islands!
Place rating: 5
Crested Butte, CO
Nothing better than having a Crested Butte distilled cocktail on the Montanya patio after a ride, hike, or run. The Cuban Daiquiri with a salt rim is my favorite «recovery drink» followed by a Señorita. So yummy!
Place rating: 4
Denver, CO
I loved this little rum distillery in the heart of Crested Butte! I started with the Fiery Passion, hoping it would satisfy my need for something spicy. It was good, but definitely sweeter than I was expecting. My friend ordered the Caldera and that was far better. I could have had a few of those! There was live music and free popcorn — two of my greatest loves. I wish Montanya would come to Denver!
Place rating: 4
Albuquerque, NM
Love their new spot in the center of downtown, although I do miss sitting among the kettles at the end of Elk. Delicious cocktails and a nice assortment of snacks :-) Try any of the martinis — you won’t be disappointed!
Place rating: 5
Arvada, CO
We walked over to Montanya based off of a recommendation, and we were not disappointed. We had an appetizer dinner of delicious cheeses, dips, and oh — cheese stuffed bacon wrapped dates. Everything was very good, and we had great service. We were able to eat outside… enjoy the unseasonably warm temps… and relax. By the way, the habenero infused rum drink is probably one of the most delicious cocktails I have EVER had — and I am usually not a huge fan of rum.
Just drink one or three and you’ll know what I mean.
Place rating: 5
Arlington, VA
The concept of serving sophisticated craft cocktails with house-​distilled rum whilst offering tasty small-​plates so people can linger and savor their drinks all in one setting is a superb one.
We tried their «Maharaja» which used cardamom and ginger, a toasted nutty cocktail with hazelnut, and another one which used grapefruit and basil. All the drinks were in a class of their own, made with evident care and attention to detail.
The waitress was pleasant, outside seating was very relaxing, and the live music a plus. Their small plates are thoughtfully presented and taste rather good, such as hand cut fries and fried ravioli and jalapeño poppers… just the fare to absorb those drinks. I would highly recommend this spot, because it is doing an exceptional job at a selective niche of service in drinks and food for people with discerning palates who wish to savor a cocktail and linger with conversation.
Place rating: 3
Denver, CO
So there’s a few listings for this place but this is the new location that I presume just moved. Stopped in here on a Saturday night while in CB and it seemed as if everyone else stopped in as well to escape the cold. There were no seats at the tables or bar downstairs so the one server I saw working, told us there was space upstairs. We got up there and there were about five tables, a few vacant ones but mostly with parties of two or four. Since the server appeared to be the only one working, it took awhile to get water, put our order in, get our drinks, basically, the entire process was long. I ordered the Sidecar which was strong, delicious and kept me warm and after one of them, I was done. I’m not too into rum thanks to blurry memories of spring break in Cancun but this place made me a believer that I could sip on a rum drink, appreciate and enjoy it. Bring your patience.
Place rating: 5
Colorado Springs, CO
Same Montanya. New location. Awesomeness in a Platino or Oro bottle. (Or both.) They have the best cocktails on the south side of Elk Ave. Maybe all of Elk, but I don’t want to disparage others. Seriously, you won’t believe the cocktails they make with two rums. They are amazing. They offer an expanded food menu and bottles to go. It is a must try in CB and a must ask at your local liquor store.