Today we’d like to introduce you to Conor Kelly
Hi Conor, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I got my start in alcohol production originally in the wine industry. After high school I decided I wanted to pursue a degree in enology at my hometown college, Fresno State. During my time at university, I worked a variety of jobs at wineries but it was the year before I was due to graduate that I switched my focus to distilled spirits.
California has a rich history of brandy distilleries which makes sense based of the state’s vast wine industry. Naturally when I chose to pursue a career in spirits, brandy was the most direct path in my area. I was hired on to the historic Christian Brothers distillery in Parlier, CA. Brandy is a largely undervalued industry and I am grateful that I got my start making such unique spirits. But my passion was always whiskey so I left Christian Brothers Brandy to accept a distiller’s position at High West Distillery.
Running the massive stillhouse up in Wanship was truly a wild experience with quite the cast of characters. While I did enjoy my time, my ambition to run a distillery like my own pirate ship eventually connected me to Tyler Halstead at Outlaw Distillery in Midvale. Today, I am the head distiller for Outlaw Distillery and fast approaching the two year mark. Together with Mr. Halstead, we work diligently to grow Outlaw to be one of Utah’s preeminent distilleries.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Absolutely not. Choosing to make alcohol for a living is like choosing to be a mad scientist. Everything can affect your production and schedule. Every barrel of bourbon I fill will rest for at least two and a half years so I have to predict what folks will have a preference for years ahead of time. The COVID pandemic was the busiest and craziest time of my life as demand for alcohol skyrocketed and I had to learn how to produce hand sanitizer. Nowadays, the health risks of alcohol are hotly debated which naturally does effect the conversations I have with my customers. Not to mention, choosing to make alcohol in state that has such polarizing views towards alcohol as Utah presents all sorts of unique situations. All that being said, I cannot imagine a career field I am better suited for. It hasn’t been a smooth road, but that hasn’t stopped my forklift.
Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Outlaw Distillery?
We are Utah’s fourth oldest distillery since Prohibition.
Outlaw is unique because not only are we a craft distillery, but we distill everything we make. That may sound a bit redundant but some distilleries are less than honest about how they make their spirits. Some days, I wouldn’t mind simply receiving aged whiskey barrels that I bought from another distillery, bottling it, and slapping my label on each bottle. However that just is not our style at Outlaw. Our spirits are distinct because that is the whole point of being a craft distillery.
We make some excellent whiskey and nowadays, folks would likely say they know us for our Honey Bourbon. Our Honey Bourbon is fantastic and has a broad appeal, but I feel that our specialty is rum. Rum is a spirit category that I feel is misunderstood by the average American drinker. When I tell people about our rums, a common response is “I don’t like rum”. To steal a line from my old jazz band director, I say “you haven’t found the right rum yet”.
Our rums are handcrafted from high quality brown sugar that I cook into what we call a rum “wash”. The wash is to rum what wine is to brandy or distiller’s beer is to whiskey. After distilling our rum, I then craft it into one of five regular products: White Rum, Barrel-Aged Rum, Vanilla Bean Rum, Spiced Rum, and Coffee Rum. Each shine in their own way and are all great additions to your home bar.
Is there something surprising that you feel even people who know you might not know about?
I am a fairly open book. But one item that may surprise folks is that being a distiller was my fourth career pursuit at the ripe old age of 25. My first pursuit was the Army, because I knew my eyesight would keep me from flying an F-16 Falcon. Second pursuit was a California Fish & Game Warden. Third was a winemaker. Thankfully the fourth pursuit of being a distiller seems to be sticking.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.outlawdistillery.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/outlawdistillery/
