LA’s first modern distillery celebrates its 20th anniversary with its most ambitious spirit offering yet

Off a secluded section of 8th Street in the Arts District is where you'll find Greenbar Distillery.

The first legal distillery in L.A. since the time of Prohibition, owners Melkon Khosrovian and Litty Mathew have been endlessly tinkering away there for two decades, creating quality craft spirits for their many fans.

The couple met while both were studying journalism at USC in the 1990s.

Mathew was steeped in the food world, having attended Le Cordon Bleu cooking school in Paris and worked as a freelance travel and food writer for major magazines.

Khosrovian, who was born in Armenia, had grown up with family-made fruit brandies and local grain vodkas.

During their free time, the pair experimented making their own creations with alcoholic spirits.

Litty Mathew and Melkon Khosrovian, the husband-and-wife team behind Greenbar Distillery.

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Courtesy Greenbar Distillery.

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Overlooking the factory floor of Greenbar Distillery, Khosrovian reminisces: “When we started, we asked ourselves, ‘What do we want things to taste like?”

They began infusing spirits with foods that inspired them, such as locally grown citrus, ginger and Sichuan peppercorns. Their creations were well-received by family and friends, and in 2004, they decided to turn that hobby into a business, even though, as Khosrovian admits, “We didn't know anything about this industry.”

They moved into a dilapidated warehouse in DTLA, half of which was damaged in a fire, and opened what was one of the first craft distilleries in the U.S.

The copper pot still that serves as the heart of Greenbar Distillery located in the Arts District in DTLA.

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Marc Royce

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Courtesy Greenbar Distillery

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Twenty years later, according to Khosrovian, Greenbar now  makes the largest volume of infused alcohol in the United States, selling to bars and restaurants.

Their impressive library of organic spirits is diverse, like their Bright Gin, which is meant to replicate the collective palate of Angelenos, with flavors like ancho chiles, cardamom, lemongrass and star anise, among others.

There's also their single malt whiskey, aged with six different types of wood (white oak, hickory, maple, mulberry, red oak, and grape) and an amaro made with California poppies.

Where the infusion happens at Greenbar Distillery in the Arts District in DTLA.

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MakerWalkLA

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Courtesy Greenbar Distillery

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A new type of cocktail

The spirit industry in L.A. has ebbed and flowed over the years, however. Like most other businesses, they were deeply affected by the pandemic.

With social distancing and the shutdown of public places, attendance at bars declined. People increasingly stayed home, many experimenting for the first time with making their own cocktails.

It hit many of their contemporaries hard. Several closed or consolidated with large companies.

Khosrovian and Mathew were forced to rethink their business strategy.

Out of desperation comes invention

They realized that while making cocktails at home had become increasingly popular, so had the level of complexity.

“ These days, you have to go out and buy a bunch of esoteric ingredients to make certain drinks. And as they say, ain't nobody got time for that,” Khosrovian said.

So the pair set out to simplify the process and create a product that could achieve a great cocktail without requiring attending bartending school.

Like the early days, they spent their time endlessly experimenting, taking two years to find a formula they liked, even hiring chemists to help find the right combination of flavors and texture.

Staria is labeled as a "cocktail liqueur"

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Courtesy Greenbar Distillery,

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It’s culminated in their latest release, Staria, which they call a “cocktail liqueur.” The liqueur, which is 15% ABV, contains equal parts sweetness, sourness and, somehow, a plant-based foam, depending if it's shaken or stirred.

Just like their infused spirits pushed the boundaries of what was possible, so does Staria. The idea is that by adding different spirits, the cocktail morphs into different flavors. So by adding tequila, you get something approximating a margarita. By adding rum, you get a daiquiri.

Not exactly a classic cocktail, but still good to sip — especially when you realize it's just taken two pours to make it. Instead of needing a slew of different ingredients, this one formula somehow replaces them all.

“It's nothing that has existed before,” Khosrovian said.

I tried the margarita and the gin sour. Both were pleasant, tasting a little like the originals, but with a floral profile. The gin sour had sweet, rich flavors akin to sherry or vermouth. The margarita was a little less tart than I was expecting, but still good.

I'm probably not the target market — I actually enjoy the complex process of making the perfect cocktail. But many people find it all overly fussy and may well embrace this.

The couple have also reimagined their distribution set-up. Before the pandemic, 80% of their revenue came from selling to local bars and restaurants. For Staria, they're selling directly to consumers through their website.

Launching this unusual product is certainly a big swing. But so was opening a distillery in the rundown downtown L.A. of 20 years ago. Maybe this is just what we need as a haven from an uncertain world.