Wyoming
How Wyoming Whiskey Conquered the Wild West
Kirby, Wyoming, population 76, is a virtual no man’s land. There’s a literal ghost town just across the highway, and nearby Thermopolis, population 2,725, seems gargantuan by comparison. The closest city, Casper, is two hours away. If desolate were a place, it’d be Kirby. It’s the last spot where one would expect to find high-quality whiskey.
This remoteness drew former attorneys Brad and Kate Mead, who now operate a 350-head historic cattle ranch just outside the town of Jackson, to Kirby. They originally intended to use the 1,000 acres to isolate their cattle and prevent disease during the winter months.
But as the land sat unoccupied, the Meads decided to do something completely unexpected and open Wyoming’s first whiskey distillery. They enlisted the help of David DeFazio, a lawyer who had worked at their firm, and together vowed to make a spirit that honored the land it came from.
“Everyone who comes to Wyoming understands that nothing is easy here,” says Wyoming Whiskey master blender Brendan Cook. “You have to make a conscious decision to do something. We’re not in whiskey country or bourbon country. There was this willingness and desire to make something happen in a climate that isn’t prime territory for it. And that desire was to make America’s next great whiskey.”
Harsh Extremes Yield Unique Results
Wyoming’s harsh climate is a major factor when it comes to making the distinctive spirit, and it’s critical to how the whiskey is barrel-aged. While places like Kentucky or Tennessee have a fairly mild climate with no major temperature extremes, Wyoming’s seasonal swings can fluctuate dramatically — but the whiskey makers use this to their advantage.
“What we’re able to do as blenders is picture the warehouse as a spice cabinet and think, ‘I want a little of this one, this one, and this one,’ to make something that gives us a variety of flavors,” Cook says. “The temperature swings in Wyoming are quite extreme: We see temperatures of 117 degrees at the top of the warehouse and 60 degrees at the bottom. We have huge temperature differences within a small space, but that allows us to get different flavor profiles depending on where the barrel is picked from,” Cook says.
Unlike its milder counterparts, Wyoming’s climate stays consistently cold from October to April, preventing the warehouses from really warming up at all. Wyoming Whiskey calls this the “dormancy period.” It gives the spirit time to mature and age without the heat that causes cask expansion and contraction during summer months.
“We measure our five-year-old bourbon with summer as its birthday,” Cook adds. “That’s when we see the mature characteristics come from the cask. That’s definitely unique to this part of the world.”
A Taste of Wyoming
To make whiskey, you need water. And finding a viable water source in Wyoming is no small feat. Water from nearby Thermopolis, home to the world’s largest natural hot springs, wasn’t an option because of its high mineral content, which would calcify in the still. Instead, the co-founders were able to tap a 6,000-year-old underground limestone aquifer a mile underground.
“The Meads and their partner, David DeFazio, decided to stay true to Wyoming — to build something from the ground up and celebrate that. It’s about building a sense of community and doing the difficult thing because it’s right. We could source ingredients from somewhere else, but we decided to use our surroundings,” says Cook.
Ingredients like non-GMO corn, winter wheat (they use a variety called “Yellowstone”), barley, and winter rye are sourced from farmers based in Byron, Wyoming, just an hour and a half away. These grains were chosen for their sugar and starch yields, and the variety of corn cultivated matures in 91 days, which is critical for Wyoming’s high elevation and short growing season.
“It truly is like a taste of Wyoming from grain to glass,” Cook says.
Whiskey’s Softer Side
Wyoming Whiskey’s pursuit of perfection carries on through its distillation process. The team uses a combination of two yeasts — one that’s high-yield, as well as a proprietary yeast that produces alcohol with a slightly fruitier flavor.
After being distilled in a Vendome Copper & Brass continuous column still, the whiskey is put into oak barrels and aged for a minimum of five years in one of their six rickhouses. The temperature swings in the warehouse create the bourbon world’s most unique aging environment. The summer heat pushes the whiskey into the barrel’s charred oak, while cooler temperatures force the spirit to contract — almost like inhaling and exhaling — resulting in layers of flavor.
“We have these great caramel, vanilla, and orange notes, then some dark, dried fruits, and big cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger flavors,” Cook says. “When we’re putting a small batch together, we want that creamy orange vanilla with a little bit of grounding notes from the dark dried fruit. There’s this dichotomy of an incredibly extreme environment but a very soft, delicate, and rich spirit, where you might have expected it to be harsh.”
Heading Out West
The folks behind Wyoming Whiskey know how exceptional their state is, from its majestic mountains to its sweeping high plains. Preserving the Wyoming way of life is integral to their craft, which is why they’ve created Wide Open Spaces, a partnership that has worked closely with the National Park Foundation, Yellowstone Forever, and Grand Teton National Park Foundation to help preserve Wyoming’s landscapes.
Each chapter in the series pays homage to Wyoming’s landmarks. The latest release, The Grand and National Parks No. 3, celebrates the Snake River and Grand Teton National Park, home to a 40-mile-long mountain range and native wildlife like bison and bears. Proceeds help support the Grand Teton National Park Foundation’s mission to preserve natural and cultural resources for generations. It’s just one of the many ways Wyoming Whiskey shows respect and reverence for its home.
For those who happen to be near Kirby, Wyoming Whiskey offers distillery tours, as well as tastings at its satellite location in Jackson Hole. For those unable to make it out west, you can explore Wyoming Whiskey’s expressions online.
From the harsh conditions of the 44th state, the distillers at Wyoming Whiskey have done the impossible and caught lightning in a bottle, capturing the intrepid spirit of the West.
This article is sponsored by Wyoming Whiskey.
CASPER, Wyo. — High school athletics in Wyoming could see some drastic changes in the coming years following legislative changes to the state’s education budget, the Wyoming High School Activities Association recently announced in a statement.
According to the WHSAA, Wyoming school districts are facing a projected $3.9 million shortfall in activities funding, forcing officials to consider significant cuts to high school sports and extracurricular programs.
The WHSAA shared details regarding a new “silo” funding model implemented by the Legislature, stating that the recalibrated block grant model reduced funding for student activities and extra-duty responsibilities from $46.3 million to $42.4 million, an approximately 8.4% decrease statewide.
WHSAA Commissioner Trevor Wilson said the restructuring also restricts district access to an additional $76.2 million in previously flexible funding.
“A significant portion of the [April 28 WHSAA Board of Directors] meeting was dedicated to discussing the projected funding shortfall,” Wilson wrote.
The WHSAA is weighing several strategies to address rising costs with fewer resources. Proposed changes include eliminating regional tournaments and reducing the number of teams qualifying for state events from eight to four; limiting wrestling to two classes and restricting track and field state participants to the top 16 marks; making cuts to soccer, indoor track and field, Nordic and Alpine skiing, swimming and diving, spring golf and tennis; and reducing in-person speech and debate events by half and centrally locating All-State Music events to minimize travel. The board also recommended increasing gate admission or implementing student participation fees to offset costs.
While the WHSAA release states that no plans have been finalized and the various changes are currently just possibilities, Natrona County School District 1 Board of Trustees member Mary Schmidt criticized the WHSAA’s handling of the news at Monday’s board meeting.
“I take some issues with this, [including] the sheer fact that we as Board of Trustees members have not talked about that at all,” Schmidt said. “It is not our intent and it has not been brought to us to cut our athletics or activities budget for the upcoming school year. … I take issue with them picking sports and getting the community upset and ginning them up to be upset that this is all going to be cut when that hasn’t been discussed.”
Later in the meeting, Superintendent Angela Hensley clarified that Natrona County School District 1’s athletics and activities budget saw a reduction of roughly $550,000 in the coming year’s budget, but said the local school district does not plan to cut any sports.
“Thank you, Trustee Schmidt, for saying this, because I think people are wondering — we are not planning to cut athletics and activities for next year,” Hensley said. “We do have to take a look at our entire budget as we have talked about, as we learn more about these new rules that come in.”
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Republished with permission from Wyoming News Now, a TV news outlet covering the Cheyenne and Casper areas.
Cheyenne City Council has introduced a temporary moratorium, or pause, on new data center construction.
“The end goal is to actually have regulations in place, to have really heavy public involvement with this with data centers,” said Councilman Mark Moody.
The proposed ordinance is not a permanent ban on data centers and would not affect data centers currently under construction.
Councilman Moody says this is a bipartisan issue.
“I just want to make this clear, I’m not against data centers. We do need them from a national security perspective,” he said.
He said there needs to be more public input and regulations regarding data centers in Cheyenne.
The ordinance would require city staff to study data center impacts such as electricity usage, electricity tariffs, closed-loop cooling systems, groundwater impacts, agricultural impacts, and land value.
Cheyenne LEADS, the economic development corporation for Cheyenne and Laramie County, reported in November 2025 that there are 12 operational data centers in Wyoming, five under construction and plans for 43 data centers announced across the state.
“There needs to be more public input with this, and also to see how many we can sustain here in this community, cause there are talks of 43, and then another day 70. How many can we sustain here?” said Councilman Moody.
The proposed moratorium will now go to the Public Services Committee on Monday, May 18 at noon in the Municipal Building.
Sheridan will play in the North Regional Tournament at Gillette, while the South Regional Tournament will be played at Rock Springs.
North Regional Tournament at Gillette:
Checking record vs. highest team in the quadrant not involved in the tie, Thunder Basin gets the #1 Northeast seed over Campbell County, because the Lady Bolts went 3-1 vs. Sheridan, whereas the Lady Camels went 2-2.
Friday, May 15th:
(#1 NE) Thunder Basin vs. (#4 NW) Jackson – 11am
(#2 NW) Natrona County vs. (#3 NE) Sheridan – 11am
(#2 NE) Campbell County vs. (#3 NW) Kelly Walsh – 1pm
(#1 NW) Cody vs. (#4 NE) Worland – 1pm
Semi-Finals:
Thunder Basin/Jackson winner vs. Natrona County/Sheridan winner – 3pm Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
Campbell County/Kelly Walsh winner vs. Cody/Worland winner – 5pm Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
Consolation Round:
Thunder Basin/Jackson loser vs. Natrona County/Sheridan loser – 3pm LOSER OUT!
Campbell County/Kelly Walsh loser vs. Cody/Worland loser – 5pm LOSER OUT!
Saturday, May 16th:
TBA vs. TBA – 10am LOSER OUT! Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
TBA vs. TBA – 10am LOSER OUT! Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
2 10am winners vs. each other – 1pm 3rd Place
TBA vs. TBA – 1pm 1st Place
South Regional Tournament at Rock Springs:
Friday, May 15th:
(#1 SW) Laramie vs. (#4 SE) Torrington – 11am
(#2 SE) Cheyenne East vs. (#3 SW) Green River – 11am
(#2 SW) Rock Springs vs. (#3 SE) Wheatland – 1pm
(#1 SE) Cheyenne Central vs. (#4 SW) Cheyenne South – 1pm
Semi-Finals:
Laramie/Torrington winner vs. Cheyenne East/Green River winner – 3pm Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
Rock Springs/Wheatland winner vs. Cheyenne Central/Cheyenne South winner – 5pm Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
Consolation Round:
Laramie/Torrington loser vs. Cheyenne East/Green River loser – 3pm LOSER OUT!
Rock Springs/Wheatland loser vs. Cheyenne Central/Cheyenne South loser – 5pm LOSER OUT!
Saturday, May 16th:
TBA vs. TBA – 10am LOSER OUT! Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
TBA vs. TBA – 10am LOSER OUT! Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
2 10am winners vs. each other – 1pm 3rd Place
TBA vs. TBA – 1pm 1st Place
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