Wyoming Whiskey Outryder
Wyoming is one of my favorite states. I got to take a six week-long trip to the National Parks when I was younger, flying to Canada and driving to Vegas, hitting every park on the way we could fit. While Glacier National Park in Montana was my favorite overall, Wyoming no doubt had the jewel - no, not Yellowstone (while that was incredible) - Grand Teton. The most majestic peaks of the entire trip, a trio of snow-capped arrowheads reflecting onto Jenny Lake, are a scene from a painting made real.
About four hours and 200 miles east on the flip side of the Shoshone National Forest is the town of Kirby, Wyoming. And in that town is the largest whiskey distiller in Wyoming - fittingly named Wyoming Whiskey.
Wyoming Whiskey (WW) is something of an outlier. Run by a family whose Wyoming roots go deep, way back to 1890, WW was founded in 2006 by Brad and Kate Mead, with David DeFazio handling the “how-to” of the whiskey business. Fifteen years later, the same team runs the distillery, producing whiskey from all-Wyoming grain and water, with two separate yeast strains, six warehouses, and a Wyoming climate that may even exceed Kentucky’s extremes.
It’s a great story - and I mean that with no sarcasm - but how is the whiskey? I’ve had only two tastes, one indirectly in Barrell Bourbon Batch 30 and the second in this blind tasting, both from my friend Mike over at The Bourbon Culture. In the Barrell blend, it added something different to the mix that I hadn’t tasted in Barrell before - it wasn’t 100% discernable, but there was definitely something new.
Whatever that indiscernable difference was, it wasn’t from the Outryder (at least I don’t think so). This was one of the odder whiskies I’ve tried recently, in that it was at once intriguing and also not quite there yet but had a definite je ne sais quoi. Wyoming Whiskey’s Outryder is just like the distillery as a whole - an outlier. From their website:
It’s crafted from two distinct mash bills distilled in November of 2011. The first mash bill contains 48% winter rye, 40% corn, and 12% malted barley and the second reflects a traditional bourbon mash bill of 68% corn, 20% winter rye, and 12% malted barley. In keeping with Wyoming Whiskey’s tradition, these grains are all non-GMO and grown in Byron, Wyoming by Rageth Farms.
I tried this blind, only knowing it was a whiskey, nothing more. So, with that in mind, in addition to the above adjectives I must add confusing to the list. It’s a blend of a rye’d plurality mashbill and a high-rye bourbon mashbill, and yet it tasted wheated with no wheat to be seen. It also tasted nothing close to nine years old.
Given that this is a singular release from Wyoming Whiskey, I’m inclined to not think this is 100% representative of their full lineup. It has me intrigued, though - there is enough here to see how Wyoming Whiskey does things its own way. Added to whatever positive contribution it made to the Barrell Bourbon release, and regardless of how this particular whiskey scored I’m curious for the rest of the WW lineup.
Wyoming Whiskey Outryder: Specs
Classification: Straight American Whiskey
Origin: Wyoming Whiskey
Mashbill: Undisclosed ratio of a 48% Winter Rye, 40% Corn, and 12% Malted Barley mashbill and 68% Corn, 20% Winter Rye, and 12% Malted Barley mashbill.
Proof: 100 (50% ABV)
Age: 9 Years Old
Location: Wyoming
Wyoming Whiskey Outryder Price: $79
Wyoming Whiskey Outryder Review: Tasting Notes
Eye: XO Cognac. No rims, splotchy droplets all over.
Nose: Brown sugar peanut brittle. Little to no proof. Smells similar to an Early Times. Mulled spices open weakly on the back end.
Palate: Just the barest proof, heavy caramels and vanillas, sweet chocolate. Mouthfeel opens a touch of spice, especially toasted nutmeg. Chocolate keeps going, turning oily, butterscotchy, and lingering.
Finish: Very short - milk chocolate and Werther’s, but gone in a flash.
Overall: This was…not what I expected it to be? It’s a blend of two mashbills, one of which is a three-grain plurality but neither of which have any wheat. Yet all that chocolate had me betting wheater all the way. Also doesn’t taste anywhere near nine years old. The body is solid and the nose leads with some promise, but that finish is maddeningly short. Good to very good, just missing a component or two to bring it all together.
Final Rating: 5.9
10 | Insurpassable | Nothing Else Comes Close (Elijah Craig Barrel Proof Old Label Batch 4 or 2, Blanton’s Straight from the Barrel)
9 | Incredible | Extraordinary (GTS, Elijah Craig Barrel Proof B518 and B520)
8 | Excellent | Exceptional (Stagg Jr. Batch 10, Highland Park Single Barrels)
7 | Great | Well above average (Blanton’s Original, Old Weller Antique, Booker’s)
6 | Very Good | Better than average (Four Roses Small Batch Select, Knob Creek 14+ YO Picks)
5 | Good | Good, solid, ordinary (Elijah Craig Small Batch, Buffalo Trace, Old Grand-Dad Bottled-in-Bond)
4 | Sub-par | Many things I’d rather have (A.D. Laws Four Grain, Compass Box “Oak Cross”)
3 | Bad | Flawed (Iron Smoke Bourbon, Balcones)
2 | Poor | Forced myself to drink it (Buckshee Bourbon and Rye)
1 | Disgusting | Drain pour (Virginia Distilling Co. Cider Cask)
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