Wyoming Whiskey is releasing a 7-year-old expression of its signature Outryder Straight American Whiskey this fall.
Outryder, the only Bottled in Bond whiskey from Wyoming, was first released in October 2016. Bourbon Hall of Famer and former Maker’s Mark master distiller Steve Nally was hired to run all production in Kirby, WY when the company was created. He was instrumental in developing the Small Batch mash bill and selected yeasts that yielded specific taste profiles.
In 2010, Wyoming co-founder David DeFazio asked Nally to develop a rye. Nally resisted, telling DeFazio that he didn’t want to make rye and communicated his distaste for the spirit. The founders encouraged him to reconsider his position and he ultimately relented, albeit defiantly. Two different whiskies were laid down in late 2011, 100 barrels of “rye” and 200 barrels of bourbon made with rye.
A couple of years later, Nally left Wyoming Whiskey to return home and pursue other projects. In 2016, when it was time to bottle the nearly 5 year-old-barrels, Sam Mead, Wyoming Whiskey’s distiller, called DeFazio to explain that the whiskey Nally produced was only 48% rye.
DeFazio called Nally and said, “I want you to know that the ‘rye’ you made is spectacular … but why did you only use 48% rye in the mash bill?” Nally responded, “Because I told you I didn’t want to make rye.”
Wyoming was left with no choice but to develop a straight American whiskey from Nally’s two whiskies. The first whiskey 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. Wyoming Whiskey master blender Nancy Fraley fine-tuned the Outryder expression through barrel selection and its specific blending process.
“Steve Nally remains a great friend of the brand and we couldn’t be happier with the outcome of his defiance,” said DeFazio. “The result is an exceptional Straight American Whiskey that we couldn’t have mastered better if we had planned it. At nearly eight years of age, its character is remarkable.”
Using water sourced from a mile-deep limestone aquifer and all Wyoming-sourced, non-GMO ingredients, Wyoming Whiskey respects the maxims of great bourbon, yet also reflects the feel and taste of the place it was made.
Outryder is bottled at 100 proof. A total of 577 cases of Outryder will be available for purchase throughout the U.S. at the suggested price of $74.99 beginning next month. The remaining stock of Outryder, available in limited annual supply, will be released in 8, 9 and 10 year-old expressions over the next three years until the last batch of barrels are harvested in 2022.
