Table Of Contents

The Details

Rating 91
Style
Whiskey
Produced In Wyoming
United States
ABV 50%
Availability Limited
Price $84.99 
Reviewed By
Reviewed 2024-12-04

Wyoming Whiskey Outryder (2024) Review

Founded in 2010, Wyoming Whiskey is the state’s first legal distillery. And unlike many operations that came online during the Bourbon Boom, its releases have never included any sourced or contract distilled liquid.

While Wyoming Whiskey is best known for its bourbon, the brand has experimented with some other mash bills over time — though it originally did so begrudgingly. According to the company, in 2010, co-founder David DeFazio asked then-head distiller Steve Nally to distill a rye whiskey. Nally was hesitant and ultimately laid down 100 barrels of “rye” made from a 48 percent mash bill. The resulting liquid was, legally speaking, not bourbon or rye.

That created quite the marketing challenge when it came time to bottle in 2016. The whiskey was blended with bourbon and ultimately released as Outryder Straight American Whiskey; until 2024, each subsequent release contained some of the 48 percent rye mash bill.

In 2024, Wyoming Whiskey changed up the blend, combining a rye-recipe bourbon with true straight rye whiskey in a 2.5 ratio. All casks used in the release were filled in early 2017 and spent seven summers in the distillery’s Kirby, Wyo.warehouses.

Let’s see how it tastes!

Wyoming Whiskey Outryder (2024) review.

Wyoming Whiskey Outryder: Stats and Availability

This version of Wyoming Whiskey Outryder is only available in Wyoming with a suggested MSRP of about $85. Given the Edrington-owned brand’s recent market expansion, I wouldn’t be surprised for Outryder to get distributed to other markets in the near future.

Wyoming Whiskey Outryder Review

As with all of VinePair’s whiskey reviews, this was tasted in a Glencairn glass and rested for at least five minutes.

Nose

The nose starts off on a very specific note, at least to me: heavily spiced apple strudel. While cinnamon and fruit initially hit simultaneously, the scent of baking spice gradually comes to dominate, with undercurrents of green apple and oak.

A little more time in the glass brings about aromas of cigar box, holiday scented pine cones, and brown sugar, all scents punctuated by both astringent tannins and light wintergreen/menthol. Moderate herbal notes stick at the back of the nostrils, mostly mint but with some drying hay and freshly cut grass for good measure.

Oak gives the nose a char-forward backbone throughout. That’s highly welcome, otherwise I worry this whiskey would veer too close to artificial holiday scents and extracts. As is, this year’s Outryder walks a fine line between punching above its 100 proof and remaining balanced — and it certainly works.

Taste

Compared to the nose, the first sip is muted, but that’s not necessarily a knock against the whiskey. For reasons hard to pin down, I’ve found Wyoming Whiskey — whether it’s the grain, or perhaps the dry aging environment — often noses above its proof. But this Outryder drinks at or below 50 percent ABV. Early flavors include pale caramel, vanilla sugar cookie, and white donut icing — some classic and sweet bourbon notes, to be sure.

Things get a little more sour, spicy, and complex by the third sip. Citrus peel and ginger-spiced bundt cake carry the midpalate, the fruit tarter and brighter than on the nose. Similarly, cinnamon has ceded some territory to candied ginger, the sweet and spicy existing here in almost equal proportion.

Though the whiskey’s viscosity is perhaps a shade on the thin side, it could be to this batch’s benefit, allowing room for flavors to quickly ebb and flow and preventing that bright citrus from getting bogged down in too much oak or cinnamon.

Finish

The finish is nutty — toasted peanuts and pecans — with some lingering cinnamon and nutmeg, the latter flavor evoking spiced holiday eggnog. A final taste of baked, caramel-soaked green apple bookends an Outryder release that leans into bourbon while clearly borrowing from rye. It’s a pretty satisfying finish, if just slightly shorter than I would have liked.

Wyoming Whiskey Outryder Rating

91/100

Recap

The latest Outryder is the first to feature “true” rye whiskey in the blend, and the resulting product smells and tastes like Wyoming Whiskey bourbon with an added kick. It’s neither the richest nor most complex of Wyoming’s releases from the past few years. But what it does, it does well, with consistent flavor and few if any real flaws. It’s also a whiskey that will almost certainly play nice with others, imparting memorable flavor without overwhelming the palate. Enjoy, and expect next year’s batch to bring a new twist or two.

*Image retrieved from Outryder Whiskey

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91
POINTS
Wyoming Whiskey Outryder (2024)
Founded in 2010, Wyoming Whiskey is the state’s first legal distillery. And unlike many operations that came online during the Bourbon Boom, its releases have never included any sourced or contract distilled liquid. While Wyoming Whiskey is best known for its bourbon, the brand has experimented with some other mash bills over time — though it originally did so begrudgingly. According to the company, in 2010, co-founder David DeFazio asked then-head distiller Steve Nally to distill a rye whiskey. Nally was hesitant and ultimately laid down 100 barrels of “rye” made from a 48 percent mash bill. The resulting liquid was, legally speaking, not bourbon or rye. That created quite the marketing challenge when it came time to bottle in 2016. The whiskey was blended with bourbon and ultimately released as Outryder Straight American Whiskey; until 2024, each subsequent release contained some of the 48 percent rye mash bill. In 2024, Wyoming Whiskey changed up the blend, combining a rye-recipe bourbon with true straight rye whiskey in a 2.5 ratio. All casks used in the release were filled in early 2017 and spent seven summers in the distillery’s Kirby, Wyo.warehouses. Let’s see how it tastes! Wyoming Whiskey Outryder (2024) review.

Wyoming Whiskey Outryder: Stats and Availability

This version of Wyoming Whiskey Outryder is only available in Wyoming with a suggested MSRP of about $85. Given the Edrington-owned brand’s recent market expansion, I wouldn’t be surprised for Outryder to get distributed to other markets in the near future.

Wyoming Whiskey Outryder Review

As with all of VinePair’s whiskey reviews, this was tasted in a Glencairn glass and rested for at least five minutes.

Nose

The nose starts off on a very specific note, at least to me: heavily spiced apple strudel. While cinnamon and fruit initially hit simultaneously, the scent of baking spice gradually comes to dominate, with undercurrents of green apple and oak. A little more time in the glass brings about aromas of cigar box, holiday scented pine cones, and brown sugar, all scents punctuated by both astringent tannins and light wintergreen/menthol. Moderate herbal notes stick at the back of the nostrils, mostly mint but with some drying hay and freshly cut grass for good measure. Oak gives the nose a char-forward backbone throughout. That’s highly welcome, otherwise I worry this whiskey would veer too close to artificial holiday scents and extracts. As is, this year’s Outryder walks a fine line between punching above its 100 proof and remaining balanced — and it certainly works.

Taste

Compared to the nose, the first sip is muted, but that’s not necessarily a knock against the whiskey. For reasons hard to pin down, I’ve found Wyoming Whiskey — whether it’s the grain, or perhaps the dry aging environment — often noses above its proof. But this Outryder drinks at or below 50 percent ABV. Early flavors include pale caramel, vanilla sugar cookie, and white donut icing — some classic and sweet bourbon notes, to be sure. Things get a little more sour, spicy, and complex by the third sip. Citrus peel and ginger-spiced bundt cake carry the midpalate, the fruit tarter and brighter than on the nose. Similarly, cinnamon has ceded some territory to candied ginger, the sweet and spicy existing here in almost equal proportion. Though the whiskey’s viscosity is perhaps a shade on the thin side, it could be to this batch’s benefit, allowing room for flavors to quickly ebb and flow and preventing that bright citrus from getting bogged down in too much oak or cinnamon.

Finish

The finish is nutty — toasted peanuts and pecans — with some lingering cinnamon and nutmeg, the latter flavor evoking spiced holiday eggnog. A final taste of baked, caramel-soaked green apple bookends an Outryder release that leans into bourbon while clearly borrowing from rye. It’s a pretty satisfying finish, if just slightly shorter than I would have liked.

Wyoming Whiskey Outryder Rating

91/100

Recap

The latest Outryder is the first to feature “true” rye whiskey in the blend, and the resulting product smells and tastes like Wyoming Whiskey bourbon with an added kick. It’s neither the richest nor most complex of Wyoming’s releases from the past few years. But what it does, it does well, with consistent flavor and few if any real flaws. It’s also a whiskey that will almost certainly play nice with others, imparting memorable flavor without overwhelming the palate. Enjoy, and expect next year’s batch to bring a new twist or two. *Image retrieved from Outryder Whiskey

Reviewed On: 12-04-2024
91
POINTS
Wyoming Whiskey Outryder (2024)
Founded in 2010, Wyoming Whiskey is the state’s first legal distillery. And unlike many operations that came online during the Bourbon Boom, its releases have never included any sourced or contract distilled liquid. While Wyoming Whiskey is best known for its bourbon, the brand has experimented with some other mash bills over time — though it originally did so begrudgingly. According to the company, in 2010, co-founder David DeFazio asked then-head distiller Steve Nally to distill a rye whiskey. Nally was hesitant and ultimately laid down 100 barrels of “rye” made from a 48 percent mash bill. The resulting liquid was, legally speaking, not bourbon or rye. That created quite the marketing challenge when it came time to bottle in 2016. The whiskey was blended with bourbon and ultimately released as Outryder Straight American Whiskey; until 2024, each subsequent release contained some of the 48 percent rye mash bill. In 2024, Wyoming Whiskey changed up the blend, combining a rye-recipe bourbon with true straight rye whiskey in a 2.5 ratio. All casks used in the release were filled in early 2017 and spent seven summers in the distillery’s Kirby, Wyo.warehouses. Let’s see how it tastes! Wyoming Whiskey Outryder (2024) review.

Wyoming Whiskey Outryder: Stats and Availability

This version of Wyoming Whiskey Outryder is only available in Wyoming with a suggested MSRP of about $85. Given the Edrington-owned brand’s recent market expansion, I wouldn’t be surprised for Outryder to get distributed to other markets in the near future.

Wyoming Whiskey Outryder Review

As with all of VinePair’s whiskey reviews, this was tasted in a Glencairn glass and rested for at least five minutes.

Nose

The nose starts off on a very specific note, at least to me: heavily spiced apple strudel. While cinnamon and fruit initially hit simultaneously, the scent of baking spice gradually comes to dominate, with undercurrents of green apple and oak. A little more time in the glass brings about aromas of cigar box, holiday scented pine cones, and brown sugar, all scents punctuated by both astringent tannins and light wintergreen/menthol. Moderate herbal notes stick at the back of the nostrils, mostly mint but with some drying hay and freshly cut grass for good measure. Oak gives the nose a char-forward backbone throughout. That’s highly welcome, otherwise I worry this whiskey would veer too close to artificial holiday scents and extracts. As is, this year’s Outryder walks a fine line between punching above its 100 proof and remaining balanced — and it certainly works.

Taste

Compared to the nose, the first sip is muted, but that’s not necessarily a knock against the whiskey. For reasons hard to pin down, I’ve found Wyoming Whiskey — whether it’s the grain, or perhaps the dry aging environment — often noses above its proof. But this Outryder drinks at or below 50 percent ABV. Early flavors include pale caramel, vanilla sugar cookie, and white donut icing — some classic and sweet bourbon notes, to be sure. Things get a little more sour, spicy, and complex by the third sip. Citrus peel and ginger-spiced bundt cake carry the midpalate, the fruit tarter and brighter than on the nose. Similarly, cinnamon has ceded some territory to candied ginger, the sweet and spicy existing here in almost equal proportion. Though the whiskey’s viscosity is perhaps a shade on the thin side, it could be to this batch’s benefit, allowing room for flavors to quickly ebb and flow and preventing that bright citrus from getting bogged down in too much oak or cinnamon.

Finish

The finish is nutty — toasted peanuts and pecans — with some lingering cinnamon and nutmeg, the latter flavor evoking spiced holiday eggnog. A final taste of baked, caramel-soaked green apple bookends an Outryder release that leans into bourbon while clearly borrowing from rye. It’s a pretty satisfying finish, if just slightly shorter than I would have liked.

Wyoming Whiskey Outryder Rating

91/100

Recap

The latest Outryder is the first to feature “true” rye whiskey in the blend, and the resulting product smells and tastes like Wyoming Whiskey bourbon with an added kick. It’s neither the richest nor most complex of Wyoming’s releases from the past few years. But what it does, it does well, with consistent flavor and few if any real flaws. It’s also a whiskey that will almost certainly play nice with others, imparting memorable flavor without overwhelming the palate. Enjoy, and expect next year’s batch to bring a new twist or two. *Image retrieved from Outryder Whiskey

Reviewed On: 12-04-2024