Wyoming Whiskey Crowns Winner of 2015 Bartender Shootout

Wyoming Whiskey named bartender Chad Taylor, of Zinc Bar at the Amangani Hotel, the winner of its Wyoming Bartender Shootout.

With his creation of a cocktail coined “22 Boulevard,” Taylor (pictured above) took home the $2,500 cash prize, a pair of Blizzard Skis and the Wyoming Whiskey Bartender Shootout championship belt buckle.

The finals were held at The Rose in Jackson. DJ Dolph from Park City kept the crowd moving as the eleven finalists competed. They were selected from the four regional competitions held throughout Wyoming in November and included: Taylor, Laura Keeler, Sam Miller, Brittany Fells, Meagan Schmoll, Michele Prevost, Audrey King, Rylee Watson, Justin Darnell, Jenny Drew and Griffin Murphy.

Wyoming Whiskey enlisted an all-star judging panel to rate the cocktails, the company says, including Chicago mixologist Johnny Costello, Dave Kaplan from Death and Co. in NYC, and the 2014 Shootout champion, Jesse Brown.

While highlights included Laura Keeler’s “Little Horse Thief” and Rylee Watson’s “The First and Last,” the company says, Chad Taylor’s “22 Boulevard” could not be beat.

“This event was a testament to the talent of the bartenders throughout the state and to the flexibility of Wyoming Whiskey as a spirit,” said David DeFazio, Co-Founder and COO of Wyoming Whiskey.

The 2015 Wyoming Whiskey Bartender Shootout podium cocktail recipes included:

1st Place — Chad Taylor, Zinc Bar at Amangani — “22 Boulevard” — 1.5 oz. Wyoming Whiskey, .5 oz. Aperol, .5 oz. Boulard Apple Brandy, 1 oz. Sage Honey Tea, garnish with sage leaf. For tea — 3 oz. sage tea, 1 tsp. honey, lemon zest. Mix all ingredients in a glass, stir and garnish with sage leaf.

2nd Place – Laura Keeler, The Rose — “Little Horse Thief” 
— 1 1/5 oz. Wyoming Whiskey, Barspoon Maple Syrup, 1/2 oz. Drambuie, 1/4 oz. float Laphroaig, 15 mint leaves for garnish
. Muddle mint leaves and maple syrup lightly, add all ingredients and crushed ice and swizzle until frost forms on the julep tin, place mint and float the Laphroaig on top of the ice.

3rd Place —Rylee Watson, Bar 10 — ”The First and Last” — 1 1/4 oz. Wyoming Whiskey, 3/4 oz. Disaronno, 1/2 oz. fine granulate pure cane sugar, 3/4 oz. fresh squeezed lemon juice, 1 egg white, 2 dash Angostura Bitters

For the complete list of recipes from this year’s Shootout, visit: wyomingwhiskey.com/shootout.