WW Partners, LLC, a Wyoming-based investment group, has acquired Edrington’s 80% stockholding in Wyoming Whiskey, returning the Rocky Mountain distillery to full Wyoming ownership. The acquisition is led by co-founder David DeFazio and reunites the brand under home-state control.
Edrington, the Scotland-based group behind The Macallan, invested in Wyoming Whiskey in 2018. During the partnership, the two companies worked together to refine the distillery’s production processes. The new ownership group will build on that work as it returns the brand to its roots.
Founded in 2006, Wyoming Whiskey began production on July 4, 2009. It was the first legal distillery in the state of Wyoming.
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All its whiskies are made in Wyoming using non-GMO corn, wheat, rye, and barley grown in the Bighorn Basin. The range includes bourbon, rye, and American straight whiskey.
The brand’s Buffalo Bill Cody release was named best Non-Kentucky Small Batch Bourbon at the World Whiskies Awards in 2026.
The company has also released State of the Union, a six-year-old bourbon marking America’s 250th anniversary and Wyoming’s role in the national story.
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READ THE STORY“Moving forward, Wyoming Whiskey will re-commit to its roots and return to the culture and constitution that made it the whiskey of the West and a staple of the Rocky Mountain whiskey category,” said DeFazio. “We are proud to honor the contributions of our partners at Edrington and look forward to introducing the trade and consumers to a Wyoming Whiskey that represents the very best of what this brand has always been capable of.”
Mike Zitelli, head of legal and corporate affairs for Edrington Americas, said: “It has been a pleasure working with the Mead Family and David DeFazio on a brand steeped in heritage and authenticity.”
He added: “We wish Wyoming Whiskey every success under its new ownership and with its more focused localized approach.”
As part of its strategy, the distillery will resume its partnership with master blender Nancy Fraley, who created Outryder and the 10th Anniversary Edition.
“I am enormously excited about resuming my work with Wyoming Whiskey as their master blender after a nearly three-year hiatus,” said Fraley. “Distilleries that are owned and operated by local people who are passionate about the liquid they create are the ones with whom I always prefer to work.”
The brand is based in Kirby, Wyoming. It was founded by Brad and Kate Mead alongside DeFazio.
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