New Downtown Cheyenne Distillery Is Open…Finally

The wait for downtown Cheyenne's new distillery is finally over. After over two years of delays and detours, Chronicles Distilling celebrated their grand opening this weekend in the Asher Building.

"I thought we were never gonna get this place open," Chronicles co-owner Chase Lesher joked. "It's been 2 1/2 years of headaches, but it feels really good."

Chase and his brother Aaron Lesher are former Marines who learned the process helping a friend found a distillery in Nebraska. While the Iraq War veteran and his brother secured a location, filed for a Distilled Spirits Plant Permit from the ATF, obtained a liquor license from the State of Wyoming, then made improvements to the facility, they also tinkered with recipes, settling on four products for their launch: Biting Wind corn vodka, Tart Lemon lemonade vodka, Spit Shine corn whiskey, and Berry & Barb strawberry rhubarb whiskey. The Leshers plan to introduce more flavors in the coming months, including a bacon vodka, a jalapeno bloody mary vodka, and a whiskey infused with habanero.

The distillery occupies space on two floors in the historic Asher Building, which was constructed in 1914. The main floor features a cocktail lounge and package sales with a mash tub, still and storage facility in the basement.

Chronicles Distillery will be open from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. during Cheyenne Frontier Days. After CFD, they will be open from Wednesday through Sunday and plan to offer distillery tours along with craft cocktails and package sales. Along with retail sales onsite, Chronicles also plans to distribute their products to liquor stores across the region in the coming months and years.