The Alchemists of High Elevation

Do you sense the Spirit of Wyoming? Its aura abounds: in the landscape, the people, the art. And if you follow Highway 89 south of the Town Square, past ranch land and elk winter range, you’ll find the answer is something you can hold in a glass. 

At Jackson Hole Still Works, the “Spirit of Wyoming” isn’t just a marketing slogan, it’s the ethos of a distillery where mountain grit meets fine art.

Founded in 2014 by Chas Marsh and Travis Goodman, this small batch distillery has spent the last decade proving that you don’t need a century-old legacy to create a classic—you just need the right ingredients and a refusal to settle for "good enough."

Friends for decades, Chas and Travis have spent a lifetime navigating the seasons and rhythms of the West - hunting in the backcountry, fishing the Snake, honing their palates for fine wines, craft beers, and pure spirits. 

The Spirit of Friendship

The idea for Still Works didn’t arrive from a formal business plan but from the desire to trade a desk job for something more experiential, if not experimental. Chas is proud of his degree from the Daniels College of Business at Denver University, and his heart led him back to Wyoming. He first came to the valley in 1982 with his family and he’s been here full-time for 25 years. For nine seasons, Chas was a local fly fishing guide. Rootedness in Wyoming matters and it offers validation for the Still Works’ founders.

Seeking a more creative outlet, he invited Travis to Denver to experiment with homebrewing. It wasn't a small-scale kitchen operation; they brewed batches large enough to fill a 53-gallon barrel. Friends were recruited as a makeshift judging panel, pitting one batch against another to select a winning beer.

Initially, the pair considered opening a microbrewery in Jackson. It was the early 2000s, and craft beer production was booming. However, Jackson was already home to several successful breweries, so the market felt saturated. It was Travis who suggested, “Why not build a distillery?”

The leap from beer to spirits is broad. Distillation requires precision. The chemistry of the process is more volatile, so the stakes are higher. “We had very limited knowledge of distilling at the time,” Chas admits.

Rather than distill the proper vodka through trial and error, they sought out the best in the business. The two enrolled in a broad selection of distillation courses, most notably at "Moonshine U" in Kentucky. It was there they studied under Nancy Fraley, a woman Chas describes as the “foremost nose in distilling.”

Moving forward, they secured a modest warehouse space from local legend Charlie Sands—a man whose own resume as a rafting guide and skier embodied the community spirit they hoped to capture. It was here the real labor began. For nine months, the duo lived in a cycle of "cooking" and refining. They produced 140 batches of vodka, distilled 115 of them, and kept only 60. Chas said, “Eventually, we put down the books and got our hands dirty to truly learn this craft.”

Distilling Excellence

This wasn't a corporate launch; it was handcrafted distillation that required one of them to be on-site at all times. They were pursuing a specific standard: Chas’ decree that a spirit must always be "delicious neat at room temperature."

Today, the permanent Still Works facility stands as testament to the persistent drive for quality. One enters the tasting room that feels like a cozy nook in a mountain cabin.     

Beyond the tasting room, lies the Alchemy. The space is immaculately clean, brightly lit, and smells of the esters and phenols that signify a high-end operation. 

Environmental stewardship is integrated into the structure and operation. The distillery uses a closed-loop water cooling system that saves millions of gallons of water annually. Eschewing natural gas, they utilize electricity to power their stills, minimizing their carbon footprint.

The ingredients are equally intentional. From the beginning, every grain has been cultivated in Wyoming. They are 100% organic and non-GMO, adhering to a "grain-to-glass" philosophy that ensures the spirit of the land is present in every drop.

Once the production of their Still Works Vodka and Great Grey Gin reached a level of consistent excellence, Chas and Travis turned their attention toward their next goal: community integration. 

Art & Community

Both Chas and Travis are from families that value art and Wyoming is replete with talented artists. It was a natural move to become supporters of the arts, first in Jackson Hole and then across the state. The two are famous for having their hands in all aspects of production at the distillery, so working with fine artists perfectly complemented their labor of love.

The original - and now annual - idea was to feature local artists’ work on the vodka bottle labels. Alison Brush at the Art Association of Jackson Hole suggested Katy Ann Fox, a local painter whose work captured the spirit of the valley. The three became fast friends, and Katy’s painting, “Dreams in the Valley,” became the inaugural label on the Still Works Vodka bottle. At a local unveiling, the original painting was put up for a raffle that raised $14,000, with 100% of proceeds donated to the Art Association. 

This success sparked the Spirit of Wyoming label art contest. The vodka bottle would become a rotating, miniature art gallery. Each year, artists from Wyoming and Teton Valley, Idaho, submit their work. Eight finalists are chosen from thirty high quality entrants, and the community votes for the winner. It has become more than a contest; it has helped propel careers. Katy, who has been involved in the label contest from the beginning, says that young artists should get involved. Chas agrees.“Being a finalist can only help an emerging artist,” he says.

Fox said that art and philanthropy are values integral to everything that Chas and Travis do. She says, “They are true, steady arts supporters.” From 2016 to 2021, through the label contest, the distillery donated over $10,000 annually to the Art Association, and Chas served on the Association board of directors for six years, further confirming his support of the arts in Jackson Hole. 

Since 2022, the proceeds have benefited the Wyoming Arts Council, elevating the contest’s profile to the state level. And, every winter, Wyoming’s governor confers awards to four Wyoming Artists at a gala event in Cheyenne. Still Works has become the largest small-business contributor to the Governor’s Arts Awards, managed by the Arts Council, thus freeing up vital funds for arts organizations, artists, and students across the state. 

Interest and participation in the label contest has exploded. The Spirit of Wyoming is known throughout the state, and competition is becoming more intense. Artists call Chas and Travis, asking what the two are looking for. Most recently, Kyla Oren’s painting, “A Blaze of the West” won the 2026 contest. Kyla, a 25 year old, self-taught artist from Pinedale, attended the Governor’s Arts Awards in February, as Still Works’ guest. When introduced by the MC, Kyla received a standing ovation. 

The Next Sip

Despite their success with vodka and gin (including the botanically complex Absaroka Double Cask Gin 49), Chas and Travis refuse to rest on their laurels. When asked what the next decade holds, the answer is whiskey.

“Everything we’ve been doing over the past 10–12 years has been to work toward launching several whiskey labels,” Chas says. Whiskey is the ultimate test for a distiller: brewing, distilling, aging the amber elixir in barrels. Waiting and anticipating.

The move to whiskey represents the next level of fine spirits distillation for Still Works. It is the culmination of those early days with the 53-gallon homebrew barrel and the nine months of trial-and-error in Charlie Sands’ warehouse. 

While a young distillery, Jackson Hole Still Works operates with integrity and precision. “We’re alchemists,” Chas reflects. “We blend a little chemistry with a little art and release authentic, delicious spirits.”    

Still Works feels like a permanent fixture in Jackson Hole, a place founded through a genuine friendship and a love for this place and for fine liquors. Whether you’re there for a sloshie after a day on the river or a bottle of gin to take back home, you’re tasting a decade of refinement. You’re tasting the Spirit of Wyoming, exactly as it was meant to be: neat and crafted with heart.