This story originally appeared in the 2025 Locals’ Guidebook featuring the Best of Jackson Hole. Pick up a copy today!
JACKSON, Wyo. — Jackson Hole’s landscape, prominently featuring the Tetons, serves as inspiration for many across a diverse range of projects. One of the booming spaces where the mountains and the community they created are serving as muses is in the uniquely curated craft cocktail scene representing this iconic valley.
Across the board, local restaurants are incorporating the colors, flavors, textures and even emotions evoked by the dramatic geography and the local community.
“I’m always looking to pull any sort of local ingredient or inspiration,” says Andrea Kilpatrick, general manager of the Blue Lion. “Right now, we have a cocktail called Alpenglow. It touches on that beautiful glow we get on the peaks of the Tetons. That’s the color of the cocktail.”
Other locally inspired cocktails include the Elk Hunter and Pine and Pear.
Kilpatrick says that she stopped through Jackson on her way home to the Midwest from northern California, and after taking one look at the Tetons, she fell in love. The following summer, she was back for what was supposed to be a season, and years later, she still hasn’t left.
“I’m always inspired, and that could be by color, ingredient or name,” Kilpatrick says of the landscape.
But it’s not just the mountains themselves that infuse the mixology; it’s also the ecosystem of outdoor adventures created in this context that inspire local spots.
Chuy Hernandez, general manager of Snake River Roasting Co. cafe, offers a variety of coffee cocktails that cater to the community’s desire for caffeine-fueled adventures. Perhaps the most popular is the espresso martini, which Hernandez says they served last summer on the mountain during the Snow King concerts.
Those espresso martinis are also inspired by one of the most recognizable species beneath the Tetons, providing an energized boost to inspire similar behavior.
“All of our coffee blends have a special name, and we use the ‘Roam’ blend to make our espresso martinis, inspired by the bison in the area,” Hernandez shares.
Similarly, Katherine Ward of Hatch Taqueria & Tequilas says they cater their cocktails to align with people’s outdoor adventures. Most specifically, the ever-popular margaritas are made clean and fresh.
“We feel like this fits our community and works great after a day of skiing or hiking,” Ward says.
For visitors and locals alike, the craft cocktail scene in Jackson is one of the most immediate ways to get acquainted with the Teton culture. Whether it’s an afternoon coffee or a happy-hour margarita, the valley offers a multitude of options for exploring how the mountains captivate everyone in and around them.
