CASPER — It’s the trendy thing for those who don’t want coffee or alcohol, but enjoy tickling the taste buds and quenching their thirst with something sweet, mixed, colorful and fizzy.
Dirty sodas, where regular sodas are jazzed up by adding flavored syrups, fruit juices, cream and other add-ins to create custom soda-based mocktails.
From a pink cowgirl-glam-themed shop in Casper that offers "Unicorn Cowgirl” or “Cowboy Killer,” to a fizzy concoction called “The Wrangler” in Pinedale, to the “Happy Appy” in Kemmerer, this Utah-originated small-business fad is growing across Wyoming.
Casper entrepreneurs David and Ari Starcevich, owners of the Copper Cup Coffee Co., said they were approached about the potential for a building on Second Street, a main east-west corridor through the city, and knew that it would not work as another coffee shop.
A Copper Cup employee mentioned something about having a soda place closer to her high school, so they did some research.
“Really, everybody will drink a soda at some point. So for us to provide that experience of a beautiful, bright mocktail-style beverage was appealing to us,” said Ari Starcevich. “It snowballed into dirty sodas.
“It wasn’t really an aspiration of ours, but we are creatives and we love business in Wyoming, so bringing something that’s really big in places like Utah here was an exciting opportunity for us.”
The response was overwhelming. The couple promoted the business online as not just a “soda shop” but a “destination.”
As soon as the doors to Styrrups Soda opened on March 6 at the corner of East Second Street and South Kenwood, the cars started lining up.
But the enthusiasm for the dirty sodas extended traffic into the surrounding streets and some neighboring businesses, prompting residents to complain to the Casper City Council.
Casper city officials have since installed a yellow middle lane for cars waiting to enter the small Styrrups’ parking lot, and a sign in the soda shop’s lot facing the traffic on South Kenwood advises customers not to block adjacent businesses and driveways.
The couple said the willingness of customers to wait in the line for dirty sodas is a satisfying proof of concept that they’ve hit sweet spot with their new shop.
Candy toppers and add-ins are popular at Sip Fizz Soda. (Sip Fizz Soda) 
This creation is made with Dr. Pepper with vanilla and coconut cream. (Styrrups Soda) 
The Giddy Up, made with sparkling water, raspberry, coconut and fresh lime. (Sip Fizz Soda) 
Part of the dirty soda trend is to create beautiful looking drinks and promote them on social media, such as this one on the 3 Zero 7 Place Instagram page. (Courtesy Michelle Pollard)
Right Timing
“It was just such an exciting experience as a business owner in Wyoming to see a line outside your small business,” said Ari Starcevich said. “So for us, that’s the real success, just having people show up. They were happy to be there.”
David Starcevich said the city has done a good job helping solve the issues caused by the store’s traffic with nearby businesses and neighbors.
He said since the opening, the car problems have settled down and their presence on the corner is starting to “normalize.”
The Instagram, TikTok and other social media influence of the dirty soda trend have also played a part in their success and decision to launch.
“It was just prime to market. We took a leap and the risk on it and having somebody say they were interested in it really just helped fortify the desire to do it,” Ari Starcevich said.
The couple employs 20 people at the business, which is open seven days a week from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Bases for the drinks include sodas such as Pepsi, Coke, Dr. Pepper and others, as well as soda water. The energy drinks Red Bull, Monster, and Alani also are available, as are Poppi prebiotic sodas or lemonade, tea, Fresca and water.
There also are 47 syrup flavors, such as German chocolate cake, toasted marshmallow, and watermelon. Sugar-free options from the Skinny Girl brand also are available in several flavors such as sour genie, sour love potion, and unicorn.
Add-ins, creams and toppers to put into the mix can include sweet cream, fresh lemon, and candies such as Nerds.
“I would say our most popular (drink) right now would either be our caramel apple or our cotton candy Alani, and then we do a cloud of cotton candy on top of it,” Ari Starcevich said.
Customers show up from all ages.
The couple said they are evaluating how things progress to to see if there are any more dirty soda outlets in their future.
Kinley Boulter prepares a drink at her Sip Fizz Soda shop in Pinedale. (Courtesy Kinley Boulter) 
The 3 Zero 7 Place is located in the 720 Triangle Exchange in downtown Kemmerer. (Courtesy Michelle Pollard) 
Dave and Ari Starcevich began their entrepreneurial efforts with The Copper Cup Coffee Company in Casper. (Courtesy Dave and Ari Starcevich) 
The Pollard family, who include 3 Zero 7 Place owners Rick, left, Michelle, second from right, and daughter, Aspen, with scissors, celebrate the opening of their soda shop in Kemmerer. (Courtesy Michelle Pollard)
Pinedale’s Sip Fizz Soda Shop
In Pinedale, 23-year-old Kinley Boulter will mark two years in business in June at the Sip Fizz Soda shop.
The Utah Tech University graduate said she first discovered dirty sodas while attending college in St. George, Utah.
“They had these dirty soda shops all over the place, pretty much every block you will find one,” she said. “So, I would go there all the time before tests or to get a pick-me-up or whatever.”
When she came back to Pinedale after graduating with a degree focused on business entrepreneurship and web design, she saw an opportunity.
There were no dirty soda shops within two hours of Pinedale.
She started creating sodas at home and sold them at a concession stand during local wrestling meets.
They were a hit, so Boulter decided to launch her business.
“It was amazing,” she said. “Everyone was super supportive and super eager to come and try these dirty sodas.”
Boulter said her customers come in all ages, and she offers sodas, Red Bull, and sparkling water as bases for various drinks.
The most popular is named for the mascot at the local high school — The Wrangler. It consists of Dr. Pepper, with raspberry, coconut, and cream.
The drive-thru-only business at 709 W. Pine is open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturdays. She plans to branch out this summer.
“We are going to try and be in a trailer so we can do more events, festivals, stuff like that,” she said. “Maybe be a little bit more mobile.”
She said about 40% of her customers buy her recipes and the other 60% create their own.
A huge selection of syrups at Styrrups Soda in Casper. (Styrrups Soda) 
At 3 Zero 7 Place, customers can find Pepsi and Coke products to use as a base as well as more healthier options for their dirty sodas. (Courtesy Michelle Pollard) 
In addition to dirty sodas, Michelle Pollard said she added vintage candies to their shop 3 Zero 7 Place. (Courtesy Michelle Pollard) 
The History
The Utah Office of Tourism states that dirty sodas originated in the state around 2010 born from members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints' thirst for a special drink.
Members of the church abstain from alcohol, coffee, and tea.
“Although there is debate about the true original shop, there’s no denying that Utah is the home of the dirty soda,” the agency claims. “And thanks to the advent of social media platforms like TikTok, the concept became a trending sensation with the hashtag #dirtysoda receiving millions of views and user sharing creative new soda concoctions.”
Kemmerer resident Michelle Pollard and her husband were looking for a retirement business with their younger daughter, Aspen, who started talking about how nice it would be to get a smoothie or something after going to the gym.
Those conversations, along with a “gazillion” other ideas, finally focused on something her two daughters experienced during college in Utah, Pollard said.
“Both of the girls said, ‘You know mom, we really should open up a soda shop because those dirty soda shops in Utah are huge,” she said. “And so we decided to open up a dirty soda shop and we’ve added some extra stuff.”
Their business, 3 Zero 7 Place, opened last July with a dozen Coke and Pepsi products, lemonade drinks, waters and energy drinks.
In addition to sodas, the shop offers “frozen dirty cocoas” that are blended and frozen using chocolate milk.
Pollard said the shop offers healthy options with a water base. They sell a lot of those.
“One of our big sellers is a drink my daughter came up with called the Happy Appy and it’s a really healthy-based water drink,” she said. “And one of our big sellers is called Peaches and Penney. We tried to name all of our drinks after Kemmerer history.”
The town is the home of the first JCPenney store.
The shop also sells vintage candies, wrapping paper, balloons, and some clothing. Pollard said their goal is to complement the other businesses in town and not compete.
Their business is open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday at 720 J C Penney Drive in Kemmerer in the 720 Triangle Exchange building.
Contact Dale Killingbeck at dale@cowboystatedaily.com
Dale Killingbeck can be reached at dale@cowboystatedaily.com.
