Smooth Ambler Old Scout Straight Bourbon (NAS)

I can get this easily around here, but I never tried the Smooth Ambler offerings (always thought it was a bit much for sourced bourbon). Perhaps I was missing something. It was on sale today for $27 (around $5-7 off), and I believe this could make the argument for the perfect everyday drink if I can always find it at $30. Fruity notes, floral, and sufficient complexity to make me feel like I'm drinking a $45-$50 bourbon. Nose (0-2): Sweet sugar, toasted nuts, a little maple syrup and honeysuckle, plus an earthy tobacco scent. (1.5 out of 2...quite pleasant and well above average) Taste (0-4): Typical caramel at first, but it turns into rich strawberry jam, raw honey, and cherry pipe tobacco. Starts mellow and becomes a full-flavored bourbon. (2.75 out of 4) Finish (0-1): Smooth, with enough oak and cinnamon spice to add some flair at the conclusion of this drink. Not a lot of rye character, but the high-rye mash bill delivers the right amount of spice. Sweet and mellow like Pops cereal at the end too. (0.5) Cohesiveness/Complexity (0-1): It has both cohesiveness and complexity. The drink develops perfectly and provides enough interest throughout if you want to pay attention and try to identify flavors, but it's also straightforward enough to just relax and enjoy with a movie without much thought (1 out of 1). So it's 5.75 out of 8 at around $30 (less for me). Hard to top. Value (0-2): This is a really good bourbon that is versatile at a price slightly lower than average. This is excellent value. (2 out of 2). Overall: 7.75. I don't often score above a 7-7.5 on my scale, so this is notable. Eager to see what else Smooth Ambler has to offer after tasting this bourbon, and I might buy another bottle at its price. My scale: 10 is an elite value for the price...8-9 is a must-buy and great value....7 is a very good value for what you're paying....6 is above average value....5 is average.....4 below average....2-3 is poor value....0-1 is NEVER BUY.

SAOS is back, still sourced from MGP, no age statement but allegedly contains 5-year-old whiskey. Let's get to it: A faint aroma presents creamed corn, pipe tobacco, and vanilla, somewhat muted by a light alcohol presence. It's not especially appealing, but it's not unpleasant either. The initial taste brings caramel, vanilla, and butterscotch. Things are shaping up nicely... hold on... what's that in the middle? Ugh! An astringent, earthy mix of mint and pencil shavings completely obliterates the initial sweetness. The finish has cinnamon and charred oak that fade into a pleasant bittersweet chocolate. The finish is brief. The texture is neither thick nor thin, suitable for the alcohol level. Ultimately, this is an odd pour; it begins and ends on a positive note, but the mid-palate sensation was a dealbreaker. Perhaps it's the youth of the spirit or its inherent earthiness at any age, but I found it quite unbalanced and not to my liking. Difficult to suggest at $43.

Effortless drinking with a pleasing viscosity. Lacks complexity and distinctiveness. Edit: Adding a small amount of water significantly alters this whisky. It reveals more oakiness, herbaceous qualities, and ripe fruit that mellows into mild caramel. Imagine a red apple coated in caramel, but subtly so. It seems to have more heat with water, which is unusual, but it does make it more lively. A touch of pepper on the nose and upon the first taste. Waxy texture and mild cinnamon on the nose and mid-palate. Ripe, juicy pear in the finish. The finish is reasonably long, starting with herbal notes and shifting into fruit. Overall, it's much better and more engaging with just a few drops of water. Rated 3 stars neat, and just under 4 with water.

I had high expectations for this one – does non-chill filtering equal more flavor?…. This certainly has character on the nose; I detect buttered bread and a hint of spice, possibly nutmeg or clove. Upon sipping, I encounter more conventional flavors of vanilla and caramel. On the palate, sweetness emerges first, quickly followed by baking spices. There's also a note resembling a cherry cough drop or syrup leading into the finish. The finish is quite spicy with little other presence, not much oak to note, just a pleasant, warm Kentucky embrace. Overall, a decent pour for the price, outperforming some $50 bottles I've experienced.

It lives up to the hype. It's clear this comes from MGP... Which is definitely not a negative. Notes of caramel, vanilla, a touch of pear or tart apple, and a solid amount of toasted oak. You can also detect some botanical notes... Maybe alfalfa or clover? It evokes the feeling of an early spring morning stroll through meadows. Primarily sweet, with a slight shift to spice and wood in the middle. The moderate finish presents hints of cocoa and hide. While not groundbreaking, it's exceptionally smooth and a fantastic buy for the cost.

My initial experience with Smooth Ambler was a bit of a letdown. The flavor isn't bad, but the taste of the Old Scout disappears quickly. You're left with the lingering alcohol sensation of a young spirit. There are numerous other options in this cost range that deliver superior results.