Smooth Ambler Old Scout Single Barrel Bourbon - Review
Age: 11 years
Barrel type: Standard bourbon (charred fresh oak)
Region: Indiana (MGP, selected by West Virginia's Smooth Ambler)
ABV: 50.9%
Price: $85
Additional details: non-chill filtered, natural color, selected by Sarah
Having visited Smooth Ambler back in early 2016, I have a soft spot for this distillery and bottler, which is devoted to making top-shelf bourbon in its remote, rural location in West Virginia's rolling hills.
Because the distillery opened in 2009, even their oldest barrels are still in that 8- to 9-year old range, and most of the products that they sell are considerably younger. While they're waiting for their own juice to reach its full potential, the distillery has released selected single barrels from the massive MGP distillery in Indiana. This is a common practice for new craft distilleries, and a controversial one, with some bourbon nerds looking down on the fact that these distilleries are essentially just bottling someone else's product and putting their label on it.
That's true as a factual matter, but the selection process is where the magic really happens. What that means is that a person with mediocre taste, or a distillery out to make a quick buck, can pick a run-of-the-mill bourbon and charge you double or triple what it's worth. On the other hand, a person with good taste, allowed to select from MGP's selection of wares, potentially can find a far better single barrel of bourbon than would be possible of any major distillery blending many barrels together to create a mass market product. For instance, Belle Meade Single Barrel is also a selection from MGP, and the one that I had was an exceptionally well-balanced and delicious bourbon. Among bourbon lovers, Smooth Ambler's Old Scout lineup, which consists of their MGP single barrel selections, may enjoy an even higher reputation.
Appearance: Bourbons tend to look (more or less) the same, but this one has all those ideal tones of ochre, russet, and gold that I want. This coats the glass very evenly and drops slow, thick legs that branch out like blood vessels.
Smooth Ambler has a signature tall and narrow bottle, instantly recognizable to the cognoscenti.
Nose: Well-selected MGP barrels exhibit a remarkably well-balanced nose, and this is no exception. Toasted oak, bananas foster, and strawberry milkshake. So much oak. Bourbons aged for more than 10 years can become overly woody, and this bourbon is walking the line, but just keeping it together thanks to the counterbalance of dessert flavors. Maple syrup and creme brulee turn up as well. I wish Smooth Ambler could bottle this scent and send it around for all bourbon makers to learn a lesson in what a good bourbon smells like.
Palate: The oak that threatened to overwhelm on the nose aggressively assaults on the tongue on the first few sips. This is a dry, spicy, piquant bourbon, and may be a year or so overaged because those oak spices are intense and almost minty on some sips. Since it's not diluted with water at all, it has an oily texture that coats the whole mouth and has a surprising amount of "grip" on both the teeth and the tongue. The more I drink it, the more I'm forced to conclude that this bourbon would have benefited from early release instead of serving its full 11-year sentence in the cask.
Finish: This bourbon features a dry, woody end, perhaps to the extreme. That wood unfortunately excludes some of the sweeter notes that I'd like to find, instead leaning toward an almost medicinal quality, reminiscent strangely of some Islay scotches like Laphroaig. A hint of black coffee lends more complexity to this dram after a minute or so.
Value for Money and Final Impressions: If you like oaky bourbons, this has got to be your grail. For better balance, I'd opt for a Four Roses or an Elijah Craig Barrel Proof release. This bottle was an $85 impulse buy on a recent business trip to DC; in retrospect, I wish I'd resisted the urge to splurge.
Grade: B