smooth ambler old scout 7 year bourbon review
Smooth Ambler Old Scout 7 Year Bourbon
Distillery: Smooth Ambler (sourced MGP)
Type & Region: Bourbon, USA
Alcohol: 49.5%
Composition: 60% Corn, 36% Rye, 4% Malted Barley
Aged: 7 years in virgin white oak barrels
Color: 1.3/2.0 on the color scale (russet, muscat)
Price: $60 (purchased in Japan)
From the company website:
This is far enough discontinued that they don’t talk about this anymore.
Distillery: Smooth Ambler (sourced MGP)
Type & Region: Bourbon, USA
Alcohol: 49.5%
Composition: 60% Corn, 36% Rye, 4% Malted Barley
Aged: 7 years in virgin white oak barrels
Color: 1.3/2.0 on the color scale (russet, muscat)
Price: $60 (purchased in Japan)
From the company website:
This is far enough discontinued that they don’t talk about this anymore.
smooth ambler old scout 7 year bourbon overview
In the early to mid 2010’s, Smooth Ambler was crushing it with various Smooth Ambler Old Scout Bourbons. I remember being utterly amazed by an 11 year old single barrel I bought for myself as a birthday splurge years ago. I even bought one as wedding gift.
Fast forward to 2021 and beyond, those few awesome years are behind us as Smooth Ambler discontinued (more accurately paused) pretty much all their MGP-sourced whiskeys, and most age-stated MGP whiskey disappeared. Thankfully a few years later, Smooth Ambler (and MGP) has a resurgence with 4+ year old MGP bourbon and rye that I expect will get older as time continues.
I went down memory lane just a little bit because in 2021, when I wrote this review, I stumbled onto this Smooth Ambler Old Scout 7 Year Bourbon in Tokyo, from batch 145 and bottled on 9/18/2015 by Sarah. I have no idea why this was in Japan, but I’ll take it. So nearly 7 years after it was bottled, someone (me) finally relocated it from a store shelf to my own shelf and for this review of “vintage” Smooth Ambler bourbon.
At this point, this review is less about proving actionable information since this has been discontinued for years, but it still can provide insight into how the increasing supply of “modern” MGP bourbons may be when they start hitting 7+ years old. Some people may also be holding onto a few unopened bottles, so I guess they may find this useful as well.
Let’s take a walk down memory lane in this Smooth Ambler Old Scout 7 Year Bourbon review.
As an FYI, I bought and use these Glencairn glasses for my reviews and comparisons (because they’re the best): Glencairn Crystal Whiskey Glass, Set of 6, Clear, 6 Pack. Full transparency, this is an affiliate link, so I may earn a commission if you buy this or something else from Amazon.
smooth ambler old scout 7 year bourbon smell
Smooth Ambler Old Scout 7 Year Bourbon starts off fairly dark and herbal, which I expect from MGP. It’s toasted caramel, vanilla, tobacco, freshly sawn wood, fennel, licorice, blueberry, cherry, other dried berries, peach, cherry, floralness, and rosemary. While it is dark, there’s also this overarching brighter and slightly funky vanilla buttercream and alcohol that partially clash with the darkness and smell out of place.
Smooth Ambler Old Scout 7 Year Bourbon starts off fairly dark and herbal, which I expect from MGP. It’s toasted caramel, vanilla, tobacco, freshly sawn wood, fennel, licorice, blueberry, cherry, other dried berries, peach, cherry, floralness, and rosemary.
While it is dark, there’s also this overarching brighter and slightly funky vanilla buttercream and alcohol that partially clash with the darkness and smell out of place.
As a result, it’s not quite as roasted sugar-forward as I expected, especially when more “modern” MGP bourbons such as Kooper Family Single Barrel Bourbon and Idle Hands 5 Year have more of that. And to reiterate, there’s a bit more heat in the scents than I expected that is not overpowering, but provides this strange and bright contrast to most everything else.
With swirling, Old Scout becomes a little less dark with honey, honeycomb, vanilla buttercream that’s slightly funky, licorice, fennel, brighter cherry, dried dates, dried orange and apple, roasted oak, thyme, rosemary, and milk chocolate. For whatever reason, swirling brings out more of those brighter herbal and fruit notes, overtaking some of the darker roasted notes I’m accustomed to getting with MGP bourbon.
With swirling, Old Scout becomes a little less dark with honey, honeycomb, vanilla buttercream that’s slightly funky, licorice, fennel, brighter cherry, dried dates, dried orange and apple, roasted oak, thyme, rosemary, and milk chocolate.
For whatever reason, swirling brings out more of those brighter herbal and fruit notes, overtaking some of the darker roasted notes I’m accustomed to getting with MGP bourbon.
Over time it does mostly transition back to more caramel, toasted vanilla, dried berries, roasted oak, cinnamon, clove, and the usual herbalness. That alcohol sting continues to linger, adding some slightly alcohol-y and tinny overtones. While it’s not a problem per-se, it’s noticeable and feels a bit out of place.
Overall though, the slightly brighter, herbal, and fruity nature combined with the darker background oakiness and dryness remind me a lot of Wild Turkey 13 Year Father and Son, although it’s still a bit darker than that.
smooth ambler old scout 7 year bourbon taste and aftertaste
The flavors bring a larger surge of roasted caramel, vanilla, dark berries, licorice, fennel, apple, orange, roasted oak, clove, cinnamon, and just a little thyme. Yes, this is the roasty, fruity, and flavorful bourbon I was hoping to get, so I’m not sure why the smells weren’t quite the same
Old Scout 7 Year bourbon is pretty oaky and spicy but not so dry or earthy, which is just a little odd given the mashbill. The alcohol also has a noticeable and surprising bite more in the 55% range. Then again, the flavors themselves make me think of a higher ABV bourbon, not a 49.5% one.
“Chewing” gives me a more roasted caramel, herbal licorice and fennel, toasted vanilla, dried dark berries, dates, fragrant roasted oak, clove, cinnamon, apple, orange, dark chocolate, and mint, as well as introduce a bit more dryness. The rich and pleasant flavors bounce between the roasted sugars, herbalness, bright and dark fruits, roasted oak and spices, and over time I get a little more dark chocolate covered berries (tasty).
“Chewing” gives me a more roasted caramel, herbal licorice and fennel, toasted vanilla, dried dark berries, dates, fragrant roasted oak, clove, cinnamon, apple, orange, dark chocolate, and mint, as well as introduce a bit more dryness.
The rich and pleasant flavors bounce between the roasted sugars, herbalness, bright and dark fruits, roasted oak and spices, and over time I get a little more dark chocolate covered berries (tasty).
It’s a tad oak and spice forward, but overall is well-balanced enough that I can pick out the range of yummy flavors. “This is really good” comes to mind, but “this is amazing” doesn’t quite appear. As a quick side note that I’ll delve into later, this was a $35-40 bourbon when it was still available.
The finish has the same dark, roasty, and herbal personality with toasted caramel, vanilla, licorice, fennel, roasted oak, clove, dried berries, mint, and just a little thyme and rosemary that last for a while. “Chewing” leaves a similar sweet, roasty, and herbal ending, but with a tad more green grape from the high-rye mashbill.
Smooth Ambler Old Scout 7 Year Bourbon Rating
It’s always interesting to drink discontinued whiskeys and reflect on how it is when I review it and what whiskey was like when it was still available. From this review, Smooth Ambler Old Scout 7 Year Bourbon is a tasty and very MGP-like bourbon that also oddly tastes better than it smells. The scents are just a tad all over the place and suffer a little from this thin veil of bright alcohol that pulls me away from all the dark toastiness and richness that’s there.
It’s always interesting to drink discontinued whiskeys and reflect on how it is when I review it and what whiskey was like when it was still available. From this review, Smooth Ambler Old Scout 7 Year Bourbon is a tasty and very MGP-like bourbon that also oddly tastes better than it smells.
The scents are just a tad all over the place and suffer a little from this thin veil of bright alcohol that pulls me away from all the dark toastiness and richness that’s there.
The flavors are consistently tasty throughout with all that roasty sweetness, dried fruit, roasted oak, and overall richness. It’s very enjoyable, decently complex and developed, but doesn’t have the impact, nuance, or standout trait to make it more memorable. Regardless, I’m satisfied and grateful to have bought this for $60 (in part for nostalgia’s sake), but it’s not a smash hit.
Looking back at pre-2016 times, Smooth Ambler Old Scout 7 Year Bourbon would have been a high-quality, affordable, and fairly accessible bourbon. Sourced MGP had hit a peak with quite a few age-stated releases available across the US and in certain regions, but unfortunately I didn’t take advantage. Those now highly sought-after single barrel releases were not so difficult to find either.
Whiskey has undergone a massive shift since then, but thankfully MGP is making a comeback with age-stated sourced releases (e.g., Smooth Ambler releasing 5+ year old bourbon single barrels, Proof and Wood Venture’s The Ambassador 12 Year) and their own brands (e.g., George Remus, Remus Repeal, Remus Volstead 14 Year). It’s going to be fun to experience MGP’s resurgence, and I hope MGP themselves release more themselves in the future.
Meet the Author: Alex
I have far too much fun writing about whiskey and singlehandedly running The Whiskey Shelf to bring you independent, honest, and useful reviews, comparisons, and more. I’m proudly Asian American and can speak Cantonese, Mandarin, and some Japanese.
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