Have you ever had this experience?
Someone uses the restroom in your house when you really gotta go. I mean you gotta go so bad that once the door is opened and your wife (or whomever) comes out, you dodge them and rush through the doorway. Immediately upon entering, you are hit with the smell. It’s like walking into a wall. A wall that wants to slap your nose across the face.
Your head rocks back and you make a noise that sounds like a strangled: “wheeeew!” At which point, your wife (or whomever) exclaims: “Oh, it’s not that bad!” All the while you are just trying to relieve yourself, wash your hands and get out of there as quickly as you can.
You can’t really blame them. They spent too much time with it. They don’t know how bad that thing they made really is. They started with nothing and worked it up into something…different. But they did it gradually. It didn’t just hit them all at once like it did you. They had time to get used to it.
Ever had that experience? Maybe it’s just me.
Smooth Ambler Big Level Wheated Bourbon
Purchase Info: $54.99 for a 750 mL bottle at Total Wine, Burnsville, MN
Details: 50% ABV. This is a wheated bourbon recipe. Non-age stated. Batch 16.
Nose: Herbal mint, dried grains, and green lumber.
Mouth: Spicy heat, dried grains, mint, and black pepper.
Finish: Warm and of medium length. Dried grain notes lend a bitter aftertaste, along with herbal mint and black pepper. A lingering tingle on the tongue.
Thoughts: I’m not going to sugar coat it, this straight up isn’t ready yet. It is very young tasting. I remember tasting their “Yearling” bourbon (which in my bottle was 1.67 years old) and this reminds me a lot of how I remember that. Which is too bad. At the time I reviewed Yearling, I’d said I was looking forward to tasting that when it had grown up. I’m guessing that I’ll need to wait longer. This is highly disappointing, especially considering the price it sells for.
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