Smooth Ambler Contradiction Bourbon Review

Updated January 6, 2018

By Father John Rayls

Average Rating: B

Smooth Ambler Contradiction Straight Bourbon Whiskey was a real surprise!

I wasn’t expecting much from a blend of a somewhat young 2 year old “wheater” bourbon, made in-house by Smooth Ambler in West Virginia, and a 9 year bourbon rye from MGP in Indiana.  The Smooth Ambler wheated bourbon was made with a 60% corn, 20% wheat and 20% malted barley mash bill, while the latter bourbon came from MGP’s 21% rye stock.

This follows a new pattern among bottlers who are transitioning to becoming distillers: mixing their own young spirits with existing stocks of mature spirits. Other recent examples include WhistlePig and Yellowstone. I have a bottle from the #35 batch, which has been improved by an additional 3 months of aging in the original barrels after the blending.

The Bourbon
The bourbon is a medium to dark brown in both the bottle and the glass with a heavy influence of rust and copper coloring. The legs are very deceptive, beginning with a solid ring of tiny droplets surrounding the entire glass. Just when you think there may not be any legs, they suddenly appear and slowly begin their snail-like migration to the bottom of the glass. It leaves a film covering the entire interior of the glass with no evidence from where it came.

The nose is somewhat complex with no alcohol burn or any tingling experience.  It’s not faint but somewhere between subtle and medium intensity with aromas of oak, sweet corn, caramel with some very light cherry on top.  It tends to vary slightly with each nosing.

There is a very nice creaminess to each tasting. The palette portion of the experience tends to be extended in length with flavors of oak, honey and caramel.  There is plenty of cinnamon bringing some sweet heat transitioning into pepper.  The primary action is mid-mouth to the back of the mouth with activity both high and low with some lingering burnt sugar experience. The long finish eventually shows up with some additional warming leading to some white pepper presence.  It becomes a whole mouth activity involving upper and lower and moving from back to front. It ends in a woody and dry presence.

Addendum by Richard Thomas
Contradiction has changed a bit since it was first introduced in 2015, having seen its strength lowered to 92 proof in August 2018. Another interesting thing about Contradiction is that Big Level, a wheated bourbon made entirely by Smooth Ambler, has come out since it was introduced, and Big Level is a wheated bourbon with a different mash bill from the wheated bourbon used in Contradiction.

The whiskey has a light copper appearance in my glass, and swishing it left a coat of long, beady legs. The nose was full of graham crackers and caramel, backed by roasted nuts. Taking a sip showed a liquid with a light texture, one that shows both the mature and the young whiskeys in the blend. The flavor runs with candy corn and an earthy green oak in the main, with spices and vanilla coming up alongside and behind. The finish is nutty, but also a touch astringent.

The Price
With the cut in proof, Smooth Ambler also cut the price down to $39.99.