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Maker's Mark vs Smooth Ambler Old Scout
Maker's Mark and Smooth Ambler Old Scout sit on opposite sides of a familiar divide: an old-guard, wheat-forward classic versus a sourced, rye-forward blend.
Key Specifications
| Feature | Maker's Mark | Smooth Ambler Old Scout |
|---|---|---|
| Type / Style | Wheated Bourbon | High-Rye Bourbon |
| Mash Bill | 70% corn, 16% wheat, 14% malted barley | 75% corn, 21% rye, 4% malted barley |
| Age | No age statement | 5 years |
| Proof | 90 proof (45% ABV) | 99 proof (49.5% ABV) +9 proof |
| Approx. Price 1 | ~$25 – $32 ~$17 less | ~$40 – $50 |
- US shelf prices as of 2026-08; they vary widely by market.
AG’s Rating and AG’s Notes
Maker's Mark
Not rated yetNo notes yet.
Smooth Ambler Old Scout
Not rated yetNo notes yet.
Flavor Profile
Maker's Mark Smooth Ambler Old Scout
Axis by axis, biggest gap first
spice 2/7 spice: Maker's Mark 2 out of 10, Smooth Ambler Old Scout 7 out of 10
sweetness 8/5 sweetness: Maker's Mark 8 out of 10, Smooth Ambler Old Scout 5 out of 10
heat 3/6 heat: Maker's Mark 3 out of 10, Smooth Ambler Old Scout 6 out of 10
oak 4/6 oak: Maker's Mark 4 out of 10, Smooth Ambler Old Scout 6 out of 10
fruit 4/5 fruit: Maker's Mark 4 out of 10, Smooth Ambler Old Scout 5 out of 10
nuttiness 3/3 nuttiness: Maker's Mark 3 out of 10, Smooth Ambler Old Scout 3 out of 10
Flavor Profile Differences
Rye spice is the dividing line here.
- Maker's Mark: The bottle that made wheated bourbon mainstream. Soft, sweet, and deliberately low on spice and oak, with baked bread and honey doing most of the work. Consistency is its real feature.
- Smooth Ambler Old Scout: Sourced MGP bourbon selected and bottled in West Virginia, and one of the more honest sourced brands about exactly what it is. The characteristic MGP dill-and-pepper signature, cleanly presented.
Which One Should You Choose?
- Go with Maker's Mark if you want a reliably sweet, low-spice wheater that is easy to find and easy to drink at a lower price point.
- Go with Smooth Ambler Old Scout if you want the classic MGP high-rye profile from a bottler that has always been upfront about sourcing with slightly more proof behind it.
Best enjoyed neat, rocks, cocktails, highball (Maker's Mark); neat, old-fashioned, cocktails (Smooth Ambler Old Scout).