Fegley's Bourbon Barrel Aged Insidious
Allentown Brew Works

4.27/5  rDev +5.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
by BEER-NICK from Pennsylvania

Loved it.

May 14, 2022

4.04/5  rDev -0.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
by Wattie83 from Pennsylvania

Poured from pint can to teku glass. Looks black with a khaki head that fell to a ring. Smell is bourbon, vanilla, chocolate, roast malt, and dark fruits. Taste is bourbon, oak, cocoa. Sweet entry leads to a boozy middle. Finishes with dark fruit, bitter cocoa. Feel is medium-full with a good dose of carbonation. Relatively dry finish. Overall, pretty well done beer. The bourbon is clearly present and makes the beer more complex and enjoyable. Can says, "Do not age" but would be interesting to let it sit for a few months to see how bourbon quality rounds out.

Jan 30, 2021

4.24/5  rDev +4.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
by rudiecantfail from Pennsylvania

12 ounce bottle poured into a Duvel tulip glass.

L---Darkes possible brown color. Fluffy, khaki head which faded quickly to a cap. Left good lacing.

S---Roasty malts. Chocolate & barrel are the most obvious. Lighter notes of coffee & vanilla.

T---Follows the nose. Chocolate & boozy barrel flavors dominate with coffee & vanilla in the background.

F---Full bodied. Creamy. No alcohol burn. Better carbonated than expected for the style & ABV.

O---An excellent effort by a quality brewery. It could use a little more bourbon flavor, though.

Jun 17, 2020

3.5/5  rDev -13.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
by stevoj from Idaho

12oz bottle from Beer Peddlers. Dark brown, ring of beige head. Aroma is roast malts, chocolate and light barrel notes. Chocolate and malts in the taste, and again I'm not getting too much of the barrel. Maybe I shouldn't have had this after a J. Wakefield. A bit disappointing.

Mar 15, 2020

3.83/5  rDev -5.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
by jmdrpi from Pennsylvania

12 oz bottle, no date

Pours black with tan colored head. Boozy bourbon aroma. Taste is decent but the flavors are a bit harsh. Too acidic, the roast is harsh. Medium bodied.

Dec 09, 2019

5/5  rDev +23.5%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5
by dresserinthecorn from Pennsylvania

I don't understand why this beer isn't rated higher. This is hands down, my favorite beer. I love the huge espresso and vanilla nose. I love the syrupy, gooey, thick mouthfeel. I love the rich caramel, toffee, vanilla, and dark chocolate flavors. I love the warmth the slight booziness brings to the finish. I Love This Beer : - )

Dec 12, 2018

3.83/5  rDev -5.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
by EMV from Pennsylvania

Poured from a 12 oz bottle into a Dogfish Head tulip

L: Dark black pour with 1.5 fingers of tannish head. Great retention and lacing.

S: Dark roast... bourbon and booze... vanilla and espresso with mild tartness.

T.F: Follows the nose. Dark roast and charred sugars. Coffee and bourbon... definite vanilla and oak. Some tartness from the roast... less sweetness than I was expecting and a little unbalanced. Medium bodied... well carbonated and sticky on the tongue. Dark chocolate comes in late... and the finish is boozy and warming.

O: A pretty average bourbon barrel Imperial Stout. Reasonable flavor but not exceptional. I'd have it again... wouldn't seek out.

Jun 03, 2018

3.92/5  rDev -3.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
by Tony210 from New Jersey

Pours pitch black with appropriate mocha head that hangs around a bit. Aroma is a bit yeasty, chocolate and bourbon prevail. Taste is a bit tangy, tastes like chololate covered cherries. Barrel rounds out the creamy mouthfeel with a lingering finish of chocolate, vanilla, light roast coffee. Light bodied for the style yet quite flavorful, worth buying a 4 pack and revisiting annually to see how it developed.

4/11/18
12 oz bottle, no date, about 1.5 years old
4 rating

6/12/20 - revisited. Not very good...

Apr 12, 2018

4.85/5  rDev +19.8%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75
by JJKBeerLvr from Pennsylvania

Poured from a bottle into pint glass in Jult 2017. There was no bottled on date, but drank it less than a week after purchase.

Appearance: Dark black with a medium tan/brown head. Head is thicker than some other imperial stouts, and left more lacing on the glass than other imperial stouts.

Smell: Strong aroma of roasted coffee, toasted malts, and bourbon. There is some bitter aroma like hops, and a hint of sweetness like chocolate and caramel as well, but overall the roasted coffee and bourbon dominate the others.

Taste: There is a nice balance between the roasted malts, the coffee flavors, bitterness from hops, and sweetness. The chocolate and berry sweetness is more pronounced than the bitter hop flavors, but the bitterness does enhance the taste and add some complexity. There is a strong alcohol presence as with other Imperial Stout.

Mouth-feel: Very thick, but with a smooth body, that is not too creamy.

This is a nice, complex, strong Imperial Stout, and it has a variety of flavors that adds a nice complexity to the beer. Although this is a big beer, it is very smooth and really enjoyable to drink. I will buy this again.

An interesting comparison is with the imperial stouts from another local brewery Weyerbachers, including: Sunday Mole Stout, Sunday Morning Stout, and Tiny Stout. I really enjoy all three Weyerbachers stouts and drink them often. Fegleys Insidious is most similar to Weyerbachers Tiny Stout, but is a nice contrast to them. The combination of barrel aging and the sweetness makes this unique, and enjoyable. I've rated all 4 of these imperial stouts very closely, and my ratings are:

1) Sunday Morning Stout: look: 4.5 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.75
2) Sunday Mole Stout: look: 4.5 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75
3) Insidious Stout: look: 4.75 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75
4) Tiny Stout: look: 4.5 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

UPDATE: bought a 4-pack in Dec 2020 with a bottled date of Dec 1, 2020. Still very good. I really like the combination of usual stout flavors with subtle bourbon and chocolate flavors. The bourbon and chocolate flavors were more pronounced than I remembered from previous drinkings. Still a great drink.

Jul 15, 2017

4.15/5  rDev +2.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
by HellsRanger from Pennsylvania

Very under rated for this stout. Pours a great dark color with nice head and has a smooth mouth feel with excellent barrel flavor and after notes. Stands up much better than its 9.0% rating with that nice barrel aged taste. West coast quality with an east coast brewery.

Mar 05, 2017

4.34/5  rDev +7.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
by RacerX5k from Pennsylvania

Had couple of these this weekend. Real strong bourbon presence, big aroma and flavor chocolate and bourbon bomb. Smooth, good mouthfeel and real easy drinking. Tremendous effort from this local brewer. May pick up 1/2 case at the brewery ...

Feb 21, 2017

4/5  rDev -1.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
by jzeilinger from Pennsylvania

A - Pitch black pour

S - Bourbon, caramel, creme, roasted chocolate, and oak.

T - Definitely a bourbon forward stout. Dark roasted chocolate, oak, some smokey char, bourbon, and a slightly acidic finish.

M - Silky and full bodied.

O - Pretty solid. A little harsh around the edges but still worth trying.

Jan 08, 2017

3.39/5  rDev -16.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
by dfconnor from Pennsylvania

Had a bad nose. Kind of metallic smelling. Flavor was not very impressive at first, but by the time I had made it halfway through the glass the flavor seemed much better and much more complex. I think I will allow this stout to warm up a little before drinking it the next time I buy it.

Mar 21, 2016

3.99/5  rDev -1.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
by ManapuaMan from Massachusetts

Excellent BA stout. I was pleasantly surprised at how enjoyable this beer was at this price point - $14/4. Thin coconut-colored head over a black body. Aroma on the lighter side of roasted malt and chocolate, so much so that the robustness of the taste surprised me. Roasted malt, baker's chocolate, toffee, oak and that smooth vanilla and caramel from the bourbon. A little thin on mouthfeel; not as creamy or silky as I'd like. No heat and the bourbon flavors are a soft complement to the stout so I wouldn't let this sit for too long; there's no need.

Mar 13, 2016

3.94/5  rDev -2.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3 | overall: 4
by q33jeff from New Jersey

**
03/04/13

Bottle to pint glass.
AROMA: Whiskey, Oak, Acetone?, coffee.
LOOK: Dark Black Color, small head.
TASTE: Dark Chocolate and Coffee; bourbon. All good things.
FEEL: A touch flat.

Acetone Aroma threw me off at first, but I warmed up to the beer.

**
02/17/16
Bottle to tulip glass, refrigerator cold at start. Dark black, oily thick, small light brown head. Aroma is very boozy considering cold.

Taste: malt, whiskey, and salted caramel are prominent flavors. Dark fruits linger late, pomegranate, blackberry, plum. No attempt to mask alcohol. Some veggie. Tastes Young, maybe a year in the cellar will mellow it out..

Mouthfeel: hollow, flat, thinnish, boozy. Smooth, nonetheless.

Overall a good beer, I love stouts and bourbon Barrel aged ones even more so, but i've had much better than this one. Will be aging the other 3 i have to see if they age.
**
11/17/16
Here we are, 9 months later to the day.
Still seems a bit like a fake barrel aged stout, whatever that means. Fruity Finish is almost wine like, and the mouthfeel lacks body and carbonation. I would settle for one or the other, but this has neither. Aroma is still super fragrant with whiskey, chocolate, char.

**

Feb 17, 2016