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Stache In The Wood
Finch Beer Co.
![Stache In The Wood](https://cdn.beeradvocate.com/im/beers/114465.jpg)
![Stache In The Wood](https://cdn.beeradvocate.com/im/c_beer_image.gif)
- From:
- Finch Beer Co.
- Illinois, United States
- Style:
- American Stout
- ABV:
- 5.3%
- Score:
- 80
- Avg:
- 3.47 | pDev: 20.75%
- Reviews:
- 16
- Ratings:
- Status:
- Active
- Rated:
- Apr 05, 2020
- Added:
- Mar 01, 2014
- Wants:
- 2
- Gots:
- 8
Vanilla Stout in Whiskey Barrels
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Reviewed by farrago from New Jersey
3.96/5 rDev +14.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
3.96/5 rDev +14.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Be careful when you pour or the head will take up more than half the pint glass, luckily it sizzles off rapidly, as airy as it is, maintains a flat surface, very dark brown in color, not a lot of lacing and about zero stickiness. The liquid is pure black and opaque, however, there’s an insane sheet of bubbles rising against the glass sides. The nose is boozy with caramel, wood smoke and butterscotch notes, vanilla bean and cola bean, plum to prune fruit and maraschino cherries, while outsized does manage to avoid being misshapen, seems much more alcoholic than the stated ABV. Full-bodied, nice basic roast to it with notes of coffee and mocha, plenty of vanilla bean too but loses a great deal of the barrel accents. Likewise no burn on the palate and possessed of a smooth, creamy texture. Raisin, plum to date fruit takes precedence with some fresher cherry, blueberry in reserve. Touch of cinnamon to ginger at times. Is it unique or trailblazing? Not so much. But if you want a more bombastic stout with those barrel accents this is quite competent. More focus and crisp contours to the flavors would help yet the main ingredients do not lack for staying power.
Sep 23, 2017Reviewed by q33jeff from New Jersey
4.13/5 rDev +19%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
4.13/5 rDev +19%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
**
06/27/15
Labeled as Stache in the Woods. Loved Finch’s Secret Stache Stout, so this was a no brainer buy when I saw it. Aroma is charred barley, bourbon, vanilla. Taste is dark chocolate, vanilla. A little bitter early on, but smoothed out through the 22 oz. Pour. Look is dark black, thick. Creamy light brown head. Beautiful looking beer."
**
Dec 17, 201606/27/15
Labeled as Stache in the Woods. Loved Finch’s Secret Stache Stout, so this was a no brainer buy when I saw it. Aroma is charred barley, bourbon, vanilla. Taste is dark chocolate, vanilla. A little bitter early on, but smoothed out through the 22 oz. Pour. Look is dark black, thick. Creamy light brown head. Beautiful looking beer."
**
Rated by JandJMD from Maryland
3.5/5 rDev +0.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
3.5/5 rDev +0.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
The vanilla ends up tasting artificial somehow. I don't get many other bourbon barrel flavors, just more burnt wood. Thin.
Oct 20, 2015Reviewed by ryan1788a5 from Massachusetts
3.63/5 rDev +4.6%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
3.63/5 rDev +4.6%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
22oz bottle poured into a globe.
A: Pitch black. Beige head settles after a short time. Spotty lacing.
S: Strong bourbon dominates the nose. Woody. Caramel. Fudge sauce and chocolate. Undercurrents of vanilla.
T: Bourbon up front. Caramel and woody. The base beer struggles beneath it, but brings flavors of rich brownie batter, fudge sauce, dark roast coffee, and bitter dark chocolate. Vanilla bean pulls now and then. Char. Bourbon and woody roast are at odds on the finish.
M: Medium-thick body. Full and round body is fat, silky and chewy. Low carbonation. Bourbon warmth.
O: The barrel and base beer seem to be at odds and never mesh well. It tastes more like someone dumped a shot of bourbon into the beer. The whiskey character does not support or integrate, but rather clashes and distracts. Despite this it still ends up being a decent enough drink.
Sep 09, 2015A: Pitch black. Beige head settles after a short time. Spotty lacing.
S: Strong bourbon dominates the nose. Woody. Caramel. Fudge sauce and chocolate. Undercurrents of vanilla.
T: Bourbon up front. Caramel and woody. The base beer struggles beneath it, but brings flavors of rich brownie batter, fudge sauce, dark roast coffee, and bitter dark chocolate. Vanilla bean pulls now and then. Char. Bourbon and woody roast are at odds on the finish.
M: Medium-thick body. Full and round body is fat, silky and chewy. Low carbonation. Bourbon warmth.
O: The barrel and base beer seem to be at odds and never mesh well. It tastes more like someone dumped a shot of bourbon into the beer. The whiskey character does not support or integrate, but rather clashes and distracts. Despite this it still ends up being a decent enough drink.
Rated by Andrebeavers
3.86/5 rDev +11.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
3.86/5 rDev +11.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
Bramma Bull strong. A good beer for a night at the house watching some good boxing
Jun 14, 2015Reviewed by Jeffreysan from Virginia
3.29/5 rDev -5.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 3
3.29/5 rDev -5.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 3
12 oz bottle, poured into a goblet.
Appearance: Pours a beautiful, completely opaque, pitch-black color with a finger and a half of chocolate-colored head that dissolved away into a lacing of foam that completely covered the top of the beer.
Aroma: Nice aromas of roasted malt, imparting notes of freshly toasted dark bread, as well as aromas of dark chocolate, brown sugar, oak, and bourbon. Smell’s really, really, good!
Taste: Unfortunately, the taste doesn’t’ live up to the aroma. It’s only pretty decent, but not as good as other stouts aged in either bourbon barrels or oak. There’s some nice roasted malt flavors, and some brown sugar-like sweetness, as well as a touch of vanilla, but the bourbon flavors come off as extremely harsh and uncomplimentary rather than harmonious and welcome as with other bourbon barrel-aged stouts, such as New Holland’s Dragon’s Milk, DuClaw’s Retribution, Goose Island’s Bourbon County Stout, Port Brewing Older Viscosity, Lost Abbey’s Serpent’s Stout, Firestone Walker Parabola, Firestone Walker Velvet Merkin, Deschutes The Abyss, among many, many more.
Mouthfeel: Medium-bodied but leaning toward watery. With an ABV of 5.5%, there is no alcohol on the palate.
Overall: This is an ok beer, but billed as a bourbon barrel-aged stout, comes off as disappointing. The bourbon flavors are harsh, rather than complementary, and the vanilla doesn’t really come through. I’d say that maybe a year’s aging might do this beer some good, but with an ABV of only 5.5%, it probably won’t stand up to aging. There are a lot better bourbon barrel-aged stouts out there than this one, such as the ones I named above, and I’d recommend picking one of those up over this one anytime. This is certainly a pass.
Jun 12, 2015Appearance: Pours a beautiful, completely opaque, pitch-black color with a finger and a half of chocolate-colored head that dissolved away into a lacing of foam that completely covered the top of the beer.
Aroma: Nice aromas of roasted malt, imparting notes of freshly toasted dark bread, as well as aromas of dark chocolate, brown sugar, oak, and bourbon. Smell’s really, really, good!
Taste: Unfortunately, the taste doesn’t’ live up to the aroma. It’s only pretty decent, but not as good as other stouts aged in either bourbon barrels or oak. There’s some nice roasted malt flavors, and some brown sugar-like sweetness, as well as a touch of vanilla, but the bourbon flavors come off as extremely harsh and uncomplimentary rather than harmonious and welcome as with other bourbon barrel-aged stouts, such as New Holland’s Dragon’s Milk, DuClaw’s Retribution, Goose Island’s Bourbon County Stout, Port Brewing Older Viscosity, Lost Abbey’s Serpent’s Stout, Firestone Walker Parabola, Firestone Walker Velvet Merkin, Deschutes The Abyss, among many, many more.
Mouthfeel: Medium-bodied but leaning toward watery. With an ABV of 5.5%, there is no alcohol on the palate.
Overall: This is an ok beer, but billed as a bourbon barrel-aged stout, comes off as disappointing. The bourbon flavors are harsh, rather than complementary, and the vanilla doesn’t really come through. I’d say that maybe a year’s aging might do this beer some good, but with an ABV of only 5.5%, it probably won’t stand up to aging. There are a lot better bourbon barrel-aged stouts out there than this one, such as the ones I named above, and I’d recommend picking one of those up over this one anytime. This is certainly a pass.
Reviewed by RMelyon from Illinois
3.85/5 rDev +11%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
3.85/5 rDev +11%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
Wasn't infected. A little too much bourbon, not enough vanilla, and had kind of a bitter well water/rainwater note. Not bad, just not really good either. I prefer the original/non bourbon variety. Got better as it warmed, however.
May 05, 2015Reviewed by iceberg4k1 from Illinois
1.96/5 rDev -43.5%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 1 | feel: 1 | overall: 1
1.96/5 rDev -43.5%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 1 | feel: 1 | overall: 1
Sad to say it was infected. I had high hopes for this one too. The bottle geysered upon opening. I tried to make it through a whole glass but it was inevitably drain poured.
May 04, 2015
Stache In The Wood from Finch Beer Co.
Beer rating:
80 out of
100 with
81 ratings
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