So last December, there was this big deal about Finch’s Secret Stache Stout, a milk stout brewed with vanilla and lactose. There was release party going on at the brewery at some point, and my local Taco Mac here in Canton had gotten hold of a keg. The beer showed up on the draft list, but the bad news is that doesn’t mean it’s on tap yet-it could be on waiting on deck to be tapped.

Unfortunately for me, weeks of visits still saw the beer somewhere in the back, but not tapped, and when it finally did get tapped it was gone before I could get to it. It is not uncommon for rare beers like this to disappear in a day or two, such is the love for beer with most of Taco Mac’s clientele.

Luckily, I did find a four-pack of 16-ounce cans of Finch’s Secret Stache Stout at a local liquor store here in Canton, and I snapped it up post haste. It was a little on the pricey side at $9.99, especially with 8 less ounces than the traditional six-pack, but I wasn’t going to miss the beer, not at all.

As I said earlier, Finch’s Secret Stache Stout is a milk/cream/sweet stout. These beers are known for their extra dose of sweetness from the addition of milk sugar, which yeast cannot digest. This imparts an extra sweetness to the beer. Milk stouts are generally creamy, chocolaty, and rich, and the addition of vanilla only enhances that. Along with oyster stouts, milk stouts are somewhat rare these days. Finch’s Secret Stache Stout is about average in strength for the style at 5.3% alcohol by volume. 

Finch’s Secret Stache Stout pours to a jet black color with a moderate creamy tan head formation and a seductive chocolate and caramel nose. Taking a sip, I get a firm bodied stout with a luxuriously smooth mouthfeel at first. The palate is quickly washed over with notes of chocolate and caramel, a gentle sweetness, vanilla and coffee. The finish is balanced with roasty black malt flavors, some aromatic vanilla and a lingering dry coffee aroma.

This is definitely a beer worth seeking out, not an overbearing beer, but one nicely balanced between all of its elements. It’s well worth the price even for a four pack, and certainly a beer you should not pass on should you come across it.

Update 6/21/2018: Digging through my beer fridge and what should I find? Why a can of Finch's Secret Stache Stout from 2013. Finch's does not even make this beer currently, and I had my doubts about how it would be with 5 years of age. It was wonderful! Still smooth, chocolaty, creamy. Perhaps even smoother with age with less caramel and coffee, but there was some of the latter. A pleasant surprise indeed!



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