Terra Incognita
Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.

Pours a clear, dark nut brown, settling into a very dark brew in the glass. Topped by a large, solid dark tan head with excellent retention. Leaves nice fields of lacing which slowly slide down the glass.

Smell is inviting and complex. First notes are of red grapes and wine, followed almost immediately by smooth bourbon, caramel, and nuts. Very subtle, understated hops, with touches of pine, citrus, and earth.

Flavor follows: it tastes like a smooth barleywine or old ale, toffee and caramel forward, with some nice barrel complexities. Bourbon is the most readily apparent (on first sip, and more strongly on the back-end), but there is a pleasant, sharp, lingering red wine feel throughout. Hops are mostly represented through an earthy bitterness vice any overt flavors.

Slick and lively mouthfeel, easy drinking for near 10% ABV, with a nice pleasant warmth that builds.

This is a very interesting and tasty brew. The brown ale base is a nice choice, providing for a very smooth base brew, yet allowing the barrels to really come through cleanly.

From a 750ml bottle. I can not see a date on the bottle.

This beer is dark brown in color, very dark looking. No light shines through this beer at all. There's a slight head to this beer that is tan colored, and less than 1 finger. What head was there actually lasted a decent amount of time. There's some lacing on the glass.
The aroma is actually very faint. I do get some hints of a red wine. I do get some cardboard notes. Just not a lot there anymore
The flavor is pretty bland up front. There's some hints of a bourbon barrel with faint toffee, vanilla and oak. At least I am not getting wet cardboard flavor.
The feeling is bubbly, even though there was little carbonation or head. There's a slight syrupy feeling to the beer.
I bet this beer was much better fresh. I have no idea how old it is, but I would say it has faded to pretty much nothing. I would say it was a shame it was aged as long as it was.

 

 

Version 3.

Original rating May 27. 2017- 750 ml bottle, forgot about this in my fridge, approximately 2 years old- Pours dark hazy brown with a small tan head that reduces to a thin blanket. Aroma is cocoa, toffee, spices, coconut, wood, a bit of funk. The taste is oak barrel, coconut, toffee, chocolate, alcohol is noticeable yet in check. Not bad, a bit on the malty side for my tastes.

 

My neighbor and I found a bottle of this down in Champaign IL. It poured an opaque brown with ecru head that is not leaving any lace. The scent had hints of dark fruit and bourbon. The taste is very complex there is hints of plum, anise and bourbon. The Mouthfeel is fuller in body with smooth carbonation. Overall it's a solid beer and certainly worth a try.