Terra Incognita
Boulevard Brewing Co.

 

750 ml corked & caged bottle, from Vinmonopolet, Nettbutikken. ABV is 8.5%. Very dark brown colour, nearly black, with a huge beige head. Aroma of red wine vinegar, brettanomyces and oak. The flavour is not vinegary, but very oaky and moderately spicy, with a warming mouthfeel.

 

 

They all can't be zingers. I'm not sure if the one I had was a bit out of date but it was pretty poor. I actually threwup after the second glass. It's hard for me to put a real review on this after vomiting. I'll steer clear of this one.

L: Poured from a bottle to a tulip glass. Had a dark brown color and a thick texture. There was a massive, creamy, very long-lasting head. Excellent lacing. A good-looking beer.

S: A decent enough aroma of malt, hops, and a lot of dark fruit.

T: Tasted of some mild yeast notes, a bit of hops (not as much as expected), some malt, a good amount of dark fruit (plums, in particular), a hint of chocolate, and a tinge of the advertised whiskey. A solid, if somewhat uneven flavor. Not quite as aggressive as it should be, but not bad.

F: A well-carbonated beer with a very smooth finish. Medium-bodied.

O: This is an uneven beer in some respects, but it's still very much worth a look. The low score is a little perplexing.

Pours a color that is somewhere between a tawny red and brown with a light brown two-finger head. Aroma of dark fruit, oak and alcohol. Taste is somewhat boozy with light wood and dark fruit flavors. Bourbon and malt flavors start to come out as the the beer warms. Medium bodied. 

 

 

 

 

 

This is the 2013 version of the Terra Incognita, having been brewed, fermented, aged and packaged at Boulevard. The 2014 version, on the other hand, was brewed, fermented, aged and packaged at Sierra Nevada.

From a 750 mL bottle, the "best by" date is February of 2015; I'm not entirely sure how the aging of one year beyond its "best by" date will affect the quality of this beer, but I bought it because it was a retired brew and my liquor store only had one left in stock gathering dust on the back of a shelf.

Look: Massive light tan khaki head, about 3 fingers, and very frothy and dense, which lingers for a couple of minutes before settling into a creamy film above a very dark, nearly opaque coffee-brown body. Produces large clumps of heavy lacing.

Smell: Mellow and subtle at first, but it slowly becomes more potent and boozy as the beer warms up. Some muddy earthiness and dark malts up front with a faint essence of raspberry and browned, rotting apple. Tons of spices in the background along with some savory fruity tartness and a bit of funk. Traces of bourbon barrel and grainy hops are present as well.

Taste: Dry earth, bitter dark chocolate, roasted nuts, and toasted malts, with fruity wine and sour plum filling in the gaps. Some tart berry notes and vanilla surround everything, with raisins and molasses hitting the back, while bitter hops and oak come through strongly at the end. Slightly sour throughout with hints of bourbon and wine barrel and some funk.

Feel: Silky and smooth with a medium body and a perfect amount of tingly carbonation. Tangy and tart with some bitterness towards the end, and closing out with a dry, crisp finish.

It also seemed quite boozy for only 8.5%, and in fact it was much more inebriating than any other beer that I’ve had in this ABV range. Very smooth in terms of taste and feel, yet very inebriating; it really sneaks up on you. Although at first I suspected this may have been due to the fact that it had aged a year past its "best by" date, I later found out from the Ambassador Brewer at Boulevard Brewing Company that this was likely not the case:

“We see a negligible increase in alcohol during bottle conditioning, usually less than .5 ABV, but further aging of this beer or our other bottle conditioned beers will not result in a noticeably higher ABV.”

Overall: I really liked this one. It gave off sort of a "dark and heavy" vibe with varying degrees of subtle complexity, and yet the whole thing felt very light and smooth and easy-drinking. While it was certainly boozy in taste and feel, the inebriating effect that it had on me made it seem as if it had had a much higher ABV, and yet it went down so smoothly; very pleasant experience. I should also mention that this beer looked pretty awesome, and the colossal head on this thing was very satisfying. Overall, the 2013 Terra Incognita beautifully combines the sour, barrel-aged, hop, and malt notes, with the malts up front, the hops on the finish, the barrel-aged hiding beneath everything, and the sour surrounding it all.

 

 

 

 

 

P: Nice opaque brown, not much head, but what there is, is a khaki colour. Nice lacing on the glass.
A: Musty grape, chocolate, bourbon, some malt.
T: Wow, complexed tastes. Chocolate, wine, bourbon, sweet molasses, toasted malt.
M: Amazing chunky, bold, perfectly carbonated, small perfectly placed bitterness.
O: This has to be one of THE most interesting amd exciting beers I've had in some time. Stout and an IPA marriage. Well done Sierra & Boulevard!!!