Gin Barrel Aged Hibiscus Saison
Zipline Brewing Co

 

 

Bottle:
Pours slightly hazy pink, rosé wine coloring. A nice but fleeting head still leaves a thick collar, though not much lacing is provided.

Nose is nicely floral, and does have a dry white wine quality to it. Light strawberry; grass (that may include a note of the juniper fromthe barrel), lemon and wine grape notes. Actually makes for an interesting wine nose.

Flavor is a little more lemon and grass, with a nice crackery malt. The interesting depth of the nose is lost, however. A little strawberry leaks into the back of the taste.

Fell is light, perhaps to a fault for some, but I'm fine with it. Nicely light but lively carbonation.

The nose was enticing but didn't come through nearly as well as I'd have liked in the flavor. Feel was nice. I didn't get much from the gin barrel until I looked for it. It might have enhanced that wine note, though. Decent, refreshing brew, overall.

 

 

 

i love the gin barrel, this is absolutely a perfect base beer for a barrel like this, heavy botanicals with juniper and citrus are perfectly complimentary to the yeast strain as well as the hibiscus, but in some ways, it overtakes some of the delicate features that make the base beer one of their best. it seems to crowd out quite a bit of the fresh floral character, but its replaced by a big sprucy freshness from the gin, less wood and more herbs and earth, i wonder which gin it was in? i get more hops too than i remember, maybe brought forward by the other plants in the gin. it seems too light in body and even too carbonated for all the flavor it has, like its almost watered down, but the flavor is so intense, which is a really weird back and forth here. i love the dryness in the end, still with lots of wood and an almost menthol coolness from the gin. great use of an interesting barrel, do they bottle this one? i would love to score one if they do and share it with some gin drinking friends of mine. splendid beer overall, these guys are one of the best in nebraska right now, without question.

 

On tap at the brewery’s tap room.

I’m in Lincoln, NE drinking an excellent homegrown saison. What a yummy beer. In high school we used to mix gin with fruit juice and smuggle it into football games. This beer’s aroma reminds me a bit of that and somewhat transports me back to a time much ago. The gin is in the background but provides complexity to the taste. Not a traditional saison, but a hit for me. 4.5

A – Slightly hazy, dark pink in color with a one-finger white head that dissipates quickly to a thin layer. Average lacing. 4.5

S – The hibiscus comes through very nicely with slight sweet but very appealing fruitiness of watermelon and apricot overlapping the tart citrusiness of the saison yeast. 4.25

T – Tart but balanced with some slight sweetness. Flavors include lemon rind and some herbal bitterness from the gin’s juniper. 4.25

MF – Light bodied, dry finish. 4.25