Queen Of Hearts (Gin Barrel Saison)
Pelican Brewing Company

 

On tap at Imperial bottleshop today...

The beer pours a bright, attractive golden amber color with good head retention and lacing. On the nose... I'm not a big gin fan, but this smells pretty nice. The noticeable gin pairs well with the pear, melon, and light fruit cocktail aroma. There's considerable underlying spice as well. The flavor profile replicates the nose pretty closely, the gin isn't as obvious or pronounced. The beer has pretty good acidity I think, which helps keep the beer from being to heavy on the palate or finish. The cavalcade of different flavors balances the modest sweetness on the mid palate quite well. Mouthfeel is medium bodied I guess, with a moderately long, clean finish. Alcohol is quite well integrated into the flavor profile, and so drinkability is quite good.

Really sorry I haven't tried this beer sooner. It's quite enjoyable.

From looking over some of the negative prior reviews, I wonder if freshness is a problem for this beer.

 

objectively this is nice beer, but i had much higher hopes for it. for one, its a real clean saison, a simple french saison yeast profile, or something mighty similar, no rustic, farmy, funky, or wild character whatsoever, the whole thing is a little too sterile as a base beer to be engaging, and thats a bummer. its also a little sweet, almost like a belgian tripel with the esters, the malt sugar, and seemingly an added sugar source too, like a rock candy or something. its all good, for sure its good, but its not as saison-esque as i wanted it to be. fortunately, the gin barrel element, the aspect that sold me this one in the first place, is killer in here. its a neat gin too, juniper yeah, but also some citrus peel notes, medicinal herbs, and even a lush refreshing maybe cucumber note, and i think the base beer is well suited to handle the botanicals, the wood, and the booze, the whole is better than the sum of its parts here. the esters of the yeast do make sense with the gin, but some bretty funk, or even a more spicy yeast strain would also be cool and add some useful complexity. i also think it could be drier, the gin isnt super pungent here, so less grain sugar would make it pop a bit more i think. even though this isnt as weird and strongly flavored as i wanted it to be, i think its a cool beer, obviously high quality from these guys, and relatively unique still in terms of the taste overall. not sure i would pay 15 bucks or whatever this cost again for it, but it was a fun one to have next to some gin cocktails with some new friends!

edit: not sure if i got a fresher bottle or newer vintage, but this was way more dramatic on the gin the second time around, fresh and peppy and really dynamic. the base saison is still too clean and sterile to be exciting, but the barrel character seemed really ramped up, obviously this much change from batch to batch at least a little bit, i was stoked on this in a recent session!

 

22 oz bottle- Pours slightly hazy light golden with a bone white head leaving very nice curtained lace. Aroma is dandelion, very floral but not overbearing, wood, pine. The taste is gin, oak, vanilla, a bit of barnyard funk, cheese. Light yet full flavored, nice beer.

 

 

An unusual and very well crafted saison. Medium pale gold and crystal clear. Wonderful smell, really wonderful. Gin botanicals party with saison malts, white pepper and a touch of citrus. The taste doesn’t quite live up to the promise, but it’s still great. The gin barrel notes work perfectly with the saison base. Very nice feel with near perfect carbonation. A subtlety elegant saison, very nice in comparison to all the fruity offerings on the market these days.

 

Clear golden brew with modest white foam. Sweet touch with a Cream of Wheat taste that makes me think of a Tripel. Rather sharp on the tongue and very light bodied. Aroma is herbal and definitely makes you think of gin.

Flavor is light but you have to think of juniper and gin and tonic. The Belgian dry finish is very much in evidence but it doesn't taste at all yeasty. Austere finish, but the lingering nose is quite lovely with the herbs and grain. From the 22 oz bottle purchased at Elizabeth Station in Bellingham, Wash.

Not sure about this one... Draft tonight at b:30... clearish straw golden with a short lived white head.. Light peppercorn with just hints of gin or barrel notes ... even the saison qualities are watered down... I guess I expected a much more assertive brew, but this is so very flaccid.

Great name and concept... pretty terrible delivery.

3.5/3/3/3.25/3

 

Maybe something not right on tap. Hopefully will try some bottles.

 

 

 

On tap at ABV. I guess I'm just a sucker for gin barrel-aged beers.

Pouring a clear orange honey with a thin, white head that falls off to a ring leaving little lacing, this looks decent. The nose is a fruity abomination of a saison with bubblegum and a lot of tropical fruit to go with the juniper and the honeyed roundedness of barrel aged gin. Honey, mild clove, some caramel are present. The palate replicates these flavors on a distressingly thin and watery body. Way too much bubblegum and way too fruity for my liking, the gin barrel character clashes with the sweeter saison base. Mildly sweet on the finish, this beer was a chore to drink.