John John Juniper
Clear yellow amber with white frothy head with great retention and lacing. Very basic pale ale aromas of floral hops and sweetness with hints of juniper if I strained myself. Nicely balanced beer of floral hops and light malt sweetness. There are hints of lemon peel and juniper in the finish but they are rather faint as is a splash of alcohol. A semi dry finish fades to a slightly sour, spicy, and dry finish as the bottle comes to an end and the beer becomes slightly hazy from the yeast and presumably barrel sediment. Gin flavors become slightly more intense with the sediment but are still faint. Perhaps it would this would benefit from being swirled before pouring. A slightly creamy mouthfeel with moderate to low carbonation is present throughout. I perhaps had slightly elevated expectations being a gin lover. I have yet to try Rogue's gin and it may be a very subtle distillation but knowing Rogue I would think not. Perhaps the gin barrels do not impart flavor as well as others but the juniper and lemon were so faint that this just became a fairly interesting pale ale. As I said, my expectations may have been high but at $9 a bottle and being barrel aged, perhaps they should be.