TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - Dec. 20, 2011) - QUEENSTON MINING INC. (News - Market indicators)(OTCQX:QMNMF)(FRANKFURT:QMI) ("Queenston" or "the Company") is pleased to report new drill results that indicate wide, significant intersections of gold mineralization expanding both the deep Porphyry Zone and the near-surface Q Zone, North and South Contact Zones on the 100% owned Upper Beaver property located in the Kirkland Lake Gold Camp, Ontario.

Highlights:

• 9.15 g/t Au with 0.53% Cu over 18.4 m in hole UB11-174W9 ("Porphyry Zone")
• 6.71 g/t Au with 0.30% Cu over 22.4 m in hole UB11-174W8 ("Porphyry Zone")
• 3.41 g/t Au with 0.26% Cu over 54.0 m in hole UB11-187 ("Q Zone")
• 2.75 g/t Au over 56.0 m in hole UB11-180W1 ("Porphyry Zone")
• 2.01 g/t Au with 0.10% Cu over 101.0 m in hole UB11-188 (includes "Porphyry Zone")
• 2.51 g/t Au with 0.15% Cu over 60.0 m in hole UB11-192 ("South Contact Zone")
• 26.5 g/t Au with 1.15% Cu over 4.0 m in hole UB11-189 ("North Contact")
• 1.94 g/t Au with 0.13% Cu over 43.0 m in hole UB11-186 ("North Contact")

Charles Page, Queenston Mining Inc. President and CEO, said, "Drilling at our flagship Upper Beaver project continues to return impressive gold and copper mineralization from both the deep East Porphyry Zone and the near surface Q, North and South Contact Zones. Upper Beaver is Queenston's most advanced project in the Kirkland Lake Camp that is being moved towards feasibility and ultimately production. Four Diamond drill rigs will continue to operate on the project after the holiday break, focussed on further resource definition and exploration. The deposit remains open to depth, to the east, west as well as to surface. An independent Preliminary Economic Assessment ("PEA") to build a stand-alone mine and mill complex at Upper Beaver is in progress and will be completed in the first quarter of 2012.

During the recent phase of drilling 15 new holes were completed (6,920.3 m) with the significant assay results listed in Table 1 accompanying this news release.

To view the longitudinal section of the Upper Beaver deposit follow this link: http://www.queenston.ca/primages/PR201127Section.pdf  

To view the surface plan of the shallow drilling follow this link: http://www.queenston.ca/primages/PR201127Plan.pdf

Porphyry Zone

Seven holes continued with resource definition and category upgrading. At approximately the -1000 m elevation wedge holes UB11-174W8 and -174W9 intersected thick intervals of the East Porphyry Zone returning 6.71 g/t Au with 0.30% Cu over 22.4 m (including 22.9 g/t Au with 0.85% Cu over 3.8 m) and 9.15 g/t Au with 0.53% Cu over 18.4 m (including 35.9 g/t Au with 2.05% Cu over 2.9 m) respectively. At the -800 m elevation in the East Porphyry Zone wedge holes UB11-180W1, -180W2 and -180W3 were drilled from pilot hole UB11-180 that previously intersected 2.99 g/t Au with trace Cu over 10.0 m. New hole -180W1 intersected a 56.0 thick interval within the resource shell assaying 2.75 g/t Au with trace Cu (including 8.35 g/t Au over 8.0 m). Hole -180W2 intersected two intervals assaying 3.55 g/t Au over 10.0 m and 9.62 g/t Au over 3.0 m. Hole -180W3 was completed outside the resource shell extending the Porphyry Zone to the east with intervals of 10.9 g/t Au over 2.0 m and 3.17 g/t Au over 5.0 m. In the upper portion of the Porphyry Zone two holes (UB11-185 and -188) were drilled to follow up a wide interval previously announced in drill hole UB11-177 assaying 2.41 g/t Au over 98.0 m at approximately 250 m below surface. Hole UB11-188 continued to intersect a wide zone of mineralization above and to the west of UB11-177 assaying 2.01 g/t over 101.0 m (including 7.79 g/t Au with trace Cu over 5.3 m). Hole UB11-188 also completed to the west of UB11-177 returned two narrow high-grade intervals assaying 22.3 g/t Au over 1.0 m and 16.7 g/t Au over 1.0 m, both containing trace copper values.

Q Zone

Follow-up drilling of the new Q Zone continued to intersect wide widths of gold mineralization that has extended this shallow zone to a length of approximately 100 m where it remains open to both the east and west. The Q Zone is represented by narrow high-grade gold-copper mineralization often within a broad low-grade zone hosted in altered basalt intruded by narrow feldspar porphyry and syenite dykes. Hole UB11-187 intersected a thick interval of mineralization approximately 50 m west of the previous drilling assaying 3.41 g/t Au with 0.26% Cu over 54 m including 4.12 g/t Au with 0.47% Cu over 18.0 m. Hole UB11-189 drilled below -187 intersected five intervals in the Q Zone assaying 1.31 g/t Au with 0.33% Cu over 16.0 m, 3.19 g/t Au with 0.08% Cu over 4.0 m, 26.5 g/t Au with 1.15% Cu over 4.0 m and 6.70 g/t Au with 0.12% Cu over 2.0 m. Hole UB11-184 intersected 6.75 g/t Au with trace Cu over 7.0 m.

North Contact Zone

As part of the shallow drilling program five holes intersected the North Contact Zone. The North Contact Zone occurs approximately 150 m south of and parallel to the Q Zone within a similar host rock and style of mineralization. The zone has been traced by the new drilling over a length approximately 125 m and remains open to the east and west. On the eastern portion of the Zone hole UB11-194 intersected two intervals in the zone assaying 5.18 g/t Au with trace Cu over 9.0 m and 5.83 g/t Au with 0.29% Cu over 7.0 m. Hole UB11-186 intersected the thickest interval assaying 1.94 g/t Au with 0.11% Cu over 43.0 m. Above it hole UB11-193 intersected two intervals assaying 1.15 g/t Au with trace Cu over 17.0 m followed by a 5.0 m interval assaying 1.08 g/t Au with 0.13% Cu over 5.0 m. Hole UB11-184 intersected 1.02 g/t Au with 0.33% Cu over 15.0 m and UB11-192 reported a high-grade interval in the western portion of the zone assaying 29.2 g/t Au with trace Cu over 1.0 m.

South Contact Zone

Two holes UB11-192 and -193 continued to the south and intersected the South Contact Zone approximately 125 m south and parallel to the North Contact Zone hosted in basalt with the same style of alteration and mineralization. Hole UB11-193 cut the zone adjacent to the north-south trending diabase dike intersecting two intervals assaying 1.11 g/t Au with 0.54% Cu over 10 m and 8.55 g/t Au with 0.25% cu over 6.0 m. Hole intersected the zone approximately 100 m to the west assaying 2.51 g/t Au with 0.15% Cu over 60.0 m. The South Contact Zone remains open to the east and west.

About the Upper Beaver Deposit

The Upper Beaver deposit was previously explored and mined intermittently from 1912 to 1971. During that time it is reported that various operators produced approximately 141,000 ounces of gold and 11.9 million pounds of copper from 526,678 t grading 8.31 g/t Au and 1.03% Cu to a depth of 365 m. The most concentrated period of production was from 1965 to 1972 when Upper Canada Resources Limited produced approximately 102,000 ounces of gold and 10.9 million pounds of copper from 407,306 t grading 7.82 g/t Au and 1.22% Cu. The mine was abandoned in 1972 when the gold price was $35 per ounce.

The Upper Beaver deposit contains National Instrument ("NI") 43-101 mineral resources of 3,074,000 t grading 6.98 g/t Au (690,000 oz.) (8.84 g/t Au uncapped (874,000 oz.)) with 0.54% Cu in the indicated category and 3,093,000 t grading 6.19 g/t Au (616,000 oz.) (7.15 g/t Au uncapped (711,000 oz.)) with 0.41% Cu in the inferred category. The mineral resource was announced by the Company on May 4, 2011 and completed by Watts, Griffis and McOuat Limited of Toronto under the supervision of independent qualified person Kurt Breede, P. Eng. The NI 43-101 technical report on the mineral resource estimate was filed on SEDAR in June 18, 2011.

The majority of the mineral resources occur in a series of breccia zones that dip steeply north (75°) below the old mine workings. These zones contain chalcopyrite, magnetite, pyrite and visible gold within a mineralized corridor that extends over a horizontal length of approximately 500 m and a dip length of approximately 1,300 m. The most prominent are the Porphyry Zones that contain approximately 80% of the mineral resource.

A large diameter pilot hole has been completed to a depth of 1200 m at the proposed future site of an exploration shaft. The entire hole was in massive syenite-porphyry and is currently undergoing detailed rock engineering studies. Application for permitting the shaft has been submitted to the Ontario Ministry of Northern Development and Mines with a schedule to begin breaking ground in mid-2012. The Company has also commissioned P&E Mining Consultants Inc. of Brampton to commence a Preliminary Economic Assessment ("PEA") to determine the economic viability of developing a new mine at Upper Beaver. The PEA is anticipated to be completed early in 2012.

Quality Control

The design of the Queenston's drilling programs, Quality Assurance/Quality Control and interpretation of results is under the control of Queenston's geological staff including qualified persons employing a QA/QC program consistent with NI 43-101 and industry best practices. The Upper Beaver project is supervised by Queenston's Vice President Exploration, William McGuinty, P. Geo. A detailed review of Queenston's QA/QC procedures is filed in the 2010 Annual Information Form on SEDAR. The drill core is logged and split with half-core samples shipped to Swastika Laboratories of Swastika, Ontario and Accurassay Laboratories Ltd. of Thunder Bay, Ontario and analyzed employing the appropriate gold fire assaying techniques. For QA/QC purposes the Company as well as the lab submit standards and blanks every 25 samples. Approximately 5% of sample rejects and/or pulps are sent to other laboratories for check assaying.

This news release was reviewed by Queenston's Vice President Exploration and QP, William McGuinty, P. Geo.

About Queenston

Queenston is a Canadian mineral exploration and development company with a primary focus on its holdings in the historic Kirkland Lake gold camp comprising 235 km² of prime exploration lands. The Company's assets include 6, 100% owned gold deposits that are at various stages of exploration and development. The objective of the Company is to advance the flagship, Upper Beaver project towards feasibility and production. The project is currently being permitted for advanced exploration leading to new shaft development beginning in 2012. The Company is also very active in exploring and advancing five other 100% owned deposit that will provide additional feed for a central milling facility. The Company has cash and short-term investments of approximately $80 million, no debt and a fiscal 2012 exploration budget of $25 million.

Queenston's Cautionary Note Regarding NI 43‐101 and Forward Looking Statements

Except for historical information this News Release may contain certain "forward looking statements". These statements may involve a number of known and unknown risks and uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity and performance to be materially different from the Company's expectations and projections. A more detailed discussion of the risks is available in the "Annual Information Form" filed by the Company on SEDAR at www.sedar.com