Stone Old Guardian (Vintages 2004 and later)

A brew I look forward to each year. I always have some in the cellar as well. Pours a perfect mahogany with a thin, beige head. Smells very malty, with strong caramel, spice, dark fruit and alcohol notes. Incredibly hot this year! Granted it’s fresh as hell, but good God it’s like I’m drinking everclear. Always a good brew, but this years release needs a few months to clean up.

On tap @ Bodega 2008 vintage: Kinda surprised I haven’t rated this yet. Pours a dark amber with a off white head. Aroma, boozy fruits, caramel, sweet malts, some earthy hops. Flavor, at first it’s very hot, and I was put off by it, as it warms it got back to what it should be, sweet caramel malts, generous earthy and citrus hops, some fruits, and a nice bitterness on the finish.

Nice reddish amber pour. Tastes of malts, caramel, candy fruit, and hops. Very smooth mouthfeel. Makes a great sipping beer. Overall a pretty solid barley wine.

Bottled. Aroma of apple and raisin. Hazy, orange coloured with an off-white, thin head. Taste is sweet, grainy with raisin malts, sugar, some caramel and a lot of hops. Straight forward and okay.

Pours copper/amber and very bubbly with small head. Decent lacing. Flavor is sweet with a little honey or currant. Slightly hoppy, slightly malty. Very smooth, and very strong. I’m finding it hard to type from this beer. Nice.

Bottled, 2006. Clear orange color, short head. Aroma of a typical barley wine, malty, slight caramel, fruity, candy sugar, very hoppy. Bitter taste, hops, quite straightforward.

First of all... I’m not usually a big barley wine drinker. They’re usually too sweet or too fruity, or too malty. This is a wonderfully balanced specimen. The aroma gives forth the malt characteristic. The initial taste lets me know there’s some nice hop backbone. Great beer!

2007 spring vintage. Pours from the bomber a slightly hazy copper-bronze color under a creamy beige 1" head. Admirable head retention throughout the snifter with just some spotty lacing coating the sides. Aromas are nicely balanced with notes of dark caramel candies, toasted malts, toffee and honey initially coming to the forefront with supporting background notes of citrus, oak and herbs. Palate was quite full, round, creamy and slightly oily. Just a touch of fine carbonation to tinlge the tongue. Flavor profile was expertly balanced between the malts and hops. Sugar Daddy candy, toffee, caramel are perfectly balanced with moderate tones of citrus, pine, spice and oak. No gettin’ away from the 11.26% abv. It makes its muscular presence well known in the finish, but is just right for a relaxed sippin’ big ole’ Barley Wine.