Stone Old Guardian (Vintages 2004 and later)

Brewed by Stone Brewing Co.
Style: Barley Wine
Escondido, California USA

Aroma of sweet and spicy fruit. Lovely amber beer with small beige head. Fruit, nuts, bitter almonds. Grassy and dusty hops balances the sweetness impressivly. Alcohol warming in the background and in the finish. Outstanding!

Winter 2005 bottle aged over a year. Pours a translucent golden/orange/amber with a creamy off white lacing head that had hints of orange. Aroma of caramel, toffee, dark fruits, hints of oxidation and vanilla. Flavor of caramel, toffee, dark fruits, hints of alcohol but overall smooth and creamy. Hints of hop bitterness, some toasted malts and vanilla. What a fine Barley Wine. The year plus aging has done this one well.

Draft. Light orange color with big ivory head. Citrus and malt aroma . Nice lacing. Another Stone over the Top beer. Alcohol is the firstthing that hits the palate. This stuff will kick your ass. Sour and sweet and bitter. I thought the alcohol taste was a bit much.

2006 version. Poured a small ivory head that mostly diminished, minimal carbonation, transparent, and a reddish brown hue. Malty, caramel, piney hops, and some raisin notes for the nose. Flavor was sweet, hops, caramel, brown sugar, dry, lightly bitter, and mildly acidic. Tingly mouthfeel. Medium body. Definitely a nice barley wine and worthy of a try.

Pours a reddish orange with a foamy tan head. Aroma is very hoppy but with a certain amount of sweetness embedded in it. Taste is also very much laden with sweetened notes but has a hoppy and piney characteristic that is definitely dominant. The finish itself is much more pleasant than expected. It's mild and sweet and a contrast to the hoppiness present in the taste. There's some bitterness during the finish but it's much less abrasive than I thought it would be. Very good beer, but I think it should age a little before being consumed.

Bright orange appearance, slightly cloudy with a thick, frothy white head. Aroma is decadent, smells like a fresh produce stand, particularly as you wander around to the citrus section, also has hints of maple syrup and sherry. Flavor has similar qualities with raisins and dates thrown in there for good measure with chocolate making a late appearance to top things off. Mouthfeel is nice and thick but not syrupy and cloying like some Barley Wines lean to from tme to time. Excellent Barley Wine. The label is lacking though compared to others tomes by Greg - hard to read all the way through this one - perhaps the 10.06% ABV had something to do with it!

Draught. 2005 vintage. Clear, deep amber color with thin off white head and scrawny looking lace. Strong malty aroma reminiscent of molasses. I also smelled some weak citrusy hops and grape candy. Tastes of alcohol mostly with toffee and caramel in the background. Full bodied.

Taster at Stone’s new beer garden and bistro. 2005 Vintage. Pours Amber with a small head. The aroma is sweet and full of dried fruit. The taste is pure yum (I know very descriptive). Sweet dried fruite with a nice full mouth feeling.