Stone Old Guardian (Vintages 2004 and later)

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

Hazy orange amber, small lasting tan head.Alcoholic butterscotch nose.Taste is mostly alcohol and butterscotch, lots of hops. Thin and lacks body. The hoppiest,thinnest barleywine I have ever had. Don’t see what all the fuss is, the alcohol kills all the other tastes.6,3,5,2,11 Rerate Sept 14/06: Tap at the Archer. Wow what a difference!!.Hazy amber,lasting beige head.Toffee,brown sugar nose.Well blended and complex molasses.brown sugar flavor, decently hopped,with medium alcohol heat

Shimmering auburn color with a nice persistant white head and light lacing. The aroma is very spicy with a great balance of hops (amarillo?) and some sweet candi/caramel malt. The flavor is also well balanced with only the feeling of the alcohol coming through, not the taste. This is a very smooth barleywine, I like the changes they've made to this beast.

Had this right after a Bigfoot. They are kind of similar. Both are hoppy resembling an IPA in ways. I enjoy this one more. It has a little more sweetness than the bigfoot. Apricot and honey come to mind. Color is lighter than bigfoot and much lighter than the 2001 Old Guardian I had on tap. This is a beautiful hazy orange with a few floaters in it. The aroma is not very strong. Is has apricot and alcahol notes. It’s a very nice aroma, but just not that strong. I’ll probably buy a case, and hold on to a few since this is bound to get very good with age. Too bad I don’t have much patience for that. ReRate: Same tasting as original, but changed glass from pint to my Delerium Noel snifter. Oh boy, that sure improved the aroma. Dried papaya, apricot, yellow raisons, and bubblegum? are jumping out of the glass now. Caramel is also in the flavor. Not carmelized apricot like the 2001, but caramel with apricot instead. Alcohol is more prevelant in this glass. Rerate 2005 bottle 060505: Kind of light on the palate. Letting breath a little mellows everything out. Taste is buttery with loads of caramel. Syrupy with a prety good hop balance. Getting better.

[Bottled, thanks to Kramer] Dark amber-orange colour, small white head. Heavy almondy nose, along with hops. Oily body, rich hoppy with lots of alcohol. Sugary, toffee-butterscotch notes. Very very concentrated flavour loaded with caramel, alcohol and hops.

Deep golden with an orange hue and a thick head of foam that slowly developed as I poured. This is one heavy looking brew. Aroma is exploding with hops and sweet malt. Tropical fruit and citrus come to mind also with a bit of doughiness in the background. Hops are really out front here. Body is ultra smooth and full with low carbonation. The flavor here is really fantastic and I wouldn't expect anything less from one of the best breweries anywhere.(God how do they continue to do it?) Lots of fruit in the flavor and bittering hops with a huge malt base that blends everything together. There's also something spicy in there that I can not define yet adds to the enjoyment. Overall one I could drink often as with anything by Stone. Nice going guys!

Huge tiramisu nose and full of flowers from australia. The taste did not let anyone down especially superman because he can fly anyway.

Pours a dark, hazy orange color with little to no head. Aroma is sweet, malty, and full of hops. The taste is intense...again malty and just chock full of hop flavor. Another fine Stone brew.

2005 edition. Light hazy amber beer with a small tan head. Malty dark fruit sweet aroma with a light alcohol note and some hoppy bitterness. Malty caramel sweet flavor with a solid hoppyness and a light alcohol touch.