Stone Old Guardian (Vintages 2004 and later)

2008 bottle. Clear, light copper. Nose of toffee and other malty sweetness and that hoppy aroma that I love from Stone. The taste is a balanced explosion... Syrupy sweet malt giving way to pine/citrus hops. Full bodied, oily/syrupy thick. Great beer.

Clear amber with large beige head. Sweet aroma with notes of toffee, caramel, toasted malt and hops. Sweet flavour with alcohol, caramel, citric hops and toasted malt. Bitter finish with warming alcohol.

Early 2008 version poured into a Stone Old Guardian tulip glass for a perfect union of beer and serving container. Appearance is super clear bright orange hue, head is a good amount of white, condensed creamy foam, great swaths of lacing on the glass. Smell is fairly muted for a barleyiwine, some subtle caramel malts and a mix of pine/grassy/floral hops, tinges of alcohol. Taste is pure Stone, big pine resin hops and caramel malts mix together initially, transitions to some grassy sweet floral tones, finishes with sweet malt and alcohol warming. Mouthfeel is full-bodied, thick oily texture coats the mouth region, nice ample carbonation. Drinkability is good, this is a surprisingly sweet and mild barleywine and the 11+%abv is very subtle, a good candidate for aging- while it is solid now I can imagine that it may move into the exceptional range with a few years of aging as noted by some of the aged OGs at the most recent Stone Storm.

A dark orange with a fluffy, pillowy head. Aromas of pine and malt. Tastes of resinous piny hops and sweet flavors of turbinado sugar and brown sugar. Has about the viscosity of a double IPA and drinks a mature one.

Bottle from my Vermont trip. Pours a hazy orange color. Aroma is sweet malt with some fruit, and some very floral hops. Flavor is malty, sweet and a friggin perfect hops balance. Easily one of the best barley wines I have ever had. Wonderful. MMMMMMM.

Appearance: Pours a dark, obscured, rich amber body with a thin, beige head. Smell: A far lighter aroma when compared with earlier vintages (’02, ’03). Faint, far off caramel malts and fruit and well, that’s about it. The 2005 rebounds in fruitiness, smelling of strawberry-scented cotton candy. Taste: Vague caramel maltiness with a medium sweetness. Far less fruitiness present than the 2002 and 2003. The hops aren’t nearly as citrusy, but they do have a ramped up wooden quality to them. Medium-plus bitterness throughout. Finishes bittersweet with a touch of heat at the very end. The 2005 delivers the forgotten fruits of the 2004 and has a fuller residual sweetness within. Also, as we progress through the vertical, things are getting hotter and more bitter. The 2006 is rather similar to the 2005, but without that wild strawberry character. Sadly, the 2007 dials down the various components again. Plus, being younger it’s all heat and hops -- might be where the 2004 was at one point. Mouthfeel: Full-bodied. Medium-low carbonation. Drinkability: Enjoyed as part of a vertical spanning the vintages between 2002 and 2007. The 2004 really was the letdown of the group, displaying a weak aroma, a far less punchy malt character, even a dead hop profile. It certainly was no 2003! The 2005 has some interesting complexities, but the 2006 and 2007 become a bit more vanilla.

22 oz. Early 2008 release. Pours an dark orange oclor with a small white head. Aroma is citrus, hops, caramel, slightly sweet. Flavor has a strong malt flavor, but is balanced by the hops. It has a nice floral hop finish. The alcohol is well hidden for a beer that’s over 11%.

Bottled from Cracked Kettle, Amsterdam. 2008 Release. Orange-amber coloured, small head. Very fruity notes, orange, grapefruit, hops and caramel too. Strong hopbitter flavour, very dry. Lasting finish. Powerful brew, perhaps a bit too harch, but very solid.