Stone Old Guardian (Vintages 2004 and later)

06 vintage. Courtesy of Beersandblues2. Pours a opaque amber color with slight white head. Has hints of caramel, brown sugar, sweet dark fruit, spice. Very boozy. Finished with a sweet boozy taste.

2007 vintage. Deep mahogany pour with some body in the off-white head. Aroma seemed dominated by brown sugar and dark fruit. Flavor was predominantly sweet malt with brown sugar, dark fruits, and some citrusy notes, but had a notably strong alcohol presence; either Stone didn’t make an effort to conceal this, or did a poor job in trying to do so! Strong bitterness/dryness at the end was just a bit over-the-top for me as well. The flavor up front was very good, but it just went a bit off the deep end, which is what I’m sure what Stone was attempting to do, and they succeeded, but this is not my favorite barleywine...maybe some age would help?

2007 Bottle. Deep amber pour with foamy off-white head. Nice lace. Aromas of sweet malt, strawberries, brown sugar, and caramel. Hops, caramel, and melting chocolate flavors in taste. Beer is very sweet and has a big alcohol presence. 11.26% ABV is upfront and in your face. Nice mouthfeel. Sweet and bitter finish with an added dose of heat. Very nice. Looking forward to sampling a sample that has been put down for a few years.

2004 vintage. Poured a somewhat hazy orangeish amber with a fizzy/frothy off-white head. Rich aroma of butter toffee, sugar biscuits, molasses, and orange peel. Flavor is rich and strong with notes of toffee, brown sugar, vanilla, and citrus. The hoppy bitterness makes its presence felt in the end along with the warming alcohol. Nice flavors, and would be even better if the hops and alcohol were toned down a bit. Yet I know asking Stone to tone down hops and alcohol in a beer like this is like asking a great white to share its dinner. However, over my short time of beerdom I have come to appreciate the citrus character of American hoppy barley wines, and this is certainly an excellent example of the style. Very nice.

Vintage 2005 on tap at Teresa’s Next Door, Wayne, PA. Pours a dark amber brown color with thick, foamy white head. Strong alcohol presence in the aroma as well as roasted malts and a bitter hoppiness. The two years of aging really opened this beer up and there is a pleasantly surprising amount of hops balancing out the maltiness and strong alcohol taste. Amazing!

Bottle: Deep amber color with an off white head. Aroma is of grape, caramelized sugar, and alcohol. The taste is VERY full bodied. Vanilla, woody, dark fruit (grape, apricot, etc.), and brown sugar flavors are all coming through as well as a bitter hop flavor that lingers along. I really can’t say enough about this beer. Highly recommended for anyone who like barley wine.

Had many vintages of this but am just getting around to rating (2007 vintage). A lovely cloudy orange pour, just trending towards amber/copper. Still fairly lively and active, with a decent aroma of spice and a bit of booze. The taste is really starting to come together, with the aggressive Stone hop palate fading just a touch and letting the various elements breathe a bit: lovely nutty taste to the fore, with some vanilla, toffee, and a slight citric astringency keeping things lively. Fine work as always, and will no doubt continue to improve with age.

deep amber with a dense off white head caramel whiskey aroma with pit fruit spiciness. medium oily body with a lighter carbonation. rich malt flavors with lots of cherries and bourbon vanilla notes. there is an underlying hoppiness that blends in well with the beer