Stone Old Guardian Barley Wine Style Ale 2005 | Stone Brewing
Brewed by:
Stone Brewing
California, United States
stonebrewing.com
Style: American Barleywine
Alcohol by volume (ABV): 11.26%
Availability: Limited (brewed once)
Notes / Commercial Description:
No notes at this time.
Added by Todd on 01-26-2005
This beer is retired; no longer brewed.
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Ratings: 124 | Reviews: 105
4.4/5 rDev +3.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
2016:
Drinking this at stone
Look - Amber reddish color with no head or lacing after the aging as expected
Smell - strong boozy sweet slight Carmel smell. It wasn't in a bb but it smells like it.
Taste - sweet carmalized cherries, really boozy taste
Feel - medium body with light carb
Overall - really strong still after all the ageing but still pretty good
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look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
2016:
Drinking this at stone
Look - Amber reddish color with no head or lacing after the aging as expected
Smell - strong boozy sweet slight Carmel smell. It wasn't in a bb but it smells like it.
Taste - sweet carmalized cherries, really boozy taste
Feel - medium body with light carb
Overall - really strong still after all the ageing but still pretty good
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3.77/5 rDev -11.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
Bottle from Mike’s Barleywine tasting, thanks for the opportunity!
Surprisingly still a bit of earthy hop flavor against a sweet caramel fruity maltiness.
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look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
Bottle from Mike’s Barleywine tasting, thanks for the opportunity!
Surprisingly still a bit of earthy hop flavor against a sweet caramel fruity maltiness.
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4.61/5 rDev +8.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.5
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.5
3.53/5 rDev -16.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Old Guardian served in an Old Guardian glass, this beer does not really improve with age but it also doesn't get much worse.
Beer is ruby and clear with a thin lazy off white / tan head of small bubbles, some lacing, low carbonation. Looks good.
Stone biting house yeast with nice MO grain / malt aroma, strong throughout.
Beer is medium in body with a mild bitter and hoppiness on the back end, it is a fine beer with a nice finish but there is this underlying faded, musky hoppiness there. I don't like it as much as the newer ones.
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look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Old Guardian served in an Old Guardian glass, this beer does not really improve with age but it also doesn't get much worse.
Beer is ruby and clear with a thin lazy off white / tan head of small bubbles, some lacing, low carbonation. Looks good.
Stone biting house yeast with nice MO grain / malt aroma, strong throughout.
Beer is medium in body with a mild bitter and hoppiness on the back end, it is a fine beer with a nice finish but there is this underlying faded, musky hoppiness there. I don't like it as much as the newer ones.
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3.03/5 rDev -28.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
Bottle courtesy of drabmuh at last weekend's Stone tasting. Served in a Stone goblet.
Pours a semi-hazy golden-caramel color with a bit of an orange hue. Short head without much in the way of retention or lacing.
The nose brings some caramel and brown sugar, as well as some older hops. Faint fruits in the background. The flavor has a good deal of sweetness and still just a touch of lingering bitterness. Medium body with low carbonation and a mixture of sugar and alcohol.
This was okay, but it's not something I'd really plan to age all that much of in the future.
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look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
Bottle courtesy of drabmuh at last weekend's Stone tasting. Served in a Stone goblet.
Pours a semi-hazy golden-caramel color with a bit of an orange hue. Short head without much in the way of retention or lacing.
The nose brings some caramel and brown sugar, as well as some older hops. Faint fruits in the background. The flavor has a good deal of sweetness and still just a touch of lingering bitterness. Medium body with low carbonation and a mixture of sugar and alcohol.
This was okay, but it's not something I'd really plan to age all that much of in the future.
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3.53/5 rDev -16.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Shared by drabmuh. Thanks Matt.
The beer is copper orange hued with a small head that leaves sparse lacing on the glass. The aroma offers caramels, malt, light oxidation, even some old basement. The flavor is decent, but I didn't enjoy this one nearly as much as the 2004 version. I was quite surprised by how different they were from one another. Pretty simple and straightforward, with a slightly sweet malt bill leading the way. Hop character is nonexistent at this point. A pretty decent brew and fun to try.
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look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Shared by drabmuh. Thanks Matt.
The beer is copper orange hued with a small head that leaves sparse lacing on the glass. The aroma offers caramels, malt, light oxidation, even some old basement. The flavor is decent, but I didn't enjoy this one nearly as much as the 2004 version. I was quite surprised by how different they were from one another. Pretty simple and straightforward, with a slightly sweet malt bill leading the way. Hop character is nonexistent at this point. A pretty decent brew and fun to try.
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3.1/5 rDev -27.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
Stone Old Guardian, Winter 2005
Served in DFH signature glass.
A: Pours clear amber with the faintest skim of a head. A light but steady stream of bubble course through beer, which is unexpected.
S: Caramel and golden raisin notes dominate, indicating a hefty bill of crystal malts. Additional aromas include cherries, alcohol, light oxidation, and honey. Smell is more subdued than I'm describing.
T: Taste does not follow particularly well. Malty sweetness, alcohol and medium bitterness comprise lion's share of taste. The alcohol and bitterness have undoubtedly diminished over years, but the other flavors have worn away more rapidly; therefore, alcohol and bitterness have no opposition. The alcohol has a solvent-like edge. However, caramel presence increases a notch when beer hits room temperature.
M: Medium-heavy body an light carbonation. Warming and a little numbing.
O: This bottle of Old Guardian was cellared properly and would certainly be "drinkable" for many years to come. It has not, however, improved and seems to be well past its peak. Too bad.
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look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
Stone Old Guardian, Winter 2005
Served in DFH signature glass.
A: Pours clear amber with the faintest skim of a head. A light but steady stream of bubble course through beer, which is unexpected.
S: Caramel and golden raisin notes dominate, indicating a hefty bill of crystal malts. Additional aromas include cherries, alcohol, light oxidation, and honey. Smell is more subdued than I'm describing.
T: Taste does not follow particularly well. Malty sweetness, alcohol and medium bitterness comprise lion's share of taste. The alcohol and bitterness have undoubtedly diminished over years, but the other flavors have worn away more rapidly; therefore, alcohol and bitterness have no opposition. The alcohol has a solvent-like edge. However, caramel presence increases a notch when beer hits room temperature.
M: Medium-heavy body an light carbonation. Warming and a little numbing.
O: This bottle of Old Guardian was cellared properly and would certainly be "drinkable" for many years to come. It has not, however, improved and seems to be well past its peak. Too bad.
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Stone Old Guardian Barley Wine Style Ale 2005 from Stone Brewing
4.25
out of 5
based on 124 ratings.
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25