Stone Old Guardian Barley Wine Style Ale 2002 - Stone Brewing Co.

beerinator

Illinois

4.38/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Ruby brown, with a nice longlasting tan head. The aroma is saturated with heavy malt upfront. But the citrusy hop aroma is boldly present as well. Pretty sweet on the front of the tongue. Followed by a strong bitterness. The finish is extremely bitter. In my opinion, this beer isn't perfectly balanced now, but with a couple years of aging, the hop bitterness should mellow and you will be left with an excellent barleywine. I will report back here, in two years!

Serving type: bottle

03-16-2003 05:12:14 | More by beerinator

hyuga

North Carolina

4.65/5  rDev +8.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

At first I had my doubts about opening this, "I might not be able to get any more of this year's," I thought. When I got it out, got it to the right temperature, then cracked it and poured it, I developed this evil smirk on my face, which grew as the aroma hit me. You know, that psychiatric ward look. That "I'm about to savor a Stone limited release" look. That devil inside of you that pops up on your shoulder and tells you to crack it had taken hold of me. "You don't have to save it, you have to savor it, drink it! Now!" And so I (not so unwillingly) obey its command... The aroma hits HARD. I can't comment on the appearance first, the aroma is first here. Very strong citrus hops with a hint of alcohol, which actually creates a burning sensation in your nostrils. That sounds bad? No, it's GOOD. It tells you that this beer is gigantic, humongous, all-powerful. It has you in its clutches. A sinful dark reddish brown sits under a small, yet persistent cream-colored head. The calm before the storm is over, those clouds are getting darker and the rumble of thunder is getting closer. WHAM! It's here! Devilishly smooth, then the smack of thunderous hops! Huge caramel malt marches on with piney bitter hops by its side. Alcohol presence is very noticeable as well. Comes to a bitter end and then goes down silky smooth. Although hops are big, malt is truly the culprit here. A beer adventure. A dastardly, bastardly demon of a barleywine that is perfectly fit for the job of being the "guardian" of Stone brews. Drink it now! Your inner evil commands you!

Serving type: bottle

10-31-2002 02:32:26 | More by hyuga

erica

California

4.08/5  rDev -4.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

During my last trip to California, I got to share this bottle with TheLongBeachBum on my last night there, sitting on the sofa watching TV while the rain poured down outside..

This beer was a dark rusty red-brown color, very cloudy at first with bits floating around, with a ring of bubbles around the glass and a thin layer of bubbles dotting the surface. As it settled after some time, the beer was less cloudy overall, and there became what looked kind of like a big 'dust cloud' of sediment at the bottom.

Smelled really sweet. I couldn't get over the sweetness and was worried I wouldn't even want to drink it. Brown sugar, caramel, raisins, and a fairly stong alcohol aroma too. Very characteristic of a barleywine but sweeter than I prefer. Taste was refreshingly more hoppy. Oh thank you Stone for the lasting hops! It tasted much less sweet than it smelled, more fruity without all that brown sugarness, grassy, a bit hot, with fresh bitter hop end, even 4 years after the fact. Like several beers in one sip from beginning to end. This is very nicely balanced.

Mouthfeel was very smooth, yet hot. Thick but not syrupy and still nicely carbonated. It's pretty damn drinkable for how strong it is, and the hops definitely add to that, otherwise it'd be a syrupy mess. Thanks for sharing, Bum, I owe you!

Serving type: bottle

04-13-2006 14:24:07 | More by erica

ggroller

Pennsylvania

4.5/5  rDev +5.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Traded with Swillinbrew who was nice enough to part with this gem.

Beautiful silk screened bottle.

The beer is a translucent amber colored liquid with a finger's width of a soft,wispy head.

Lots of different aromas float past the nose. Vanilla, candied sugar, brown sugar. Slightly alchoholic.

Tastes of sweet brown sugar, vanilla, and raisins. A little bit of butter in the finish. Very nice and very well rounded. I did not have the 2002 fresh but I imagine the last three years helped this brew mellow to the delicious state it is in at the moment.

Velty smooth and creamy mouthfeel.

What a pleasurable beer.

Serving type: bottle

12-29-2005 23:55:32 | More by ggroller

mickstepp

Ohio

4.38/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

The folks at Stone have a Midas touch. This barley wine is lovely to say the least. Nice dark amber color and off white head. It looks and smells a lot like the Arrogant Bastard but not as piney or citrusy. The tast is unmistakably Stone. Nicely malted but not cloying. A different hop profile than their other ales but delicious nonetheless. A really rich creamy mouthfeel and without that overpowering alcohol taste that you can get from some of the other barleywines. This is a very well crafted brew that should appeal to a wide audience, even those that are not big fans of the barleywine style.

The bottle (always a joy to read) explains that this year's version uses all Warrior hops instead of the previous Tomahawk. Not being familiar with previous vintages I can't say if this is an improvement or not but it's hard to imagine a better brew. I bought one bottle as a taster but I'll be back to the store soon to load up. This big beer is worth laying down in the cellar for a while.

Serving type: bottle

01-31-2003 16:21:30 | More by mickstepp