RSS
Home
Old Guardian-- Stone Brewery's powerful but good barley wine style ale
Print
Email
RSS
Subscribe
Old Guardian Barley Wine Style Ale
Old Guardian, from Stone Brewing Co., is a very powerful barley wine style ale. "Powerful" refers not just to the beer's alcohol content (a fairly high 11.3%), but also the bitter flavor of the ale-- which clocks in at a strong 95 IBUs (International Bitter Units). This beer is strong, but that is its best quality.
The ale is another wonderful accomplishment from the people at Stone Brewing Co. Although it is quite hoppy, the maltiness is a strong supporting character that blends perfectly with the hops. The high hop content does not overpower the malt (and somehow blend together magically.) Barely wine style ales often have a sweet taste which puts off some tasters, however Old Guardian does not have that much sweetness. A fair warning: you must like hops to enjoy this beer.
According to Stone Brewing Company's website, Old Guardian barley wine style ale can be drank now or cellared for later enjoyment. This is beer that will continue to blend well over time.
Stone Brewing Co. always has a lot to say on the reverse of their labels, and Old Guardian invites you to visit Stone's blog to view an interview with Greg Koch of Stone Brewing Co. about leadership. The video is below.
For those of you planning a trip to the San Diego area, I highly recommend a stop by the Stone Brewing Co. location in Escondido. It's a bit off the beaten path, but well worth the trip. They serve an amazing assortment of beers- including dozens of Stone Brews (including past versions of annual beers like their anniversary beers). The food is also quite good, and if you tire of the Stone Brews, you can also check out their amazing assortment of guest brews. A neat sight is the line of taps at the bar, which are all uniform in size/shape without any label- the hosts have the location of each beer memorized.
Cheers,
Owen
Follow Owen on Twitter: twitter.com/lothar97
Related Articles:
Comments
