Ad Astra Ale - Free State Brewing Co.

maxpower

Missouri

2.63/5  rDev -29.3%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

Deep clear amber color, nice white lasting head, malty bready aroma. Light and sweet caremel malt flavor, some light hop flavor stand out in a clean dry finish, light body and a thin, watery mouthfeel, a good one for microswill drinkers just to bland for me.

Serving type: on-tap

02-07-2003 17:54:28 | More by maxpower

Thorpe429

Illinois

2.85/5  rDev -23.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Reviewed from notes. On tap in August 2009.

Pours a moderate brown color with a slight rusty tint. Short white head. The nose brigs some fruits and lift caramel plus a small amount of hops. Bad news underneath though. Just like other beers here, we were unfortunate to get somethig bad going on, as the taste here was quite buttery as well. Luckily this hadn't pervaded other aspects of the beer all that much. It's too bad as I really enjoyed their barleywine and that had no off flavors at all. Maybe we just happened to catch a bad time either with brewing or bad lines. It was at the brewpub though, so either way I have to say that it's on them.

Serving type: on-tap

11-11-2010 20:26:29 | More by Thorpe429

emmasdad

Colorado

2.98/5  rDev -19.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 2.5

Thanks Dan (and Ratman) for sharing this one last night. Although I sincerly appreciate it, I did not enjoy it. Poured a dark amber color with a little bit of head on top. Aromas of cardboard, nuts and caramel. Medium bodied, with flavors of cardboard, roasted nuts and caramel malt. Kind of sad, maybe this one sat for a while.

Serving type: bottle

02-12-2011 23:16:20 | More by emmasdad

bditty187

Nebraska

3.05/5  rDev -18%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Clear, dark reddish/slightly bronzy hue, served with a thick off-white head, excellent retention, laced well. Clean nose… there was a slight dull maltiness… disappointing, mute invitation. Moderately flavorsome palate, the maltiness is the focal point, accomplished, the hops play a minor supporting rule, they do add a touch of bitterness. Some caramel and nut hints too. Nicely balanced if not too soft. Modest carbonation. The finish is clean… decent enough to drink. Not really that impressive of an offering… try something else.

Serving type: on-tap

08-11-2003 01:19:57 | More by bditty187

birchstick

Missouri

3.18/5  rDev -14.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Pours an amberish copper with a creamy white head on it. Smells of toasts malts with a bit of nut character. The taste is close to the nose with a nice toasted malt but deviates from the aroma in that it has a stronggrassy hop bitterness. I don't lnow if it my palate or this brewery but I am getting a lot of grass hop on their beers. As Ith their other beers, I really enjoy the story behind the name and appreciate the effOrt put into the beer but it isn't one I would necessarily go out of my way for. Worth a try, though?, definitely.

Serving type: on-tap

06-08-2011 03:36:34 | More by birchstick

sulldaddy

Connecticut

3.18/5  rDev -14.5%
look: 5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Sampling a cellar temp bottle poured into a pint glass. A gift from my friend Ragingbull.
The beer pours a clear beautiful mahogany color with ruby highlights and a 1 cm creamy beige head. The foam receds slowly to a sturdy surface layer with very tight lattice on the sides of the glass. Very appealing looks.
Aroma is caramel and some grainy malt with a bit of spicy and grassy hops in the background, but this is a malt driven nose.
First sip reveals an average bodied beer with very fine yet tingly carbonation.
Flavor is grainy and husky malt with a touch of toffee. I also get a little bit of grassy hop but the beer finishes with an almost tangy malt hit, more like a wheat twang than caramel. The finishing flavor is a little weird as it is out of balance with the rest of the beer.
No hint of any booze on this one and the beer drinks very smooth and easy.
I like the beer overall but the flavor on the finish is a little strange.

Serving type: bottle

06-25-2011 04:25:49 | More by sulldaddy

mdcrouser

Missouri

3.25/5  rDev -12.6%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Copper-tinted brown pour, with a faint light white head, lacy fingers scratching their way down the glass.

Bready malt dominates, leaving little else to the imagination. Smells alot like a brewery, actually.

Highly bready - caramel, woodsy, pumpernickel, with only an allusion of citrus - grapefruit, orange.

Crisp and hearty, with ample carbonation.

Not a great beer, but I certainly could drink a lot of them.

Serving type: bottle

05-08-2011 03:47:46 | More by mdcrouser

beernut7

Massachusetts

3.3/5  rDev -11.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

This American amber ale possesses a deep amber color with no head. The very insignificant aroma is slightly of malt. A nice smooth heavier body supports a sharp malt sweetness and a lingering bitterness. The sweetness becomes a bit harsh toward the bottom of the glass, but a latent fruity spice helps to curb it some.

Serving type: on-tap

10-13-2002 13:02:18 | More by beernut7

midwestbrewers

Kansas

3.3/5  rDev -11.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A: Pours kind of copperish with a 2 finger head. Nice and frothy head with little lacing though.

S: Immediately your nose is rushed with sweet malts. Not much if any hop characteristics.

T: The taste is very malty and sort of sweet. Maybe a little hop bite on the back but very lack-luster.

This is an OK beer. Too sweet and malty for me. The lack of any hop character is a downer for me. Great beer but not in the category for me. Very smooth and goes down easy is a plus though. Great beer Free State Brewing!!!

Serving type: bottle

01-08-2011 04:50:54 | More by midwestbrewers

russpowell

Oklahoma

3.3/5  rDev -11.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Review from notes,

Pours an effervescent amber with brown/tan head. Good head retention & lacing

S: Toasty malt, leafy hops & pears

T: Follows the nose, along with grassy & peppery notes up front. Pear note dominate as this warms. Finishes crisp & fruitty

MF: Light/medium body with firm carbonation, decent balance

Drinks easy enough, but nothing special as Alts go

Serving type: bottle

10-03-2011 01:45:49 | More by russpowell

Rio

Kansas

3.43/5  rDev -7.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Reviewed as on tap since the growler was filled from a tap. Nice brown ½ gallon growler with Free State Brewery logo on the front, and a bit of history about Free State and brewing in Kansas on the back.

Poured a deep brownish color with a nice head with good retention. Bit of maltiness to the smell, but all in all, not that impressive. Main flavor seems to be the maltiness, with a bit of hoppiness and perhaps a flavor of nuts under it. Decent bit of carbonation to it, but otherwise nothing distinctive in the feel.

A good beer, Free State's first, and I believe possibly the first beer brewed in Kansas after it became legal again. A good one to try, and probably try again, but not really that outstanding.

Serving type: on-tap

07-14-2004 04:12:00 | More by Rio

tjthresh

Indiana

3.48/5  rDev -6.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Re-Rate: I have a keg at my home now. Fresher than before. Bumped the aroma, flavor, and overall up 1 point. This is a much better product than is served at Old Chicago.
As Astra is a pretty good session beer. Not a lot there to overwhelm, but enough to make it interesting. Dark red to brown in color, served with no head. Aromas of backed goods, and some brown sugar. Light sweet toasted flavor with decent bitterness. Light inthe body.

Serving type: on-tap

08-26-2005 13:12:18 | More by tjthresh

Deuane

Pennsylvania

3.48/5  rDev -6.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A-Copper with a medium off-white head that left moderate lace.

S-Muted aroma of peppery hops and a bit of spiciness.

T-Roasty malts and a bit of hop spice. Overall rather dull though.

M-Medium-light body with a nice sharp crispness.

D-Not a bad beer but this one was a bit too boring for me. I found nothing exceptional about it. A good "training wheels" craft beer

Serving type: on-tap

07-21-2008 12:11:12 | More by Deuane

acelin

Kansas

3.48/5  rDev -6.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured from a bottle into a glass.

Pours a nut brown with no lacing, and barely a head. Nothing amazing here, but doesn't look nasty.

Smells of malt, molasses slightly, nutty tones.

The malts make a good display here, with rich nutty sugary flavors. Maybe a little light roast coffee. Slightly bitter from the hops.

Mouthfeel is average. Drinkability is wonderful.

Serving type: bottle

12-08-2012 03:13:50 | More by acelin

tronester

Oklahoma

3.55/5  rDev -4.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A deep dark brownish red with a creamy tan head. Smell is a bit of dark fruit and freshly cut hay. Taste is initially some munich malt sweetness, followed by a cinnamony, rye bread middle, and a slightly tart, earthy finish. Mouthfeel is rich, cask like carbonation. Overall a good beer. Not too often you find an altbier in the USA.

Serving type: bottle

11-01-2011 23:51:43 | More by tronester

Goliath

Illinois

3.58/5  rDev -3.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Pours dark amber in color with one inch of yellowed head sitting on top. Good retention and some nice lacing.

Nice aroma with caramel and a little hop spiciness.

Flavors are nice, with caramel and chocolate. A slight hop bitterness.

Mouthfeel is full bodied and lightly carbonated.

Drinkability is fairly high with good flavors.

Serving type: growler

06-18-2008 04:40:02 | More by Goliath

Soonami

Pennsylvania

3.58/5  rDev -3.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Ad Astra Ale is a beer I got from a Reddit Secret Santa gift. It is a nice looking reddish brown beer with just a little lace of rocky head. The beer smells darkly toasty like pumpernickel bread and also a little sweet caramel malt. The beer is a little fruity, very nicely malty and accented with good german hoppy bittering. This is a good beer with a nice aftertaste that I definitely enjoyed.

Serving type: bottle

12-13-2010 05:52:07 | More by Soonami

drabmuh

Maryland

3.58/5  rDev -3.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Beer shared by my cousin in his man cave, served in appropriate glassware even. Thanks. At the time of this review, this is #34 on the "Top Beers - Altbier" list on beeradvocate.com.

Beer is dark brown, hazy, tan head, small and medium bubbles. Some lacing. Looks good.

Aroma is very malty and sweet with a nice yeastiness.

Beer is medium in body and strong. It has a nice finish to it but not my favorite alt I've had. A little roasty on the back end. Eh. I might have it again.

Serving type: bottle

06-15-2012 15:46:16 | More by drabmuh

FosterJM

California

3.6/5  rDev -3.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

907th Review on BA
Bottle to Pint
12 oz

Purchased from: On the Rocks, Lawrence, KS

App- A dark dark amber with a 1-1/2 finger head. A bit of an off white color with some good cling all the way down the glass. Falls to a ring of pond bubbles.

Smell- A bit thick malts and a touch of heavy cream on the nose. A bit earthy with some grainy notes as well.

Taste- Much like the nose but has some coffee and more grain taste to it. It's tasty but more spicy malty than would be expected.

Mouth- A medium body and a medium carbonation level. A bit of malty caramel with a touch of that heavy cream and spice.

Drink- It's good. I liked it, but needs to even out with some pop behind it.

Serving type: bottle

10-30-2011 16:07:50 | More by FosterJM

Dope

Massachusetts

3.63/5  rDev -2.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A: A fairly dark brown pour with a very light tan head. Head is dense and retains very well. Lots of thick lacing on the glass.

S: Sweet caramel, toasted malt and some earthtones. A touch of dark fruit? Chocolate as it warms.

T: Toasted malt mixed with some caramel and chocolate. Earthy aftertaste.

M: Pretty light, to be expected for a 5.6% ABV beer.

O: Honestly not bad, a pretty simple and malty beer. Drinkable and inoffensive.

Serving type: bottle

03-05-2012 03:58:04 | More by Dope

jmvecchio1

Missouri

3.65/5  rDev -1.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

The beer pours a deep rusty copper with a rocky white head. The head dissipates to leave a sticky lace on the sides of the glass. The smell of the beer is pure malty sweetness. The beer tastes of sweet roasty malts with a good balance of hop bitterness on the back end of the drink. The beer finishes relative clean, with just a slight malty sweetness. This is one of those great sessionable beers. Well worth picking up a six pack of.

Serving type: bottle

01-26-2011 00:55:45 | More by jmvecchio1

Kegatron

Pennsylvania

3.65/5  rDev -1.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

12 oz bottle into a pint glass. This is from a selection of Free State Brewing beers send to me by JeepCop. Thanks Dale!

Pours a clear coppery amber, with a ½ finger of off-white head. This retains with a thin creamy film that stays frothy when swirled leaving back some nice looking foamy swathes of lacing. The aroma is floral and leafy smelling, with some green citrus flavors that mingle with sticky caramel malts and a fairly prominent deep roasted feel that fills the back of the nose. This is decent, if maybe a little too heavy on the roast at times.

The taste is similar to the nose, with a mix of caramel, toast, and bitter citric fruit that gives the overall profile a bit of a green tangy feel. There is some darkness to the flavors but they seem less pronounced than in they were in the aroma. Leftover hops linger on the tail-end with some lingering dryness. The mouthfeel is medium bodied, with a smooth easy crispness in the mouth that definitely helps keeps this quite drinkable.

This was quite an interesting beer, with some characteristics keeping this closer to traditional Amber Ale and then others finding their over more over to the Altbier category. It never really seems to find it's footing in the middle of the two. That being said though, this is by no means a bad beer in any way and just seems a little confused. There is still more than enough flavor and drinkibility for you to take a chance on it. Worth a look.

Serving type: bottle

02-03-2011 20:27:31 | More by Kegatron

zeff80

Missouri

3.78/5  rDev +1.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Had this several times at the Free State, however, this review comes from The Brick Oven in Topeka.

A - Poured a copper color with a foamy, off-white, two-finger head that left some nice lace.

S - It smelled of hops and bittersweet malt.

T - This tasted quite hoppy and had a smooth roasted malt flavor.

M - It was crisp and smooth. A medium-bodied beer.

D - This is a very good alt and yet another good brew from the Free State Brewery.

Serving type: on-tap

01-22-2008 02:29:45 | More by zeff80

ZebedeeDuBois

Kansas

3.78/5  rDev +1.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

I had this on draft from my local craft bar.

It is a deep reddish brown, with clarity. The head doesn't last long. It smells and tastes malty, and reminds me of a marzen style beer. It drinks smoothly and cleanly, excellent for accompanying food. A definite favorite.

Serving type: on-tap

03-07-2010 18:36:10 | More by ZebedeeDuBois

Boto

Connecticut

3.8/5  rDev +2.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Draught: Mine poured a clear amber color that was tinged with red. It had a bit of an off-white head that left a decent amount of lacing down the glass. The aroma was a bit weak, while still nice. It was somewhat malty and a bit grassy. The taste was much better. A decent maly body without any real sweetness. A bit of a roastiness to it with a hint of coffee. A fair amount of biterness to it. This is really a decent brew.

Serving type: on-tap

10-12-2006 00:30:45 | More by Boto