Free State Ad Astra Ale
This Ale is the first brewed in Kansas since the pioneering days. The name "Ad Astra" comes from the Kansas State Motto - Ad Astra per Aspera, Latin words meaning "To the Stars Through Difficulties". We’ve blended Pale, Caramel, and Munich malts for a rich amber beer. The hops balance this malty sweetness, and we’ve chosen Northern Brewer and Fuggles hops for their flavor.
3.3
186 reviews
Lawrence, United States
Community reviews
Pours medium brown with a one finger tan head with pretty nice lacing. Aroma is of toasted malts, caramel sweet malts, grassy hops, earthy hops, and some light toffee. Taste is about the same as the aroma. Has a medium body with a semi creamy mouthfeel and a slightly bitter, semi watery, medium-short finish. Overall, a decently tasty brown ale that is pretty drinkable.
I love a good Altbier. Definitely a pleasant surprise from KS. Picked up a six pack.
L: Clear amber with nice white head.
S: Malty and yeasty.
T: Balanced. Malt edge with nice aftertaste.
F: Medium and smooth.
O: Would have again. Great with food (pizza) or without.
bottle at Fresh Seven Coffee in St. Francis. This pours a rich red with a small white head. The aroma is sweet and malt forward, pretty clean. There are notes of bread, toffee, light chocolate, and low spicy hops. The palate is slightly sugary, but definitely still in the realm of enjoyable. Malty flavors dominate with caramel, biscuits, bread and light hops for balance.
First Kanas beer, not too bad. Pours a dark ruby red, almost mahogany in color. Aroma of an English pale ale. Malt forward beer with light floral finish.
The aroma has some sweet, nutty roasted character. Quite sugary. Transparent amber body with a small, yellow-tan head. Starts with a sweet, nutty, sugary maltiness. Finishes with some roastiness and toast. Meh.
I think this is actually an Alt Bier, not a brown ale. This will seem more like an American Amber because it has good hop presence and taste. It is a lot better than what I was expecting and well worth a try.
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Bottle:
Pours clear, wet-copper-brown with a small, off-white head.
Caramel, mild breadheel aroma.
Caramel malt, chocolate.....slightly bitter nut taste.
A little watery, but good.
Bottle. Lactic caramel malt and hay aroma. Medium brown with moderate head. Mildly sweet nutty chocolate caramel malt and lightly bitter herbal hay flavor. Medium body. Not bad.
Bottle, shared by me... in my dining room... just now.
Pours perfectly clear & perfectly brown with a small but well retained head that leaves plenty of lacing on the glass.
The beer smells like a brown ale should, chocolatey & nutty without coming off as sweet... inviting & malty without leaving out a nice leafy hoppiness.
The flavor follows up the aroma just perfectly with a slightly different balance giving way to a touch more of that leafy hoppiness. The malt gives it that nice mild roast, mild coffee, nutty, & chocolate thing. Pretty well "in tune" perhaps a touch more bitter than a crushable brown usually is, but that’s no complaint from me.
good beer.
Flight pour on tap at the brewery (Lawrence, KS). Pours a deep ruby copper hue, a faint haze but near perfect deep winter sunset crimson glow throughout. Frothy offwhite head atop dies to a nicer layer, decent film and thicker ring laces well enough. Aromas are a bit carmelized and toasty, decent florals, biscuits and earth. Some touches of Munich and bready malts show that carmelized tang meeting ewarthy hops, soap and florals. Initial is lighter in body, some metallic and floral bitterness quickly hit the palate. Touches of soap, grass, a bit of toastioness. Earth, a lighter body with carmelized malts, biscuit and toast hits. Some firmer bitter twangs into the middle with some earth, a firmer but earthy hop slant into the backend makes this fresh and sufficiently bitter with some toasty, biscuit and gentle carmelized malt slants behind. Overall, the hop profile here is firm and does the work instead of getting sweet, thick, or becoming a caramel bomb. Solid drinkering overall. Great look.
Pours dark amber, slight white head. Aroma very malty, Irish ale type stuff. Crrisp and clean/ Eash to drink nice malt profile. Good.
Tap at Archie’s. Pour is clear, light brown/tan with a light head. Aroma is generic malt, maybe a bit bready. Flavor is the same with a dry hoppy finish. Palate is good, not too harsh. Overall a bit watery, and not very flavorful, just generic. Not worth buying again.
Aroma is nutty malts, tea and a hint of tobacco. The flavor is dry/nutty malts, fruit, a hint of tobacco and a mildly tart/citrus finish.
On tap. Light tan-copper. A-medium malt-caramel, a little roasty, orange. T-medium malt-caramel, a little roasty, citrus/orange hops bite.
On draft. Malty orange aroma. Malt forward flavors with a hop bitterness finish. Nice but not extraordinary.
Tap at Beercade. Orange-amber pour with a clingy white head. Doughy and malty. Smooth palate with some heft. Pretty solid alt.
The go to beer and standard for Free State is still one of their best. Deep amber brown with a thick head. Great balance with a tobacco and caramel character.
Chestnut color with a small, off white head that left light lacing on the glass. Aroma of nuts, caramel, toast, and toffee malts. Taste of caramel, light roast, nuts, and a semi sweet finish.
The color is a brownish red with a large light tan head, and the aroma blends caramel malts and doughy yeast. The taste is mildly sour, and a touch umami, and a touch sweet; the palate fuses a medium body, thick texture, soft carbonation, and a malty finish.
Decent Altbier even though they advertise it as an amber. Faint German malt aroma. Amber color with a thin head. Light but smooth palate with even carbonation. Up-front malty flavors provide the backbone but it’s not overpowering. Slight hop bitterness but not much. Easy to drink.
Clear, mahogany pour with an off-white head. The aroma has sugary caramel. It has a medium, smooth body with average carbonation. The taste is very sweet from start to finish.
12oz brown bottle hard-poured into a nonic glass. Clear deep reddish amber colour with beige foam and a little lace. Aromas of sweetbread and flowery hops.Flavour was nutty, a little biscuity, with lots of caramel candy-like residual sweetness. Too much, really. Decent resiny hop bitterness, but not enough to balance the malts. Medium body, low carbonation, somewhat unpleasant sticky aftertaste. Would probably appeal to fans of Fat Tire and similar amber ales, but in my opinion not as well-crafted as many others.
12 oz bottle pours amber with a white head . Aroma of malt, caramel and grass. Taste is malts and caramel.
Draft pint that out a nice clear red/brown with a small tan head. Aromas are really nothing to write home about - sweet malty smells and a little alcohol. Much improved in the flavor, sweet and a little roasted. Slightly bitter hop aftertaste and some underlying fruity and banana hints that kept things interesting. Overall: a decent beer especially when paired with fries and a burger. Not really a drink to sip and enjoy on its own.
bottle into glass, clear brownish red por wih thin white head, aroma is fruits, and brown sugar, taste is similar, good shit
Pours a dark amber color with a fair head that fades to bits of lacing. Aroma of roasted malt, caramel and a hint of chocolate. Taste follows with caramel sweetness, malty, and bit of chocolate. Mild bitterness and a clean finish with a trace of sweetness that lingers. Moderate body, smooth with a rich malty feel. Nice beer for the style. Easy drinker that’s good for a few.
Amber with a thin off white head. light malt aroma. Flavor is caramel, and slightly overdone toast. medium carbonation.
Pour is a clear amber with a small white head. Aroma is a nice roasty-sweet caramel malt. Flavor is all things malty. Big caramel malts with some black bread and maybe a little raison. Very tasty and malt heavy with low carbonation.
The beer poured great with a nice dark amber color that passes very little light through it, a nice tan colored one finger head and good lacing on the glass. The beer has a great blend a caramel sweetness, some roasted malt, and mild chocolate scents that come together nicely. The taste is much the same with a sweet caramel taste up front that blends into a roasted malt and mild chocolate follow up, it works well together. The mouthfeel is average with good carbonation but a mild flavor from the chocolate. Overall, a great Altbier from a brewer I have never had before. Recommended.