Astral Weeks
Right Proper Brewing Company - Shaw Brewpub

500 ML bottle, vintage 2019, poured into a snifter at 48 degrees F:
L - golden yellow with a white head that lingered
S - brett and yeast
T - you taste the brett culture on the nose but it is also pretty hoppy for this style
F - light and crisp with light carbonation
O - very nice beer, I enjoyed this more than most of this style

 

 

 

A-Pours a hazy golden color with a nice head and lacing
A-Aroma had citrus and resin hints
T-The taste follows the nose with nicely balanced "somewhat funky" citrus and resin hints
M-A medium bodied beer with nice carbonation
O-A nice take on a sour IPA

 

 

 

 

16.9 oz bottle poured into pilsner glass

A: Slightly murky body with a small white soapy head.

S: Mango, grass, cantaloupe, and underlying oak smell with just a little bit of funk. Has a light overripe fruit smell.

T: Lots of pineapple and mango pop out with a slightly funky wood taste that runs throughout. It is slightly bitter maybe a hint of sourness.

M: Very soft on the tongue super low carbonation has a slightly fuller body finishes smooth.

O: This is really tasty if you like soured IPAs this would be right up your alley.

500ml bottle courtesy of Kim at our annual Christmas beer tasting - thanks! Reviewed from notes taken 12/23/17. Currently #18 in the Top D.C. beers list.

"Dry-hopped foeder beer." 4.5% ABV. "Fermented in one of our large French oak foeders with our house mixed culture of wild yeasts." Dry hopped with Ekuanot (Equinox) and Comet.

HEAD: ~4cm in height. White in colour. Creamy and soft, with a nice bright complexion. Retention is nice - ~5 minutes. Leaves wisps of lacing on the sides of my tulip as it recedes.

BODY: Clear and obviously filtered. Colour is a clear vibrant yellow-gold. No yeast/lees are visible within.

Appears well-carbonated. It's a nice looking beer, though it doesn't have a unique or special appearance.

AROMA: Funky wild brettanomyces yeasts (bruxellensis), subdued oak, and plenty of floral and fruity hop notes. Muted citrus, white pepper/peppercorn, clove, lime.

It's a marvelous aroma marrying delicate yeasty subtlety with carefully handled American hops. The oak could be more forward and some drinkers will crave more barnyard character, but it's certainly alive and inviting. I'm not picking up on any microflora and it does seem more in the camp of stainless steel fermented cultured wild ales than in that of true spontaneously fermented wild ales, but it seems intricate enough.

Aromatic intensity is moderately high.

TASTE: Bursts of hoppy notes are evident, hitting on melon, lime, floral flavours, papaya, citrus, and hints of vague tropical fruit. It's not particularly funky nor particularly oaky, but there is a mild brettanomyces funkiness that runs throughout the beer. Obviously, aging this in barrels instead of in foeders would help contribute more oak.

In any case, it's rather good, bringing American hops neatly into Belgian brewing traditions and avoiding the usual pitfalls that utilization of brettanomyces can bring. There are no off-flavours, it's not overhopped, and it hides its ABV well.

Still, more oak or maybe cedar or chestnut wood would help, as would microflora and maybe some tartness. Could be more complex; it seems to want for a more spicy saccharomyces profile.

Well-built and quite enjoyable in any case.

TEXTURE: Refreshing yet subtly dry and somewhat coarse. Light to medium-bodied. Well-carbonated.

OVERALL: I believe this is the first beer I've tried from Right Proper, and I can't help but want to try more. Many American breweries have been trying to force American hops on oak-aged beers traditionally associated with Belgian yeasts for a long time and few have found a way to weave the two disparate brewing cultures together organically; Right Proper is one of the few. Yes, this has its shortcomings and one wonders how great this could be if Right Proper traded foeders for barrels and aged it longer with less controllable yeasts or even bacteria, but as-is it's a triumph of a dry-hopped table wild ale and I'd welcome the chance to try it again.

B (3.64) / GOOD

 

On tap at the Whole Foods in Vienna, VA.
The taste was as thin as the pale yellow color, with neither the spice nor the funk I appreciate in a farmhouse ale.

 

 

From a bottle a number of times, but most recently on tap at Westover Beer Garden.

I really like this beer. Right Proper Brewing are not trying to make saison that is stylistically accurate. This beer retains most of the qualities of a saison but with a bit more funk that runs right up to the sour line and some complimentary hoppiness. Refreshing and easy drinking. I will keep this in my fridge as a house beer. I've rated this beer higher than if I was sticking strictly to style regime.

Poured on tap at the Shaw brew pub into a wine stem glass.

Deep golden yellow, almost light lemon body color with a slightly opaque appearance. Creamy and very bright white one finger head presented.

Aroma is a mix of very sharp brett primarily. Hints of sucrose and some faint sugars but a good peppery funk mixing in that dominates the nose.

Palate is pretty basic but brett forward giving it some distinct power. Mid palate hits with light malts and a chewy simple body. Clean finish and not too dry either, but also very brett dominant and not unexpected. Good moderate funk, almost hits with an herbal hop angle on the aftertaste.

A good solid funked up Belgian Pale Ale basically.

On tap:
Pours a hazy yellow with little head or any sign of bubbles that could increase this.

Nose is a decently strong funk with a fruity-floral edge. Brett is big, and the farmhouse impression is completed with a little wood note. A light citrus comes in as it warms.

The taste starts with a little flat lemon-lime soda. The beer itself isn't flat, it's just that soda is pretty carbonated. This "flatness" impression is increased to me by the dry wooden funkiness that comes on next. The Brett combined with a moderately bitter hop profile. This holds my palate for a second or two before a light lemon-sour bite arouses it. As the beer warms, these distinct tastes meld together better.

A quite dry, funky, fairly bitter and lightly sour beer. I think the bitterness is just a little more than I'd like, but may work well for those who like dry-hopped Brett or sour beers. Either way I suggest letting the beer warm a few degrees above what most taps are set to.

Looking at my review after the past few times having this, I have to say I enjoy it more now than my initial review. I have noted that the part I like (the nice introduction of the foeder) can vary in its distinction. When it's there, I could easily just drink this beer all evening. When it's light or missing, it's a bit more of an average brew to me.

3.93/5: Subtle in most aspects, but wonderfully rustic, complex, and refreshing