OUR STORY
Right Proper is a responsible, community focused brewing company creating soulful, intentional, balanced beers, presented with brilliant hospitality and a touch of whimsy.
Right Proper Brewing Company is a family-owned brewing company committed to creating a brand and community spaces for people who call DC home. There are two, soon to be three, locations in the District of Columbia, and the beer can be found in DC, Maryland, Virginia and Delaware. Co-founder, Thor Cheston oversees production and distribution. Co-Owner, Leah Cheston oversees the restaurant operations. The kids can often be seen running around both locations, aka “mama’s brewery or daddy’s brewery.”
Right Proper started as a neighborhood brewpub, based on a vision that centered around DC as a hometown, with each neighborhood defined by a different culture and not one that relied solely on museums and monuments (though we love those too). It was a vision that you could go to your local pub, have a glass of beer that is fresh, brewed on premises, and without the DC price tag. The beers would be defined by the yeasts used to ferment them as opposed to the hops that bittered them. The bar would be a gathering place for the community, one that evoked conversation with good music and art-lined walls. The staff would be happy and friendly, and of course, awesome. These are the things that would bring you in, but then you would be pleasantly surprised by the food. Good, real, food flavored food that costs less than 20 bucks. So you could come back, night after night, because the beer list is always changing, the food is delicious and affordable and the staff couldn't wait to see you.
The vision belonged to Thor Cheston, a DC native who ditched medical school at Georgetown University to follow a passion for beer. After working in the beer industry in DC for 10 years, and after falling in love with someone with an equal passion for the industry (enter Leah then Dedmon now Cheston), Thor built up the courage to quit his job and follow the dream. He ate a lot of barbeque and met the owner of Rocklands Barbeque and Grilling Company, John Snedden. The two realized they had similar goals, so they set out to complete the vision. They opened a right proper brewpub.
The neighborhood brewpub opened in December, 2013, right next door to the historic Howard Theatre, in the Shaw neighborhood of Northwest, DC. The brewpub quickly became a needed amenity for the community, offering everything from a quick bite to post-work happy hours, birthday celebrations, block parties, and weddings.
Keeping up with beer production was a challenge from the start, so the group quickly moved to open a production brewery. They picked another residential neighborhood with loads of rich history, this time in Northeast, DC in Brookland. The production brewery and taproom opened in December, 2015. Right Proper was then able to partner with a distributor, to get beer to local restaurants, bars, and retail stores in DC and Virginia.
Co-founder, John Snedden, exited the Shaw location in 2020, and the Brookland location in 2023. The Chestons are forever grateful to John and Kim Snedden for helping them realize the vision.
After making it through the pandemic, the Chestons finally felt growth was possible again, and decided on opening a third location in another resident-strong NE DC community, in Eckington. The third location will be another brewpub concept, located just one block off of the Metropolitan Branch Trail. A full kitchen will churn out similar food to Shaw, casual American pub fare with a nod to southern comfort. The Eckington location will have a 5-barrel brewhouse with a focus on Brewer’s yeast and traditional styles, allowing the Shaw location to lean into the wild yeast and barrel program. Brookland will remain the center for packaging and distribution. The new location is anticipated to open in summer 2025.
After a decade of operations, we are proud of what Right Proper has become and look forward to seeing what’s next. We’ve seen first dates turn into marriages and we’ve grown our own family. We’ve seen employees start as hosts and become general managers. We’ve seen employees move on to start their own businesses. We’ve built a community around whimsy, where you can always come back, and it feels like home.
