Réserve
Les Frères Houblon Microbrasserie

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From:
Les Frères Houblon Microbrasserie
 
Quebec, Canada
Style:
American IPA
ABV:
7.3%
Score:
79
Avg:
3.18 | pDev: 20.44%
Reviews:
12
Ratings:
16
Status:
Active
Rated:
Aug 17, 2014
Added:
Jan 13, 2010
Wants:
  0
Gots:
  1
No description / notes.
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Ratings by kwjd:
Photo of kwjd
Reviewed by kwjd from Canada (ON)

2.4/5  rDev -24.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 2
Pours an golden orange colour with huge, fluffy white head. Nice head retention and lacing. Smell starts off with some citrus hops, but then there is some off boiled vegetable aroma too. I find that if I sip this, not so good. If I chug, the bitterness comes through and the flavour less so, which makes it better I guess. This isn't completely bad, but it isn't good. Great carbonation level. Has the base of a good beer, just some off flavours. Picked this up on a whim, but not happy that I did so.
Dec 17, 2010
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 3 by Socialiste from Canada (QC)

Aug 17, 2014
 
Rated: 3 by Triat00 from Canada (QC)

Jun 18, 2014
Photo of TheDoctor
Reviewed by TheDoctor from Canada (QC)

2.9/5  rDev -8.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2 | overall: 3
A:
Pours a ridiculously cloudy orange. Looks like liquid bread. Has a decent white head that rapidly dissipates, leaving a thin film. Decent retention; not much lacing.

S:
Very yeasty and slightly sweet. Malty bread and cereal; some hints of hops, citrus, and clove.

T:
Dough. Slightly hoppy. Yeast. Nothing much to write home about. Bitter medicinal aftertaste (tastes like chewing an aspirin).

M:
Stick and doughy. Chewy and grainy (you can feel the yeast in the palate). Slightly boozy-feeling finish.

O:
Okay. Certainly not great, but I have definitely had worse. Weird looking, does not look appealing. I was honestly hesitant to have the first drink (probably not a good sign as a brewer). Definitely not an IPA in my opinion. Nothing outright offensive, just very "off".
Jul 03, 2013
 
Rated: 4.25 by Molson2000 from Canada (ON)

Sep 14, 2012
Photo of DoreenAndDave
Reviewed by DoreenAndDave from Maine

3.68/5  rDev +15.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Beer is a hazy amber with a thin head. Aroma is complex but not very strong. Bread, berries, fir. Taste is thick and malty up front with a bitter hoppy finish with a bit of grapefruit. The mouthfeel is fine. Substantial, pleasantly carbonated. Some alcohol warmth.

Overall I like this beer quite a bit. It is substantial and hearty. I am not a style expert, but this doesn't seem like an American IPA to me. Is there such a thing as a Quebecois IPA? This beer has the rich, yeasty, Unibroue feel of many Quebec beers, with a nice hop punch. I like Quebec unibroue-esque beers, and I like IPAs, so the hybrid style is to my liking. But if you're looking for a "normal" American IPA, this probably won't fit the bill.

Anyway, I think this is a good, big beer. Pleasantly heavy and substantial with a nice hop mix.
Aug 19, 2012
 
Rated: 4 by jrempel from Canada (BC)

Mar 04, 2012
Photo of oldp0rt
Reviewed by oldp0rt from Canada (QC)

3.09/5  rDev -2.8%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3
500ml bottle poured into glass.

Let me begin by saying that I've tried a lot of beers from this brewery and promised myself that i wouldn't buy any again. This bottle was very nice, inviting and to top it off, it was my favorite style.

A - Pours a nice golden/copper with a finger think foamy head the dissipates quickly. Seems to have a lot of carbonation.

S - This beer smells nice. Citrisy, slight pine, a little earthy.

T - Tastes a lot more citrisy than the smell led on. Hardly any trace of malts and not very bitter. Definitely something off in the after taste.

M - Easy to drink, not overly carbonated. 7.3% but really can't tell until it warms up.

O - Not really the American IPA i was looking for. Definitely not the worst one out there. Expensive for what it is and will not be buying it again, but happy i tried it.
Nov 05, 2011
Photo of Sammy
Reviewed by Sammy from Canada (ON)

2.88/5  rDev -9.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5
My basic understanding of the label is that they market this as a double IPA, even though only 60 IBU. There is some bitterness here, but also lots of bad notes. This batch should have been dumped. A little drinkable, a little hoppy aromas in the aroma and something else that I would not call skunkyness. The taste has something industrial in it, not metallic - plastic maybe? Aggressively carbonated.
Mar 06, 2011
Photo of Glory
Reviewed by Glory from Canada (QC)

3.54/5  rDev +11.3%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
Just bought this beer for the 4 o'clock Apéro while just relaxing on the couch on a snowy afternoon
Served in a Stange Glass, This beer is gloden to Amber in color and is quite foggy (not clear) because it is bottle refermented. There's also a whole bunch of sediments in the bottle wich is great ! Just give them the time to get to the bottom. I get a little mousse on top but not much and not for long. The Carbonation in the glass is out of contol, bubbles coming out of everywhere like cola.

The smell is nice though, you really get the nice hop aromas and esters. There's a quite pronounce citrus side to it along with malt and hints of dried hay.

This beer has quite a creamy mouthfeel but not a very agressive taste, I would even say a bit watery from start to finish altough a kick of bitterness is present on the palate and weirdly balanced with the acidity. The hops in there are pretty much doing all the work as in taste so overall its pretty floral with a little malt sweetness.
La Réserve des Frères Houblons from Trois-Rivières is far from beeing my favorite of there products, its a good beer, I kinda have fun drinking it and will probably buy it again at some point. Its a good bargain for 4 bucks !

Cheers Lads

WS
Dec 08, 2010
Photo of bylerteck
Reviewed by bylerteck from Canada (ON)

2.49/5  rDev -21.7%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2
A - Golden/amber colour with a nice big white head. This has to be the most carbonation I've ever seen in a beer poured into a pint glass. It appears as bubbly mess almost. Frothy head is fizzing away but becomes rocky.

S - Mild hops. Soapiness perhaps. Not a whole lot going on.

T - Hops are present but very unbalanced. Sort of a piney/soapy thing going on with some harsh expired grapefruit notes. I'm having a hard time enjoying this.

M - Carbonation is where it should be. Body is a bit thin, especially for something with an ABV at 7.3%

D - It's gonna be work to get through this bottle let alone any other one I had sitting around. I had high hopes for this, but it looks like another failed attempt at an IPA.
Oct 17, 2010
Photo of Tim2000
Reviewed by Tim2000 from Canada (QC)

3.72/5  rDev +17%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
500 mL brown bottle.

Pours a clear copper orange with a thin white head.

Powerful hop aroma, lots of citrus.

Sweet malt with some fruit notes, apricots come to mind. Citric hops pick up quickly and linger, as does a husky grain flavour. Medium bodied with fairly high carbonation.

Pleasant, but nothing to get too excited about.
Mar 17, 2010
Photo of ZorPrime
Reviewed by ZorPrime from Canada (QC)

3.21/5  rDev +0.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
The beer is copper and caramel color. It is hazy. The head is very good looking (looks like a cloud). The presence of a lot of carbonation is observed. The aroma is hoppy, floral and citrusy. I get some fruity notes too in the aroma. In the mouth, the taste is mainly citrusy. It start full body in the mouth then at the end it is very dry. Meidum body. A good beer but nothing out of this world.
Mar 01, 2010
Photo of eat
Reviewed by eat from Canada (QC)

3.5/5  rDev +10.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
This is my first beer from Les Freres Houblon. I usually pick up at least one random while at Peluso in Montreal and this was it this time. Looked interesting with the four varieties of hops and double fermentation. Looking at their scores, I'm not sure I made the right choice...

I was going to review this as an American IPA but nowhere on the bottle does it specify any style beyond "strong beer". So I`m reviewing this as a beer in general, as stated on the label. The label also states a double fermentation, which would suggest that it's not an American IPA, since what American IPA is fermented in the bottle? Four varieties of hops, including "le cascade". 60 IBU.

The beer is the colour of caramel sauce and maintains a frothy covering of off-white head for a good while. No lacing. The bottle seems to contain an extreme amount of sediment. There aren't any chunks but the beer is completely opaque resulting in a dull, milky look.

Doughy yeast, minerals, spices and some hops in the background. The malt smells a little weird. Smells like some kind of Belgian pale ale.

I don't think I'd call this an American IPA. It's not bad but doesn't state that it's an American IPA or really taste much like one. I don't know what to make of it. It's not necesarily unbalanced, but I don't feel like it's tied together too well. Too-sweet malt, minerals and harsh (for 7.3%) alcohol up front and some earthy hop bitterness for a dry finish. It's strange but not terrible. Maybe a Belgian IPA? If only the label told us.

Decent feel. Medium body and light carbonation.

This is drinkable enough. It's different and I guess I'm enjoying it. The bitterness is a bit too much to make you want to drink much though. I don`t know if I'll be checking out anything else from this brewery, this beer seems too random.

(Is this really 7.3%?? It tastes at least that and is hitting me way harder than it should. Judging on the brewery reputation and the conflicting elements of this specific beer, I wouldn't be surprised if the ABV was more than listed. Check out the picture of the "brewery" on the main page! wow. This is starting to make more sense.)
Feb 15, 2010
Photo of Yoonisaykul
Reviewed by Yoonisaykul from Canada (QC)

3.61/5  rDev +13.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4
From notes. One of the beers I've been most eager to try. It's just a really nice looking bottle promising 4 hop varieties including Cascade.
Poured the 500ml bottle and lots of dirty-looking gray/brown sediment came along for the ride on the second refill. Added an appreciated, fuller, flavor.

A- Beautiful white head with a yellow tint to it. Head settles to a good centimeter. Hazy liquid is a brown-yellow. Lots of bubbles rise. Make sure you get a beer-clean glass for this one as it offers some awesome lacing. Instead of being specks of foam the lacing completely covers exposed areas of the glass.
S- Acid hops. Sweet and lemony. Slight metallic smell. After warming up I smell a bit of cider.
T- I'm so happy I'm not disappointed with this one. Bitter right up front. Follows the smell. Malts are discreet. Big booziness and it was pretty chilled. The remaining bitterness tastes like grapefruit peel though not exactly as citrusy. Once it warms up up you can really taste the alcohol
M- Full creamy AND refreshing taste. I consider this a close to perfect mouthfeel.
D- After a few sips and getting acclimated to the brew, I had to remind myself to slow down my drinking, since I wanted to let it warm up some in order to try and discover some hidden flavors. I really want a second and third one but it is pretty strong so I don't think I could drink this all night.

Good beer. Made me happy. I wasn't blown away but it did deliver. Would buy it again.
Jan 16, 2010
Photo of Phyl21ca
Reviewed by Phyl21ca from Canada (QC)

1.56/5  rDev -50.9%
look: 2.5 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 1.5
Bottle: Poured a dirty amber color ale with a large foamy head that disappeared way too quickly. Aroma of stale grain and light citrus Cascade hops is not the most pleasant. Taste is also a weird mix between some stale grain and light citrus bitter hops that don't mesh well with the malt bill. Body is about average as well as carbonation. Not surprise but this was quite bad as most beers from this brewery.
Jan 13, 2010
Réserve from Les Frères Houblon Microbrasserie
Beer rating: 79 out of 100 with 16 ratings