Hopus - Brasserie Lefèbvre SA

basica

Singapore

4.15/5  rDev +11%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

A - Pours a hazy orange golden with a overly thick bubbly head into my Duvel tulip with an average amount of carbonation (4)

S - The nose is made up of citrusy hop aromas with a bready malt backing with a dash of Belgian yeast (4)

T - Sweet citrusy and grassy notes upfront dabbed with Belgian yeast with a aromatic and fairly significant hoppy bitterness towards the finish. The after taste is slightly fruity with a light bready malt backing. One can really see where it really feels like a Belgian Tripel crossed with an American IPA or Double IPA! (4)

M - Medium-bodied thickness with the right amount of carbonation and a foamy smoothness finishing dry. Nice! (4.5)

D - Very drinkable and sessionable with a well hidden 8.3% but may be less approchable to some due to the bitterness. (4.5)

Serving type: bottle

11-26-2010 17:44:40 | More by basica

BeerResearcher

Massachusetts

3.73/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

11.2oz stubby brown flip top bottle. Best before date stamped on back label. Served in Kapittel Watou stemmed snifter.
Pours a cloudy caramel toffee color with a fluffy white head and loads of sticky, clinging lace.
The smell is a little disjointed with sour yeast, dry hay, horse barn, oak, floral hops and gin.
The flavors are rangy as well, but with more complimentary results. Edgy astringent hops, lemon zest, gin, orange peel and Orange Lifesavers. A little metallic tang is noticed in the finish.
The mouthfeel is a little raspy at the first few gulps but mellows out as it warms.
For some reason, I feel this tart and bitter brew will go nicely with lemon tarts or bitter pineapple upside down cake.

Serving type: bottle

10-28-2010 00:46:15 | More by BeerResearcher

cnally

Indiana

3.25/5  rDev -13.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Nice bottle, wire capped. Love that.

Cloudy hazy golden body with a shimmery small bubbled white head.

You can really pick up on the Belgian yeasts in the aroma, with a lightly toasted caramel malt. A little banana.

A decent bitter flavor. Hops come out nicely, a good toasted grain flavor. Lack of depth, seems a little shallow. Quite hot, the alcohol is extremely untamed.

The feel is over-crisp and highly hot. Carbonation is uneven.

Meh. Kind of boring, frankly--there is just not enough punch, but being boring can be ok sometimes. It's just that the qualities are a little lacking.

Serving type: bottle

10-26-2010 01:18:19 | More by cnally

CrazyDavros

Australia

3.15/5  rDev -15.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Pours pale gold/straw with a large white head.
Nose shows floury/bready yeast and wheat with some earthy, floral green hops in the background.
Flavours are very similar but are loads sweeter and also show some spicy hops. Finishes with a mild but somewhat off-putting bitterness.
Carbonation should be higher.

Serving type: bottle

10-24-2010 10:06:52 | More by CrazyDavros

SleepyMonk

Australia

3.33/5  rDev -11%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Chilled bottle poured into a tulip glass. Bottle has a reusable swing faux-cork top set up a la Grolsch.

Pours with a pale straw-ish gold body with a small amount of clouding. Large amount of fluffy white head that settles off to a rocky mass and clumps of thick patchy lace clinging to the glass.

Aroma is heavy in floral hops with dried wild malts and some hints of cloves and citrus rind.

The palate shows sweet yeast flavors with some soft dry malts however the floral hops that helped defined the aroma of the beer don't quite launch out as you may expect; they are there just not as dominating as the nose indicates. Cloves and citrus flavors also blend well.

In terms of weight etc this is not a heavy beer by any measure however the flavors themselves are heavy, mostly in the way that they linger and stick. The mouthfeel is pleasant and the carbonation is well balanced to the flavors and features of the beer.

Overall a good Belgian IPA and well worth a try.

Serving type: bottle

10-09-2010 11:03:08 | More by SleepyMonk

mithrascruor

California

3.75/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

11.2 oz. bottle poured into a chalice.

Appearance: Pours a hazy copper/orange color with a fairly creamy off-white head. Lots of visible, floating sediment. Decent lacing too.

Smell: Predominantly sweet apple cider vinegar. Actually that's most all I can smell there.

Taste: Starts off with apple-cider vinegar, some fairly light fruit flavors, and a bit of yeast and hoppy spices at the finish. Apple, yeast, and bitterness in the finish.

Mouthfeel: Very smooth and light-bodied, with very light carbonation.

Drinkability: No alcohol flavor at all; good, drinkable flavor too.

Sort of like a Belgian IPA meets a Belgian sour. Fairly tasty, but not particularly inspiring.

Serving type: bottle

09-29-2010 01:24:23 | More by mithrascruor

JMad

Texas

3.98/5  rDev +6.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

From a little bottle to a snifter...
The color was a murky yellow / light brown. There was a huge white foamy head.
Tastes like lemon and citrus, has a hint of alcohol and yeast.
It feels very bubbly, warming and dry.
This brew doesn't really hide the alcohol but it's still good.

Serving type: bottle

09-24-2010 03:34:17 | More by JMad

alleykatking

Indiana

3.58/5  rDev -4.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Poured from a swingtop...

A- Pours a golden hazy color. Two finger white head shows great retention. Chunky lacing left on the sides of the glass.

S- Big time floral hops in this one. Some light spicing and belgian yeasty bread. There is a underlying sweetness to this that seems to be like a powder sugar.

T- A overwhelming sweetness from malts come into play first which I wasn't expecting. Some light spicing and yeast notes come into play at the middle with a floral hop coming through as well. Backend is mostly bitter hops in a underwhelming number when held up to the aroma.

M- Medium mouthfeel. Carbonation is good for the style. Sweet malts and light spicing left on the palate after each sip with bitter hops and light alcohol in the aftertaste. Flavors were faded at times and well balanced at others. Overall light alcohol drying on the palate. Saaz hops make a great floral flavor on the palate midway through the beer.

D- This was a alright beer. Good drinkability on it along with a nice size makes it dangerous at times. A nice belgian style that should help be a gateway into the style.

Serving type: bottle

09-16-2010 21:37:41 | More by alleykatking

jjanega08

Minnesota

2.38/5  rDev -36.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

A= The pour is a slightly hazy yellow color with a huge head on it that rises to about three four fingers up and holds some nice retention as well as some good lacing on the side of the glass. The head is amazing I must say. If I could add a picture to the review I would. Very very Duvel like.

S= Loads of Belgian yeast and spice in the nose. Tons of clove and black pepper. A really interesting smell that doesn't have much hop to it. Lots of lemon zest as well. Not sour lemon but the oily sort of zest in it.

T= The taste is again very very light on the hops. There is a lot of sweet yeasty clove flavor to it as well as some straight honey like sweetness to it. The hops again are nonexistant. I get a little bit of alcohol in the taste as well. Yeasty is a good way to describe the taste of this one.

M= The most interesting part of this beer I would say. It has a very heavy residual mouth on it. Lingering and bread like I would say is a good way to describe it. Heavy as hell for an IPA.

D= This is sort of a thanks but no thanks beer for me. I got a buddy who I introduced to beer and he really likes his hops so the name persuaded him here and he agreed this was a bust. This beer looked amazing in the glass and from there it let down.

Serving type: bottle

09-16-2010 01:11:18 | More by jjanega08

drabmuh

Maryland

3.73/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Dated 2011. I don't know what that means. Beer is yellow and slightly hazy with a huge head and lots of lacing. Carbonation is steady and aggressive.

Aroma is sweet and earthy floral hops. Smells pretty good.

Beer is really sweet and only mildly hoppy. Its medium body and has a harsh mouthfeel, a little too carbed. It grows in bitterness overall. Its OK, but these Belgian IPAs need to focus and pick a style and go with it.

Serving type: bottle

09-12-2010 01:57:32 | More by drabmuh

SFLpunk

Vermont

2.85/5  rDev -23.8%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

11.2oz brown glass swing-top bottle. Back label dated Best Before End L20111021.

Pours an orange gold with sticky white head that leaves lots of spotting. Nose is full of orange juice notes. Palate fat with creamy carbonation and sharp alcohol notes. Orange juice notes, a little lime zest and some light hop bitterness. Finish is dominated by citrus zest.

Notes: Meh, decent. If you like key lime pie this might be up your alley. Don't know how much this goes for, but I suspect it's too much.

Serving type: bottle

09-03-2010 04:54:23 | More by SFLpunk

wedgie9

Tennessee

3.75/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3.5

Tasted from bottle at Lush West Town. Pours light golden brown witha huge frothy and rocky white head. Nose of Belgian yeast with some candy, brown sugar, and a hint of banana. Flavor is somewhat bready and somewhat brown sugar sweet with light hops on the finish. Body is medium with average carbonation and a medium plus finish that is at first brown sugar and then light hops bitterness. There is nothing overly exciting about this beer, but it is super drinkable and easy to enjoy.

Serving type: bottle

08-22-2010 18:03:15 | More by wedgie9

ADZA

Australia

3.63/5  rDev -2.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

This brew pours a dark golden hue with beautiful carbonation that leaves behind very frothy two finger head that stays with heaps of lacing,the smell is a very strong mix of grassy,herbal hops and golden malts,it has nice well carbonated mouthfeel is very sessionable and like the name says th taste is very hoppy with a nice grassy,herbal,lemon zest taste to it which suprisingly from its name really only finishes moderately bitter on my palette and could easily drink as a session brew but you would have to be careful given its 8.3% which is so well hidden its not funny.

Serving type: bottle

08-22-2010 06:08:51 | More by ADZA

GRG1313

California

1.93/5  rDev -48.4%
look: 3 | smell: 2 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2

Orange amber color with a super thick and firm pure white head and very thick and full lacing. Nose is remarkably light and unassertive. Light yeast and a super light "burnt" remnant. Nose is faint and very unassertive.

Mouthfeel is medium bodied with light, almost no, carbonation. Beer is likely balanced but,

Flavors are so weird that mouthfeel is lost in the extreme lemon syrup, thick sweet flavors. Even the finish is a bitter sweet lemon. This sort of tastes like a lemon sauce gone wrong. I can see this perhaps as a type of sauce for cooking but not as a drink. All in all, just too sweet, no carbonation and little appeal.

Having said the foregoing, the cool bottle with the swivel top will likely work to hand bottle some growler left overs! So, buying this one wasn't a total waste.

Serving type: bottle

08-21-2010 22:58:46 | More by GRG1313

twiggamortis420

Texas

2.73/5  rDev -27%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

330 mL flip-top bottle pours a hazed, light gold color with a massive cap of white head...bottle gushed a bit. Foam does not even move hardly, voluminous and sticky. Lacing is sickly clumpy and 3D.

Nose is grassy as hell with a fruity yeast influence. Grainy malts border on caramel, but stay in the 'grainy' range. Has a unique white bread loaf aroma that is interesting.

Creaminess of the beer is what sticks out the most. Hop flavor and bitterness are both there with an overabundance of sweet bread and milly grains. Too sweet for me and despite the bitterness, does not finish very dry. I think it is the hoppy-thick-doughy combination that does not set right with me. No mas para me.

Serving type: bottle

08-08-2010 21:01:52 | More by twiggamortis420

ThaCreep

Belgium

2.53/5  rDev -32.4%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 1.5

The nose is very hoppy with a mouth that plays on the same combination, that is to say the power of hops but it must be admitted that this is far from being fully successful. Indeed, the mouth is too syrupy and has a very herbal mouth which is much closer to the drug than the hoppy bitterness. The basic product marketing, the power hops, appears slightly truncated.

Serving type: on-tap

07-27-2010 19:09:35 | More by ThaCreep

Beerandraiderfan

Nevada

3.58/5  rDev -4.3%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Another SDIBF sample. Has a cloudy golden homebrew appearance. Aroma was sweet, honey and clove.

Taste, definitively Euro. Lacking hops, bitterness wasn't attributable to hops. Alcohol pronounced more than anything. A lot of those fruit flavors in beer, while below the radar, just don't jive with my preferences (apple, white grape, clove).

Serving type: bottle

07-26-2010 18:53:56 | More by Beerandraiderfan

atsprings

North Carolina

4.03/5  rDev +7.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

11.2oz bottle into a very nice Hopus glass pours a hazy bubbly pale orange with a very frothy eggshell head that diminishes to a thin layer and leaves decent lacing on the glass. Aroma is a nice blend of crisp Earthy citrus hops with a nice spice kick and slight fruit. The taste is citrus hops and sweet fruits blended nicely with a mild spice providing nice complexity. The beer is on the light side of medium with its alcohol well hidden. This is a great hoppy Belgian IPA, one I can certainly see myself purchasing again.

Serving type: bottle

07-24-2010 02:31:47 | More by atsprings

Derek

British Columbia (Canada)

4.2/5  rDev +12.3%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Really more of Strong Pale with some good hopping. Given the name, I expected more hops (Doesn't seem much hoppier than a fresh Orval).

A: Clear, golden-yellow with a huge white head, exceptional retention, excellent lacing.

S: Floral hops, marmalade and some spicy phenolics. Not overwhelming, but certainly enticing.

T: Marmalade, candied, floral hops with some grapefruit rind, biscuity, nice spicy phenolics, good bitterness (though modest for an 'IPA'), alcohol is well-hidden.

M: Well-attentuated, moderate body had plenty of carbonation and a crisp, dry finish.

D: Nicely crafted, well-balanced and digestible. A really easy drinker.

Definitely modest for an 'IPA'.

Serving type: bottle

07-23-2010 13:01:24 | More by Derek

kwjd

Ontario (Canada)

3.68/5  rDev -1.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Pours a light straw-yellow colour with tons of head and lacing. Some hops and a funky smell, in a good way. The flavour has a certain element of, what I can only describe as, salty. Has a tartiness to it as well. Carbonation level is great with this. An interesting Belgian IPA.

Serving type: bottle

07-12-2010 20:09:59 | More by kwjd

trevorjn06

Washington

3.6/5  rDev -3.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Pours an ever so slightly hazed yellow gold with a thick, 3 inch head that recedes very slowly and leaves tons of lacing on the glass.

This beer is quite cold at the moment but I pick up a sharp brett type tartness along with some apricot, tangerine and peaches. Letting it warm a bit.... I get some floral notes, a bit of corn (maybe DMS?) And some light malt.

Taking a sip this beer is smooth, light malt, high carbonation and a moderate hop bitterness and flavor play on my tongue. This beer starts with light malt, a touch of sweetness and a bit of fruit and esters. This transitions into some hop bitterness mixed with tangerine and a hint of apple. The finish is a rather mild (yet noticeable) hop bitterness, apple, alcohol, tartness and pilsner malt.

Mouthfeel is light with high carbonation. Drinkability is fair/good.

Overall this is a nice, fairly light yet complex and mildly tart blonde ale. I found it to be balanced, aromatic and quite nice. It is a bit thin for my taste but I enjoyed drinking it.

Serving type: bottle

06-24-2010 03:54:37 | More by trevorjn06

northyorksammy

Ontario (Canada)

3.45/5  rDev -7.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

A nice blond with some hoppiness, but nothing extraordinaire. Funky yeasty aromas. Very yellow body with some significant white head. Lacey. A tad below average mouthfeel for the style. Drinkable because of the mild spiciness, which I take as cinammon.

Serving type: bottle

06-23-2010 15:45:56 | More by northyorksammy

tempest

Pennsylvania

3.3/5  rDev -11.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured a swing-top into my glass and had a very tall white head with a clear, gold body. I was a bit let down by this beer after hearing good things from friends. There was an astringent alcohol taste for starters. Also, the hops were very mild, hardly bigger than a dry Belgian pale ale. The basic malts reminded me of Duvel - for the white grape, bready taste - but it didn't have the same rich yeast character. I don't know if this had too much aging or too little, or if there's something else going on, but I'd avoid this beer. There are simply better Belgians out there for your time and money.

Serving type: bottle

06-22-2010 00:04:23 | More by tempest

salvo

Indiana

4.22/5  rDev +12.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A: Light blond slightly cloudy with half inch of head of .5 mm bubbles

S: Straw with that wild belgian yeast tangy-ness that only real belgians have. Malt may be arrivng on the next train; it is only a suggestion here.

T: Mildly astringent; clean and crisp. Other in the styles are not as sharp or crisp and the tang stays on the tongue and lingers for a long slow burn.

M: Thin with little malt body and the tongue is bitten rather than soothed.

D: A little too high given the 8.5%.

I first had one in Leuven and after sharing it the others in the fridge disappeared among patrons. In the US, they have been more difficult to get (see BeerSpy report). After traveling through Belgium for a week, and trying all the traditional Belgians, it was great to have this as a reminder of the American craft taste I was missing.

Serving type: bottle

06-15-2010 21:25:33 | More by salvo

eric5bellies

Australia

3.85/5  rDev +2.9%
look: 5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Drank from my Duvel Tulip.

A - Pours a straw honey colour with large white tight fluffy head that retains well.

S - Sour lemon and yeast aromas

T - Taste has some bready notes a hint of citrus and plenty of spice, more of a Belgian PA for me.

M - Light body and well carbonated

D - A very soild brew to try.

Serving type: bottle

06-11-2010 14:13:04 | More by eric5bellies