I met up with some friends at StrangeBrew a while back, and I found they had this beer on tap.  I’ve seen the bottle in many stores and never pick it up due to price.  However, the special of the night was $3 for any beer, so I thought I would give it a try.    When instances like this occur, I always take the opportunity to try something for cheap to see whether I like it or not.

Hennepin had a very hazy golden color in the glass; upon further inspection I noticed it had a familiar aroma as well.  The aroma to which I refer is that of a Trappist or Abbey ale.  If you ever have had a beer in that style, you know the smell to which I am referring. Please don’t ask me to describe it, you’ll have to go out and have one yourself.

It took me awhile to appreciate Trappist brewing. At first I was turned off by the strange flavor, and then I figured that all Trappist ales tasted that way and learned to like them.  This was a good beer to have on a Sunday evening with friends.  The fact that it was golden was great because it wasn’t a heavy porter or brown ale, and it went well with the nachos.

This beer is from New York, instead of Belgium, and is proof that you can have good taste in your own country.  I enjoyed the citrus flavor to it and an almost ginger taste on the back of my tongue.  I was surprised at this ale and glad I gave it a try.  One day I’ll stack this up to a beer that is from Belgium to see how it measures, I have a feeling it will do fine on its own.