La Trappe Brings Special Brews, Art To Hopleaf Thursday

By Jason Baldacci in Food on Feb 24, 2015 4:15PM

Painting by Brother Wolfgang, one of the monks at La Trappe

Dutch trappist brewery La Trappe Brewery and Artisanal Imports are hosting a very special event at Hopleaf (5148 N. Clark St.) 7 p.m. Thursday Feb. 26, featuring some special ales from La Trappe. ("Trappist" meaning that the brewery is housed on the grounds of a monastery and operated to at least a certain degree by the monks who live there.)

For a mere $20 admission, guests can taste four different, very unique vintages of the incredibly rare La Trappe Oak-Aged Quadrupel in Hopleaf's upstairs room. These beers are hard to come by—a single bottle off of a store shelf will likely set you back more than what Hopleaf is charging for the tasting. The first 30 people to arrive will receive a full pour of a La Trappe beer as well, and a $1 raffle will give one lucky guest a bottle of one of these amazing beers will be to take home. Tickets for the tasting can be purchased online.

There's also a chance to win a painting by Brother Wolfgang, one of La Trappe's monks who has created a series of paintings in order to raise money for a couple schools in Uganda that the monastery is helping to restore. Raffle tickets ($20) are actually available to anyone and everyone who finds themselves drinking at Hopleaf this week. All of the proceeds from the painting raffle will go to these schools.

So even if you aren't able to attend what's sure to be a stellar tasting, do your best to stop in for a pint, see the painting, and help raise some money for a good cause.