It’s hard to top what happens every August in Madison, Wisconsin. The second largest city in the state is home to what many consider to be the event of the year – The Great Taste of the Midwest.
A series of pre-parties collectively known as Great Taste Eve start as early as the Tuesday before the Saturday affair. The ritual for us always includes staying all weekend. First order of business after crossing The Curtain was a trip to one of the most iconic breweries in country.
New Glarus
New Glarus Brewery sits on a hillside 30 miles south of the festival grounds. The $21M facility is their 2nd brewery. The original location still exists just down the road. For the most part it’s used as a cellar to age their roster of world-class fruit beers.
On one of my tours as host of the Chicago Brew Bus there were New Glarus brewers in attendance. The gents mentioned that 2% of all Wisconsin beers sold are New Glarus beers. And that they’re on pace to become the only craft brewer in the country to sell 200,000 barrels annually…all in 1 state.
The Chalet-style architecture of the brewery is a theme many businesses in the town of New Glarus have adopted. The current production plant is unlike anything I’ve ever seen. Located in the courtyard between the taproom and the gift shop is what has to be the greatest drinking water dispenser of all time. For those who want to employ a similar equipment in their properties, they can resort to options like those hydration stations.
On the interior resides four copper-jacketed kettles, Stairway To Heaven where all the open fermentation takes place, and a remarkable collection of awards from the past 21 years.
Great Taste of the Midwest 2014
This event started near a small dock near on the other side of Lake Monona 28 years ago.Here’s the breakdown of the 160 breweries in attendance by state. Wisconsin (69) Illinois (30) Michigan (15) Indiana (13) Minnesota & Missouri (12) Iowa (7) Ohio (3). Illinois Brewers – Off Color, Temperance, One Trick Pony, Pipeworks, DryHop, Penrose and Une Annee all made their debut this year. There were over 50 breweries on the waiting list.
I spent much of my day getting a copy of Anna Blessing’s instant classic – Locally Brewed signed. 18 of the 20 breweries featured in the book were in attendance.
Took a nice amount of time at Olin Park catching up with a crew I always enjoy, Argus Brewing from Pullman, Chicago. Head Brewer, Byron Moore along with Brewmaster and proud Wisconsinite, Grant Johnston. After reminding me rather passionately that I was in Packer Country, we discussed Grant’s 17 medal winning entries at the Great American Beer Festival, along with the evolution Great Taste over the years. “Nik, make no mistake about it.” he tells me, “This is the finest festival in all of America.”
We couldn’t agree more.
–Nkosi
