Lakefront Brewery Tour

After modeling in a bridal fashion show a few weeks ago and then agreeing to accompany me to dance classes for the next two months, Dave insisted that this weekend, we do something a bit more manly - something that he might actually enjoy. And, in order to give me a taste of my own medicine, he tried to find an activity that I would not particularly enjoy. What's something that I really dislike?

Beer.

And so yesterday we went to the Lakefront Brewery with Carlo and Penny and Dave's friends, Donny and Nick, to take a tour and spend a few hours drinking some local brews.



Now, I've tried for several years to acquire a taste for beer, but I've been completely unsuccessful. I honestly think eating dirt would be more pleasant for me than drinking beer is. I know it's almost sacreligious to live in Milwaukee and detest beer, but I just can't help it.

The tour was to begin at 3:00, and Nick, who lives right next to the brewery, told us that the tours always fill up early, so we'd better get there by about 2:30. When we walked through the front doors, we saw that the place was already packed. I mean, there were probably several hundred people milling about. I definitely had an answer now to the question, what do people in Milwaukee do on a gloomy Saturday afternoon in February? - They visit the breweries!



We showed our IDs and paid for our admission, and let me tell you, it was quite a steal. For five bucks, we got a Lakefront Brewery pint glass, the tour, and 4 wooden chips each good for an 8 oz. pour of beer.

While we waited for 3:00 to roll around, we got our first round. It was funny to see how full Penny's and my glasses were filled compared to the guys' glasses - As with most bars, it's definitely in one's favor to be a woman. As I looked around the crowd, I noticed that the guy-to-girl ratio at the brewery was probably 3 to 1 - so ladies, if you're looking for a place to pick up a man, this may be a very promising option.



I tried to be a good sport and drink my beer without making a face after every sip but it was impossible. After drinking maybe a third of the first glass, I decided I just couldn't do it, and I let everyone else drink the rest of my beers. So I stayed stone sober throughout the whole tour while everyone else got pretty tipsy.

The tour led us down some stairs into the brewery, and since we were toward the back of the group of probably 75 people, we couldn't hear anything the tour guide was saying. A group of people behind us were being loud and rowdy and the guide stopped a few times to reprimand them. Most of them - and most of my group, too - laughed and thought the guy was being a jerk, but I thought they were being pretty disrespectful.



Since we couldn't hear anything anyway, we decided to wander off on our own and explore the brewery. It was smaller than I would have expected. We saw Bernie Brewers' old house from County Stadium, and the old slide and mug he slid into every time the Brewers got a homerun.

One thing we learned is that a barrel of beer is filled through a hole called a bung hole, and the thing that corks it up is called a bung. A heavy rubber mallet is used to put the bung into the bung hole (it's hard not to giggle when hearing this description) and when the tour guide wasn't looking, we played with the mallet, and Dave took a bung as a souvenier.



We ended up spending well over an hour in the actual brewery, and while they sampled the different beer options, I busied myself by snapping pictures of them doing stupid things. There was a lot of, "Erin, take my picture pretending to pee in this bucket!" and "Erin, take my picture pretending to fall off this barrel!" There was a lot of laughter and what I thought would be a total bore of an afternoon turned out to be a lot of fun.

There were taps set up down there, too, so everyone's glasses stayed full during the tour. We met a guy down there named Peter who had been on two other brewery tours before this one earlier in the day - Sprecher and Miller - and when we asked him which he thought was the best, he said this one. I don't know if that was because he'd probably had about 12 beers already or if he really thought the Lakefront Brewery was the best, but I told him I'd quote him on the site.

Toward the end, as we were standing around, a guy came up to me and told me he really enjoyed the blog. My second fan!! His name was Kyle and he said he recognized me and Dave, and that he's been visiting the blog since reading about it in Jim Stingl's column back in September. (Hey, this is now the THIRD post in a row that I've mentioned Mr. Stingl. Is it getting out of hand yet?) So I was excited to meet Kyle and we got a picture together.

When we finally left the brewery, it was nearing 5:00 and we decided to head over to Nick's for some homemade pizza and some more drinks. I was so happy to taste some brandy after having that icky beer in my mouth! (For the record, everyone else loved the beer - Cattail Ale, Big Easy, Riverwest Stein, Pale Ale, and East Side Stout are the ones they tried. And they really enjoyed the brewery tour, too. We're planning on visiting Sprecher and Miller in the near future, too. I might just have to pack a flask for myself next time. Just kidding.)

We spent about four hours at Nick's place, drinking, visiting, practicing wrestling moves... The pizza, while delicious, didn't go very far between seven people (another friend, Matt, joined later), but we didn't pay much attention to food at the time. In hindsight, we should have eaten more - we didn't have anything to soak up what we were drinking!



Around 9:00, we headed out to Trocadero and had one drink there. I had a fabulous espresso martini, which ended up being my last drink of the night - about two drinks too late, but still a better decision than having any more. We went to The Lodge for one after we left Trocadero, and then we ended up at Buckhead Saloon where we spent the rest of the night.



I had so much fun there. A cover band was playing all kinds of fun music, and we got right up to the front and danced and danced. I was pulled up onto the stage a few times, and we met and danced with lots of interesting people. I'd explain the place more but I must admit, I don't remember a lot of it. I just know it was completely packed and the music was great.

We were home by about 1:30, and when we woke up this morning around 10:00, we were hurtin. It's been a pretty rough day, but it was worth it. And the breakfast we made of chocolate chip pancakes and sausage around 1:00 this afternoon definitely helped tremendously!

A brewery tour, for those who enjoy beer, is a great way to spend an afternoon in Milwaukee. And hey, even if you don't want to take the tour, it sure is worth it to come on down for four beers for five bucks!

Comments

[Derek]

Wow! Quite a full day of drinking! I'm impressed! I am counting down the days until summer when I can go and really enjoy another brewery tour at Lakefront.

[Kyle]

Thanks for the shout-out Erin and Dave! The Lakefront tour was a great time, and it was really nice to meet you guys. I admire your ability to keep the blog going even though this has been one of the worst winters for outdoor activity in recent memory (no snow, no ice).

If you're looking for more to do this coming spring and summer, you might want to check out www.wors.org for local mountain bike races. I used to do the races a couple of years ago, and they can be a fun spectator event for a lazy Sunday afternoon. The 2 races closest to Milwaukee are the Alpine Valley Open, and the Alterra Coffee Bean Classic at Crystal Ridge. Check it out if you're looking for something to do this summer!

It was great talking with you again, and congratulations on your success. Keep up the good work!

[heather]

I am not really a drinker and especially not of beer. the smell, Yuck! but eric loves it and we both really enjoy brewery tours.we have been on a few but the Sprecher brewery is by far the best because i got to drink all the yummy soda i want plus you get a free glass and the whole thing is cheap!! we really enjoy it.

[Erin]

Mmmmmm ... I love Sprecher Root Beer. That'll definitely have to be the next tour we go on! You guys should come along!

[Christi]

Mmmm Sprecher. I'd go just for the root beer as well!!! I want to go too!!! =)

[Jennon]

Hiya Erin! Lakefront Brewery is an institution in Milwaukee! Such a deal for $5! Come summer time, maybe you can do a winery tour in one of the neighboring vineyards and it'll be more to your taste.
I love catching up on the blog- hope all is well! See you Sunday!
-JB

[Mark]

Haha, sounds like you had yourself a good time! I heart Lakefront Brewery.