Beer, festivals, and more beer, oh my!
As much as I enjoy my snowy Wisconsin winters, summertime in Milwaukee just can’t be beat. I took a quick trip home last weekend to see family and friends, sip some new brews, and of course, take in as much of what the city has to offer as I can, like the festivals.
We’ve been going to many of the lakefront festivals since I was young and I have many fond memories of listening to tons of music (and seeing Britney before she hit it big), stuffing my face with great food (pierogis from Polonez are my fave), and playing on the giant white rocks that line the inlet on Lake Michigan. My summer Milwaukee trips usually revolve around a festival and it often is Irish Fest. It’s always a great opportunity to see one of our favorite bands, Gaelic Storm, play to a fantastic “hometown” crowd on a stage right under the Hoan Bridge. Here’s a clip from “Piña Colada in a Pint Glass” (see what I mean?).
So fun, right?! Gaelic Storm also decided to do their set list backwards, so I got this song right away as well as “One More Day Above the Roses.”
No night at Irish Fest is complete without a brew, so I checked out Lakefront Brewery‘s Snake Chaser Irish dry stout which I hadn’t had before. It was a great beer to sip on while strolling along the lake and listening to all the music.
Speaking of beer, it seems that every time I come home another brewery opens up. I got to check out two newbies: Eagle Park and Enlightened Brewing. They’re sorta in the same building over in Bay View. Enlightened is on the corner of 1st and Becher with a very chill vibe and nice outdoor seating. Great atmosphere to enjoy the Cream City Brix ale I sipped at the bar with all the doors open to let a nice breeze in.
Eagle Park reminded me of a speak easy; no outdoor signage and a buzzer to get in. So secretive! It’s up on the second floor of the Lincoln Warehouse and also has a very chill vibe (as well as a popcorn machine!). I had a flight of their Simcoe IPA, Immortal Soul Imperial IPA, and Huey Lewis and the Booze brown ale. All were great! With so many breweries opening up (and so many visits to them by yours truly), I really enjoy seeing how different they are from one another (beer styles, taproom vibe, etc) but also the collaborative spirit of being brewers in Brew City.
Leaving Milwaukee to go back east is never easy, but I do have one longstanding tradition that never fails to make me smile: the obligatory recombobulation area photo. I’m not actually sure when this all started, but it’s been going on for quite a few years now. Fun fact: General Mitchell International Airport is the only airport in the world with Recombobulation Area signs. This trip, the terminal I usually fly out of is closed for construction so being in another terminal actually made me slightly discombobulated and I didn’t get my usual photo with the sign…but I least I had the right shirt on.
Read more on Milwaukee’s Recombobulation Area here: Recombobulate. It’s good for you.
Tall Girl in a Small State 
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