By Bobby Tanzilo Senior Editor/Writer Published Mar 16, 2023 at 9:25 AM

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Sprecher Brewery and Milwaukee County Parks announced the dates and locations for the 2023 Traveling Beer Gardens Thursday morning at Sprecher Brewery in Glendale and there are a few notable changes this year.

First, for the second time in the 10-year history of the Traveling Beer Gardens, there will only be one beer garden tour instead of two. That was also the case the first year.

Second, the longstanding Juneau Park stop has been skipped by the traveling beer garden this year. That's because a season-long beer garden will open there in May.

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While last year’s two tours visited a total of 10 parks, this year’s will stop at eight, kicking off at Greenfield Park on May 17 and closing at Sheridan Park on Sept. 4.

Here’s the complete schedule:

  • Greenfield Park: May 17-29
  • Froemming Park: May 31-June 11
  • Cooper Park: June 14-25
  • Grant Park: June 28-July 9
  • Lake Park: July 12-23
  • McCarty Park: July 26-Aug. 6.
  • Doctors Park: Aug. 9-27
  • Sheridan Park: Aug. 30-Sept. 4

As always, the former fire engine and its trailers will serve products from Sprecher and other local breweries. There will again be free beer and root beer on the first day at each park, while supplies last.

The Parks Department will offer brats, hot dogs and Milwaukee Pretzel Company soft pretzels, among other beer garden favorites, for sale.

Food trucks will rotate weekends at the beer gardens, offering a variety of dishes.

Since 2014, the Traveling Beer Garden has brought more than $4.5 million in much-needed revenue into the parks, and the beer gardens in general – including the permanent ones – have generated nearly $12 million.

In addition, Sprecher has donated more than $256,000 toward park improvements, including pavilion renovations, ADA accessible restrooms and more.

Because inquiring minds want to know, here are the tentative opening dates for the permanent beer gardens:

  • South Shore Terrace tentative opening: Wednesday, April 12
  • Estabrook Beer Garden tentative opening: Target Week April 10
  • Whitnall Beer Garden tentative opening: Friday, May 5
  • The Vine Humboldt tentative opening: Thursday, May 25

More Traveling Beer Garden information can be found at travelingbeergardens.com, and watch this space in a couple weeks for more on the Juneau Park announcement.

Bobby Tanzilo Senior Editor/Writer

Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he lived until he was 17, Bobby received his BA-Mass Communications from UWM in 1989 and has lived in Walker's Point, Bay View, Enderis Park, South Milwaukee and on the East Side.

He has published three non-fiction books in Italy – including one about an event in Milwaukee history, which was published in the U.S. in autumn 2010. Four more books, all about Milwaukee, have been published by The History Press.

With his most recent band, The Yell Leaders, Bobby released four LPs and had a songs featured in episodes of TV's "Party of Five" and "Dawson's Creek," and films in Japan, South America and the U.S. The Yell Leaders were named the best unsigned band in their region by VH-1 as part of its Rock Across America 1998 Tour. Most recently, the band contributed tracks to a UK vinyl/CD tribute to the Redskins and collaborated on a track with Italian novelist Enrico Remmert.

He's produced three installments of the "OMCD" series of local music compilations for OnMilwaukee.com and in 2007 produced a CD of Italian music and poetry.

In 2005, he was awarded the City of Asti's (Italy) Journalism Prize for his work focusing on that area. He has also won awards from the Milwaukee Press Club.

He has be heard on 88Nine Radio Milwaukee talking about his "Urban Spelunking" series of stories, in that station's most popular podcast.