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Throughout the state, local farms connect with consumers through a dedicated restaurant network and by hosting farm dinners. Wisconsin cheese makers win accolades for pushing boundaries on new creations. And while big beer is bedrock, more craft breweries crop up every year. Explore the household names that have been doing it right for generations and the rising stars that reinterpret Wisconsin’s culinary traditions.
Defining the farm-to-table movement
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Small farms, a famous farmers’ market and artisan producers infuse Madison with fresh, sustainable food. Luckily for hungry travelers, Madison restaurateurs believe it’s sinful to serve anything else.
L’Etoile is the mother of farm-to-table dining in Madison. Giving rise to the movement in the 1970s, L’Etoile built many of the farm-and-restaurant relationships that sustain Madison’s culinary scene today. Tory Miller, the award-winning chef who leads L’Etoile, also maintains a locavore philosophy at neighboring Graze.
Around the corner from Miller’s downtown restaurants is the savory Heritage Tavern. Chef David Fox doubles as a local producer; he raises his own heritage pigs. The menu changes with the seasons, and it’s always creative and delicious.
Other distinguished Madison restaurants that champion farm-to-table dining are Salvatore’s Tomato Pies, A Pig in a Fur Coat, The Coopers Tavern and Forequarter.
Rising Stars
The newest culinary trend in Wisconsin shortens the distance between farm and table. Now, rural farms play host to patrons looking for the freshest food they can fathom.
For example, Meuer’s Farm in Chilton hosts a Farm Flavors Dinner Series each summer. Local chefs come to Meuer’s to make meals from food grown on-site. Dinners are bookended by a cocktail hour and a farm activity like a hayride tour. North Star Homestead Farms in Hayward also hosts a variety of harvest meals.
Along the Mississippi River, farms are beginning to specialize in homemade pizza featuring fresh, local ingredients. Styles range from charming barn bistros to bring-your-own picnic blanket.
Suncrest Gardens Farm in Cochrane is an example of the latter. Your family can meet animals, listen to live music and gather around a campfire as you share large, fresh pizzas. The Stone Barn in Nelson offers a sit-down pizza cafe serving pies with creative ingredients such as smoked salmon with dill and capers.
Being a cheesehead
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There’s a reason Wisconsinites proudly wear cheeseheads. Wisconsin leads the U.S. in cheese production, and Wisconsin cheese makers win more awards than any other state.
Arguably the king of cheese in Wisconsin is Carr Valley Cheese Company. It’s won hundreds of international awards for its American Originals like Cocoa Cardona and Cave Aged Marisa. Carr Valley also creates superb classics, with dozens of cheddar varieties. Visitors who plan ahead can set up a cooking class at Carr Valley to learn how to cook with cheese in every course.
The oldest and quirkiest cheese store in Wisconsin is Baumgartner’s Cheese Store & Tavern in Monroe. The store sells a great, affordable selection of Wisconsin cheese, but it’s the Swiss tavern that has kept locals coming for generations. Dollars stick to the ceiling, murals adorn the walls and visitors share long tables as they enjoy amazing cheese sandwiches. If you’re after stinky cheese, order the Limburger.
Rising Stars
The underlying desire of the farm-to-table movement is to understand the story behind the food – and that applies to cheese, too. Small-scale cheesemakers with a story to tell find the spotlight in Wisconsin.
For instance, Hook’s bleu cheese is truly unparalleled. Schedule a tour to learn about how Tony and Julie Hook were high school sweethearts or how Julie was the first woman to win a World Cheese Championship award.
Bleu Mont Dairy in Blue Mounds is owned by Willi Lehner, a cheesemaker who stores his cheese in a hand-built, underground curing cave. Lehner learned to make cheese during summers he spent in the Swiss Alps growing up. You can taste his classic approach in his famous bandaged cheddar. Cave tours are available by appointment.
Visiting the beer capital of the world
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Wisconsin is home to the biggest names in beer, and today more than 100 breweries carry on the tradition started by German immigrants in the 1800s. The most iconic breweries in Wisconsin today are Miller Brewing Company (now SABMiller) and New Glarus Brewing Co.
Let’s start with the Milwaukee beer behemoth. Miller Brewing Company was founded in 1855. SABMiller is now one of the world’s largest brewing companies, representing nearly nine percent of the world’s beer production. For a peek into Milwaukee’s storied brewing history, tour the brewing facilities of SABMiller and other breweries that set up shop in the city, including Lakefront Brewery, Sprecher Brewery and Milwaukee Brewing Co.
Unlike the ubiquitous Miller, you can only buy New Glarus beer in Wisconsin. As one of the most award-winning microbreweries in Wisconsin, New Glarus keeps distribution strictly local. Every beer drinker appreciates the classic "Spotted Cow," but taking the tour allows you to try the entire, exclusive selection.
Rising Stars
Attracting the attention of international beer critics, Wisconsin’s craft breweries are becoming the places to explore beer’s avant-garde side. Hoppy, bitter IPAs dominate the national craft brewery market, and Wisconsin doesn’t disappoint; Ale Asylum’s "Hopalicious," Karben 4’s "Fantasy Factory" and Wisconsin Brewing Company’s "Psychops" are excellent.
But it’s the more complex porters and stouts with homegrown ingredients that make Wisconsin’s craft breweries stand out. Tyranena, a microbrewery located between Madison and Milwaukee, dominates the porter realm. The secret? Some of the best brews are aged in bourbon barrels. Central Waters Brewing Company in Amherst is particularly notable for their stouts.
Sipping through Wisconsin’s wine country
Wisconsin is home to wonderful, historic vineyards such as the pre-Civil-War Wollersheim Winery & Distillery.
But only recently have grape varietals been engineered to withstand Wisconsin’s winters. These cold-hardy grapes are responsible for a Wisconsin winery boom.
Ten years ago, Wisconsin had around 13 wineries; now 130 wineries are shaking up the wine world.
You can find six along the Mississippi River on the Great River Road Wine Trail, eight on the Door County Wine Trail and five on the Fox River Valley Wine Trail.
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The aforementioned Wollersheim is the granddaddy of them all, established before the Civil War on beautiful slopes overlooking the Wisconsin River Valley near Prairie du Sac. Most recently, their distillery began creating brandies, gin, absinthe and whisky.
Cedar Creek Winery in Cedarburg offers Wisconsin’s largest vineyard and a famous cherry wine, while Botham Vineyards & Winery produces internationally acclaimed wines in Barneveld.
Rising Stars
Opened in 2015, Belle Vinez Vineyard and Winery has brought a bit of Tuscany to Wisconsin’s St. Croix Valley since the owners were inspired by a trip to Italy about a decade earlier. Wines are created with a blend of imported and on-site grapes.
Munson Bridge Winery in the state’s heartland offers a huge variety of fruit wines – including raspberry, boysenberry, elderberry, plum, blackberry, crabapple, cranberry and even maple syrup wine! Locally grown fruit and ingredients are used whenever possible.
Forgotten Fire Winery in Marinette specializes in both fruit and Midwestern grape wines. Door County apples and cherries and cranberries from Nekoosa create authentic Wisconsin flavors.
Check out Wisconsin’s top foods from around the state, and subscribe for the inside scoop on our restaurants.
