Wisconsin's best bratwurst? Let's find out.

mayor al


Are you certain that it is spelled "Bucyrus" ??   I have heard the name "Butkus" used when describing a knarled old tough weiner from Chicago !!

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

nice

Mr. Maki and I had a great time, huge thanks to Jim & Bobbi for their hospitality. 

Needless to say, I did not have a brat at Mr. Maki's family party today.  I did have one of those Romanian garlic sausages, though.  Soooo good.

Any chance we can get the recipes for the German potato salad and the bok choy/ramen salad?  Both were wonderful!

I think the occasional pot luck event might be the way to go!

Just a thought. With all the careful planning and measures taken to maintain the integrity and blind tasting procedures implemented in this project, I think the various producers of the better brats would be interested in marketing the results of this event.  I don't know how Roadfood could benefit from this project and even if the Contingent would want to lend their endorsements to the results of the project----but something to think about. I'm sure the winner would love to use the results in their marketing plans. If the group and roadfood.com would want to profit from this event is up for discussion---Or Not! 

stricken_detective

mayor al


Are you certain that it is spelled "Bucyrus" ??   I have heard the name "Butkus" used when describing a knarled old tough weiner from Chicago !!

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

nice

He's not a "Knarled Old Tough Weiner"--- He's a "Knarled Old Tough WINNER!"

http://www.kodakgallery.c...qe7&localeid=en_US


My dog says THANK YOU as well. I cut a slice of Big Wally into quarters & cooked them a little. I shared with him & he didn't leave my side the rest of the evening. :) I was planning on taking a sight gag picture with him since he is a dachshund, but I cannot trust him to leave plates of encased meat on either side of him alone long enough for me to get a picture. What can I say, we raised him right, the boy loves meat.

saps

BuddyRoadhouse


We entered Bucyrus in a special ancient Greek horse bratwurst category along with Pegasus Brand Flying Sausages and some hollow wooden brats that said "Made in Troy" on the label.  JRPfeff threw a couple of those Trojan brats on the fire and it almost seemed like you could hear screaming coming from inside the brat.  Weird, huh?

Buddy

We're those Trojan brats ribbed?

They were a little dry and a tad bland.  Plus I was picking splinters and tiny bits of armor out of my teeth for the rest of the afternoon.

Buddy

stricken_detective

mayor al


Are you certain that it is spelled "Bucyrus" ??   I have heard the name "Butkus" used when describing a knarled old tough weiner from Chicago !!

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

nice

Oh boy, sounds like Packer fever is setting in early this year.

Buddy

abe_froeman


Any chance we can get the recipes for the German potato salad and the bok choy/ramen salad?  Both were wonderful!

JRP was kind enough to email me the German potato salad recipe.  I will be happy to forward it to all interested parties.

Buddy

Me, me! (please)

I will get the bok choy salad recipe from my boss tomorrow.

JRPfeff

Meanwhile, the wheels are already spinning for next Labor Day.  I guarantee there will be absolutely no bratwurst prepared and served by yours truly at that event.

 
Wisconsin's best ground beef. 50 different types of hamburger.  

I would be very happy to receive that recipe.
Thanks!

I did send an email off to Schwai's with the results. I have no idea if he handles his own email or if that is farmed out. Hopefully he'll learn how well his brats were liked.

TTM loved the wristbands (a brilliant idea btw). I think they're so cool, I may get mine bronzed.

JRPfeff -

What a great day!  Thank you to you and Bobbi and everyone else that cooked, cleaned, ate, drank and bull****ted!

Great to see so many Roadfooders...and now that we have our specail ID tag, we'll always know the true identities!

The weather was perfect and the setting - my first time up that way - was even more perfect!

Thanks so much!

Sure, sure. The old ridicule-it-and-it-will-go-away ploy is obvious. But anyone can see that it was fear of the inevitible clobbering by an out-of-state brat that made you keep the Carle's bratwurst from being permitted to compete alongside those inferior tube-chops.

OK, some photos, bear with me...

























And last but not least, our great host and the day's hero, taking a deserved rest:


Thank you so much! The food was awesome and we had a wonderful time!!

Michael Hoffman


Sure, sure. The old ridicule-it-and-it-will-go-away ploy is obvious. But anyone can see that it was fear of the inevitible clobbering by an out-of-state brat that made you keep the Carle's bratwurst from being permitted to compete alongside those inferior tube-chops.

Michael,
 
Frankly (that is not a pun), you wouldn't want to enter your superior sausage in any contest where ALDI is the runner-up by a hairs width.
 
There's always ... no!  There will be no next year.
 
Jim

JRPfeff

Michael Hoffman


Sure, sure. The old ridicule-it-and-it-will-go-away ploy is obvious. But anyone can see that it was fear of the inevitible clobbering by an out-of-state brat that made you keep the Carle's bratwurst from being permitted to compete alongside those inferior tube-chops.

Michael,
 
Frankly (that is not a pun), you wouldn't want to enter your superior sausage in any contest where ALDI is the runner-up by a hairs width.
 
There's always ... no!  There will be no next year.
 
Jim

No next year? I realize that it must have been a lot of hard work -- and I can't imagine how anyone could eat so much bratwurst in one day -- but it sounds, and looks, like it was lots of fun.
 
One thing: I had no idea you could still get Schlitz. That was my favorite beer, going back to when I was a little kid and my father would order a short beer for me when we'd go out to eat, and it was the beer he kept at home for me to drink after high school football practice (yes, the coach told us to go home and drink some beer to get back what we'd sweated out in practice).
 
Meantime, I'd better call Carle's in Bucyrus and tell them to stop planning for next year's event.

One thing: I had no idea you could still get Schlitz.

Yes, the original 50s-60s recipe has been restored, in bottles and on tap. Schlitz in cans is still the post-70s formula. Miller contract brews it for Pabst, which bought Schlitz from Stroh's. The "old school"/retro Schlitz is one of the first among what will probably be many retro beers coming out over the next year or so. It's selling very well. 


It's something of a surprise too, first for being pretty good, and second for being so hoppy... younger drinkers/hipsters who have made Pabst so popular may not like it as much as Boomers who fondly remember it when it wasn't retro.

I'm going to go looking for it this afternoon.

If I can interject a suggestion for "next Year".  Set aside a two-day time slot (or a long day one day if you are going to use the holiday). The Glee Club did a 5 stop BBQ day for it's first get-together and some of us were pretty uncomfortable at the end of the day.

Since that time we have used the President's Day Weekend, and targeted our meetings for 'Warmer-Weather' Locations. When we did Owensboro, KY a couple of years ago we suffered with a lot of snow and ice. The didn't cut back on the participation, but it was a concern for the time-planners.

  We try to get 3 or 4 meal locations over a two to three day time span in whatever town  (or area) we are targeting. Our group has kinda settled in at about 25-30 showing up for the main dinners with some folks heading out on their own for other activities. (Mobile and Memphis/Greenville,MS come to mind).  Next Feb we will be in the Charleston,SC area and several of the folks are already making suggestions for places to go. We will start the planning thread after the Buffalo NY weekend coming up shortly. It is always better to plan on a full-tummy!!
  Pot-Lucks are a whole 'nother activity. I think you may want to do a 'world-fest Potluck' with the skills you all have demonstrated this weekend, It would an outstanding get-together with dishes from all over the World, eith purchased from restaurant/groceries or home-made.  What a theme !!!!! Good Luck and Thanks for sharing the feeling of comradery that you had this weekend!
AL

BuddyRoadhouse

abe_froeman


Any chance we can get the recipes for the German potato salad and the bok choy/ramen salad?  Both were wonderful!

JRP was kind enough to email me the German potato salad recipe.  I will be happy to forward it to all interested parties.

Buddy

 
I would really appreciate it if you would forward the  German potato salad recipe to me.  It looks amazing! What a wonderful day for all of you!

Will you be sharing the results of the "Champions" with the rest of us?

Were the words in giant, bolded font not clear enough?

JRPfeff


Come on over.  I'm cooking leftover brats for lunch.

Yes!  I really am.

I'm going to do my original plan of pitting the "Champions" against each other.  It will be a different kind of test, on bun with condiments.

I am also preparing a Bracketology for those who didn't attend.  It will highlight some of yesterday's biggest surprises.

I should have been more specific. I did see the big bold font, this is the post I meant when I asked him to share the "Champions" with us.

Congrats RJ - you were in the first level.  I'll post details tonight.

jrp

Since I know nearly all the sausagemakers, (including the distinguished gentleman from Elburn) who had brats in this competition it has my interest. I have been waiting all summer to see the results. Most of us compete every spring a the Wisconsin Association of Meat Processors product show. That competition is judged a lot by acadamia and others in the industry. This one is cool because its the end consumers judging us against each other! No matter the results, good work guys and gals!

As I stated on Sunday when the winners were announced, I'm not surprised by, nor do I think there is any shame for the losers in Aldi's high ranking.  Aldi is a German company that has been known to import many of their items.  There's a good chance that those brats were produced in Germany and brought over here.  Even if they were made over here, I'll bet the recipe used was dictated by the German parent company.  Even the best Wisconsin bratwurst would have a tough time competing against a true German version.

Maybe our new friend RJ87, who is deeply in tune with sausage making over here, has some insight into where Aldi's brats originate.

Buddy

RJ,

I think it is too cool that we got the attention of Wisconsin's sausagemaking world.  My blog received hits today from ALDI and Klements.

Although, we aren't sausagemakers, this wasn't just a bunch of Cheesehead schlubs picking their favorites. Yes we had assorted Milwaukee area food lovers, but we also had several food and dining professionals judging. They included an encased meats educator, an online ethnic restaurant critic, the creator of a champion commercial barbecue sauce, an online beverage and spirits commentator, and competition barbecuers & judges.

BTW - I lived in Hudson for a year and think I worked with the father of one of your former employees.  He just may be the only 6'8" Hudsonian with a thick Boston accent and a cousin who's an Olympic curling champion.

jrp

In the interest of science and better bratdom; on Monday Bobbi, Martin and I finally held my Taste-Off of Champions.

For this showdown I cooked and cut up six different brats (including the 4 "champions" and Sunday's winner). In this tasting we identified the brats up front and consumed the brats on buttered & toasted City Bakery hardrolls.  The rolls seemed to make a more highly spiced bratwurst necessary to fully appreciate its flavor.  We discussed our impressions while eating which may have also affected our preferences.

Bobbi's favorite was the brat from RJ's Meats, Martin preferred Glenn's Markets brat, and I called it a tie for RJ's, Glenn's and Miesfeld's. I thought that Miesfeld's were especially complimented by the buttered hardroll. Next in our ratings were Schwai's and Karl's. The Karl's brat was a bit too peppery and Schwai's (Sunday's winner) was slightly less seasoned than my favorites.  We also included an "also ran" from Sunday that was the least favorite of the brats.  It did not have enough seasoning to be distinctive.

I now believe that the buttered rolls add another dimension to the flavor of the bratwurst.  If I were to ever have a sequel to The Great Brat Challenge (perish the thought), the samples would be offered on buns.

Bottom line, these "Champion" bratwurst are Champions for a reason.

I have a very brief (8 images) slideshow here.  I had to guess at some of the names in the first group photo so clarifications/corrections would be welcome.  Thanks!

I was going to bring these to share but decided not to.  I hope no one's too disappointed.


Brad