Backyard Destinations

Disclosure: I received complimentary admission for the Lakefront Brewery tour in exchange for writing about my experience in Milwaukee. This assistance in no way affects the opinions expressed in my posts about the city. All opinions are my own.

In 1987, two brothers opened up Lakefront Brewery in Milwaukee, one of Wisconsin’s largest craft breweries. It serves more than 20 different beers and is a must-visit in the city.

I went to Lakefront mainly to go on the brewery tour while I was in Milwaukee in the summer and absolutely loved it. (If you’ve been reading my blog posts lately, you can probably tell I’m a fan of craft breweries.) Depending on the day you go, tours cost somewhere between $8 to $10.

Outdoor seating

Food

Before I went on the actual tour, I grabbed lunch with some of the communications team of Visit Milwaukee, who graciously took the tab. Collectively, we ordered beer cheese fries, beer cheese soup, fried cheese curds (I highly recommend this! So good!), a Wurst Board (which had a couple of different sausages on there), and some salads. Everything was cooked well and the food was delicious. If you enjoy food, then this is a place you can’t miss out on. Even if this part of Lakefront were a separate restaurant not tied to the brewery, I would come here just to eat. And if I ever get the chance to visit Milwaukee again, I’m definitely coming back to Lakefront.

Brewery tour

Having food before the tour actually worked out well, as it was nice to have something in the belly before walking around the facility and gulping down some beers. For the $8 to $10 you pay to learn about Lakefront, you receive 4 drink tokens for 6oz beer samples and a cool souvenir pint glass.

The tour is quite enjoyable with an animated and entertaining guide. You get to see the facility where beer is brewed and – in the process of learning about Lakefront – you also get the opportunity to smell malt and barley placed in some small glasses.

But probably the best part is being able to exchange one of your tokens for a beer during the tour.

It’s also really convenient to go on a tour because they’re offered 7 days a week at least 5 times per day. And another note: you’ll have to be 21 or older to go on the tour; otherwise, you have to be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian.

Fun facts about Lakefront Brewery

As always, it’s fun to learn about different places, and Lakefront is no exception. Here are a couple of interesting tidbits about it:

• The brewery serves gluten free beers, which are made with brown rice extract and other ingredients instead of grain
• Lakefront had the first gluten-free beer (New Grist) granted label approval by the US government
• Beer brewed here is sold in more than 30 states and internationally in Australia, Canada, South Korea, and Ukraine
• More than 100,000 people tour the brewery every year
• 60% of its beer goes to kegs, while 40% goes to bottles
• Its facility can back about 200 bottles per minute
• In 2015, Lakefront Brewery produced over 40,000 barrels of beer
• Lakefront is possibly the first brewery in the United States since the prohibition to make fruit beer, and it’s the second in the country to make pumpkin beer

With delicious food and beer, a lively brewery tour, and a beautiful beer hall, Lakefront Brewery is a great item to add to your itinerary when in Milwaukee!