10 Things People in Wisconsin Can’t Live Without

August 15, 2015

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Many of the 10 Things People in Wisconsin Can’t Live Without are ‘No Brainers’, especially for Wisconsin Residents, but we thought it would be fun to share them with you anyway.

1. The Green Bay Packers

Photo credit: Phil Roeder / Foter / CC BY

Who would’ve thunk it? A little football team that started in 1919 would become such a big part of Wisconsin. Less than 16% of Green Bay Residents are NOT Packer Fans (According to research by Nielsen Scarborough), and if we had to guess, we think that more than 60% of all Wisconsin Residents are loyal fans. All in all, there is nothing better than football season in Wisconsin!

2. Beer

Wisconsin comes in 3rd in the Nation for bars per capita with over 3,043+ bars for the 5.7 million residents in the state. We sure love our beer, and that may come from the many breweries that started in Wisconsin, and the many that still exist! Miller (Milwaukee, WI), Leinenkugels (Chippewa Falls), New Glarus (New Glarus, WI), and Pabst (Born in Milwaukee, WI) are just a few worth mentioning.

3. Cheese

Wisconsin is known as the Dairy Land. Our cheeses are nationally known, and some of the best in the world! A few places we recommend, include: Henning’s Wisconsin Cheese and Vern’s Cheese.

4. Brats

A bratwurst, also known as a brat in American English, is a sausage usually composed of veal, pork or beef. The name is derived from Old High German Brätwurst, from brät-, which is finely chopped meat and Wurst, or sausage.

Bratwurst is a common type of sausage in the United States, especially in the state of Wisconsin, where the largest ancestry group is German. Originally brought to North America by German immigrants, it is a common sight at summer cookouts, alongside the more famous hot dog. Wisconsin is also the origin of the “beer brat”, a regional favorite where the bratwurst are poached in beer (generally a mixture of a pilsner style beer with butter and onions) prior to grilling over charcoal.

The bratwurst was popularized in Sheboygan County, Wisconsin in the 1920s. In general, each local butcher shop would take orders and hand make bratwurst fresh to be picked up on a particular day. The fat content of the sausages was substantial, making daily pick up necessary to avoid spoilage. Some of the fat is removed as a result of the cooking over charcoal.

The bratwurst (or “brat”) also became popular as a mainstay of sports stadiums after Bill Sperling introduced bratwurst to Major League Baseball in Milwaukee County Stadium in 1954. The brats, which sold for 35 cents then, were grilled and placed into a container of a special tomato sauce before being served. The bratwurst were such a hit, Sperling said, that Duke Snider of the Brooklyn Dodgers took a case back to New York. Currently Miller Park in Milwaukee, Wisconsinis the only baseball stadium that sells more bratwurst than hot dogs.

Info taken from: Wikipedia

5. The Badgers

Photo credit: Jim Bauer / Foter / CC BY-ND

Wisconsin Badgers Basketball and Football have become almost as big as the packers. We have been blessed with great coaches and players, and the games are always worth watching. In 2014 the Badgers beat the unbeaten Kentucky Wildcats in the final four to advance to the final 2 in basketball. They lost but they did one hell of a job. We had two Badgers go early in the draft with Kaminsky and then our own hometown boy Sam Dekker going to Houston. Our Badger football team has 2 Heisman trophy winners and The Badgers are 11-10 in bowl games, and have made 14 bowl appearance in the past 15 seasons, including a school record seven straight appearances.

6. The Brewers

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The Brewers are an American Professional Baseball Team that are another very big Wisconsin pastime. There have been many bad and some decent seasons, but we are loyal to our Brew Crew! Miller Park Stadium is a great place to watch a game and carry on family traditions. In fact, out of all 30 baseball stadiums Miller Park is listed as the 7th best baseball stadium. It has the best tailgating, first rate food, Bernie Brewer’s slide in left field, the sixth-inning sausage races, and the best thing in Milwaukee besides Summerfest.

7. The Bucks

Photo credit: compujeramey / Foter / CC BY

Founded in 1968, The Milwaukee Bucks are an American Professional Basketball Team that has done very well considering they have won a championship only once in 1971, two conference titles (1971 and 1974), and thirteen division titles (1971–74, 1976, 1980–86, 2001). They have had amazing players on the team such as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Sidney Moncrief, Oscar Robertson, Bob Lanier, Glenn “Big Dog” Robinson, Ray Allen, Sam Cassell, Andrew Bogut, Michael Redd, Terry Cummings, Vin Baker, Jon McGlocklin, Brandon Jennings, Toni Kukoč, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jabari Parker, and Anthony Mason. Right now the owners are trying to secure funding for a new arena or they are threatening to take the team to another city like Seattle or Las Vegas but with a large fan base we know we’ll all step up and not let it happen.

8. Festivals (ie: Summerfest, Country USA, Rockfest)

Wisconsin is home to numerous Festivals and Fairs, and a few of them are known very well nationally! Summerfest (770K+ attended), and Country USA (attended by over 50K) are some of the most popular festivals, but we also host numerous others that you should definitely check out! For more events – check out Events in Wisconsin

9. Outdoor Activities (boating,camping, fishing, hunting, snow sports)

Photo credit: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service – Midwest Region / Foter / CC BY

Wisconsin is a great state for enjoying the outdoors. With our numerous lakes and forests, boating, camping, fishing and hunting are very popular among it’s residents. Ice fishing is a big outdoor sport that is popular come wintertime in Wisconsin.

10.Tailgating

Photo credit: Aasen Ryan Family / Foter / CC BY-ND

It is almost as important as the actual games! Tailgating is a sport all of it’s own in Wisconsin. Residents even throw their parties outside in the frigid winter weather to show their love for the game and the team. In fact Miller Stadium is listed as the best baseball stadium in all of baseball for tailgating.