Friends in High Places: Lakefront Brewery

Below, a photo of the highly coveted Holiday Spice Lager brewed by Lakefront Brewery; I beat out the Ukranian hockey players for the last case available in 2006 (please don't tell them where I live - I would like to keep my teeth.)

Some people are very happy when they are friends with a Hollywood agent. Others when they marry into the managing partner's family. Me? I'm more than happy to have friends that have a brewery in Milwaukee. And not just any brewery but a brewery that brews the best beer that I've had since I've discovered the Hitachino Nest Beers. A shout-out to Orlando and Luther and all the guys at Lakefront Brewery!

What makes the Holiday Spice Lager so special? Could it be the wonderful spices (nutmeg, orange peel, cinnamon, clove, and ginger) from the Spice House? Or could it be that it's 10% abv? For us Angelenos who are used to the weak beer that is shipped to the West Coast (need I remind you of the Staples Center/"neer beer" fiasco?) this is a very big deal (even 5% abv is a very big deal out here!)

Below, two very happy Holiday Spice drinkers, USC Rad Grad Student and Maestro. Maestro, until very recently, was in the doghouse but now he is in the penthouse. How did he do it? you wonder. Well, he brought back from Paris for me for my bday a Miles Davis CD that you can't find in the States and a bottle of creme de fraise a la fraise des bois. See how easy it is to please me Dear Reader?

Below, another very happy Holiday Spice drinker.

Is reaching for a bottle of Holiday Spice Lager like reaching out to God?

Thanks to Orlando for making me a very popular hostess this holiday season!

Bonus photo: a cupcake made by Adorable Gourmet H. After staying up for 24 hours (how does Jack Bauer do it?) my reward after the bacchanalian New Year's Eve fete. 218 calories, 6.8 grams of fat each. Not bad stats, but I was left five of them...

Lakefront Brewery
1872 North Commerce Street
Milwaukee, WI 53212
www.lakefrontbrewery.com

Milwaukee Day 2: Mader's and The Spice House

Below, a large glass of "Spotted Cow" - another beer locally brewed in Wisconsin. This one was brewed in the Old World Swiss Village of New Glarus, WI. Need I add that this beer has a high alcohol content? This beer was good but I liked Rendevous so much better (A shout out to Orlando and Adam and all the guys at Lakefront Brewery!)

Mader's is a Milwaukee classic. You've probably read about it in Roadfood or saw it on one of many Foodtv shows (like on what's her name's show? the perky one?) After my great sup at Coquette Cafe I was in the mood for another culinary adventure and somehow I found my way to Old World Third Street even though the GPS system was en bonne forme (meaning it was more demonic than ever - I'm not even going to tell you what it did on our way to the rehearsal dinner.) The last time that mumsy was at Mader's was right after my brother was born and both sets of grandparents met each other for the first time - if you knew my grandparents you would know that this was a complete disaster!

Below, two of Mader's specialties: Sauerbraten and Wiener Schnitzel. This was actually my second plate since my first one was ice cold and they insisted on bringing me new food instead of just heating up my initial plate (the second plate wasn't that much warmer.) The Schnitzel was good but the Sauerbraten was a disapointment: the meat wasn't very good quality and the sauce didn't have that much of a contrast between the sweet and sour.

Below, the oxtail soup. How often do you see that on the menu? This was really good and it was nice to have something different and perhaps somewhat classic.

Below, mumsy's beer stein.

After lunch we went to The Spice House which was the original Penzey's before Bill Penzey opened Penzey's. It has many of the same spice and seasoning blends that Penzey's has but it is much more quaint and inviting than Penzey's. Also, I like their garam masala much better - the Penzey's version has too much clove in it.

So, I bought whole cardamon pods (green), Tandoori seasoning (this is a gift), "European" style peppercorns (black and white), smoked Spanish paprika (sweet), ground coriander, and whole cumin seed. The piece de resistance is a blend called Milwaukee Iron Seasoning (I don't think that Penzey's has this one). It is so good! It's like a southwestern seasoning but much better: it has chipotle in it so it's smokey and it also has lots of garlic. I'm dying to get a bone in rib-eye and douse it with this stuff.

Also on Old World Third Street is Usinger's sausage store and The Cheese Mart which sells Green Bay Packer's cheese.

Mader's
1041 North Old World Third Street
Milwaukee, WI 53203
www.madersrestaurant.com

The Spice House
1031 North Old World Third Street
Milwaukee, WI 53203
www.thespicehouse.com