New Glarus, Wisconsin

Beer time! If you’re a beer lover, you’ve probably heard of New Glarus, Wisconsin. It’s the home of New Glarus Brewing Co., well-known for its delicious brews and the fact that it doesn’t distribute out of state. People come from all over just to stock up and take back to wherever they came from. It’s kind of a big deal.

That’s why we went! But, we also went because New Glarus is known for its Swiss culture, charming downtown, and delicious food. (It’s also a big area for cycling, but we don’t really get into that.) So, we headed up there with my sister and brother-in-law to spend a day drinking and eating to our hearts’ content.

Situated in south-central Wisconsin, it was a couple hours’ drive from the Chicago area to get to our hotel, the Chalet Landhaus Inn.

It’s a Swiss-style hotel, quaint but large with its own bar and restaurant. It’s definitely the place to stay if you find yourself yearning for some New Glarus in your life.

After getting settled in, we had to head out for some lunch. The hotel backs up to the bike path through town, which makes it an easy, few minutes’ walk to get into the downtown area of New Glarus.

We stopped off at Sugar River Pizza Company to stuff ourselves good before heading to the brewery. They’ve got some delicious pizza, obviously, as well as salads and gluttonous appetizers.

Once our faces and bellies were proper stuffed, we headed off to the brewery.

 

Ah, Valhalla!

This is a major operation, and their newest brewing grounds are insanely large. They have a massive setup as well as land overlooking the hills around New Glarus and all sorts of walking paths, places to sit and drink, and old-style architecture throughout.

We spent plenty of time wandering around and sitting to try a whole lot of their beers. It’s a really great experience to sit out here and enjoy the day.

Do you think this angel is sad because she needs a beer? I do!

Unfortunately, the rains came in a major way, and we had to duck inside. D’oh! That, however, gave us the opportunity to walk around the brewery to drool a bit in wonder of all the amazing science that goes into making a glorious New Glarus beer.

Back outside after the pouring slowed down a bit, we headed over to the special release area to pick up their new sour beer. We had no idea there was a release on this day, but yay for us! We’re not huge fans of sours, but we had to scoop some anyway. And well, they’re extremely well-done. No surprise at New Glarus!

Downstairs from the brewery is a shop, where the previously mentioned people from all over the States come to get their stock. Plenty of locals, too, obviously! We loaded up as well, buying a bunch of goodness to take back to Illinois.

After a stop back at the hotel, we walked over to Puempel’s, a local bar that’s been in New Glarus since 1893.

We spent a while hanging out, talking to locals, and throwing money on the ceiling.

What?

Yep!

The idea here is to wrap a dollar around a coin and put a tack in it. Then you throw it up and see if it’ll stick! All the money that ends up on the ceiling gets donated to a different charity each month. It’s quite a competitive thing, and we spent a long time doing our damnedest to get some dollars up there. We succeeded, too! (With the help of some locals who know how to do it like pros.)

Later on in the evening, we popped over to the New Glarus Hotel, which is a restaurant. Not a hotel. It used to be a hotel, but now it’s a restaurant. Where you eat. Not sleep. Got it?

A traditional band was in full effect, with dancing and singing and partying and amazement.

We all had to get in on the action, too!

We were mainly here for Swiss deliciousness, and we had to get down with all sorts of traditional dishes. The pictures aren’t really good, but the food sure was!

Once we had stuffed ourselves beyond any reasonable amount of stuffing, we called it a night and got some well-earned and well-needed sleep!

Before we headed out in the morning, it was obviously coffee time. We walked the short hop and skip over to Fat Cat Coffee Works, a wonderful coffee shop and restaurant near our hotel.

Namaste, bitches! Ha.

 

And that’s a wrap! It was time to head back to our lives, leaving behind a town in which we most definitely did not spend enough time. New Glarus is a wonderful place with great people, delicious food, and unbelievable beer. It’s a worthwhile visit for folks of all types, and we highly recommend you go check it out.

As for us, we’ll be back!

A very special and very big thanks to everyone in New Glarus, especially all the fine folks we met at all the places we visited. Thanks to all of you for being so wonderful.

Want more? Join us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Google+, and Flickr.

Have you ever been to New Glarus, Wisconsin? If so, what’d you think? If not, what say ye? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!