Category: Beer
The craft brewing scene has grown tremendously on the peninsula in recent years. Door County breweries have popped up in Egg Harbor, Sturgeon Bay, Baileys Harbor, and Ellison Bay, with two more just across the border in Kewaunee County.
Whether you love IPAs, Belgian saisons, ciders, or lagers, one of these Door County breweries will quench your thirst.
Door County Breweries
Door County Brewing Company
2434 Cty F
Baileys Harbor, WI 54202
(920) 839-1515
www.doorcountybrewingco.com
Founded in 2012, Door County Brewing Company is a family owned craft brewery. Owned and run by the McMahon family, Door County Brewing Company is located in Baileys Harbor and uses as many ingredients for their beer from Door County as possible. Their tap room features Wisconsin cheese boards and curds, live music, and they frequently bring in food trucks.
Island Orchard Cider
12040 Garrett Bay Rd
Ellison Bay, WI 54210
(920) 854-3344
www.islandorchardcider.com
Located on the northern tip of the peninsula, Island Orchard Cider makes its home in Ellison Bay. Island Orchard Cider owns an orchard on Washington Island where they grow the apples for their ciders. Their tasting room and cider pub offer customers an opportunity to see the cider making process.
Shipwrecked Brew Pub
7791 Hwy 42
Egg Harbor, WI 54209
(920) 868-2767
www.shipwreckedmicrobrew.com
Shipwrecked Brew Pub was the first microbrewery in Door County, opened in 1997. Housed in a historic building in the center of Egg Harbor that dates to 1882, the brewery and restaurant is open year ’round. Brewmaster Rich Zielke is in charge of brewing the hand-crafted Door County beers. Shipwrecked offers an extensive menu in their restaurant and also operates an inn.
Shipwrecked burned in a fire in August of 2017. Its owners hope to rebuild in time for the 2018 summer season.
Starboard Brewing Company
151 N. 3rd Ave
Sturgeon Bay, WI 54235
(920) 818-1062
www.starboardbrewing.com
Located in downtown Sturgeon Bay, Starboard Brewing Company is Door County’s first nano-brewery. Their tap room offers their in-house brewed craft beers, Wisconsin cheeses, smoked salmon, and more.
Kewaunee County Breweries
Ahnapee Brewery
202 Clark St.
Algoma, WI 54201
(920) 785-0822
www.ahnapeebrewery.com
Ahnapee Brewing stretches back as far as 1868 and is an integral part of beer-making in Wisconsin. This tap room offers flatbread pizza, snacks, small-batch beers and tasting events.
Thumb Knuckle Brewing Company
E0208 Hwy 54
Luxemburg, WI 54217
www.thumbknuckle.beer
Newly opened in 2017, Thumb Knuckle Brewing Company is located in Luxemburg, Wis. The brewery has three beers available with a fourth in the works. The tap room also offers its own soda and growlers.
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Cheers!: The Dude Ranch Comes to Me
I just cracked open my first bottle of Apricot Dude Ranch, a Belgian-style pale ale with apricots from Door County Brewing Co., and I just want to say Yippee ki yay! As a kid, it seemed the only way I’d ever get a chance to ride a horse was by going to a dude ranch, […]
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Door County Beer Fest Releases Event Details
Door County’s largest craft beer event of the year, the Door County Beer Festival, has released VIP and music details for the June 17, 2017 event. VIP attendees can take their experience to another level with the new VIP Lounge in 2017. VIP attendees will enjoy exclusive access to the VIP lounge, with seating and […]
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Cheers!: Put This Pilsner In Your Almanac
As I might have mentioned in the past, I’m always on the lookout for a great lager or pilsner. Yes, there is a distinction. A Czech pilsner is quite different from a Munich lager, for example. Yes, technically, they are both lagers, but the Czech pilsner is softer and, to my palate, more seductive than […]
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Door County Brewing Releases “Apricot Dude Ranch”
Door County Brewing Co. announces today the release of “Apricot Dude Ranch,” a Belgian pale ale brewed with apricot. This is the first release in a set of brand new seasonal beers to be released in 2017 and the first of four labels designed by Milwaukee artist, Francisco Ramirez. “We’re very excited for the first […]
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Cheers!: Is That a Raspberry Grin on Your Mug?
Raspberries move me. They always have, ever since discovering massive wild raspberry stands in the wilds surrounding Island Lake while visiting my grandparents as a child, and learned that these hairy red berries really can brighten your world. The taste of those juicy wild berries was otherworldly, transporting me from this tiny smudge on Earth […]
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Beer Bingo, American Dream Theater & More Weekend Plans
It’s all about good music, creative pursuits and the great outdoors this weekend on the Door Peninsula. Check out our top picks for the weekend ahead! Friday, March 31 Riders In the Sky Perpetual crowd-pleasers, this Grammy award-winning quartet mixes authentic Western music with yodeling, rope tricks, and a whole heap of crackpot humor in […]
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Beer started flowing at noon on March 18 at Wisconsin’s newest craft brewery, Thumb Knuckle Brewing in the unincorporated Kewaunee County community of Walhain, about two miles west of Luxemburg on Hwy. 54. Sure, you’re wondering about the Thumb Knuckle name. The brewery’s logo says it all – the state of Wisconsin has been turned […]
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Cheers!: Sourness Is In the Mouth of the Beholder
I’ve been looking forward to this one for a couple weeks now. I was going to try it a while back but was distracted by caribou. After performing nearly a full shift of chores around the house on a recent Saturday, I felt I had earned a sit down in the glorious March afternoon sun […]
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Cheers!: The Well-Ordered Life Can Result in an Amazing Interior Freedom and Happiness
Once you’ve got Trappist ale on the brain, there is only one thing to do, pour a Trappist ale to relieve your poor, old brain. It all began with NASA’s Feb. 22 announcement of Trappist-1, a dwarf star that may give life to beings on its seven terrestrial-like transiting planets. NASA sent a diagram of […]
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Cheers!: No Apologies for My Premature Brewskiulation
American television shows were popular when I lived in England during the last half of the 1970s. Star Trek ran every Saturday night on one channel, opposite American westerns on another channel, BBC 2, I think (John Wayne might have been more popular in England than he was here). I forget what ran at that […]
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Cheers!: Smoke ’Em If You Got ’Em!
I was eagerly eyeing a bottle of brown sour ale when my eyes were distracted by heavily branched cervidae (elk? caribou?) parading across the label of a bomber of 2016 Smoked Porter from the Alaskan Brewing Co. Sorry, sour brown, but I’ll have to see you later because it has been way, way too long […]
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Craig Hartinger of the venerable Seattle-area specialty beer importer Merchant du Vin has become my favorite beer promoter. The sequence of events that led to his winning this award in my mind began on the afternoon of Feb. 22 with an amazing email blast from NASA about the discovery of a solar system with seven […]
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Aldo Leopold Weekend, Jay Whitney & More Weekend Plans
Things are warming up on the Door Peninsula! Celebrate the first weekend of March with thought-provoking exhibitions of art, boundary-stretching music and a weekend-long celebration of the great environmentalist Aldo Leopold. Friday, March 3 Eating Animals at James May James May Gallery hosts the opening reception of its newest exhibition featuring works by Camille Iemmolo […]
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Cheers!: Pairing Leatherhead Beers with Sonny’s Pizza
Pizza and beer go together like peanut butter and jelly, but, after many years of attending beer tastings, I was invited to my first beer and pizza pairing last week at Sonny’s Italian Kitchen & Pizzeria in Sturgeon Bay. Jacob Sutrick, brewmaster at Green Bay’s newest craft brewery, Leatherhead Brewing Co., featured three of […]
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A Dark Irish Comedy, Taco Soup & More Weekend Plans
It’s a weekend for all musical tastes in Door County, whether you prefer Chicago altfolk, the sounds of low brass or rich Brooklyn harmonies. Fill in the gaps with a presentation by an impressive youth author and an afternoon of tasty soups to benefit a great local zoo. Friday, February 24 Witty, Alt-Folk Join Chicago-based […]
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Cheers!: Guinness Scores with Rye Pale Ale
I did a double take when I saw it in the store. What the…? Guinness Rye Pale Ale? Yes, I’ll have some of that! According to the attractive royal blue and gold label, this is “an aromatic amber ale.” Yeah, I guess you could call it amber-colored. I’d call it dark gold. No matter. Taste […]
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Cheers!: Two Session Beers and a Stout for the Ages
What better on a cold January night than to crack open a glass of liquid sunshine in the form of an unfiltered wheat beer, in this case, El Hefe from Pearl Street Brewery of La Crosse. Hefeweizens are guaranteed to brighten the day. This one is bright and tart, with just a hint of spiciness. […]
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Love on Holiday, Newport Candlelight Hike & More Weekend Plans
What do you love about Door County – its nature, music, beer and performances? Lucky you, there is all of this and more coming up this weekend. Take your pick from our top picks for the weekend ahead! Friday, February 10 Big Mouth Trio Enjoy an eclectic mix of blues and jazz Friday evening with […]
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Cheers!: Under the Spell of Darkness
It was the cool pooch in shades that caught my eye. And then I saw the words to the left of the dog’s right ear – Fear the Dark. OK. I accept that challenge. And I accept it knowing that Lagunitas, makers of this beer, NightTime Ale, are hop lunatics. I would love to love […]
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Winter Fest, Pond Hockey & More Weekend Plans
Celebrate the very best of winter in Door County with your pick of festivals this weekend! Whether you prefer hanging out on the ice watching hockey or taking part in a quirky competition, there is somewhere for you to enjoy the cold weather on the peninsula. Friday, February 3 Friday Night Jazz Door County Brewing […]