Wisconsin Craft Brewers are Ready to Make a Statement

Wisconsin’s craft brewers are ready to make a statement about independence. [newsletter_signup_box]

On Tuesday, Nov. 20, at least 30 small and independent craft brewers in Wisconsin will hoist a flag at their breweries. The flags will have the image of the independent craft brewer seal, a symbol the Brewers Association (publishers of CraftBeer.com) released in 2017 to give beer lovers a way to identify breweries who fit the craft brewer definition.

Since local breweries are small businesses, Wisconsin Brewers Guild Executive Director Mark Garthwaite says the breweries chose the date to fall just ahead of Small Business Saturday, which falls on Nov. 24, the Saturday after Thanksgiving. The flags will be a visual reminder for holiday shoppers to visit the small and independent businesses in their communities during the holiday season.

The Wisconsin Brewers Guild also wants to bring attention to the beer stores, bars and other beer retailers who support independent beer by presenting them with signs. Those signs will signal to beer lovers that those establishments are “reliable Wisconsin craft beer destinations” the guild says.

(READ: 50 Fastest Growing Craft Brewers)

“As an organization, we felt it was important to add emphasis to the significance of the independent craft seal by extending its meaning beyond the brewery,” Garthwaite says. “Small and independent retailers are important to us and they are important for providing consumers with more choice.”

The breweries that will be raising the flag with the independent craft brewer seal are:

• Badger State Brewing Co. – Green Bay
• Bavarian Bierhaus – Glendale
• Biloba Brewing Co. – Brookfield
• Capital Brewery – Middleton
• Central Waters Brewing Co. – Amherst
• Dead Bird Brewing Co. – Milwaukee
• Delafield Brewhaus – Delafield
• Eagle Park Brewing Co. – Milwaukee
• Enlightened Brewing Co. – Milwaukee
• Fox River Brewing Co. – Appleton/Oshkosh
• Grumpy Troll Brewing – Mount Horeb
• Lakefront Brewery – Milwaukee
• Lazy Monk Brewing Co. – Eau Claire
• Milwaukee Brewing Co. – Milwaukee
• MobCraft Beer – Milwaukee
• Port Huron Brewing Co. – Wisconsin Dells
• PUBLIC Craft Brewing Co. – Kenosha
• Red Eye Brewing Co. – Wausau
• Rocky Reef Brewing Co. – Woodruff
• Sand Creek Brewing Co. – Black River Falls
• Second Salem Brewing Co. – Whitewater
• Sprecher Brewing Co. – Glendale
• St. Francis Brewery – St. Francis
• Stillmank Brewing Co. – Green Bay
• Stone Arch Brewpub – Appleton
• The Brewing Projekt – Eau Claire
• The Explorium Brewpub – Greendale
• The Fermentorium – Cedarburg
• Titletown Brewing Co. – Green Bay
• Wisconsin Brewing Co. – Verona

Want to support one of the breweries that will be flying the flag? Head to our Brewery Finder for directions.

If you’re in Wisconsin the week of Nov. 20, we’d love to see your photos of the flags. Snap a picture and post to Instagram with the #seektheseal hashtag. We’ll be looking to share those pictures on social media.

Go forth and let your independent flag fly!

Jess Baker

Jess Baker walked into a beer fest in 2010 and realized beer had come a long way from what her dad had been drinking since the 70s. She served as editor-in-chief of CraftBeer.com from spring 2016 to spring 2020, bringing you stories about the people who are the heartbeat behind U.S. craft brewing. She's a runner, a die-hard Springsteen fan, a mom who is always scouting family-friendly breweries, and always in search of a darn good porter.

CraftBeer.com is fully dedicated to small and independent U.S. breweries. We are published by the Brewers Association, the not-for-profit trade group dedicated to promoting and protecting America’s small and independent craft brewers. Stories and opinions shared on CraftBeer.com do not imply endorsement by or positions taken by the Brewers Association or its members.