Classy tailgating

The 2009 tailgate season officially kicks off Friday at Milwaukee’s Miller Park. The Brewers will also be playing a baseball game or something, but all that hitting and pitching will take second billing to the pre-game bacchanal outside the stadium. So instead of heading to the nearest megamarket to stock up on mass-produced brats and burgers, why not plan a menu that’s locally sourced and so much yummier? Decider scoured the city to find the best items to class up the many parking-lot parties to come.

Meat
There are certain things that will never show up at a proper tailgate—like veggie wraps—as these shindigs are definitely geared toward red-blooded flesh-eaters. The unadventurous carnivore can start with traditional brats from Stoddard’s Country Grove Market and Catering (available at Willy Street Co-op) before kicking up the testosterone a few notches with bison brats from Cherokee Bison Farms, Ltd. (available at Dane County Farmers’ Market). Meat patty connoisseurs know that all burgers aren’t cut from the same flank, so try the dry-aged Highland beef from Fountain Prairie Inn and Farms (Farmers’ Market), or the grass-fed from Black Earth Meat Market (Willy Street Co-op). If you’re a wayward veggie-inclined tailgater, see if you can slip a tofu walnut burger from Nature’s Bakery (1019 Williamson St., 257-3649) on the grill. Chances are good the drunks in your crew won’t even notice.

Sauerkraut
A normal helping of sauerkraut can cause the most ironclad stomach to bloat, but a brat just isn’t a brat without fermented cabbage. So if you have to do it, why not go with a friendlier version like Kindly Kraut? And it’s not just the kraut that’s amenable: Proprietor Andy Hanson will let you pick up your batch on his front porch on East Mifflin Street.

Buns and chips
With all the attention paid to the meat course, chips and buns are often overlooked. But no sausage should be downed without the warm embrace of a bun, or a side of deep-fried crunchy things. Natural Ovens boldly named its buns the Best Burger Buns (Willy Street Co-op), so that’s good enough for us. And it’s hard to beat the multicolored party festiveness of the blue, white, red, and yellow organic corn chips from Garden Of Eatin’ (Willy Street Co-op).

Beer
Even beer can fall prey to the “too much of a good thing” maxim, and Madison has no shortage of tremendous local beers. So if you’re feeling overwhelmed by the options, the always helpful folks at Star Liquor (1209 Williamson St., 255-8041), Cork And Bottle Liquor (855 E Johnson St., 256-3620), or Steve’s Liquor (various locations) would be happy to help you pick out a six-pack or three of some awesome locally brewed suds. Take that, Brew City.