Lakefront Brewery

Founded in 1987 by brothers Russ and Jim Klisch, several of its brands are named after Milwaukee neighborhoods, such as Riverwest Stein Beer and East Side Dark.

The brewery was the first in the U.S. to bottle fruit beer since prohibition was repealed, starting in 1992 with the seasonal Lakefront Cherry Lager.

President, owner and founder Russ Klisch started a partnership with Wisconsin farmers to grow organic hops in his home state.

To achieve Travel Green certification, businesses must meet several goals including demonstration of how they encourage staff and vendors to be environmentally aware and how they reduce their waste and energy consumption.

To meet their philosophy, the company provides beer at the start of the tour, shares jokes along the way, and explains the brewing process and history of Lakefront.

There, visitors get to sing-a-long to the theme from Laverne and Shirley, the 1970s TV show, whose characters worked at the fictional Shotz Brewery.

At the end of November 2013, Russ Davis did not renew his lease with Lakefront Brewery and the Palm Garden was closed.

Since then, Russ Klisch extended his tour hours into the night and opened up the Lakefront Brewery Beer Hall.

Lakefront Brewery now runs their own fish fry on Friday nights from 4 P.M. to 9 P.M., which features music performed by the Brewhaus Polka Kings.

The brewery also has a strong presence at Summerfest in Milwaukee, featuring its own pavilion selling a variety of its brews, including New Grist.