There are very few things that scream “summer” in Wisconsin more than a freshly grilled bratwurst washed down with a deliciously refreshing local beer.
But, what makes a truly great bratwurst?
The answer to that question might be more complicated than I first anticipated, thanks to the skillful hand of Dean Rindahl, master sausage maker for Fox Brothers Piggly Wiggly of Oconomowoc and Hartland. Thanks to Rindahl’s skill and a bit of home-grown ingenuity, Fox Brothers’ bratwurst has earned top honors at the Wisconsin Association of Meat Producers (WAMP) Product Competition for three years running.
As a testament to their popularity, the Fox Brothers stores sold over 3 ½ tons of bratwurst in the 14 days surrounding Memorial Day weekend.
Mary Jo Newburg, who has been shopping at the Oconomowoc store for years, says that Fox Brothers produces the best bratwurst she’s ever eaten. And the awards seem to back up her recommendation.
The WAMP competition is one of the most reputed in the United States, encouraging meat processors not only to process finer quality of meat abut also to employ ingenuity to produce gourmet flavored products. This year, 56 different meat processing plants and meat markets from throughout the state entered 1,014 individual products into 36 categories including summer sausage, bratwurst,
ham, bacon, and smoked poultry. Over 40 judges including food scientists, out-of-state meat processors, and other food industry professionals were employed to judge the entries, which were scored for external appearance and eye-appeal, internal appearance, aroma, and taste.
Fox Brothers Bratwurst have been bestowed with Grand Champion honors for their Philly Cheese Bratwurst (2011), their Precooked Spicy Southwest Jalapeno & Cheddar Chicken Bratwurst (2010), and their Green Pepper and Onion Bratwurst (2009). Their Precooked Bratwurst also won Grand Reserve Status in the 2011 competition. Fox Brothers is the only store in the metropolitan Milwaukee marketplace to win an award at the show for three straight years. Additionally, their Southwest Jalapeno & Cheddar Chicken Brats won top honors at the 2010 Wisconsin State Fair.
I was invited out to their Oconomowoc store over the weekend for a taste-testing. And I’ve got to say, I was pretty impressed. Every single variety of their brats cooked up juicy and tender. The spices were assertive, yet balanced. And even the precooked variety seemed to retain all the delectable qualities of fresh.
When I asked the Fox Brothers team for their recommendations for cooking and serving the best brats around, they were excited to share their knowledge. Here’s what they said: 
1. NEVER precook your brats. If you wish to simmer them in beer, do so after giving the sausages an initial sear on the grill. Or simply buy a package of Fox Brothers Beer Bratwurst, which have the beer flavor incorporated into the mix.
2. Always use hardwoord charcoal for cooking your brats. NEVER use lighter fluid. Purists use an electric starter or chimney starter lit with crumpled paper to start their charcoal.
3. When the coals are partially white, spread in a single layer. Allow the charcoal to burn until coals are covered with white-ash glowing embers (about 20-30 minutes).
4. Place bratwurst on grill and turn often until done, approximately 20-25 minutes. The brats are finished cooking when they feel firm when squeezed with one’s fingertips.
5. Pat Fox, a Sheboygan native and co-owner of Fox Brothers Piggly Wiggly, recommends serving two brats on a buttered Sheboygan hard roll dressed with ketchup, chopped onion and brown mustard.
Fox Brothers currently produces 17 different bratwurst flavors including garlic onion, mushroom & swiss, chorizo, spicy Hungarian, and a seasonal apple sausage in the autumn. Dean Rindahl says he’s currently working on perfecting a few new flavors as well, including a bacon cheddar, Hawaiian, and chili cheese flavored sausages.
It’s not quite the Baskin Robbins of bratwurst yet, but at Fox Bros. Piggly Wiggly, it’s clear that awarding-winning choices have arrived in the picnic-sausage market. And all that’s required is a short 25 minute jaunt westward.
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Fox Brothers Piggly Wiggly
www.foxbrospigglywiggly.com
5848 Brown
Oconomowoc, WI 53066
(262) 567-8376
505 Cottonwood Avenue
Hartland, WI 53029-2308
(262) 367-2922
