Wisconsin

We've got some of the best sausage around (like the Schublig and Mettwurst from Ruef's Meat Market in New Glarus); some of the finest craft beers (like the lambic from New Glarus Brewing Co. and Good Old Potosi Beer, a light-bodied ale); and** 600 kinds of cheese** (like the Limburger from Chalet Cheese Cooperative in Monroe and the cheese curds from Gibbsville in Sheboygan Falls). But those are just the most obvious of Wisconsin's culinary charms. The state also has more than 800 miles of freshwater shoreline where you can find delicious fish (like the smoked whitefish from Charlie's Smokehouse in Ellison Bay). We've got thousands of acres of orchards where you can buy ciders and fruit wines and sweet-tart cherries (like the dried ones from Country Ovens in Forestville). We have distillers and winemakers who are putting the state on the map for fine wines and spirits (like the small-batch gin from Death's Door Spirits on Washington Island). Our family-run bakeries and confectioners make sweets that are hard to find anywhere else, including big, round kringles (like the ones from Racine Danish Kringles in Racine ); old-fashioned chocolates (like the "melty bars" from Oaks Candy in Oshkosh and the wintergreen patties from Kaaps in Green Bay); European-style breads (like the Norwegian lefse from Countryside Lefse in Blair, the marbled rye and pretzel rolls from Miller Bakery in Milwaukee, and the hard rolls from the American Club in Kohler); traditional pies (like the apple pie from the Elegant Farmer in Mukwonago); and Florentiners and Nussknackers (like those from Clasen's European Bakery in Middleton). And, at places like Koops' in Pleasant Prairie, we've even got tangy Düsseldorf-style mustard to go with all that sausage, beer, and cheese. —_Dan Florey, Middleton, Wisconsin _