bad frog

Second Street Antiques was an embarrassment of riches. Not only did I get the Miller Girl caps and two Schlitz caps, but I also found something that is definitely a contender for the Hall of Fame.

Bad Frog. You are bad-ass. Self-described as The Beer So Good...It's Bad, Bad Frog seems to be more about marketing than actual beer. If you read their history you'll see that they actually started making t-shirts for Bad Frog Beer, and then people started asking for said beer! HA!

So, the Bad Frog is giving you (and me) the finger on this pretty awesome bottle cap. But part of me thinks, man, if I put this sucker in the HOF, that is just one more feather in the Bad Frog cap! They didn't even want to make beer at first! Their website is clearly for people who have Attention Deficit Disorder. WTF?

But on the other hand, it's a badass frog. Under the cap it says, "Flip the Bird Get a Frog." It's colorful. It's eye catching. It really has all of the requirements for a HOF entry. Readers, I think I want to leave this one up to you. HOF? Leave your comments & I can tally them over the weekend.

And I want to leave you with this -- next week is killer for me. I will probably not be able to post at all but I will try my best to find some new crowns during my travels. So have an awesome week, and I'll see you on the flip side.

schlitz

Schlitz is a beer oft associated with Milwaukee and rightly so. Their website, I will admit, is pretty great despite their bare-bones timeline. Check out their TV advertising! Check our their downloads! Want a ring tone? Want a Schlitz desktop image? Look no further. And why is that woman forcing Schlitz to her man (who is bowling)? Why are they bowling?!? And the most important question: why isn't the image of the bowling man with woman from the '50s a prominent download? I want THAT to be my desktop image! And can they make that an image on a bottle cap? I'd buy that, too.

This bottle cap, which I'm guessing is older, was purchased at the amazing antique market where I also got the Miller cork lined cap and the Schlitz Malt Liquor. Upon reflection, neither Michael nor I have ever actually HAD a Schlitz. I believe that Shotz (Laverne & Shirley) is supposed to be Schlitz... I won't show the theme song again though.

This bottle cap is another case of the twist off OR use opener instructions, which I am growing to love. Seriously, if you can twist it off, just do it! I love that I'm given a choice, but if you know it's that easy to get the cap off... I don't know... that's just an extra step in my mind (and an opportunity to ruin your bottle cap, which no one wants. At least I don't!)

stevens point brewery/point premium root beer

I've written about Stevens Point Brewery before -- there was a little controversy about the "coolness" of the Whole Hog bottle cap a few weeks ago.

I came across Point Premium Root Beer in the Milwaukee Public Market (do you think my tourism dollars had any effect on the local economy?? I hope so!) and was excited -- and overwhelmed -- at the series of caps before me. I wanted all of them, but Michael was trying to reign me in. How much soda and beer could we drink in a day? We couldn't bring it with us on the plane (damn you TSA and your no liquids on the aircraft!) and we only had a day to drink it. And frankly, opening it, taking one sip and then dumping the rest is just wasteful - unless it's a malta -- so I really had to chose my battles, and try to get a variety of caps, instead of many in a series.

Point Premium Root Beer bottle caps remind me of Henry Weinhard's soda line (Can't Top This! Flip My Lid!) Dear readers -- who started this trend? Was it Henry? Was it Steven? Someone else that I have yet to discover? Which ones do you like better? Who has better slogans?

ale asylum

Yeah, with all of the selection at the Thief Wine Shop and Bar, there was no way I was leaving the Public Market with only two bottle caps. I admit it. I went back for more. There was an Ale Asylum Madtown Nutbrown that was calling my name. And with pretty lax rules about walking around the Market with open containers, sipping my Nutbrown and browsing the other vendors seemed like a perfectly reasonable way to spend another hour checking things out. We tasted some cheese at the West Allis Cheese and Sausage Shoppe . We smelled spices at the The Spice House. We discussed our plans for the afternoon (Harley Davidson Museum, shopping, etc).  We looked for more bottle caps!

The Ale Asylum has a pretty interesting theme going on: it makes me think of comic books and goth kids. As a former comic book store employee and a chick obsessed with The Sandman, I am totally cool with this association. The bottle cap uses some sort of gothic font, and black and silver can go a long way with those who love The Cure and Morrisey. And the Madtown Nutbrown? The label looks like gravediggers and crosses.

Most importantly, it falls in nicely with the overall theme of trying to really stick to the local breweries while in the Wisconsin region. I have a few more regional trips throughout the US coming up... if anyone has any suggestions for local brews in Austin or Kansas City, let me know!

new glarus and lakefront brewery

Friends, I was definitely busy in Milwaukee. It is officially week two of Milwaukee coverage here at super cool bottle caps.

Last Sunday, Michael and I decided to have lunch at the Public Market in the Historic Third Ward. With tons of food, beverages and free parking on the weekends (!!), it seemed like the perfect place to explore on a rainy afternoon. We had soup in bread bowls from The Soup and Stock Market (you don't even know how much I love a bread bowl) and beer purchased from the Thief Wine Shop and Bar. Michael had a New Glarus Spotted Cow and I had a Lakefront Brewery Klisch Pilsner.

Both beers hail from Wisconsin. Michael and I had discussed going to Lakefront -- we really wanted to try their Friday Night Fish Fry.  But as you recall from last week, we had a difficult time actually GETTING to Milwaukee on Friday night, and Saturday was already booked with brewery tours and baseball games. Alas, on Sunday Lakefront Brewery wasn't open. So we had to settle for beers at the Public Market. I love the Lakefront Brewery bottle cap: LB with a frosty mug along with a clear indication that it's a local Milwaukee brew.

The Spotted Cow was equally tasty, in its own way, of course! And the bottle cap also proves to be great. The state of Wisconsin with a fingerprint in it. And it tells us boldly: Drink Indigenous.  Indeed.  Local brew = good times.

Procuring just two bottle caps at lunch didn't seem to be enough for us, so we went back for more...Stay tuned!

mystery cap!

It's time for another Mystery Cap! This one was found at the aforementioned Junk Store. What is it?! And how can it be twist off AND pry off? Fascinating....

miller brewery tour

When Michael took a trip to Milwaukee a few years ago (the trip that I wasn't allowed on), he called me from the road, excited about the "educational" video that Miller played at the start of their brewery tour.  Miller didn't take itself too seriously: they had some cavemen talking about how "from the dawn of time, Man has yearned for Miller Time" and then proceeded to play a bunch of fun Miller commercials from the past. Michael said it was awesome in a non-corporate sort of way.

I was definitely looking forward to that video when we journeyed to the Miller Factory during our trip to Milwaukee. Unfortunately, MillerCoors has become much more corporate since the last visit. The new video they have features a bad actor playing the founder, Frederick Miller, and speaking in a silly German accent. We encountered Frederick Miller again in the beer cave. Tragic, really. The other thing that Miller really, REALLY stressed on the tour was how green they are now and how much they give back to their community, don't waste water, and make awesome beer.

I'm sorry, but Miller didn't really seem to help the community directly around the factory. Michael and I were driving around not five minutes away from the factory looking for some breakfast, and the community looked awful. Rundown, poor, not a lot of local business. Maybe we missed the main downtown of Menomonee Valley, but they could have done something to give the local community some more business. Have the workers go to a nearby restaurant for lunch? Have some local stores? Anything to bring some money to the community!

Another gripe that I had was the beer at the end of the tour. Now, I've been to my fair share of brewery tours, and it's a perfect opportunity to try to sway those who don't drink your beer, or are on the fence.  The Budweiser and even the Bud Light at the Anheuser-Busch Factory tastes pretty amazing. It's so fresh, fizzy, cold, crisp, and refreshing...It almost makes me want to go out and buy some Budweiser for the fridge. Almost. Miller... oh goodness. We had Miller Light and MG64 along with Leinenkugel's Summer Shandy. They were all watered down -- especially the Shandy. And I couldn't even tell the difference between the Miller Light and the MG64. They both tasted like watery gross beer.

And the biggest gripe I have? Of course it is about bottle caps. You can't buy bottle caps in the gift store! You know what you can buy? Bottle cap earrings. Sigh. Miller, when will you learn?

Luckily, Michael and I also love a good thrift store (aka junk store) and there was a great one in downtown Milwaukee. Second Street Antiques had a little bit of everything. I found some cork-lined Miller Girl in the Moon caps, as well as a few others, so all was not lost..... stay tuned!

See below for some additional pictures from the Milwaukee Brewery Tour.  Despite the gripes, it was kind of fun.

Oh my goodness. It is where the bottle caps go! 

The High Life Bus! 

My MG64. I don't think I had more than 1 sip. So sad.