Last week a group of us had the privilege of visiting the Peterson Family farm in Osceola, Wisconsin. Farm visits are one of the best parts of my job. I’d wager that they’re far more interesting and enlightening than going to check out the local widget factory. At the very least it is far more beautiful.

It feels superfluous to write anything about bacon. Is bacon over? Are we past our obsession with cured pork belly? For a while it seemed that every cooking meme involved the addition or manipulation of this wondrous food. And now it seems that things have settled down a little bit or maybe I’m just numb to it.

Scott, our head butcher, had one request (okay he had way more than 1) when he agreed to mastermind this whole meat shop project. He wanted us to make a french onion brat. I’ll be honest: I had no idea what that meant. For the first couple of batches we bought organic french onion seasoning from the coop across the street and added that, along with cheese curd, to our heritage breed pork. The results were delicious but that seemed a little bit like cheating.

So we decided to reverse engineer our very own french onion seasoning (notice I am not capitalizing French on purpose) and combine it with some caramelized onions. Genius! And so you end up with a completely miraculous bratwurst. Ridiculously savory, a tiny bit sweet, and then BOOM you’re hit with some gooey mozzarella cheese curd.

This is the brat you serve at your backyard gathering and everyone needs to know where you bought it. Even cranky Uncle Edgar is totally going to be into this brat.

Available exclusively at the St Paul Meat Shop and France 44 Cheese Shop. Registered trademark and patents coming soon.

This is a guest post by France 44 wine specialist, Karina Roe.

Road Construction and Winter. Mosquito Season and Winter. Too Hot and Too Cold. Whatever you like to call our seasons in Minnesota, our favorite is Grilling Season!

Although there are plenty of diehards out there that grill year-round through the sleet and snow, early spring is generally the time of year when GrillMasters get wheeled out of garages and scrubbed clean for another busy season of burgers, brats, steaks and kebabs. But all that masterful grilling needs an equally masterful wine to accompany it, right? We put together a fail-proof Wine + Grill Guide for all your cookout festivities this summer.

Grilled Beef: Whether it’s burgers or steaks, you’ll need a red that has the guts to stand up to the high fat and protein content of red meat. Try out wines with bigger bodies and firmer tannins, like theAlois “Campole” Aglianico, Shinas Estate “The Guilty” Shiraz, or a classic Cali Cab like Fortnight.

Grilled Chicken: For chicken, it all depends on how you make it. Are you grilling up lean cuts with a squeeze of fresh lemon and veggies on the side? Try out a fruity, lighter bodied Chardonnay like Brea from California’s Central Coast or a young Gamay from France like the Chateau de la Greffiere. Are you grilling up thighs, wings or legs? Go for a bigger option like a medium-oaked Chardonnay (try Seven of Hearts) or a Rhone blend, like Guigal or Rouge-Bleu’sMistral.

Grilled Pork: If you’re going red for your grilled pork, go with a Merlot-based Bordeaux likeArgadens or a domestic Merlot like Esser, or a fuller-bodied Cali PN like Sean Minor. For whites, bone-dry Rieslings are fantastic (grab Pfluger from Germany or the exotic Slovenian Verus Riesling), and you will never go wrong with a rosé of any sort!

Grilled Vegetables: Lighter Italian reds will go perfect with any grilled veggie dish! Go for the Marchesini Bardolino or the Santa Tresa Frappato, and make sure to serve them with a little chill. For whites, do one of our fantastic Austrian Gruner Veltliners, like Stadt Krems. And again, rosés are your best friend!

Grilled Seafood: Mineral-driven Chablis, French Sauvignon Blancs and aromatic whites like Albarino and Riesling are matches made in heaven for seafood on the grill! Try out the Roland Tissier Sancerre or Kentia Albarino for starters. Feeling more adventurous? Grab a bottle of dry Sherry—Fino or Manzanilla. Our favorites are La Guita Manzanilla and Valdespino “En Rama” Manzanilla.

These are just the beginnings of a long and successful grilling season. If you’re looking to branch out into the unfamiliar, our wine staff will help you geek out on some killer pairings for every occasion! Cheers to our favorite season!