Instead of watching the Badgers lose to Illinois yesterday, I spent my afternoon at the Quivey's Grove Beer Fest. Armed with a pretzel necklace, an iron stomach and a well-developed palate I sampled many of the 70 or so beers on tap. Here are a few favorites you might want to check out at your next visit to the grocery store (or, if you live in Minnesota, your next trip to the liquor store).

Everyone enjoyed the Cranberry Special Ale from Sand Creek Brewing in Black River Falls, WI. It was a little sweet without being cloying, like so many fruity wheat beers are. Sand Creek also had easily the best t-shirts at the festival.

Lake Louie Brewery in Arena, WI's Coon Rock Cream Ale was another favorite. It was flavorful, but not too flavorful, so it went down nice and easy. With mere minutes to grab another beer, a handful of us hustled all the way down to Lake Louie's booth for another glass of Cream Ale. That's a true testament to its quality.

Although it's not listed on their web page, Ashland, WI's South Shore Brewery brought a deliciously complex Belgian Tripel to the festival. Tripels are supposed to be the booziest of beers, but this one didn't taste like it - which means that they knew what they were doing. Nice.

August Schell Brewery in New Ulm, MN brought the excellent (and well-named) Firebrick Amber. FIREBRICK! Anyway, I thought this was a good, and not overbearing, Amber. Sometimes I feel like red beers are just too much, too bold if you will. This one was less aggressive, which I enjoyed.

One of my favorite breweries, Milwaukee's Sprecher served up the Piper's Scotch Ale. This brew was very malty and rich. It's probably a little too much to drink at a beer fest, but would be perfect along with your favorite fall stew. As an aside, if you're a fan of Belgian Tripels, I highly recommend Sprecher's Abbey Triple.

Since it was in the mid-80s yesterday, Brewery Creek in Mineral Point, WI's Imperial Shandy really hit the spot. I think you either love the lemony Shandy or you hate it. There's no middle ground. I love them and this one was especially good because it tasted extra lemony. I admit it. I love fruit in my beer. Don't judge me.

Finally, I really enjoyed the Belgian White from the Stevens Point Brewery in beautiful Stevens Point, WI. I have no idea if Belgians are supposed to be served ice cold, but this one was and on a hot day it made it just extra good. You know, why drink a Miller Lite or Bud Light when you can have a beer like this that's so much tastier?

A lot of these beers are available throughout the upper Midwest, so give them a try. If you don't live in the upper Midwest, I'm sorry. We have crappy winters, but we also have great beer. It's a fair trade.