09/13/2026
True story.
Order a bloody mary in Wisconsin and a small glass of b**r arrives with it, unrequested, and nobody explains why.
That b**r is called a snit. It is usually four to six ounces, served in a juice glass or a small footed glass, and it is almost always a domestic l***r. Miller, Old Style, whatever is on tap and cheap. You sip it between pulls on the bloody mary.
The word comes from German, where schnitt means a cut, referring to a partial pour of b**r. German immigrants brought the concept and Wisconsin bars made it standard.
The function is real. A bloody mary is thick, salty, spicy and heavy. The snit is cold, light and carbonated, and it resets your palate so the next sip of the mary tastes like the first one did. It works the same way a b**r back works with wh***ey.
Then there is the garnish situation, which Wisconsin has escalated beyond reason.
The baseline is celery, olives and a pickle. From there it climbs. Cheese curds. A stick of summer sausage. Beef sticks. Pickled asparagus, pickled green beans, pickled brussels sprouts. Shrimp. Bacon. A slider. A mozzarella stick. At some establishments an entire fried chicken or a hamburger arrives skewered on top, and at that point the drink is a meal with a straw in it.
Sunday morning is the time. After church, before the Packers game, at a supper club or a corner tap, with the room full and everyone doing the same thing.
Sokolowski's, Jimmy's, Sobelman's and a hundred neighborhood bars all compete on garnish.
Order one in another state and you get a drink.
Order one here and you get a drink, a snack, and a small b**r you did not ask for.
