You’re in Kringle Country

It’s the policy of the Drink Wisconsinbly Week in Review Editorial Board to eat first and ask questions later. So, while staring at the crumbs scattered around an empty Kringle package, we wondered, “Hey, what’s the deal with that thing we just crammed into our face hole?”

If you’re new to Wisconsin, the Kringle is quite popular here. Insanely popular when compared to the rest of the country. In fact, it was designated as Wisconsin’s official pastry back in 2013. And right now, during the holidays, it is the absolute peak of Kringle Season.

They’re made from hand-rolled Danish pastry dough, which takes up to three days to prepare. It takes 32 layers of it to make a proper Kringle, which gives it its flaky texture. Once the dough-making process is complete, it’s both filled and topped with a wide variety of tasty things. If it makes you rub your belly and go, “Mmmm,” you can probably find it on a Kringle. And while they are made in different shapes around the world, in these parts they are oval-shaped or they’re nothing.

Racine is ground zero for Kringle-making in Wisconsin. With a large Danish community dating back to the 1840s, 10% of all Danes who immigrated to the U.S. lived in the area at the time. They got to work churning out Kringles and haven’t looked back. Bendtsen’s Bakery, Larson’s Bakery, O&H Danish Bakery, and Racine Danish Kringles are a few of the major players in the area.

If you want to have a Kringle on the table on Christmas morning, you better hop to it. Those who do not have a Kringle merchant nearby can have them shipped — even overnighted. We’re not sure what that costs, but since we’re not the ones paying for it, we will say it is 100% worth it.