Badger Beer Report Unites Wisconsin Breweries Opened in 2025 for Collaboration Beer

Greg "Daddy Porter" Washington has assembled a statewide team of breweries that opened in Wisconsin in 2025 to brew a collaboration called New Kids on the Maibock, a project that Washington organized under the banner of the #ClassOf25 collective. The participants named for the collaboration are Vault 202 (Appleton); Boulder Junction Brewing Co. (Boulder Junction); Brewed Omen (Hartford); Fond du Lac Brewing Company; Last Ditch Brewpub (Kenosha); Lombardi Brewing (Milwaukee); MobCraft (Milwaukee, 2025 relaunch); St. Francis Brewing (St. Francis, 2025 relaunch); and Tailwinds Brewing (Union Grove).

“Opening a brewery is a massive undertaking, and doing it in today’s market requires a special kind of grit,” said Greg "Daddy Porter" Washington, founder of Badger Beer Report. Washington founded Badger Beer Report, which covers the state’s craft beer business via collaborations, podcasts, events, live streams and social media. Knowledgeable folks like Wisconsin Beer Baron Chris Drosner and Brewery Travels’ Joel Geier are active in the report, too.

OnMilwaukee published the story Feb. 19, 2026, and a Threads post with the core announcement appeared Feb. 19, 2026 at 5:08 PM. The project “will be brewed at Vault 202 in Appleton later this month with an eye toward a May release.” That phrase sets the immediate timetable: brewing in late February 2026 at Vault 202 and a target release in May 2026, though exact brew dates and a firm May release date have not been provided.

There are logistical and reporting gaps worth following up on. The OnMilwaukee material does not specify which breweries handled recipe design, ingredient sourcing, packaging or distribution; it also labels MobCraft and St. Francis Brewing as "2025 relaunch" without detailing what relaunch entailed. Confirming Vault 202’s exact brew date, the planned May release day or events, and each brewery’s operational role will clarify whether this is a symbolic pour for taproom-only celebrations or a broader canned or kegged release.

One sentence in the original report truncates midphrase, "The collaboration is both a celebration of the state’s newest breweries and a practical showcase of the e", and requires follow-up to complete the thought. For now the facts on the table are the project name New Kids on the Maibock, the full #ClassOf25 membership list, Washington’s quote about grit, the stated brewing host Vault 202 in Appleton, and the public announcement timing on Feb. 19, 2026. Expect more precise dates and role details as the collective moves from brew day toward that planned May release.