When the Bratfest was first conceived in 1979, we harkened back to festivals held in the two prior years, in Madison, Wis, named the "Bowen Court Corn Festival". Those Fests, now affectionately dubbed "Bratfest 0" in August 1978 and "Bratfest -1" in August 1977, primarily featured corn and beer, with bratwurst as a side accompaniment. Corn was roasted, as traditional, in the husk, over hot coals, after soaking in water.
Here, you can see the actual driveway where these rather small (maybe 50 people) fests were held, in the style of a block party:
Bowen Court Corn Festival: 1977, 1978
These pre-Bratfest fests were modeled after the Sun Prairie Corn Festival, held each year in Sun Prairie WI, just outside of Madison.
The Sun Prairie Corn Festival began in 1953, with 6,000 attendees consuming 0.1 tons of corn. It has now grown to over 100,000 people and 80 tons of corn. The corn is non-GMO and locally grown. It is picked the day of the event and trucked in directly. In the early days, I believe the event was free, with all the corn donated by area farmers. In those days, the corn was roasted over huge beds of charcoal while hosing down the corn with water (much as Bob Marcialis did at Bratfest). Corn is dipped in a bucket of butter and salted with the traditional hanging shakers seen in the pictures below. Nowadays, the operation is so large that the corn is steamed in giant rice-steamer-type units in a warehouse off site. Not quite the same effect. The photos below are from modern times:
Sun Prairie corn loading
Sun Prairie corn presentation
Sun Prairie: Salting the corn
And thus, the origin of corn at Bratfest!
The key to good corn is the source and to have it fresh. Corn is best if it can be picked the same day as serving, following the old adage that "you should get the pot boiling before going into the field to pick the corn". For the Colorado Fest, we have a supplier that does just that. Corn is picked by noon and served at 5pm. (Colorado folks --- see "sources" elsewhere on this site). For many, this is not possible. (Actually, today's hybrids stay sweet longer, so it is not as critical as in the old days). Look for fresh-looking ears with the silk still moist and supple, not dried out or even getting soggy, moldy. The husk should be tight to the ear right to the end of the cob. Do not pull back the husk to look at it - it is integral to the cooking process. Look for mid-weight for its size.
As indicated in the recipe below, soak the ears, with the husk intact, in water to cover for an hour or more. The recipe given here is almost ideal. It is is untested, but we don't have to. It is very close to the Fest method. You want a level, uniform bed of gray coals, with the grill maybe 8" above the bed. Don't worry if the husk looks black/burnt; the ear will be fine. Peel back the husk and use it as a handle. Apply a liberal amount of (real) butter and salt to taste.
WISCONSIN ROASTED CORN - a complete "how to" w/recipe
An aternative that does not need coals is to microwave, in the husk. The recipe here may need adjustment for the power of the unit. And probably the corn could benefit from a prior water-soak, as in grilling.
Microwave corn-on-the-cob recipe (uintested)