Do I have an accent!?!? To me brawts would be pronounced with an awww (as in Milwaukee - where I was born and raised) not an ahhhh like when you have a tongue depressor in your mouth!
I'm in NC now and on the rare occasion I hear a native pronounce it, sad to say it's usually brats (short a) like the unruly kid!
When I hear someone from Minnesota or Wisconsin pronounce something and my family from central and northern MO, I hear two very distinct accents and some of my relatives were in towns with a strong German influence.