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Every year, someone puts together a list of the top ten drunkest cities in the nation, and every year, people on Twitter marvel at how the majority reside within the Badger state – but is it really unexpected at this point? Per 24/7 Wall St.’s 2018 findings, Wisconsin had six out of the top ten cities (six!), including the top four all together: Green Bay, Eau Claire, Appleton, and Madison. Having spent four beautiful years at UW-Madison and being an avid Packers fan who has attended my fair share of tailgates, I think I’m able to provide some analysis as to why Wisconsin continues to bring home the bacon when it comes to being the most beer-filled. For me, it’s a combination of climate, creativity, and craft beer.
Who is drinking the most? The drunkest cities in America. https://t.co/bg10ZRqmeF pic.twitter.com/oVN9nJVHrs
— USA TODAY (@USATODAY) May 15, 2018
1. You Need a Beer Jacket for 9 Months Out of the Year
This one is probably the most obvious but it’s worth reiterating. Most of the year, Wisconsin is uncomfortably cold. No one ever really gets 100% acclimated to the frigid air that soaks your bones from October to May, but you do develop some habits and tendencies to acclimate yourself.
One of the primary habits for any Wisconsinite is the DIY beer jacket. While it may be more of a mental state than a tangible way to regulate body temperature, it’s hard to deny that your face gets a little flush after your third IPA of the night. Add in a few shots, and you definitely feel a bit of extra warm fuzziness throughout. Maybe not a full Canada Goose, but a nice puffer vest at least.
2. They Tailgate Everything
For some reason, I’ve been to Packers Training Camp for 21 years straight. What started as a cool way to experience the unique way Lambeau does training camp quickly became a family reunion where everyone brings a cooler of their favorite beers. To sum it up: You sit in a lawn chair on the hot parking lot pavement, beer-in-hand, and watch Packers players ride by slowly on undersized bicycles. That’s basically the highlight. It might not sound like much, but it’s really relaxing, and a perfect excuse to house a 6-pack.
That said, finding an excuse to tailgate things has expanded way past simple sporting events; I’ve seen Wisconsinites tailgate birthday parties, church-hosted chicken dinners, and any occasion tied to hunting and fishing. Casual drinking is very much a way of life in the Badger state. Except for driving – please don’t be that person.
3. Have You Tried the Local Beer?
You might already be aware of my love for New Glarus, a passion shared by most Wisconsin residents, but the land of cheese also serves up an awesome assortment of local craft brews outside of Spotted Cow that run the gamut from pale ale to raspberry tart. Every town with over 1,000 people seems to have at least one brewery within its city limits, with the larger ones like Madison, Milwaukee and Green Bay having an abundance.
Milwaukee has quietly become an awesome place for craft beer with the likes of Good City, Third Space and MKE Brewing (O-Gii is the bomb) pouring some of the best beers in the state. With such a large amount of supply, it only makes sense that you have an equally large source of demand, and you definitely have both elements in Wisconsin.
At the end of the day, it’s probably not the best list to be highlighted prominently in, for obvious legal and health implications, but it does offer a nice reprieve from the incessant Laurel versus Yanny debate. It’s Laurel, by the way. Cheers! .
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@TaylorLaabs
@taylor1laabs
4. Because when you’re sober you remember you’re in Wisconsin
Yes, lived there 2 years and that was too long.
Being from the South, and an avid drinker myself, I see how much me and my family/friends drink and I’m impressed. But, wtf is going on in the North?? I need to plan a visit.
It’s like we drink to stay cool, they do it to stay warm and just a little better than us
In complete shock and awe that no Louisiana city is on this list
Nobody in Louisiana is sober enough to respond to the poll
As a native louisianan, literacy can be equally challenging
Can confirm
Agreed. I’m a native Midwesterner and was always appalled at how much beer people from Wisconsin could put down, but I’ve lived in NOLA for a year now and it at least deserves to crack the top 10
That would require understanding “how to work the internets” and voting. Most people here are bad at both.
I legitimately told a WI bartender once that I needed a to go cup for my vodka soda because I was just waiting for my carry out pizza and it was ready so I needed to drive it home, and she gave me one without flinching.
You can order (and receive) any alcoholic beverage at a drive-thru window here.
“We have good craft beer” is something any decent state can say. Lack of local craft options is the minority at this point.
Only 25.2% in Fargo? I don’t believe I’ve ever met someone from there who doesn’t drink excessively.
I have family from there and I can confirm that I have never, ever wanted to be sober in that city, especially in the winter.
I legitimately don’t know if there is anything else to do there.
I went up to Wiscy for a business trip during the winter and I’d never experienced such a brutal combination of wind and snow in my life. If I had to live there I’d be living on Portillos and local six packs
How did you exclude Lakefront from the list of Milwaukee breweries?
As a Wisconsinite (we’ll go with that) it’s legit sad how proud people are of the drinking culture here. Being a wet blanket but god damn it’s actually poison after awhile.
Is it Wisconsiner? Someone called me that one time thinking that I was a local because I was eating cheese.
I knew La Crosse was going to be on the list. More bsrs per capita than any other city in the US.