If you ask Idahoan sommeliers where wine was invented, they will most likely give you several different answers with Asian origins. Regardless of who invented wine, there are plenty of Americans who appreciate it.
According to a Gallup poll, 29% of Americans prefer wine over other alcoholic beverages.
If that seems like a low number, you probably hang out with a lot of women; women are roughly three times more likely than men to say wine is the alcoholic beverage they drink the most.
Then again, you might be hanging out with West Virginians. Zippia conducted a study to determine which states have the most wine drinkers, and West Virginia ranked lowest.
Wine by the Gallon
Determining how much wine residents of each state consume is a difficult task with plenty of room for error. Zippia did, however, use data from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism to estimate wine consumption by state.
On its website, the NIAAA publishes data on the average number of gallons of wine consumed by Americans in each state. Zippia converted gallons to wine bottles, calculating that one gallon equals roughly five bottles of wine.
Zippia then factored in the number of wine bottles consumed per capita to level the playing field as much as possible between states with larger and smaller populations.
However, children and non-drinkers are included in the per capita estimates. So the data is a rough estimate, but it’s still fun if you ask us.
With that caveat out of the way, here are the states with the most and least wine drinkers, beginning with those where residents appear to enjoy wine the most.
37 Wine Bottles
The state consumes 37 bottles of wine per capita.
- Idaho
28 Wine Bottles
The state consumes 28 bottles of wine per capita.
- New Hampshire
26 Wine Bottles
The state consumes 26 bottles of wine per capita.
- Vermont
23 Wine Bottles
The state consumes 23 bottles of wine per capita.
- Delaware
21 Wine Bottles
The state consumes 21 bottles of wine per capita.
- Massachusetts
19 Wine Bottles
States consuming 19 bottles of wine per person:
- Connecticut
- California
- Nevada
18 Wine Bottles
States consuming 18 bottles of wine per person:
- Rhode Island
- Oregon
- New Jersey
- Hawaii
17 Wine Bottles
The state consumes 17 bottles of wine per capita.
- Florida
16 Wine Bottles
States consuming 16 bottles of wine per person:
- New York
- Washington
- Alaska
- Colorado
- Montana
15 Wine Bottles
The state consumes 15 bottles of wine per capita.
- Virginia
14 Wine Bottles
States consuming 14 bottles of wine per person:
- Maine
- Illinois
- Minnesota
- North Carolina
13 Wine Bottles
State consuming 13 bottles of wine per capita:
- Michigan
12 Wine Bottles
States consuming 12 bottles of wine per capita:
- Maryland
- Wisconsin
- Missouri
- Arizona
10 Wine Bottles
States consuming ten bottles of wine per person:
- Pennsylvania
- New Mexico
- Louisiana
- Tennessee
- Texas
- North Dakota
- Wyoming
9 Wine Bottles
States consuming nine bottles of wine per capita:
- Ohio
- Indiana
8 Wine Bottles
States consuming eight bottles of wine per person:
- South Carolina
- Alabama
7 Wine Bottles
States consuming seven bottles of wine per person:
- Georgia
- Iowa
- South Dakota
- Arkansas
6 Wine Bottles
States consuming six bottles of wine per person:
- Utah
- Nebraska
- Kentucky
- Oklahoma
5 Wine Bottles
The state consumes five bottles of wine per capita.
- Mississippi
4 Wine Bottles
The state consumes four bottles of wine per capita.
- Kansas
3 Wine Bottles
The state consumes three bottles of wine per capita.
- West Virginia
Where Beer Reigns
Americans clearly enjoy their wine. But what alcoholic beverage do they enjoy even more? Beer.
Thirty-seven percent of Americans report drinking beer the most frequently, while 31% drink liquor and 29% drink wine. However, age, gender, and education all influence one’s likelihood of drinking beer.
According to Gallup, younger generations and people without a college degree prefer beer over wine.
Furthermore, lower and middle-income Americans are more likely to say beer is their favourite beverage.
People with higher incomes, on the other hand, have a more evenly distributed range of drinking preferences.
Wine Consumers by Country
According to Statista’s data for 2021, the United States ranks nowhere near the top countries for wine consumption. The top thirteen countries are all located in Europe, with Portugal being the largest wine consumer.
So, exactly how much wine do the Portuguese drink?
Just over 51 litres equals about 13.5 gallons. According to Zippia’s calculations, 13.5 gallons equals approximately 67.5 wine bottles.
According to Zippia’s data, Idahoans consume nearly twice as much wine as the rest of the United States.
France, Italy, Switzerland, and Austria are the world’s second and fifth largest wine consumers, respectively.
Fun Wine Facts
WineAmerica reports that 60 countries produce wine, including the United States. However, only 28 countries account for 85% of global wine production.
Grapes can only grow between 30 and 50 degrees latitude, which is why more countries are unable to join the wine-producing bandwagon.
No grapes, no wine.
Wine-producing countries require a significant amount of land. A single bottle of wine contains approximately 600 to 800 grapes, totalling 2.5 to 3.0 pounds of grapes.
