WI #5 in beer consumption

By Kelsie Hoitomt

The Beer Institute recently reported their 2012 state consumption rankings, which listed Wisconsin at number five in per capita consumption by people 21 years of age and older.

Ranking number 5 puts Wisconsinites at drinking 36.2 gallons of beer per person or roughly 385 12-ounce beers for the year.

Wisconsin topped the other Midwestern states as Minnesota came in at 28.5 gallons, Illinois at 29.1 gallons, Indiana at 25.9 gallons, Ohio at 30.1 gallons, Michigan at 26.8 and Iowa at 33.6 gallons.

It was North Dakota that blew away the other states and took first place with a consumption average of 45.8 gallons. However, there has been a large influx in young people working in the state due to the oil extraction industry.

Rounding out the rest of the top five states were New Hampshire, Montana and South Dakota.

The national consumption average was 28.2 gallons. Beer drinking rose 1.5 percent in 2012 in the United States with more than 206 million barrels of beers consumed.