Two things I like – beer and maps. Maps about booze are even better.
Having grown up in the Midwest – born and raised in Minnesota, with lots of family in Wisconsin, as well as living in Madison and Ann Arbor, it’s no surprise to me that people there like to drink. It’s a part of the culture. Now, we have some maps to prove it.
The blog floating sheep has some great maps of America’s beer belt. First, the total number of bars in various locations across the US, based on Google maps’ directory.
Next, a point of reference – a map showing the relative popularity of bars to grocery stores – red indicates more bars than grocery stores:
Finally, putting Wisconsin’s culture on display, a map of how many Google Maps entries there are for bars, normalizing the data to show the relative popularity of them.
Unsurprisingly, we see all sorts of concentrations of bars that correlate with population density – namely, cities. Wisconsin, however, is punching well above its weight. That well-worn drinking culture shines through. Southern cities, conversely, seem a little thing based on their populations – perhaps a holdover from dry counties and other temperance movements?
Either way, it’s a cool set of maps.
