Let’s ice things up this week with a map of the 50 states most purchased cocktails! If you were to travel across the United States trying every one of their favorite drinks, you would come across quite a few of the same tastes.
The most popular cocktails are the Whiskey Sour (Idaho, Oregon, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wyoming) and the Long Island Iced Tea (Connecticut, Iowa, Montana, Ohio, Oklahoma, and Pennsylvania). The whiskey sour is a mixed drink containing whiskey, lemon juice, sugar, and optionally, a dash of egg white while the Long Island Iced Tea is typically made with vodka, tequila, light rum, triple sec, gin, and a splash of cola, which gives the drink the same amber hue as its namesake.
While some Americans are opting for the big stuff, others like to carry the tradition of a light ‘boozy brunch’ with Mimosas, Tequila Sunrises, or Bloody Marys. The original Tequila Sunrise originated in Arizona, where it’s still most popular now, in the 1930’s as a mix of tequila, crème de cassis, lime juice and soda water. Nowadays, the Tequila Sunrise is a cocktail made of tequila, orange juice, and grenadine syrup.
Kentucky shows their Mint Julep pride each year with almost 120,000 drinks served over the two-day period of Kentucky Derby weekend at Churchill Downs Racetrack.
It is illegal in some states to transport alcohol across state lines because of the different tax deductions. In the past, state troopers have been known to sit on the edge of state lines and keep track of cars making short trips across each state.
Here is a running list of every state’s go-to cocktail:
AK: Tequila Sunrise
AL: Mint Julep
AR: Mojito
AZ: Tequila Sunrise
CA: Mimosa
CO: Paloma
CT: Long Island Iced Tea
DC: Mojito
DE: Tom Collins
FL: Mojito
GA: Mimosa
HI: Mai Tai
IA: Long Island Iced Tea
ID: Whiskey Sour
IL: Paloma
IN: Tequila Sunrise
KS: Margarita
KY: Mint Julep
LA: Daiquiri
MA: Gin and Tonic
MD: Mimosa
ME: Tom Collins
MI: Moscow Mule
MN: Bloody Mary
MO: Long Island Iced Tea
MS: Tom Collins
MT: Moscow Mule
NC: Mimosa
ND: Sex on the Beach
NE: Moscow Mule
NH: Margarita
NJ: Pina Colada
NM: Moscow Mule
NV: Martini
NY: Moscow Mule
OH: Long Island Iced Tea
OK: Long Island Iced Tea
OR: Whiskey Sour
PA: Long Island Iced Tea
RI: Cosmopolitan
SC: Pina Colada
SD: Sex on the Beach
TN: Tequila Sunrise
TX: Paloma
UT: Whiskey Sour
VA: Whiskey Sour
VT: Manhattan
WA: Gin & Tonic
WI: Old Fashioned
WV: Whiskey Sour
WY: Whiskey Sour