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The Punchline

You are what you drink…

Katharine Crnko Jan 28, 2011

Whatever you call it — soda, pop, cola — it’s hard to deny the simple pleasure of a cool, sugary, soft drink, despite how unhealthy it may be.

While some states have already declared an official drink (19 of the 50 states claim milk as their official state beverage), the Houston Press has created the United States of Soda — a map based on locally popular beverages for each state.

Some highlights?

  • Nevada = Red Bull
  • Kentucky = Big Red
  • Washington State = locally-made Jones Soda
  • Louisiana = Delaware Punch (confusing but true)

But the mapping didn’t stop there. The United States of Soda was so popular that the Houston Press has now created a United States of Beer.

The map features the beer that best defines each state, some are made locally, others best suit the culture. Of course, Texas’s beer is Shiner. And Budweiser may be known worldwide, but it was born in Missouri.

The Houston Press admits the South — not typically know for its beer — was hardest to assign, so they settled on Bud Light for Kentucky because it’s the beer traditionally favored in beer cheese, a regional delicacy, and MGD 64 for Florida, because you need a light beer to maintain a bikini-bod.

And once again, Nevada makes the best-of list. It’s beer representative? Four Loko.

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