The State That Drinks The Most Beer Per Capita Doesn't Tax Booze

If you're ready to cheers to the weekend with an ice cold beer or classic old-fashioned (not to be confused with a Manhattan), you might want to head to a state where your wallet will thank you. New Hampshire leads the nation in beer consumption per capita. California takes first place as the state with the most overall beer consumption by volume, but the per capita (or per person) consumption goes to New Hampshire.

It should come as no coincidence that New Hampshire also doesn't tax hard alcohol — it's one of 17 states across that U.S. that are considered control states. Simply put, this means that the state controls the sale of spirits and-or wine. Some of these states include Alabama, Maine, Mississippi, and Oregon. Since 1934, the New Hampshire Liquor Commission has netted more than $4 billion in profits (per NABCA) to fund educational and social services, transportation, and more. Though New Hampshire doesn't tax hard liquor or wine, that's not the case when it comes to beer, in particular. The state actually collects 30 cents per gallon on the sale of beer, which is still a smaller impact on consumers than in most states.

Though beer isn't completely tax-free in New Hampshire, there might be several reasons why the people in the state consume so much on average. Firstly, the 30 cents per gallon tax comes out to less than 3 cents per beer. This isn't the lowest beer tax (that goes to Wyoming, at 2 cents per gallon), but it's significantly lower than states like Tennessee or Alaska, where beer taxes are $1.29 and $1.07 per gallon, respectively, according to The Tax Foundation.

Also, with more than 90 breweries across the state, there's no shortage of places to throw back a few brews in New Hampshire. It ranks in the top 10 of the states with the most craft breweries per capita, according to Statista, with more than nine breweries for every 100,000 residents. In contrast, a massive state like California has just 3.3. There's no doubt the state's range of outdoor festivals and an active lifestyle could also contribute to the beer numbers.

On an international level, the Czech Republic is the country that drinks the most per capita, at 48.63 gallons of beer. Also, the country in the world that consumes the most alcohol overall is Zimbabwe.