Booze Map of the World Crushes Our Spirits

Illustration credit: Richie King, Quartz; (click for larger image)

America! We have some work to do.

Not only are we not trumping the world’s other superpowers in the caffeine department, we are also drinking inferior booze.

We are, apparently, one vodka-drinking nation.

News site Quartz has assembled data from Euromonitor, a market research company, to create this map showing which country prefers which spirit (when given the choice among gin, vodka, rum, whiskey, tequila, and brandy). Although more than half the world prefers whiskey to any other spirit, most Americans belly up to the bar and pick vodka.

It’s possible that vodka drinkers are smarter than our bourbon-loving staffers. Even the worst vodka apparently causes you less horrible hangovers than expensive bourbon.

Click on over for the engrossing data; apparently the Dutch are gin-drinking fiends, and Italians go for rum. If nothing else, it’ll get you in the mindset for happy hour.

[via Quartz]