Two-Thirds Of Americans Drink Alcohol

Did you ever wonder why there is such a proliferation of places to buy alcohol? Even in areas where the sale of alcohol is illegal, you can be sure there will be somewhere close to buy it (or an easily accessible black market). Gallup's recent poll provides us with the answer -- according to the survey two-thirds of all Americans (67%) drink beer, wine or hard liquor.

This number has gone up 3% since the start of the current recession in 2007, when it was 64%. But this is still not an all-time high. Back in 1976 through 1978 the percentage of drinkers was at 71% (which is the largest percentage since Gallup started polling on this question back in 1939).

All age groups and education levels show a majority of those who drink alcohol, and even regular church-goers show a majority of drinkers. Here are those numbers:

18 to 34..........72%

35 to 54..........72%

55 and older..........59%

Postgraduate education..........74%

College graduate..........79%

Some college..........70%

High school or less..........58%

Attend church weekly..........54%

Attend church at least monthly..........64%

Attend church seldom or never..........75%

The biggest surprise for me was the relationship between the amount of money a person makes and the likelihood they are a drinker. The survey clearly shows that the more money a person makes, the more likely they are to drink some form of alcohol. I would have figured the lowest paid would have a high percentage of drinkers (to try and forget their misfortune), but those who make less than $20,000 are actually the only group not to have a majority of drinkers. Maybe it's because they just can't afford it. Here are the numbers broken down by income level:

Over $75,000..........81%

$50,000 to $74,999..........78%

$30,000 to $49,999..........66%

$20,000 to $29,999..........51%

under $20,000..........46%

The survey shows that beer is definitely the most popular alcoholic drink (41%), while wine is second (32%) and hard liquor is third (21%). Among men, beer is the winner at 54% while wine comes in at 17%. That is just the opposite for women, who prefer wine at 48% to beer at 27%. Both groups have about the same percentage of those who drink hard liquor at 21-22%.

Is it any wonder that prohibition was a miserable failure?