If President Barack Obama seems to be spending quite a bit of time and energy depicting himself as a home brewer and beer drinker this election season, there's definitely a compelling case for it.
A new infographic complied by Joe Sixpack, a columnist for the Philadelphia Daily News, makes a political case for brewing. Entitled "Blue States, Brew States," the chart tabulates the density of breweries -- national, regional, microbreweries and brewpubs -- per square mile in each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia and color codes them according to whether they went to Obama or McCain in 2008.
The striking result shows that in 2008, Obama "received the majority of his support from states with the highest concentration of breweries," and that data could help the president a win in 2012.
The brewery density in those states is largely owed to craft breweries, small businesses that produce artisanal, premium beer, which are beloved by a demographic the president has struggled to win over: white males.
So by home brewing honey ale, Obama may be looking to endear himself to white males. Joe Sixpack thinks this could make a difference in the 2012 election, but the Atlantic points out that Obama's toughest crowd to please -- non-college-educated white males -- aren't as likely to be toasting his laurels with a pint of imperial mocha stout.
The magazine suggests that "statistics on craft-beer drinkers' income or education" might help round out the case for Obama's small-batch strategy.
But then again, Obama doesn't have to do much to look more beer-friendly than his opponent: Mitt Romney, a Mormon, does not drink for religious reasons.
Related
Before You Go
