All those alcohol stereotypes you heard about are actually true

For the first time ever, alcohol sales figures from across Britain have been combined with geographical data.

The result is a government-funded survey that further strengthens regional stereotypes.

It showed that Scots love whisky, the people of Yorkshire love their ale and those from the West Country are cider-supping fanatics. Who knew?

In central Scotland spirits including whisky made up 29 per cent of all sales, far higher than the national average.

For Yorkshire, beer was more popular, accounting for 46 per cent of all sales - shortly followed by the North East.

The West Country’s reputation as the home of good cider was also confirmed by figures showing that the apple drink accounted for 13 per cent of all alcohol sales – compared to an average of 7 to 8 per cent for the rest of the country.

On a more serious note however, the survey highlights regional relationships between heavy drinking and early mortality. The figures are quite sobering.

Central Scotland, the North West and North East have high levels of alcohol sales alongside higher than average alcohol-related death rates, the study found. Meanwhile in London, where alcohol purchases are lower than average, there are fewer alcohol-related mortalities.

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