The ABV Atlas

A warmer spirit animates the Atlas. Those beneath the surface were tricky and diminutive — sprites, imps, and goblins, all of them a little sneaky. This group is unique, being half-wild inhabitants of the woodlands, with horns and goats legs, but friendly and musical. Traditionally, the faun and his close relative, the satyr, revelled along with the god Dionysus himself, the very god of mirth and alcohol. There is no better protector of this group because 3.0–3.9% is the most social kind of beer.

Home of the session

This is where the word session is earned. A session beer is one that you can enjoy more than one of during an afternoon or evening; just enough kick to get what you want and not too much to allow for coherent conversation. The English pub was founded quietly on this spectrum. The ordinary bitter exists here, along with golden ales and pale ales, and also milds that sneak into the band from the band down below.

Flavour without the fight

While the featherweight bands below do not have enough body, a beer with a percentage of 3-point-something has enough. This is because there is plenty of malt and alcohol content in the beer. You can find a little bit of biscuit and caramel from the grains, English hops giving their characteristic marmalade and hedgerow, and a crisp bitter aftertaste that gives your craving another bite. The best examples of 3-point-something beer manage to combine lightness and flavour into an excellent and unique beer.

Small in strength, generous in spirit

The Goblins are cunning, and the Imps are mischievous, while the Fauns are generous. These are beers that should be shared in order to lubricate an evening, rather than dominate it. These beers require nothing of you but give everything back. In an era when beers keep getting stronger, the humble session pint still has its value.

Below is whatever Hop Horizons has logged in the 3.0–3.9% range, ranked and broken down strength by strength.