The ABV Atlas

And here is the cornerstone of the entire Atlas. Pick a beer randomly from anywhere around the globe, and chances are it will fit in this band. 4 point something is just about what everyone means when he says "a beer." This is the default value, the reference point, and the strength against which all the others are compared. And so its protectors are the Gargoyles: the unappealing but hardworking stone figures sitting upon the great edifices and carrying the greatest weight among all the creatures on the shelf without ever shifting from their positions.

The default strength of the world

A huge amount of the regular beer lives here. The popular best bitter and premium bitter, the standard pale ale, the average lager, the common stout and porter – all congregate in the 4s. They are powerful enough to make a decent impression, but not too powerful to ruin your night after just two pints. Centuries of drinking traditions, licensing laws and plain human tolerance brought us this sensible middle ground, which doesn't seem to shift any time soon.

Balance becomes everything

Brews like this are also, in their own way, the toughest to stand out. In the lightest weight categories, a brewer receives praise just for managing to create flavour out of thin air. Here, everyone is capable of brewing a decent 4.5% pale ale, and the best manage to stand out based on balance, drinkability and skill. The gap between an ordinary standard bitter and a truly outstanding one is huge, and it is found in all the small things: clean fermentation, balance between hops and malt, a long finish.

The most of the most

Given that there are so many beers in this category, it is also the most informative. When you calculate average scores within the Atlas, the 4s offer by far the biggest, most statistically significant sample group – truly representative of everyday brewing rather than a few rarities. If any band of scores is likely to tell the truth about the beer, it is this one. No other beast in the Atlas has witnessed so many beers being tasted under its gaze.

Below is whatever Hop Horizons has logged in the 4.0–4.9% range, ranked and broken down strength by strength — very likely the deepest section in the whole Atlas.