InterWorks is home to a motley crew of incredible people, each of whom brings a breadth of experiences, hobbies, virtues … and even a few vices … to the team. There are a few connoisseurs of fine wine who spearhead new initiatives, and I’ve burned the midnight oil with more than a couple whiskey aficionados. The incredible and unique culture that Behfar and Staci have championed as our team’s foundation allows us to, on occasion, raise our glasses up as we wind down and enjoy each other’s company.

In this spirit, I put together this visualization that allows me to indulge my appetite for both working with fun data and, with appropriate moderation, trying new beers. Check it out:

Navigating the Viz

By clicking a bar that corresponds to a style that I enjoy, I can reveal brews of that style which have been rated by BeerAdvocate.com. After cleaning up the data a bit in Alteryx, I ended up with nearly 1.5 million reviews of over 14 thousand beers, so I think it’s safe to say there is something for everyone. The bars on both views are ordered from the highest to lowest rating and colored based on the strength of the beverage (ABV), so be careful with those dark brown stouts.

You may also have noticed that the overflowing mug on the left is more than just dashboard adornment. Each of the 14 thousand beers has been plotted inside this pitcher. Using Tableau’s handy background image feature, I was able to compare each brew’s overall rating to its ABV, revealing an interesting finding: It appears that beers with a low rating and high alcohol content are pretty few and far between. Are stronger beers objectively better? Do we feel somewhat obligated to like things we spend more money on, as with the traditionally more expensive barley sodas with a higher potency? Is the BA community more predisposed toward liking las cervezas fuertes?

I can’t tell you for sure if any of these are the case. Maybe this requires further testing …