The last several years have seen sour beers—those made to taste tart and acidic, and which nearly went extinct from lack of demand over the course of the 20th century—explode in popularity, raising the status of many of the most celebrated examples from bottle-shop curiosities to wine-priced rarities for which there's near-insatiable demand. The processes that yield great sours are complicated, vary greatly among brewers, and are time-consuming, with many sours taking months or years, rather than weeks, to develop before they're ready. And whether you want to make your own, or just better understand the history and current state of sour brewing, information isn't exactly easy to come by—especially in English.
Enter Michael Tonsmeire: award-winning home brewer, recipe consultant for Modern Times Brewing of San Diego, and author of the beer blog The Mad Fermentationist. His new book, American Sour Beers, is an incredible resource both for the home brewer and for the curious beer nerd...
