"Spontaneous fermentation”sounds like something terrible that would show up in an online dating profile. But spontaneous fermentation, unlike the world of online dating, is something you should understand because the coolest beers, ciders, wines, and liquors right now are being made through this process, delivering unexpected flavors that range from ripe raspberries to fresh cane sugar to tart lemon to the juiciest of melons. It's the result of a brewer, winemaker, or distiller leaving the inoculation (the moment when yeast and bacteria come in contact with the liquid) up to whatever organisms happen to be in the air or on the fruit that they are fermenting. This is different from the process of most mass-produced booze, where industrialized, controlled yeast strains or blends are deliberately poured into a sugary liquid. Brewers don’t know exactlywhat’sending up in the beer or wine or cider. All they know is that the fermentation will be, as advertised, spontaneous.—Alex Delany, associate editorRead the full story here." - ByThe Bon Appétit Staff
