The Fermented Man: A Year on the Front Lines of a Food Revolution follows Derek as he spends a year living off nothing but fermented foods while chronicling their history, cultural significance, and evolution. He goes beyond yogurt and sauerkraut to show us how fermentation occurs in a wide range of foods we might never have expected. From foraging for living bacteria in the modern American grocery store, to sampling mucous-y green Century Eggs in Chinatown, to an epic winter quest to Iceland for rotten shark meat, Derek investigates a realm of forgotten foods that is endlessly complex and surprisingly flavorful.

Derek Dellinger is a writer, photographer, and brewery consultant. He’s been working at Plan Bee Farm Brewery in Poughkeepsie since 2018, and in his spare time is a blogger and an avid hiker. He graduated from Marist in 2007 with a Bachelor’s in English and is the author of America’s Best Day Hikes, 50 Hikes in the Catskills, 50 Hikes in the Upper Hudson Valley and The Fermented Man.