Sour beers have become an exalted category of the craft beer world. It’s easy to understand why. They are complex and yet somehow refreshing and easy to drink. Their uniqueness gives them enduring appeal.

Japan is only recently discovering the pleasures of sour beer, as importers increasingly bring them in and domestic craft brewers, too, try their hand at them. Domestic offerings now include both kettle sours and barrel-aged sours. In November, beer lovers will have a chance to go really deep and explore the surprising range of flavors and aromas of these beers.

Thomas and Emiko Livesey, the dynamic duo behind Anglo Japanese Brewing Company (AJB) in Nozawa Onsen, Nagano, are hosting the SSBB festival. The initials stand for “Saisons, Sours, Barrels and Brett”–the “brett” being the colloquial term for brettanomyces, the yeast genus that imparts sour notes to beers in this category.

The concept is interesting. Six bar teams will be pouring ten beers each, including Mikkeller Tokyo and Pigalle, two bars known for their eclectic offerings. The list of breweries to be served is quite impressive (from the perspective of sour beer curation). To name a few, you’ll find internationally celebrated stalwarts like Firestone Walker (USA), Orval (Belgium), Cantillon (Belgium), and To Øl (Denmark). From Japan, guests can expect the likes of AJB (of course!), Kyoto Brewing Co, Barbaric Works, Yorocco, Zakkoku Kobo, Nara Brewing Co, Be Easy Brewing, Locobeer, Talmary, Minoh, and Shiga Kogen. Besides the bars pouring from these breweries, there will be a bottle shop with extensive (and sometimes rare) selections for guests to purchase and take home.

The event will take place November 3rd, 11:00 to 18:00 at the scenic Hokuryuko, which is a short ride from Nozawa Onsen. Buses will be shuttling people to the venue from Nozawa Onsen station. Guests can purchase beers individually–the event will be run on a typical ticketing system. Via the website, advance purchase options include 11 tickets (plus ¥500 for original glass) for ¥3000 or 22 tickets (plus free original glass) for ¥5000. If you can’t make up your mind in advance, there will be door options of 11 tickets for ¥2500 or 22 for ¥5000. The serving glass costs ¥1000. Additional tickets can be purchased for ¥250.

Given how expensive (and rare) sour beers tend to be, we think this is very reasonable. Cost aside, this is an incredible opportunity to taste through a selection of some of the world’s best sour beers. We don’t want to tell you too much more about sour beers right now; attend the event and you’ll get plenty of education on your own.

Tickets and info: http://ssbbjapan.com