Who here has taken a dive (or dipped their toes) into the world of ferments beyond fruit/veg+salt+water+time? I'm not talking pickles, krauts and kimchi (not that there's anything wrong with those) but rather the hardcore stuff like koji (or tempeh and its ilk), miso, shoyu, garum, black fruits/veg...etc.

It all takes a lot of time, some space to let things age, a lot of patience, and good bacterial control. But the results are everything we love about umami, acids and general FUNK.

Personally I've been on the train for a bit, ever since experimenting with some weird kombuchas (coffee kombucha anyone?) and realizing that the world of fermentation goes so far beyond pickles and that you can essentially ferment anything you want, in addition to realizing that all of the goodness in umami-rich dishes that we love starts with ferments (miso being a great example).

So who is into this weirdness? What is your ferment setup like? How do you keep track of things? What are some hits and misses?