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sour or astringent in taste:
Lemon juice is acerbic.
harsh or severe, as of temper or expression:
acerbic criticism.
Contemporary Examples

Much of it tastes like acerbic carbonated water with a dose of sugar to take the edge off.
Beyond Champagne Sophie Menin December 28, 2010

But Tom Boswell makes it all look easy, gliding between the seasons with appreciation and acerbic wit.
The Best Columns of the Year John Avlon December 30, 2013

The acerbic 85-year-old Michigan Democrat had long been contemptuous of Tea Partiers.
9 Revelations From Robert Draper’s ‘Do Not Ask What Good We Do’ Ben Jacobs April 24, 2012

Russell, brilliant and acerbic (in the best sense of the word) was one of the great essayists and polemicists of the 20th century.
The Professor’s Reading List Stephen L. Carter March 2, 2009

Samantha is a smart, acerbic narrator, and her observations about high-school warfare ring true.
Best YA Novels of 2010 Shannon Donnelly December 19, 2010

Samantha is a sharp, acerbic narrator, and the observations about high-school warfare ring true.
10 Smart YA Reads Shannon Donnelly September 15, 2010

And not the least haughty or intimidating or acerbic, but helpful, constructive, and conscientious.
Putting Words in Gore Vidal’s Mouth—a Copywriter Recalls the 1982 Senate Campaign Robert Chandler August 5, 2012

Perhaps even as acerbic a critic as Kennan might have been pleased by the result.
George Kennan by John Lewis Gaddis: A Review Jacob Heilbrunn December 8, 2011

A hazy choral interlude follows, followed by more nasty beats and acerbic lyrics.
Praise ‘Yeezus’: Kanye West’s New Album Is an Eclectic Tour de Force Marlow Stern June 14, 2013

Most important, Sockington, like another, acerbic cat icon, Garfield, had a voice.
Twitter’s Cat Mega Star Nicole LaPorte June 21, 2010

adjective
harsh, bitter, or astringent; sour
adj.

1865, originally, and usually, figurative: “sour, harsh, severe” (of speech, manners, etc.), from Latin acerbus “harsh to the taste, sharp, bitter, sour” (see acerbity) + -ic.