My sourdough starter went from bubbly to dead in 48 hours flat

I had this starter going for about 6 months, feeding it every day like clockwork. It was doubling in size within 4 hours and smelled like fruity yogurt. Then I got busy with work and forgot to feed it for two days. When I came back, the top had this greyish liquid layer and it smelled like nail polish remover. I thought I could just feed it and bring it back, but nope. Three days of feeding and it barely bubbled at all. Ended up tossing the whole thing and starting from scratch with whole wheat flour this time. Has anyone else had a starter crash that fast even after it was mature?

2 comments

2 Comments

kim.emma23h ago

Did you try feeding it with something acidic like pineapple juice to kickstart it?

bell.taylor7h ago

That is a real shame after six months of careful work. I had something similar happen with a starter that was almost a year old when I left it in the fridge too long and the hooch got really dark. Some starters just seem to hit a wall and no amount of feeding can bring them back. Switching to whole wheat is a good move, I find it gives a much heartier culture that can handle a missed feeding now and then.