Hi,
After quite a few years my sourdough mother died. I only bake sourdough every couple of months and refreshed the starter in the fridge once every week or so. I guess I left it too long. We have an old blind dog who drools when I refresh the starter, for some reason she loves the acid/flour mix. But this time she left most of it rather than polishing her bowl so I knew something was up. Sure enough, no action when left out with fresh flour and water.
Note sure if I'll buy another San Fran starter or maybe try to make my own?
Anyway, I've been baking bread for years but only simple family loaves/rolls and pizza. When it comes to pizza, until recently I used a sizzling hot cast iron baking stone on the hob, followed by grilling - wonderful. I'm currently using an electric pizza oven (one of the round ovens, not the commercial ones) and trying not to burn the base.
Hoping to get some great tips from the forum! I also brew my own beer (all grain) and keep a couple of brewing yeasts on slants. Isn't yeast wonderful?
Making a new starter is so easy, as long as you are patient and don't rush it. Search for Debra Wink's pineapple juice solution. It works wonders, but does take two or three weeks to get strong enough to rise bread.
Meanwhile, next time you brew some beer, use a sterilized spoon to scoop a little bit of the foam (barm) off the top of the primary. Build a starter with that. You only need a little; it's explosive! Check out my blog post here for some pictures.
I second the suggestion that you try the pineapple solution. I would also suggest that when you get an active starter going that you dry some of the starter on parchment paper at room temperature. Store the dried flakes in a zippered plastic bag in the refrigerator to use in case of another emergency.
Ford
My dog also has a keen taste for sourdough. I trust her keen sense of smell to ascertain whether something may be safe to eat - taught to me by an old Basque friend (it's an indicator but is not a sure shot method for the safety of food).
Debra Wink's pineapple solution comes highly recommended. Remember to use whole wheat or whole rye (convenient source of wild-yeast and LAB), pure distilled water, clean containers with covers and 77 dF.
Beg, borrowing and theft are your other options...,
Wild-Yeast
Three thumbs up for Debra Wink, looks interesting.
I've always been puzzled that freezing or drying sourdough for storage seems to work (I've also frozen live yeast mixed with flour) but glycerin is recommended for beer yeast. Never tried freezing beer yeast as I use agar agar slants. The one time I experimented keeping beer yeast under distilled water was a failure.
Some of the stuff our dog thinks safe to eat, I wouldn't want brought into the house!