Starter Troubleshooting
I had been keeping a 100% hydration starter, which I was feeding 1:1:1 about 3 times per day. Our house stays around 75-76ºF and my starter was doubling in about 4 hours, tripling by 6 hours, and was being fed at 8 hours. I'd been doing this for right at 2 weeks -- the starter, itself, was 2 weeks old -- when it was suggested to me by someone with far more experience than me that I was feeding my starter too often and that I should only feed every 12 hours. So I switched to a 12 hour feeding schedule. Two days later I noticed there was a darker coloration to the starter, but that it wasn't homogenous -- normal color on the bottom, darker on top. I stirred, fed, and on the next feeding the starter had taken on a distinctly purple hue -- again, not homogeneously tinted, but just within the upper 1/3-1/2 of the volume. I bit of searching turned up several bits of advice that basically were equivalent to, "Purple...bad. Toss it." So I tossed it and pulled a bit I'd saved in the fridge that dated back before the schedule change.
So, my question to everyone is -- what the heck happened? I always worked with cleaned utensils and containers. Perhaps I dried my storage container with a contaminated towel? Or is it possible that the timing was not a coincidence? Did switching to a less frequent feeding schedule weaken the starter somehow?
Thanks for your help.
Christopher
Suggestions:
1) Try feeding once per day and place in refigerator one hour after feeding.
2) Likewise, remove from refigerator one hour prior to feeding.
I've kept a 100% rye starter this way for several years now, with varying hydration ratios. I usually feed it once a week and will build it up the day prior to baking.
Peak activity is 5-6 hours at 75 degree temp (my oven off with the light on. I use 100% hydration ratio since it is so easy to make a 1:1 ratio. I also use 100% rye flour for my starter no matter what I am baking as a subtle rye nuance is not noticable by the time the final bread is built. However, the type of flour should not be an issue as white and or wheat starters will work just fine.
Me thinks your warm house is contributing to spoilage? And the high frequency of feeding (assuming the rest of the problem is solved) will likely result in a less sour profile than if it was fed less often). Most of the popular books by Hamelman and Dan Leader have chapters on the subject. And try search on this site too! Hope this helps...
Nick
Thanks for the suggestions. I've done a fair bit of searching on the internet and reading the sections in BBA & most recently Hamelman's Bread. My concern is mostly that I'd maybe mixed and matched approaches to the point that I was confusing myself. Not exactly difficult to do some days!
I wondered if the warmer temps were contributing, but I've also been a bit hesitant to put this young of a starter in the fridge regularly after reading in Hamelman's book that sub-45ºF temperatures adversely affect the yeast. Maybe it's time to split up my starter and try a few different ideas.
Thanks again.
Christopher