I am getting very discouraged
I froze my healthy starter over what I thought was going to be our usual too hot to bake summer (it wasn't, but that's an inexplicable occurrance) and then thawed it out slowly in the refrigerator. Both the rye and the white starters seemed to have died - I tried feeding them, the rye was too weak and just sat there and got gummy and yucky; the white starter made a valiant attempt to revive, but seems very weak. I tried making a loaf last weekend - major disaster, very little rise, very little oven spring and two small boules that could be used as deadly projectiles in case of invasion. I fed the remaining starter with organic rye flour (1:1:1) and it bubbled a little. It tastes sour, but smells slightly sweet - I'm going to try some unsweetened pineapple juice instead of water with the next feeding just in case there has been an overgrowth of some unwelcome bacteria. I'd start over again, but having to work full time is not condusive to stirring a little bowl of rye flour mixed with pineapple juice every 30 minutes or so (there's no room on my desk for it once I spead out my manuals, papers, etc.!!) - I'm hoping the pineapple juice does the trick. Am I on the right track or should I just start over again?