So what is this thing?
I finally got my own starter going! I first tried my hand at sourdough last year and failed at making my own starter, so I ordered KAF starter online. This helped me to get some experience and find out what it's supposed to smell like and how it looks like when it rises properly, etc.So this year when I went to the beach at Myrtle for a week I tried again. I started with a very liquidy mix of water and unbleached white flour and set it out on the screened balcony for about a day. Then I just kept it going for the rest of the week at about 100% hydration. But here is where it gets interesting.
When I got home it wasn't as warm as the beach so I decided to stick it in the oven with the light on for a few hours. When I took it out the glass jar was very hot to the touch. Darn! I thought I killed it. It seemed to stunt the growth for a couple of days, but then started back up again. Now it's great and doubling up quickly.
So my crazy question is this. I'm calling this my beach starter. Is this really "beach yeast" or did I just pickup yeast from the air back home after the oven episode? Or did the heat just temporarily stunt the growth. I would like to think I have a souvenir starter from the beach. Either way, I'm baking this weekend! Just curious to know exactly what yeast is in there. Also, when I smell it, it has a really good lemony scent, but it almost burns my nose from the acidity scent. It's stronger and not as fruity as my KAF, but I think it's going to make a good sourdough. Thanks all for your feedback!