December 16, 2018 - 12:03pm
Rye sour starter from Stanley Ginsberg's 'The Rye Baker'
Hi!
I am following the instructions on pages 36, 37 of Stanley Ginsberg's The Rye Baker [1] for the starter sour to the letter:
- on Thursday I mixed 70g Bob's Red Mill Dark rye with 70g water at 104F° (using a yoghurt thermometer, whose tip did not touch the pan's bottom) etc in this jar [2]. Everything very clean (I think). Left the lid closed - but not sealed with the clip - in the kitchen out of direct heat and light but with the ambient temperature around 68°/70°F; no draughts
- on Friday I discarded all but 70g (although that did mean half, I measured precisely) and added the same mixture of 70g Bob's Red Mill Dark rye with 70g water; by then there was a nice healthy sour smell
- on Saturday the same; still a healthy sour smell
- but by this morning (day 4) the smell was not exactly 'moldy', nor rotten. Perhaps it is what Ginsberg calls on page 37 (first paragraph) more 'intense' :-)
Could I be doing something wrong, please? Should I persevere, or start from scratch and store in the fridge each day?
TIA!