Want sourdough, but worried it's too hard?

[Major Nikon]

11. In France you can find levain cultures going back over 100 years

Their natural yeast bread does not taste sour as most of the French consider a sour taste to be a defect. I have personally maintained a starter for months without producing a single sour loaf.

In order to get a sour flavor, you have to culture acid tolerant organisms like L. sanfranciscensis which create lactic acid. The key to doing this isn’t time, it’s how you feed your starter. If you maintain your starter with a high hydration and remove almost all of your starter daily prior to feeding, you won’t get a sour taste. The opposite produces the opposite result.