Unfortunately ‘sourdough’ has come to mean two things: on the one hand it is a general term for all wild starters; on the other it is a particular term for actu

Unfortunately ‘sourdough’ has come to mean two things: on the one hand it is a general term for all wild starters; on the other it is a particular term for actual sour bread, most particularly that made from a San Francisco starter which spoiled in the 19th century. Like you, I find the latter really quite unpleasant (to the point that I really am surprised anyone willing eats San Franciscan sourdough). But wild starters can range from tasting just like ordinary commercial yeasts, to tasting similar but with a richer flavour, all the way to the funk that we both dislike. I have never had a San Franciscan sourdough in Europe, so I doubt that this sourdough is the nasty (to my taste — many folks love it) kind, but maybe there is some subculture of inedible (again, to my taste) European breads. More likely, I suspect that this is just a good wild starter.