Hi Ingrid, when folks are having difficulty getting a starter to work for them, I always recommend beginning the process with Debra Wink's Pineapple Juice Solution. I like her method because it requires very little flour at the beginning of the process, and is meant to weed out a variety of bacteria that can cause a delay in yeast activity.

Once the starter is rising predictably with this method you'll want to shift into twice a day feedings (which will further promote yeast development). I would also recommend gradually transitioning to feeding with AP flour over the course of several feedings, and perhaps adapting your starter ratios to something close to the 1:1:1 by weight we promote in our sourdough starter recipe. While there are lots of ways to create and maintain a sourdough starter, if you'd like to take advantage of our recipes and resources you may find it easier to end up with a starter that resembles ours. 

Another option is to purchase a mature sourdough starter from us, which only takes a few feedings to revive it from its travels before it's ready to use in your baking. 

As far as producing a "sweet" or "sour" sourdough starter, we tend to emphasise maintaining a starter that rises predictably and has a pleasant aroma, and focus on flavor development during the preferment and dough stages of sourdough bread production. One of the surest methods to develop more sour flavor is to substitute 10-15% wholegrain flour (particularly whole rye flour) for part of the white flour called for in the dough portion of your bread recipe. 

I hope this helps! Let us know how it goes. 

Barb

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