Though it might look like beer in the making, this is a jar of sourdough starter made from flour and water, that had been left at the far back of the fridge and completely forgotten about. 

It must have been there for 2 months. 

It's completely separated and smells pleasantly alcoholic, almost sweet. But is it still alive? 

Surprisingly, yes. But we had to revive it with fresh flour and water, and hope that it would ferment.

It did.

We just made 2 loaves of bread with it. The only ingredients here are whole wheat flour and water. Half is the old starter, and the other half is fresh flour and water.

We let it ferment on the counter for the day. It doubled in size after about 9 hours. 

Alive and kickin' indeed!

Conclusion: The starter was not dead, only dormant.

We strongly recommend against neglecting your starter, but if you forgot it by mistake, it's worth trying to revive it.