Our Sourdough Process

Maintaining an active starter

A sourdough starter is a combination of flour, water, and microbes (wild yeast and bacteria). Over time the starter will uniquely transform as certain species of lactic acid bacteria and yeast begin to dominate the mixture. Our sourdough starter, "Gilbert", is maintained at room temperature and fed daily to keep him happy and ready for every batch.

Building a strong levain

The levain begins with our sourdough starter, which is then fed a new ratio of flour and water to increase its strength before adding it to the dough. This levain will ultimately become the natural leavening agent, as we do not rely on commercial yeast in our dough-making process.

Making a vibrant dough

After our levain cold-ferments for 48 hours, we move on to the dough-making process which includes adding additional flour, water, and salt to the levain. After a short rest period we begin folding and stretching until it reaches a consistent texture before returning it to the fridge for another 48 hours of cold fermentation.

Divide, shape, and proof

We divide the dough equally and each portion is shaped into a loaf. These loaves are added to the proofing baskets where they go back in the fridge for another 24 hours of cold fermentation.

Scoring and baking

The proofed loaves are placed into loaf pans and scored to ensure consistent shape and rise. For the final step, the loaves are baked in a hot oven and the finished product is a beautiful, lightly-crusted sourdough bread.

The Finished Product

Sliced and ready to enjoy!