The Art of Sourdough: A Baker's Journey

The Beginning

There's something almost magical about sourdough. It's one of the oldest

forms of bread-making, dating back thousands of years to ancient Egypt.

Yet despite all our modern conveniences, this ancient method remains the

gold standard for artisan bakers around the world.

Our Starter

At Bittersweet, our sourdough journey begins with our starter — a living

culture we've nurtured for over eight years. We call her Mildred, after my

grandmother who first taught me to bake. Every day, Mildred gets fed a

precise mixture of flour and water, maintaining the delicate balance of

wild yeast and beneficial bacteria that gives our bread its distinctive

tang and incredible texture.

The First Rise

We begin each batch in the early evening, mixing our flour with water and

a portion of the active starter. This mixture, called the levain, is left

to ferment overnight. By morning, it's bubbling and active, ready to

leaven a new batch of bread.

Shaping and Proofing

After the bulk fermentation, we shape each loaf by hand. This is where

experience really matters — the way you handle the dough affects the final

structure of the bread. Too rough and you'll knock out all the precious air;

too gentle and the loaf won't hold its shape.

The Bake

We bake our sourdough in a stone deck oven at high heat. The crust develops

that beautiful mahogany color and shattering texture through a combination

of steam and direct heat. When you hear our bread crackle as it cools —

that's the sound of a properly baked loaf.

Why It Matters

In a world of instant gratification, why go through all this trouble?

Because the result is incomparable. Sourdough made this way has a complexity

of flavor that commercial bread simply cannot match.