Hi David

Thanks so much for your thoughts and ideas. You input is very helpful indeed. I should note that since I posted my first comment on this matter, there seems to have been a very big improvement in the quality of the loaves. The hydration of the starter is still in the realm of 53%, and I still think that it is simply because the water retention of the flour that I'm is considerably less than the flour asked for in Hamelman's formula. (In Ukraine, we basically have only 3 wheat flours to work with: Top Grade, which is highly refined; Sort 1, which is less refined with a slight less extraction and higher ash content; and Sort 2, which is even lesser extraction. With such limitations, bakers have to be really creative and sharp!) I use Sort 1 and mix 20% of my own stone ground whole grain to give the starter something to feed on, basically Leader's "20% bran wheat flour".

Another thing that I have been doing is giving the starter a good kneading after discarding a portion and adding fresh flour and water. This, together with the fact that the starter is now several months old now, seems to have helped to create loaves with much better oven spring and a good sour taste.

 Final comment: I am using a German wood-fired oven.

 Thanks again for your help and ideas.

 Cheers

Jim Haas, Kyiv Ukraine

Thanks, David. Of course your ideas and suggestions have been very helpful.

As for hydration, I know that the 53% hydration for the levain starter seems very low, but I should add here that experience has shown me that wheat flour generally has a lower water retention than in Western Europe or North America. So that 53% that I referred to in my earlier post is still the same (with small variations per flour consignment).

On the subject of levain starter, I let it mature over night in a large plastic sealed bucket - usually about 5kg or so - and take it with me to the bakery in the morning. When it completed maturing 12 hrs later and is ready for the mix, I give my work table a good dusting of flour, scoop the starter out onto it with a plastic dough cutter, and give it a good knead to tighten it up again and then quickly do the "fist-sized" chunks.

Loaves are proved in linen couches on top of the work tables; in this cold weather it goes under plastic as well.

Finally, I use a German wood-fired oven with a large 8sq meter surface (manufacturer (Karl-Heinz Haussler GmbH) and no steam mechanism, so really the only option for this effect is to give the breads a good blast of water from a sprayer while they're on the conveyor.

Thanks again for the comments, Dave. Sorry that I didn't get back to you earlier...

Jim Haas, Kyiv Ukraine