Here's a story about a new understanding of what makes thick beer foams stable:
Scientists unlock secret to thick, stable beer foams
I wonder if this could be applied to bread-making in some way. After all, isn't bread a thick foam?
One caveat - the writer writes about single, double, and triple fermented brews as if there were multiple fermentation episodes involved. In actual brewery lingo, I understand, the terms refer to the strength of the beer, with triple (or "tripel") being the strongest.
From the story:
The researchers also analyzed the protein content of the beers and found that one in particular—lipid transfer protein 1 (LPT1)—was a significant factor in stabilizing beer foams, and their form depended on the degree of fermentation. In single-fermented beers, for example, the proteins are small, round particles on the surface of the bubbles. The more proteins there are, the more the foam will be stable because those proteins form a more viscous film around the bubbles.
Those LPT1 proteins become slightly denatured during a second fermentation, forming more of a net-like structure that improves foam stability. That denaturation continues during a third fermentation, when the proteins break down into fragments with hydrophobic and hydrophilic ends, reducing surface tensions. They essentially become surfactants to make the bubbles in the foam much more stable.
It seems to me that a crumb with large, irregular holes fits the first strength better, while the finer more even hole distribution sounds more like the 2nd or even 3rd stage.
TomP