Brasserie Bread - Artisan baking, leavened, starter, ferment, organic, yeast, sourdough, natural fermentation, bread, craftsman, recipe

Artisan Baking - an artisan, also called a craftsman, is a skilled manual worker who uses tools and machinery in a particular craft. In Europe during the Middle Ages artisans, including bakers, jewellers and glass blowers usually organised into Guilds. To become an artisan in a Guild, a person worked under a master artisan as an unpaid apprentice at a young age. If the apprentice completed the training, the apprentice became a paid Journeyman. For a Journeyman to become a master artisan, he would have to produce a masterpiece that met the standards of the Guild. These underlying principles of training and dedication to your craft are still applied today at Brasserie Bread.

An artisan baker is a craftsperson who is trained to the highest skill level to, mix, ferment, shape (hand mould) and bake a hand crafted loaf of bread. An artisan baker knows it takes time, a "long" time to create a great loaf of bread. An artisan baker takes time choosing the very best ingredients and never bakes with preservatives and additives. An artisan baker spends time thinking about the entire process from start to finish. An artisan baker is never afraid to experiment and be creative. Today's artisan bakers also understand the science behind the chemical reactions of the ingredients, and know how to provide the best environment for the bread to develop. An artisan baker is proud of the thought, creativity and effort that it takes to produce each and every product... a true artisan baker is a perfectionist!

During recent years there has been a resurgence of artisan bakeries. As consumers have become more educated and health conscience there has been a corresponding growth in the demand for tasty, nutritious, preservative-free artisan bread. Brasserie Bread is Australia's leading artisan bakery now employing over 20 artisan (bread & pastry) bakers.