I spent 2 weeks in southern Sweden last summer and enjoyed the distinctive
taste of the sourdough from the local artisan bakeries. I'm returning to
Sweden this summer and wonder if it would be worth my time to attempt to
"capture" some of the local wild yeasts to bring back to the US for use in a
starter here. If so, any suggestions as to how I'd go about collecting some
of the local yeasts and safely transporting them back home.

Thanks,
Dave P.

p.s. I have two very old starters that I use weekly --- one from Texas and
another from San Francisco, where I lived for 14 years.

"Dave Pitzer" > wrote in message ...
> ... I'm returning to Sweden this summer and wonder if it would be
> worth my time to attempt to "capture" some of the local wild
> yeasts to bring back to the US for use in a starter here.

Only you can decide.

> If so, any suggestions as to how I'd go about collecting some
> of the local yeasts and safely transporting them back home.

You could go to a bakery whose loaves you fancy, and ask for
some of their culture. Make it solid for transport by working in
white flour. A few grams of the solidized stuff is enough.

Consider also bringing back a local wild Swedish girl.

(I did that.)

--
Dicky

Dave Pitzer wrote:
> [...] If so, any suggestions as to how I'd go about collecting some
> of the local yeasts and safely transporting them back home.
>
>
Yeah - the local yeast story again....

Try to get sterile flour to "catch" what's there. Your mileage may vary
considerably going to zero right there.

And - if you get "local" grain flour, make sure it's not from US,
Canada, Ukraine, Poland etc. so by accident nothing grows from the
organisms imported from another locality, in case you don't get it 100 %
sterilized..

Next - if you got some tempting bread taste you want to duplicate,
apparent to me the continental US is starter-heavy, it seems to be
mostly contributed to the "starter" - get it from the locality where the
bread is made/sold, bring it home and you are set.

Maybe the simplified thought process goes like this: Store-bought
soft-bread is truly tasteless and made with bakers yeast - better
tasting bread is made with a "starter" - so the "starter" is the
ingredient making all the difference?

That could work if, and only if all the properties of a bread would be
in the starter which is hardly the case and often found out that a bread
make with the same starter will change over time and is no longer sour,
too sour or less "tangy" as liked, seen, tasted and maybe self-made
initially. Mileage he also approaching zero with some chance to get
more.

Ok - now, what would be a way to "copy" a bread 100 %?

- get the "starter" from the desired bread bakery. Chances: often not
easy to accomplish, maybe needs bribing somebody or sneaking into a
bakery at a time when nobody is there.
- get the "starter" properties - how is it grown, hydration, flower
used, steps (temperatures, times, hydration, flour multiplications)
chances: next to impossible.
- get the dough recipe - similar to starter, with ingredients, mixing
proportions, kneading time, rising steps, temperatures etc...
- baking.... probably the hardest to duplicate. Heat volume of bakery
ovens compare to home kitchen ovens with a factor of 100 : <select your
guess here (suggest < 10) > and bread crust is a major contributor to
bread crumb taste.

Chances to get this done with reasonable effort: 0

So - you can always have the illusion to catch something local by
putting some flour and water in a container somewhere outside and have
something sour grow after a while, take it home and then say you have a
third starter from Sweden in your collection and try to get a similar
bread you saw there.

Or - if your existing starters are in good shape, just use those to do
the same.

I think that a (viable) sourdough starter's origin contributes maybe 5 %
to a bread's properties - all else are other factors in the process and
if you can't get it together with your two existing starters, a newly
"caught" starter from Sweden won't do you any good at all.

Good luck!

Sam

On Apr 20, 1:13 pm, "Dave Pitzer" > wrote:
> I spent 2 weeks in southern Sweden last summer and enjoyed the distinctive
> taste of the sourdough from the local artisan bakeries. I'm returning to
> Sweden this summer and wonder if it would be worth my time to attempt to
> "capture" some of the local wild yeasts to bring back to the US for use in a
> starter here. If so, any suggestions as to how I'd go about collecting some
> of the local yeasts and safely transporting them back home.
>

I'd start he
http://www.janhedh.com/artisan.htm

Will wrote:
> I'd start he
> http://www.janhedh.com/artisan.htm
>
great oven he has:

http://www.janhedh.com/kurser.htm

(and has link to baking/cooking schools, where he apparently teaches)

Maybe could ask him how to catch the local yeasts to see what and how he
thinks about this.

S.