Today I tried Maurizio's take on the Tartine recipe today, using bolted Warthog Flour as the whole wheat and Barton Springs 00 for the remainder. I let it proof at room temperature and then baked. I definitely got a denser loaf than I was expecting, with the larger air pockets accumulating near the top. I was a bit disappointed with the flatter loaf, and am not sure if it's due to the mix of flours or my shaping--I'm always a bit concerned that I don't get the ball formed tight enough on these types of breads though it certainly looks good (to me) when I shape it. I got great oven spring on my last loaf, and perhaps it was letting it proof in the fridge that has something to do with it?
I wonder if my leaven is still not strong enough. I may have to switch to feeding a small amount daily rather than putting in the fridge. I gave it a feeding before then creating the leaven, but perhaps that's not enough to revive it (even though it was only in the fridge 24 hours). It may be a bit less vigorous vs. last week when it bubbled over! (Later note...I think that was it--it's looking a lot more active today--still (re-) learning).
In any case, it's still a good loaf.
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Sara great colour on the crust. I’d say your bread was a bit underproofed, it needed more time in bulk fermentation. The denser crumb towards the bottom and the large holes at the top are typical of underproofed bread. One feed for your starter before building your levain when your starter was in the fridge is probably not quite enough to really get your starter active. If you do that you’ll need more time in bulk fermentation. I usually do a couple of feeds after my starter has been in the fridge before building the levain. That being said I’m sure your bread tasted great.
Benny
Thanks! That's good to know. I'm starting to think I might just leave my starter out and feed it every day rather than the fridge for now. I mean I'm home and baking a few times a week. It seems like even a short stop in the fridge really slows things down!