Hi! I had a question. I recently purchased a Komo Classic grinder so I could grind my own organic wheat berries for my whole grain bread baking. I have used it for the first time and baked a loaf using the same recipe I have used with commercially ground organic whole wheat flours. I feel embarrased to say this, but I didn't taste any difference between this and what I was making with the commercial flour. I would not give up this gorgeous grinder for anything and will always mill my own flour, so my question is, could maybe the source of the berries be the issue? The bags are not dated, so I don't know how old the berries are (purchased from Breadtopia) and wondered if you had suggestions for other sources that might have better or fresher berries? I used the organic hard red spring wheat berries. Let me know what source of berries you like to buy from and if the bags are dated. Maybe I can taste a difference with different berries. Thank you!
It's unlikely to be the wheat berries, especially those sold through Breadtopia, which takes great care with their products. Wheat berries keep a long time - home survivalists stock up on them, in fact.
I started grinding my own whole wheat flour with a Komo a few months ago, and the biggest flavor difference I've found in making bread from it is that it has almost none of the bitterness associated with commercial whole wheat flour. I think this is because the germ (and bran?) doesn't oxidize over time. I don't need to use any honey or sugar to counter the bitterness, and that lets more of the flavor of the grain come through. I love that.
It certainly tastes fresher than using commercially ground flour that has been sitting on the shelves too long or stored improperly, but before my Komo I took care to buy high quality whole wheat flour from a grocery with rapid stock turnover, and kept mine sealed in the freezer - so I haven't noticed a major everyday difference in "freshness" per se.
Beyond that, I like milling my own for the satisfaction of knowing I am getting the most nutrients possible this way (the magnitude of this difference is debatable but from what I've read, probably real to some degree). Also, the flexibility - wheat berries generally keep well for 2 or more years, if stored properly - so I can always have the freshest possible flour at a moment's notice.
I am not used to buying food in any form that does not have dates on the packaging, all grains I have ever bought have dates. So while I know wheat berries last a long time, I still want to know the crop year and/or have a use-by date on it. Just my personal preference. This is why I was hoping to find another source. Does anyone have a source with good turnover that has dated bags? Let me know, thanks.
Just as a point of reference, you might write to Breadtopia and ask them the date of harvest for the berries you bought. They are very responsive in their customer service and I would be surprised if they could not at least tell you the year and season.
I know you want more precision than that, although I am not so sure that a difference of a few months is going to noticeably affect the quality of the berries, and part of your question was whether the berries are the issue.
Sources - For my everyday ww bread, I use Bob's Red Mill hard red spring wheat berries, available at a good price from Amazon prime if you buy the 4-packs. They are commercially dated.
Anson Mills says that fresher grain tastes better. Maybe they're right.
Honeyville grain is pack dated.
Thanks, I checked them out but wish they sold in smaller quantities :-(
I posted in your other thread - just noticed this thread is the active one so I duplicated my post here:
Hi, It has been so many years (at least 40) since I ever used store bought whole wheat flour that I don't remember if there was a difference in taste. But the taste was never my motivation for grinding my own wheat. What motivated me to grind my own wheat is the benefits of fresh wheat germ. The oil in wheat germ starts to turn rancid very quickly after the wheat kernel is broken open. I believe (could be wrong) that even "whole wheat" flour you buy at the store has the germ removed - or if it hasn't been removed it would be rancid.
The only way I know of to get fresh wheat germ is to mill your own wheat (or buy fresh wheat germ direct from the miller on the day it was milled - and I don't know any mill that will sell small quantities that way).
With freshly milled wheat, you can actually get away with less (or no) added oil. though I still do add oil or butter - but I can bake without adding any. I'm quite sure that if you baked with store bought wheat flour (not adding oil) and baked with fresh ground (not adding oil) you would notice a difference in texture (with the fresh ground behaving more as though you had added the oil - due to the wheat germ oil present)