West Country Sourdough

Moving out of London was apparently meant to be a struggle. I was going to miss ‘civilisation’, you know the important stuff, decent restaurants, good coffee, the comfort of spotting like minded people on the streets.

Thankfully I live mere moments from Frome and with everywhere in countryside 20 minutes from Bruton, places so ‘woke’ that even our national paper of record has dedicated numerous articles imploring you to move here. 

Frome is a funny place, somewhere I like immensely and if you’ve not been you ought to go. Think a prettier Stoke Newington on steroids, Bruton the same. 

Bread is a decent modern barometer of a place. Sourdough has become a national obsession and the worry of Sourfaux a real concern in certain quarters. 

Thankfully, we’re alright around here. The bread at Bruton’s At the Chapel is excellent, far superior to most in the capital, as is their coffee. But, my go to, reminder that there is a life outside of tattersall check shirts, schoffel gilets and labradors is the West Country - sourdough from Frome’s Rye Bakery. 

Rye Bakery is a genius idea, an old chapel turned into café, coffee shop, bakery, childrens play area and general meeting space, it manages to be both community serving whilst being modern and desirable, a tricky task.

Anyway the bread, a mix of stoneground heritage wheats and strong white flour, leavened with sourdough starter & sea salt… All organic, naturally. A loaf with just enough bite and chew to satisfy. A pleasing sourness that makes a great basic Wiltshire ham & cheese sandwich but is sheer heaven toasted and slathered with Ivy House butter & my mate Marmite.