On 2021-03-01 12:26 p.m., Boron Elgar wrote:
> On Sun, 28 Feb 2021 22:06:02 -0700, Graham > wrote:
>
>> On 2021-02-28 5:02 p.m., Boron Elgar wrote:
>>>
>>> Ran into this online about sourdough blistering. Now I get to poke
>>> around and see if it makes sense.
>>>
>>> "This is because acidic conditions created by sourdough breaks down
>>> the gluten near the surface. As the bread bakes, steam is created and
>>> it escapes through mini-chimneys all throughout the crust where the
>>> gluten has been weakened. Those mini-chimneys end up looking like
>>> blisters."
>>>
>>> https://wheatbeat.com/blisters/
>>>
>> My teachers at the local Alliance Française told me that they did not
>> like N.American style sourdough. The French equivalent, pain uu levain,
>> has a more subtle flavour, probably because the levain is kept at ~60%
>> hydration rather than the 100% hydration typical of sourdoughs. ISTR
>> that the high hydration favours the acid.
>> Therefore French boulangers see the blisters as a fault.
>
> A bit of clarification and questioning, too... I always thought lower
> hydration makes a starter produce more acetic acid, so the final
> product is tangier.
>
I follow the French style and use low hydration starters and mix to ~70%
and the sour note is very muted or absent.