Addendum to The Flour Treatise and The Flour Test

There have been many advances in the flour industry relative to artisan bread baking since
The Flour Treatise was first written. The Introduction to The Flour Treatise includes the
following: Many reading this treatise may find it disheartening that the flour quality indicators
available to Euroean are not readily available here. !ne comany does rovide information.
It is Cooks Natural Products." #e are leased to say that this is no longer the case.
Information such as flour secifications and baking test results are currently available to a
much wider audience$ via flour urveyor websites and knowledgeable technical and sales
ersonnel.
The %rtisan was informed that &eneral Mills &old Medal flour was about to launch a new
consumer roduct$ 'arvest (ing flour. #e contacted &eneral Mills and they graciously
agreed to send us flour rior to its availability to the consumer. #e have been using this flour
to make many of the recies osted on The %rtisan )including the recie used for The Flour
Test*$ as well as recies from our favorite bread making books+ %rtisan ,aking %cross
%merica$ and ,read$ % ,aker-s ,ook of Techniques and .ecies. The /onclusion to The
Flour Treatise states$ !ur referred flour is an unbleached all0urose flour$ ranging in
rotein content from 1.2 0 334. This unbleached$ all0urose flour is a blend of hard red
winter wheat flour and soft winter wheat flour. This flour has roven to be the most
deendable relative to erformance characteristics and consistency. It is our flour of choice
when making Italian style bread." %s a result of our working with 'arvest (ing flour$ it has
become our referred flour when making bread.
For your convenience we have included a coy of a news release osted on the &eneral Mills
website:
Harvest King Flour Fuels a Baking Renaissance
Flour formulated for artisan baking now available to home bakers:
Dateline - 05/23/2006
MI55E%6!7I8 9 %n artisan bread renaissance is emerging with an
emhasis on quality ingredients$ roer fermentation$ hand shaing
and craftsmanshi. %nd now$ artisan breads aren:t achievable ;ust by
rofessional bakers. They can be created at home as &old Medal
brings 'arvest (ing flour$ secially develoed for the artisan bread
industry$ to consumers in 8etember <==>.
?#ith 'arvest (ing$ we created domestic flour that is erfectly suited
to the discerning style and methods of artisan baking$? said Tim
,ennett$ &old Medal marketing manager. @#e are eAcited to offer
'arvest (ing to the growing number of home bakers who want to
articiate in this rich tradition and create erfect$ beautiful loaves of
bread every time they bake.?
'arvest (ing will now be available to home bakers. 6reviously
available only to rofessional artisan bakers$ 'arvest (ing is secially
formulated to roduce wholesome$ full0flavored artisan breads.
'arvest (ing flour is milled from 3== ercent select hard winter wheat.
In addition to imarting a golden crust$ winter wheat rovides the
erfect balance of strength and tolerance required for artisan baking:s
long$ slow fermentation rocess. 'arvest (ing wheat is secially
milled to the ideal ash and rotein level$ which rovides otimum
baking characteristics and delivers the desired crumb structure and
crust teAture. %nd 'arvest (ing flour is unbleached and unbromated$
making it ideal for the unique techniques that are the key to artisan
baking.
Preserving a Tradition
&old Medal set out to create a flour that would enable %merican
bakers to create Euroean style artisan breads with a domestic flour.
To achieve this$ the &old Medal team visited the 5ational ,aking
/enter to better understand the rocess of artisan baking and the
needs of artisan bakers. ,ecause artisan breads are hand0formed
and slow0fermented$ they require a flour with unique characteristics
and secifications. %fter learning from master artisan bakers and
conducting numerous tests$ &old Medal found that its 'arvest (ing
flour$ available to rofessional bakers on the #est /oast for many
years$ offered the erfect characteristics for artisan baking.
%s a result$ 'arvest (ing flour became &old Medal:s rofessional
artisan baking brand. %fter decades of use by rofessional bakers$
'arvest (ing flour will now become art of the home baker:s antry$
delivering the consistency of rofessional baking in every loaf.
About Gold Medal
&old Medal is ?%merica:s 5o. 3 Flour.? Founded in 3223$ it was
the first roduct of &eneral Mills$ delivering unsurassed
consistency and quality for generations. The tradition continues
today in <==> with more than a doBen &old Medal roducts$
formulated secifically for erfect results in every tye of baking.
&old MedalC and 'arvest (ingC are registered trademarks of
&eneral Mills$ Inc.
&old Medal 'arvest (ing will relace &old Medal ,etter for ,read as stores across the
country order flour to relenish their inventory. 6lease let us know whether or not you agree
that 'arvest (ing is a welcome addition to the antry of artisan bread bakers. !ur secial
thanks to &eneral Mills$ to those who heled