Moderately experienced sourdough baker aka Tartine country loaf. I recently received rouge de bordeaux berries. My current go to bread flours are Cairnspring Glacier Peak (T55) and Trailblazer (T85), both Yecoro Roja. I typically bake w/85% hydration. Any suggestions for proportions using RdB?
Do you want a mostly whole grain bread or do you want the rdb to be an accent to the sifted and white flours? How strong of a “baking spice aroma” situation do you want?
Melissa,
thanks for the right question. I’d like a fairly strong “spice aroma” but not at the expense of open crumb and oven spring. With the other two flours I typically use, both Yecora Rojo either T55 or T80, I’m concerned about too much elasticity when combined with the high protein RdB. I do have two sifters, #30 and #50 so I could sift the RdB, though perhaps if it’s a whole grain RdB, it will increase elasticity when combined with the Yecora Rojo? I’m feeling overwhelmed with all these variables. I look forward to experimenting with various combinations but I’d welcome a recommendation for my first experiment. Texture for me, i.e., open crumb and oven spring, are most important, with taste secondary since I’ve found that the right texture typically yields great taste regardless of flours I use. As I noted, I’ve had good success with 85% hydration.
50% t55
25% t85
25% rdb unsifted
85% H20
I think if you did this formula you would get about the same crumb openness that you see in the 50/50 bread in this recipe:
If you want more openness, you could reduce either the t85 or the rdb in favor of the t55.
Thanks much Melissa. I’ll try it this week and report back, hopefully with pictures! 
I’m looking forward to it!
Hi, Melissa,
I’d rate my results as 7.5/10. Little disappointed in the oven spring and open crumb but the taste is wonderfully rich, sweet but also complex. I think I let the bulk fermentation (BF) go too long, not in terms of time (3 hr. after 1 hr autolyse) but judging by appearance. Dough did not do great in the poke test! Parallel to the rouge de Bordeaux I also prepared and baked 90% Cairnspring Trailblazer (Yecora Rojo T85)/10% home milled rye, with very similar results.
I should have mentioned that BF was at 79-81°. Next time, I may increase the T55 relative to the T85 and watch more closely the BF especially over the last hour.
I think the crumb looks really good, but I understand you may prefer more openness. I recently made a more open-than-usual pain de campagne and my avocado was creeping through the back of the sandwich lol.
Increasing the T55 like you noted, or the water, should open the crumb more. How did you like the flavor and texture?
I probably could increase the H2O since the dough felt quite strong. I baked another batch along with the RdB and it had similar crumb and oven spring and I did add 25g H2O so it was 87.5% hydration vs 85% for the RdB batch. I’m pretty sure the BF was a tad too long though. I’ve had similar experiences previously. I got distracted in the last hour which is in many respects the most critical time. Life gets in the way of baking sometimes, doesn’t it! 
I love the open crumb of your avocado bread! My wife would love that since she toasts my sourdough almost every day to lather avocado onto it. I assume you posted that sourdough avocado recipe someplace?
You asked about. the taste of the RdB: probably the tastiest I’ve ever made. A rich combination of sweetness followed by an unusually complex delicate sourness. I’m looking forward to many batches of RdB so thank you much for your suggestion.
I hear you. The bulk fermentation always seems to creep along and then suddenly explode in the last 40 minutes. I end up skipping the bench rest fairly often because I feel like I need to get the dough into the refrigerator ASAP!
Here’s the recipe I used for that avocado toast, more or less. I shift the ratios and flours a little every time. You could do it with
T55, rdb, and rye.
The recipe baker’s percentages:
75% bread flour
20% red fife whole grain
5% rye whole grain
77.5% water
20% starter
2% salt
This batch, a little heavier on the rye, and a small amount of a whole grain starter
72.5% bread flour
16% yecora rojo whole grain
7.5% rye whole grain
77.5% water
5% starter
2% salt
Melissa,
Thanks so much for being so responsive and instructive. I’d appreciate any hints or links to how to incorporate avocado into your dough, though I can’t imagine my wife enjoying anything more than toasted sourdough slathered with avocado.
Currently I don’t have yecora rojo berries; just the T85 and T55 versions thereof (Cairnspring Mills, a local mill in WA). I’ve been using 10% starter. Never tried these other percentages. I often use fresh milled rye, 7.5-10%. My starter is invariably 50% whole grain rye/50% AP. I’ve been skeptical about starter recipes translating into different results but obviously you’ve experienced significant differences. Perhaps you can point me to some info about this. I recently purchased a “Starter Home” from Brod and Taylor. It’s quite convenient though I’m not sure it makes much of a difference if my starter is resting at 45° or 40° fridge temp. Again, many thanks.
- List item
I realize now you wanted avocado IN the dough!
I’ve used avocado as the fat in banana bread and it came out great – but I did get warnings afterward from other bakers that avocado can turn bitter at hot temperatures.
I’m always testing starter for different flavors. My results have been a mixed bag. Over time, one starter that was truly different adapted and became like my original starter!
Now I’ve got desem (Belgian style starter) and am testing that. It certainly smells different. Side by side comparison bakes are in progress. A “How to make desem” blog post on this website is coming soon.
Btw that wild crumb bread in the photo with avocado has a fraternal twin with a tighter crumb. Same double dough, divided, one shaped as a batard and scored deep. The other shaped as a boule and scored shallow. Check out the crumb difference:
