In honour of Row Fourteen’s FIVE GRAIN SOURDOUGH being offered weekly at Klippers Marketplace & Cafe (baked-fresh Saturday mornings!)as well as at Vancouver Farmers Markets, we thought it would be a good time to provide a bit more information on this magnificent bread.

This delicious and nutritious sourdough is made with 100% ingredients from suppliers we know and trust.

Made with whole flour, wild yeast, and bacteria, Row Fourteen’s five-grain sourdough comes from a very natural origin. In fact— this type of sourdough is the oldest form of leavened bread (we have actually been eating it as part of a natural diet for a very long time).

The Ingredients

The Starter… The Mother of Row Fourteen 

Instead of using active dry yeast-like in other bread recipes, sourdough bread uses a starter (otherwise known as levain, or, at Row Fourteen “mother”).

According to Jacob (Row Fourteen’s Sous Chef), “Row Fourteen refers to this component of the bread as “mother” because it gives life.”

A natural sourdough starter/mother (like Row Fourteen’s) is a fermented dough filled with natural, wild yeast and a bacteria (called lactobacilli). Born in 2014, the organic mother used to make the five grain Sourdough has been raised by Chef Derek Gray since its inception. Made with natural yeast (water & flour), this sourdough component is what makes our sourdough bread rise and what is responsible for bringing that classic sour flavor to our bread. 

It was important to the kitchen at Row Fourteen that we include that this sourdough mother is a part of the Row Fourteen family & is treated as such.

Flour & Ancient Grains from Treasure Life Organic Mills

70% of the flour used in Row Fourteen’s five grain sourdough recipe comes from Treasure Life Organic Mills. Located in Creston BC, Claudia & Ben at Treasure Life Organic Mills are known as soil conservationists, seed archivists, farmers, millers, mill engineers, food historians, detectives, and so on... Driven by an intense desire to grow, mill & preserve the best grains while increasing soil fertility has led Claudia & Ben to become respected by millers around the world. On their farm in Creston, Claudia & Ben breed, store & mill around 260 heirloom varieties of grain. Claudia and Ben are also known to mindfully source some varieties of grains from their friends in Saskatchewan. 

Row Fourteen gets a few varieties of organic grains & flour from them including Marquis, Bishops, Lagoda, Khorasan, and dark rye. To learn more about Claudia & Ben visit https://centralkootenayfood.ca/business/treasure-life-flour-mills/ or @treasureoflifeflourmills on Facebook.

Flour from Anita’s Organic Mill

The remaining 30% of the flour used in Row Fourteen’s five grain sourdough recipe comes from Anita’s Organic Mills. Anita’s sources & mills organic Canadian Grains in Chilliwack, BC.

Derived from Anita’s, themselves; “Located in beautiful Chilliwack, BC, in view of the snowy Cheam mountain range, sits our 34,000 sq. ft., SQF Certified, Milling, and Mixing facility. The new building also houses our retail and bulk packaging facility, a separate and dedicated gluten-free area, as well as an on-site bakery that serves as a test kitchen for education and development. We’re proud to be certified Organic, Gluten-Free, Kosher and NEW- SQF (Safe Quality Foods)!” To learn more about Anita’s Organic Mill, visit  https://www.anitasorganic.com/ or find them on Facebook or Instagram at @anitasorganics.

Fun Fact: Many of the ancient grains used by Row Fourteen in it’s five grain sourdough are not super readily available, which makes this bread a much more unique option than many of the commercially available sourdough bread you might see in your local grocery store.

For more information about the five grain sourdough at Row Fourteen, please stay tuned! Part 2 of 2 on this Raising Bread series will be coming soon!

Wondering where you can find this magnificent bread?

- Farmer’s Markets attended by Klippers Organics (make sure to follow @klippersorganics on Facebook and Instagram for updates)

- Klippers Marketplace & Cafe | 625 MacKenzie Rd, Cawston BC

- Row Fourteen– available as part of a harvest meal or as an appetizer at Row Fourteen (make sure to follow @rowfourteen on Facebook and Instagram for hours and menu options)

Thanks for reading! Make sure to check back soon.