Flour Types: The Foundation of Great Bread

Bread flour is the workhorse of sourdough baking. Milled from hard wheat varieties with high protein content, it develops strong, extensible gluten that can trap fermentation gases effectively. This is the flour to reach for when you want reliable results with good rise and an open crumb.

In Australia, look for brands like Laucke Wallaby, Kialla Pure Foods, or Four Leaf Milling. Supermarket bread flours can work but often have lower protein content than specialty options. Check the nutrition label—you want at least 11.5g protein per 100g.

Plain flour sits in the middle ground, designed to be versatile for cakes, pastries, and bread alike. It can make sourdough, but you'll typically get less rise and a tighter crumb than with bread flour. The lower protein content means less gluten development, which makes the dough harder to handle and shape.

That said, if plain flour is all you have, you can absolutely make sourdough with it. You might need to reduce hydration slightly and be gentler during shaping. Some bakers deliberately use a percentage of plain flour to create a more tender crumb.

Wholemeal flour includes the entire wheat kernel: the starchy endosperm, the fibre-rich bran, and the nutritious germ. This gives it a distinctively earthy, nutty flavour and darker colour. It's nutritionally superior to white flour, with more fibre, vitamins, and minerals.

Despite its high protein content, wholemeal flour behaves as though it has less. The sharp bran particles physically cut gluten strands during mixing, and the bran absorbs more water than white flour. To compensate, increase hydration by 5-10% and expect a denser crumb. Most bakers use wholemeal as a portion (20-50%) of the total flour rather than going 100%, which can produce heavy, dense loaves.

Rye is a different grain entirely from wheat, and it behaves completely differently in bread. Rye proteins don't form gluten in the same way wheat does—instead, rye contains pentosans that create a sticky, gummy texture. This means rye bread has a completely different character: dense, moist, deeply flavoured, and long-keeping.

For sourdough, rye is particularly interesting because it ferments vigorously. Even a small percentage of rye in your starter will make it more active. In bread, rye adds complexity and extends shelf life thanks to its acids and moisture retention. Start with 10-20% rye in your formula and increase as you get comfortable with its unique handling requirements.

Spelt is an ancient relative of modern wheat, cultivated for thousands of years before being largely replaced by higher-yielding wheat varieties. It has a distinctive sweet, nutty flavour that many bakers love. Some people who have difficulty digesting modern wheat find spelt more tolerable, though it does contain gluten.

Spelt gluten is more fragile than wheat gluten—it develops quickly but breaks down with prolonged mixing or handling. This means spelt doughs need gentler treatment: less kneading, fewer folds, and careful shaping. The window between properly developed and over-worked is narrow. Reduce hydration by 5-10% compared to wheat, and watch fermentation carefully as spelt tends to ferment faster.