"Hooch"

We just poured the hooch off the starter. Early morning is the time we prepare our bread. we are going to make foccacia, seeded rustic, kalamata olive and a walnut baguette. Hooch is the alcohol that builds in the starter and may be blended in the starter or poured off. Sometimes we blend it in for more flavor and then the rest of the time we pour it off. It is a black liquid that just covers the top, it is harmless and comes from fermenting. like fine wine, bread has it's own fermentation that provides hearth breads with a desired odor and flavor. Try making some for yourself, just blend together 1 cup of purified water and one and a half cups of flour,we use bread flour, stir and let sit out on counter so it will gather bacteria from the air and develop into a bubbly concoction for the most wonderful bread you have ever tasted. Chow!