Many customers have noticed that the selection of bread at Evergrain has changed to just two types of loaf, the traditional baguette and the round campagne. Interested in why this change was made, I spoke with Doug Rae to get an informative explanation of the bakery’s direction over the next six months. He explained that they are trimming the selection in order to focus on the craft of making naturally leavened bread with only grain and no add-ins.
“We’ve pulled out of all the farmers markets, including Chestertown, and we’re focusing fully on the storefront now because we feel that we’re at a place where we can, and we’re becoming more clear on what we really want to focus on, which is creating a customer experience in our own shop setting,” Doug said.
They are branching out the focus of the bakery in other ways, such as with pizza night, in order to make Evergrain more of a late-night destination, which is something Doug said he feels the town needs.
“We’re also revamping the bread program and simplifying it into an array of, you could say, functional breads. We’re focusing fully on fermentation as opposed to mix-ins. We feel that the real craft that we’re trying to master is fermentation and fermenting grain. We’re extremely excited to see what we can create through fermenting grain and opening people’s eyes to what that’s like as opposed to focusing on the raisins or walnuts or olives or hazelnuts or whatever’s in it.”
“If you eat this plain flour, with no fermation at all, it’s relatively flavorless and bland. The starches and carbohydrates are so complex that the tongue literally can’t decipher anything. The process of fermentation breaks those apart so that the tongue can decipher the flavors. The skill of the baker is, how much of the full potential of that grain can you evoke from your skills? Rye really well fermented gives the bread a spicy component. Kamut has a nutty flavor. Semolina tastes like pasta. The baguette is sweet because it’s all white flour.”
“The world barista champion from 2008 said that as artisans we’re trying to minimize the amount taken away from the full potential of the product when we’re transforming it. So, when they’re roasting coffee, the less they mess it up, the better it’s going to be. The less that human intervention disrupts the natural product, the better.”
Doug was careful to emphasize that reducing the selection to two different breads does not mean a move to perpetual sameness.
“With that campagne, the pain au levain loaf, we’re constantly mixing in new types of grain to see what kind of flavor we’re evoking, so it’s not actually the same campagne loaf any one day or during any one week. Sometimes it has ancient grain like kamut, which comes from Egypt. We’re also doing semolina, we’re also doing whole wheat rye. Most of it’s organic. That’s going to evolve for the next probably six months. People are going to always see something different even though we’re offering one naturally leavened loaf. The baguettes will always stay the same; that’s kind of the standard bearer. With the pain au levain we’re going to make one incredibly delicious and nutritious loaf. The idea is that if you can master the craft of fermentation so well, people can eat a whole loaf and not feel like they did in the sense that it’s not unpleasant. A lot of the bitterness from whole grain is neutralized through the fermentation, and that’s what we want to do. We want to get so good at it that eating healthy bread isn’t a chore or something forced — it’s actually what one wants to do the most. Like with Poilâne bakery in France, all they do is wheat.”
“We want people to go on this journey with us. We’re paving the way to something we think will be better.”
Doug said that the ultimate goal for the changes is to maximize people’s appreciation of the food they eat and the moment in which they enjoy it.
“Food is generally the focal point around which a memory is anchored into one’s consciousness. If you eat an amazing loaf of bread or an amazing hamburger or whatever, sure it’s amazing, but what really makes it is the environment you consume it in. Who with, and what are the circumstances. That croissant with jam or that sandwich or that neapolitan pizza is so great because there’s awesome music playing in the background or live music playing, and people you hadn’t seen in so long, and you’re all coming together to enjoy that in the moment. That’s what I think really carves out in your memory the specialness of the moment because of who you’re with and also how incredible the food was. It’s the experience, and I think that’s what everyone had when the family meal was still preserved. Food was always the focal point. It’s about sitting down together and sharing with people you care about. We’re just trying to create an ideal environment for that to happen again.”
“One of the most common things that customers say is that during their busy workdays when they come in here they feel like a whole load has been lifted off their shoulders, and they just stepped out of the stress and business and they can just relax. That’s exactly what we’re going for. You can kind of forget whatever is going on outside, there, when you step in here. You can step out of Chestertown and into a Parisian café.”
jenifer emley says
We are so lucky to have Doug here!
linda hall says
Your province breads are awesome as well as your pastries, such as the Crosantes, a lovely warm european feeling when i go in for my Capichino and pastry. Many thanks for your wonderful addition to Chestertown. I have lived here for 16 years and welcome your creative spirit. Please forgive my spelling. Linda hall
Paula Ruckelshaus says
Actually, Poilane offers a selection of 6 types of bread in addition to their pastries. I miss the marvelous, ever changing selection of loaves Evergrain used to offer and hope that Doug will reconsider his decision to scale back to just 2 options.
Michele schweikle says
Editor,
Okay Doug, I get it and will stop begging for the return of the seven grain bread!,