Dear Breadfriends (1/20/2014). Back in the Saddle.

Hello Dear Breadfriends and Crustfund Members, We send you the happiest of New Year's wishes! Our news is short and simple, and here it is: We are BACK IN THE SADDLE! The oven is hot (well, it's getting there), the dough is lively and fermenting, and the bakery is redolent with the aromas of granola, maple, woodsmoke, and snow. The music of the woodfire is back, along with all the other sounds of the bakery's work: scrubbing, the thumping of dough-blades on the maple tables, the talk of browning and caramelization, fermentation and levain. Yes. We just finished a weekend of grain- and flour-testing (THANK YOU! to everyone who came out for the tasting! Wow! That was hard work!) and I will write more about that soon. I can tell you now, in only a few words, that it was an extraordinary time, full of learning and comraderie, hard work and play, and lots of new friendship. Incredible. Thank you for patiently allowing us space for that! And now... the new year has begun, and that means... ---We will be sending you notes telling you about your upcoming bread pickups. If you're not getting them and you think you should be, let us know and we'll look into it. ---You will want to make sure you remember the password to your crustfund account page. If you've forgotten it, drop us a note and we'll send you a new one. ---Remember that if you will be going away, or if you're planning on taking a break from the bread for any reason at all, just go to your account page and put your bread on hold using the drop-down calendar widget. Easy! ---We always try to have extra bread on hand, but if you want to be absolutely sure that we will have the extra loaves you need, when you need them, remember that you can use the web-store button on your page to put extra loaves on your pickup. --And finally... SO LOOKING FORWARD TO BAKING FOR YOU AND SEEING YOU AGAIN! With great affection, your baker, Stef