Bakery’s sourdough loaf named the best in Britain

A MICRO-BAKERY in Stoke Row has won an award for producing the best plain sourdough loaf in Britain.

Imma The Bakery, which is based in Busgrove Lane, came ahead of 200 other bakeries in the competition held at the NEC in Birmingham.

The British Baker, which organises the competition, puts each loaf through a rigorous assessment process.

Judges examine the external appearance, internal structure, aroma and taste to determine the winners. Imma’s Oxford Country Loaf was praised for its “simple yet profound flavour”.

Head baker Tona Erreguin, who opened the bakery with Simon Arscott in 2022, said they didn’t expect to win due to the strict rules of the competition.

Ms Erreguin said: “It was very nice to win as we weren’t expecting it. We consider the competition one of the most difficult ones as you can only use flour, water and salt.

“The award is for the whole team and for what they have put into developing this. We are always thinking what we can do to make this better because, ultimately, we want everybody to enjoy.”

To produce the loaf, it takes about 72 hours and the flavour comes from the ingredients sourced from the Oxfordshire countryside.

Ms Erreguin said: “The Loaf is a plain sourdough, a process of more than 72 hours. We use a 50-year-old levain to make it.

“When it comes to ingredients, we just use flour, water and salt, simple, yet really complex. It is homage to the bakers trade, to the whole of Oxfordshire’s countryside. Our bread gets a particular mix of flavours with notes of hay and summer grains. A light malt, nutty and light tartness in mouth, it is achieved by paying attention to the ingredients.

“It’s about understanding and learning to read the dough, as Heraclitus shows us, you can’t swim twice in the same river.

“Every day is a different dough, it’s outcome will depend on the hardness of the water; the activity level of your levain and the kind of grains and sugars in them. The air pressure is important because bacteria reproduction is different based on this, as is the temperature of the water and the room where it will proof, the gluten development and the friction factor of your mixing. All of this adds up to get to the flavour profile desired by the end of the baking.”

Ms Erreguin, who moved to Stoke Row from Mexico and previously worked as a baker for Michelin-starred restaurants before opening up Imma, thanked her suppliers and customers for making the business a success.

She said: “We owe ourselves to the community and their continued support and to the amazing produce from all our local suppliers. Because, if we didn’t have all of this, then we could not make the very best of us in the morning.

“This is proof, not of the work of a single baker, but the work of a whole team that puts in the hours, the time, the observation and attention to detail, a team that works every morning trying to pay homage to the baker’s trade.”

“I have been a chef for more than 10 years. Food and the connection it makes, is my passion. There are few experiences as intimate as cooking for someone or having someone cooking for you. That’s why food is so special, because it brings people from different places together.”