Last year while visiting Paris, I got to hang out with my talented friend Thierry Delabre in his bakery. Watching him work, he seemed preoccupied  about volume and the quality of his bakes. Since that visit I have been enjoying his Facebook posts of glorious bread and a new  team at his boulangerie. Back home I tried two versions of his loafs. The first was a firm sourdough and lower hydration. It got volume but a tighter crumb, which isn't bad for spreading jam and butter as it delivers a no spills experience. The next loaf was with a more-liquid levain and higher hydration. It was high enough to make mixing difficult, but I decided to retard the dough, 48 hours, in fact. I got a wonderful crumb and crust…. All to say that bread baking is a go-back-and-do-it-again sort of science.