Live sourdough starter culture
A mature, vigorous wild yeast culture, fed continuously in our Somerset kitchen since 2014.
Cultured in Frome, Somerset
Handpacked in Somerset
The Express Sourdough Starter Kit
£24.99incl. VAT · Free UK delivery
The pared-back option, for the baker who wants to try sourdough without committing to the full setup. A live starter, a small bag of flour, a printed guide. Bring your own jar....
In the kit
- Live, mature sourdough starter
- Organic stoneground flour
- Clip-top glass storage jar
- Heavy ceramic mixing jug
- 28-day printed beginner's guide
In stock · ready to ship
- Free UK delivery
- 30-day guarantee
- Live cultures since 2014
What's in the kit
Five things,
each chosen by hand.
Nothing in here is filler. Each component has been tested by 300 home bakers and earned its place in the box.
Organic stoneground flour
Stoneground organic flour, milled to a fine, high-protein blend that suits new bakers.
Shipton Mill, Gloucestershire
Clip-top glass storage jar
A wide-mouthed glass jar, the right size for daily feeds and easy reading of the rise.
Sourced through a UK glass importer
Heavy ceramic mixing jug
A weighty ceramic jug for measuring and mixing — chip-resistant, dishwasher-safe.
Stoneware studio in Bridport, Dorset
Printed beginner's guide
A 28-day printed booklet, written for first-time bakers. Tested with 300 of them.
Printed by a small press in Frome
How it's made
We don't rush
any of it.
001
We capture a wild yeast
Every starter we ship descends from a single mother culture begun in 2014, in a kitchen in Frome. The wild yeast in it was captured from grain we milled ourselves — not bought from a lab.
002
It ferments slowly
The starter ferments for fourteen days before it ever leaves the kitchen. Twice-daily feeds, a steady 24°C, no shortcuts. Each batch is tasted and smelled before it's portioned.
003
We pack by hand
Every kit is packed by a person, never a machine. The jar is filled, the flour is weighed, the booklet is signed. We do about forty kits a week and we intend to keep it that way.
004
It's checked twice before it leaves
One person packs it. A second person checks it. The starter, the flour, the jug, the linen, the booklet — all present, all sealed. Then it goes out for next-working-day delivery.
Your first loaf
Five days,
start to slice.
Most of those five days, the starter is doing the work and you're getting on with your life. Here's what your first bake actually looks like.
-
Day 1
Wake your starter
Open the jar, give it its first feed of flour and water, and put it somewhere warm. By the next morning it should be bubbling.
Active: 10 minWaiting: Overnight -
Day 2–3
First feeds
Discard half, feed the rest. Twice a day if your kitchen is cool, once if it's warm. Watch it grow.
Active: 5 min × 2Waiting: 8–12 hours -
Day 4
Mix your dough
Active starter, flour, water, salt. Mix, fold a few times over the next two hours, leave to rise overnight in the fridge.
Active: 30 minWaiting: 12–18 hours -
Day 5
Bake
Tip out, shape, score, bake. Forty minutes in a hot oven and you have a loaf you made yourself, from a culture that started life in our Somerset kitchen.
Active: 45 minWaiting: 1 hour cooling
Good to know
Questions a first-time
baker tends to ask.
How long does the starter last?
Indefinitely, with care. The starter that ships in this kit descends from a mother culture begun in 2014 — still going. Weekly feeds in the fridge are usually enough.
I've never baked bread before — is this for me?
Especially for you. The 28-day printed guide assumes you've never raised a starter and walks you through it from day one. Most of our customers had never baked sourdough before they bought the kit.
What if my starter doesn't activate?
Reach out within ten days and we'll send a replacement, free. We've shipped over 1,400 kits and this happens to fewer than one in fifty — but when it does, we want to hear about it.
Do I need any special equipment?
The kit includes everything you need to wake the starter and feed it for the first week. To bake your first loaf you'll also want a Dutch oven or heavy lidded pan (any 4-litre lidded cast-iron works). The booklet covers the alternatives if you don't have one yet.
Is the flour organic?
Yes. The flour in every kit is organic, stoneground, and milled in the UK by Shipton Mill in Gloucestershire. We've used them since the beginning and have visited the mill three times.
How is it shipped, and how quickly?
We dispatch within one to two working days. Royal Mail tracked delivery, free across the UK. The starter ships in a cool-safe paper liner and survives a four-day delay without complaint.
Can I pause or skip feeds if I go away?
Yes — pop the starter in the fridge before you leave. It'll happily wait two to three weeks between feeds at fridge temperature. Bring it out and feed it once or twice the day before you want to bake.
Do you offer refunds if it doesn't work out?
30-day happiness guarantee, no scripts, no hoops. If you're not delighted with the kit for any reason in the first month, email us and we'll refund or replace — your choice. Read the full refund policy.
Handpacked in Somerset
Shipped within 48 hours
30-day bake-it-or-refund guarantee
Over 1,400 kits delivered
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