RedBeard the legend

When visiting RedBeard, children (and curious adults) might notice the little door above our Scotch oven with the sign ‘RedBeard lives here’.  Here is RedBeard’s story:

Five generations of bakers have used our oven over more than a century and every one has baked luscious golden loaves. When asked how they magically transform flour, salt and water into beautiful bread, bakers often speak of an oven spirit that helps them through the long nights of hard work.

Our oven spirit is called RedBeard. He keeps our wort* rich and ripe, helps the dough rise to just the right height, and bakes the loaves to perfection. He kindles the fire, spreads the heat evenly through the oven and wafts the smell of fresh bread around the town.

RedBeard is no taller than a loaf of bread standing on its end and he has an enormous fiery beard surrounding his wizened face. He lives in a secret little room above the big Scotch oven – can you find his door?!

Whenever the bakery is empty, RedBeard opens his door, throws out a rope and climbs down to inspect the bread. If he finds loaves cooling on the wire racks, his beard crackles with excitement.

His knobbly fingers tap the crusty base of each loaf - a drumming sound tells him that the inside of the bread is perfect. With extraordinary strength for his size, RedBeard rips a loaf in half, breaking the thick crust and inhaling the rich sourdough aroma. He devours the whole loaf in less than a minute, leaving not a crumb.

When the bakers return, they notice that a loaf of bread is missing. That’s why there are 13 loaves to a baker’s dozen - one spare for the oven spirit, RedBeard.