Battle of the flours - pt3 Marriages Very Strong vs ASDA

The Marriages bag of flour makes no claims of being organic or using superior milling techniques, the big difference here is that the Marriages' is Very Strong as opposed to just Strong white flour. This means a higher protein content, 13.8% vs. 12.1% for the ASDA flour. In theory the additional protein means more gluten produced and a more vigorous rise and hence a lighter loaf. Difference in taste isn't an advertised part of the bargain. Protein levels in white bread flours seem to range between 11% and 14% so we're not comparing the full extent of the range here, but we're not far off with the Marriages being pretty much at the top of the scale.

Technique was the same as last time, here are the loaves after a little tasting has been done:

I did slightly overcook the marriages one (on the left) which gave it more of a crust which definitely helped the flavour. The ASDA one didn't stay formed either (my fault) so put some of it's energies into growing out rather than up. Even with that in mind, the marriages one did form the best loaf shape so far and rose noticeably more than the previous 2 test loaves. The claims of a lighter loaf are definitely true. Tasters could definitely tell the difference between the two loaves again but didn't agree on their personal favourite, exhibiting the same preferences as last time. Personally, I think the marriages had the edge and there was an obvious difference in the finished loaf visually suggesting something extra was going on. I'll probably be paying attention to the protein content of my flour in future more than how it was milled but I'm not totally convinced it's worth the extra cash yet.