What do these numbers on WheatFields’ breads mean to the bread eater?

Most simply, the higher the number, the more of the whole grain you get.

Higher numbers usually mean darker breads. With this darker color comes higher fiber and nutrient content and nuttier wheat flavor. (Whole wheat flour milled from hard white wheat is lighter in color than whole wheat flour milled from hard red wheat, but both have a WIN of 100.) With a lower WIN the subtle flavors of fermentation dominate. Medium extraction flours (WINs from 77 to 85) yield breads with more complexity, expressing the interplay between fermentation and wheatiness. In breads with higher WINs, the grain flavor dominates, though in well-crafted breads, fermentation always plays a part.

Bread made with 100% whole wheat flour has a WIN of 100: it is 100% whole grain and contains all the nutrition that wheat has to offer. When a mill makes unbleached white flour, they generally will get 72-75 pounds of flour from 100 pounds of wheat. The missing 25 or so pounds? Primarily bran and germ. Unbleached white flour typically contains 74% of the whole grain. Bread made entirely with such unbleached flour would have a WIN of 74.

Some flours are less refined than typical white flour, but have the coarsest bran removed by a sifting process. These flours are neither whole nor white, but a shade of beige between. Again, these mill products will have a WIN that corresponds to their relative degree of wholeness. The “light rye” flour that we use has a WIN of 84.

Many breads are made from a combination of whole, refined, and semi-refined cereal products. The WIN system employs a proprietary analysis system to determine the combined “wholeness” of the several cereal ingredients in a bread variety. Added ingredients such as olives, raisins, and nuts are not taken into account.

Lower WINs mean bread that is lighter in color, texture, and flavor. Higher numbers mean darker color, somewhat denser bread, more grain flavor, and more fiber and nutrients. The higher the number, the closer to whole.

There you have it, bread by numbers: as easy as 74, 84, 100.

Wholeness Index Number and WIN are protected by copyright and trademark law.

WheatFields Breads WIN Values

• Ale bread - 76
• Baguette - 74
• Ciabatta - 74.5
• Country Wheat - 82
• Country French - 76
• French Walnut - 76
• MultiGrain - 86
• Olive - 75
• Pain Ordinaire - 74
• Rustic Italian - 74.5
• Rye - 79
• Spelt - 100
• Semolina - 77
• Steel-cut Oat - 80
• White Sourdough - 75
• White Walnut Raisin - 75