The Heritage Roots Aberdare · South Wales

Sourdough masterclass · Aberdare

Bread, by hand.

Four hours in Aberdare with flour on the table and nobody watching the clock. A sourdough class in Aberdare, South Wales — small groups, everything provided, and beginners welcome. I'll show you how a starter stays alive, how dough changes under your hands, and how to score a loaf so it opens where you meant.

Register your interest

Saturday 6 February 2027, 09:00 to 13:00. Lighthouse Fellowship, 34 Commercial Street, Aberdare. £50 a person, £10 deposit to hold your place.

The Heritage Roots sticker: two women kneading dough at a floured wooden table in front of a sunlit window, framed by a thick brown and white border with @the_heritage_roots lettered across the top.

01 / Where it started

My grandmother's oven

Baking from the roots up. My grandmother made everything from scratch. Bread went into a wood-fired oven, and I was small enough to need a chair to watch it come out.

She didn't write anything down, so I learnt sourdough the long way. Books, videos, workshops, and a run of loaves that came out flat while I worked out why.

I teach it now because it turned out to be learnable. You don't need a stone oven or a bakery. You need flour, water, salt, a starter that is alive, and someone to show you what the dough is doing. That is what the four hours are for.

02 / The class

The February class

One class, four hours, and everything already on the table when you walk in.

Date
Saturday 6 February 2027
Time
09:00 to 13:00, four hours
Where
Lighthouse Fellowship,
34 Commercial Street, Aberdare
Price
£50A person
Deposit
£10 holds your place. It is arranged by email afterwards, not on this page.
Included
Flour, salt, water, a live starter, every piece of equipment, and printed notes to take home.
Group size
Small groups, so I can see every pair of hands.
A sourdough loaf on a wire cooling rack, cut open to show an open, airy crumb inside a dark, blistered crust.

What the four hours cover

  1. 01

    Your starter: how to begin one, how to feed it, and how to tell when it is ready to bake with.

  2. 02

    The dough: mixing, folding and shaping, by hand, step by step, until your hands know things the recipe can't tell you.

  3. 03

    The bake: scoring with a blade so the loaf opens where you meant it to, and reading the oven instead of guessing at it.

A round wooden banneton lined with a floured linen cloth, resting on a wooden table beside a sifter and a jar of sourdough starter.

Register your interest

Registering doesn't take a payment and doesn't confirm a seat. I answer every registration myself.

03 / Register

Register your interest

Put your name and email in and I'll reply. No card details, no account to create, nothing to pay today.

The address you actually read. It is where my reply goes.
Optional. I'll send directions that are actually useful.
Optional. Tell me and I'll send every ingredient before you pay anything.

I'll keep your name and email to reply about classes. Nothing else. No cookies, no tracking, and I never share or sell your details. Read the full notice

The deposit is £10 and it's paid later, by email, once we've spoken. Nothing is charged on this page. It covers the room, which I book and pay for whether or not everyone can come, so it isn't returned if you cancel — tell me early and I'll try to fill the seat or move you to a later date.

I'll email you within a day or two to confirm your place and arrange the deposit.

What happens next

  1. 01I'll email you within a day or two to confirm your place.
  2. 02If there's a place, I'll ask for a £10 deposit to hold it.
  3. 03The £10 comes off the £50. You pay the rest on the day.

04 / Later on

February doesn't suit?

I'm running a second class in the spring. There's no date yet, because I'd rather choose one that suits the people who want to come than choose one and hope. Leave your name and you'll hear about it before it's announced anywhere else.

The address you actually read. It is where my reply goes.

I'll keep your name and email to reply about classes. Nothing else. No cookies, no tracking, and I never share or sell your details. Read the full notice

Same form, two fields. This puts you on the spring list rather than the February one, and you'll get the date from me first.

05 / Questions

Questions I get asked

I've never baked bread before. Is that a problem?

No. The class starts at the beginning, with what a starter is and what it should smell like when it is ready. I'd rather you asked me the obvious question than struggled quietly at the back.

What do I bring?

Nothing you'd have to buy. Flour, salt, water, a live starter and every piece of equipment are already on the table, and the notes are printed for you. Wear sleeves you can push up.

Is there parking?

There's no car park at the venue. Commercial Street is in the town centre, and the council's short-stay car parks at Green Street and beside the library are the closest, a couple of minutes on foot. Tell me where you're coming from when you register and I'll send directions.

Can I come if I'm gluten-free?

If you're coeliac, no, and I'd rather say so plainly than take your deposit. This is a room full of wheat flour for four hours and I can't make it safe for you. If you avoid gluten by choice, be aware the bread is wheat bread. If you have another allergy, tell me when you register and I'll send you every ingredient before you pay anything.

Do I take a loaf home?

You bake in the class, and the loaf you shaped is yours to take with you, along with the printed notes.

What if I need to cancel?

Email me as soon as you know. I book the room and buy the flour whatever happens, so the £10 deposit isn't returned if you can't come. Tell me early all the same — if someone else can take the seat, or the next date suits you better, I'll do what I can to move you across.

Something I haven't answered

Ask me on the contact form, or message me on Instagram at @the_heritage_roots. I answer both.