Tucked in the kitchen behind the storefront of Chacónne Patisserie in south Scottsdale, Nick Beitcher quietly bounces from shaping sourdough loaves to checking on items baking in the deck oven. No timers buzz with alerts. Beitcher uses his senses to gauge when the bread is done. He looks for the right color on the crust, wanting the exterior to be burnished from the oven, but not too dark. Rotating loaves in with his gloved hand, he also inhales the aroma.

“You can tell a lot from the way the levain smells versus the way it tastes,” the breadmaker says. “The aroma turns into flavor.”

After the loaves have cooled slightly on a board, Beitcher grabs a baguette and holds it to his ear, gently compressing it to release a soft crackle. A swift slice reveals what he’s after: an eggshell-thin

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