Original Ultner Brot. Organic rye bread with mild sourdough from the Ultental valley – two flatbreads, spicy and robust.

Original Ultner Brot from Ultner Brot is an organic rye bread made from 100% rye flour with mild sourdough, seasoned with fennel, caraway, and blue fenugreek. It is the signature loaf of the Ultner Brot bakery in St. Walburg in the Ultental valley, South Tyrol. The package contains two pieces with a total weight of 440 g.

The Original Ultner Brot bears the name of the valley from which it comes. It is a flat rye bread, very similar to the Vinschger Paarl, and is baked exclusively with organic rye. According to Ultner Brot, farmers in the Ultental valley grew almost only rye due to the altitude. Therefore, the bread consists of pure rye flour, leavened with a mild sourdough. Other ingredients include water, rock salt, yeast, fennel, caraway, and blue fenugreek. According to the merchant's information, all ingredients are from certified organic farming. Two pieces are packed together, weighing about 440 g in total. This makes it the largest rye bread from Ultner in our assortment.

Taste

The Original Ultner Brot has a strong rye flavor, with a mild, well-rounded acidity from the sourdough. The crumb is dense and moist, the crust dark and aromatic. The ingredient list simply states rye flour. Compared to the Vinschger Paarl with its high whole-grain content, it feels somewhat finer as a result.

The spices are the same that belong to every South Tyrolean rye bread. Caraway provides heartiness, fennel a slight sweetness, and blue fenugreek the aromatic, hay-like scent. The sourdough remains intentionally mild, so that the spices and the rye take center stage. Anyone expecting a wheat bread with a light, airy crumb will find it too compact.

Usage

Ultner bread is an everyday bread. In the morning, it tastes great with butter, honey, or jam; at lunch with cheese and radishes; in the evening for a snack with speck and Kaminwurz sausage. According to the merchant's description, it is also a good provision for hiking, because it is flat and fits well in a backpack.

It is a hearty accompaniment to soups and stews, such as barley soup or goulash. Once slightly dried, you can dice it, toast it in butter, and use it as croutons. Store the flatbreads in a dry place, away from light. Fresh bread has a limited shelf life, so it is worth freezing one of the two flatbreads and heating it briefly in the oven when needed.

Our tip: Freeze one flatbread right after unpacking. Once thawed and warmed for five minutes in a hot oven, it tastes almost as if it came straight from the bakery.

Origin

The Ultental valley is located near Merano in South Tyrol. In St. Walburg, Ultner Brot has been baking at an altitude of about 1,200 meters since 1919 as a family business. For the dough, the bakery uses fresh Ultner spring water. They like to share that Empress Sissi, Otto von Bismarck, and the brothers Thomas and Heinrich Mann already appreciated this water.

According to the manufacturer's catalog, the sourdough has been cultivated in-house since 1919. Since 1982, the bakery has been grinding its own grain in its stone mill and baking with organic ingredients. Today, Hannes Schwienbacher, the great-grandson of the founder, runs the business. The bread is also available in the bakery's own shops in St. Walburg, Lana, Algund, Merano, and Appiano. The organic control body is IT-BIO-013.

For whom

The Original Ultner Brot is for anyone looking for an honest rye bread for every day who likes South Tyrolean spices. It fits families who eat a lot of bread, and everyone who likes to freeze supplies. It is also a good choice for hikers. The Vinschger Paarl is more whole-grain and robust. The Vinschger Minis come in a small format with four pieces. You can find all baked goods from the Ultental valley on our Ultner Brot page. The bread contains gluten from rye. It is not suitable for those with a gluten intolerance.

Pure rye, mild sourdough, and blue fenugreek in two flatbreads – the signature bread from the Ultental valley for breakfast, snacks, and storage.