Modern wheat
Hard Red Spring Wheat
Triticum aestivum
Modern bread wheat
In the atlas
Spring wheat is sown after the thaw where winters kill a winter crop. The short, intense northern season concentrates protein. Minneapolis became 'Mill City' because this grain rode the river to the falls — and because its gluten could hold a loaf tall enough to slice for a city sandwich.
Origin. Northern Plains — Dakotas, Montana, Canadian Prairies
Flavor. Bold, earthy, slightly tannic bran; stands up to long ferments.
Worth knowing
- Often the highest-protein common wheat a home miller can buy retail.
- Dark Northern Spring is a grading class, not a variety name.
- Bakers blend HRS into weaker lots the way a cellar blends vintages.
- Protein can swing 2+ points year to year — always read the miller's spec sheet.
Flours you can make
| Flour | Extraction | Protein | Gluten | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whole-grain flour | 100% | 14.5% | 12.4% | Everything the berry holds — bran, germ, and endosperm. Mill 1:1 by weight. Use within days, or freeze. |
| High-extraction (85%) | 85% | 14.2% | 12.8% | Sift once through a #30–#40 sieve. Keeps most flavor and minerals, slightly stronger dough than 100%. |
| Bolted bread-flour style | 75% | 13.9% | 13.1% | Second sifting (#50–#60). Lighter crumb, longer shelf life, less fiber. Bran left behind is gold in porridge. |
Nutrition / 100 g
- Calories
- 339 kcal
- Protein
- 14.5 g
- Carbs
- 68 g
- Fiber
- 12.2 g
- Fat
- 2.5 g
- Iron
- 3.6 mg
- Magnesium
- 126 mg
- Zinc
- 3 mg
- Thiamin
- 0.41 mg
- Selenium
- 71 µg
Typical whole-grain flour / 100 g.
Sources & USDA linksBuy it retail
- Breadtopia
- Pleasant Hill Grain
- Azure Standard
- Janie's Mill
- Central Milling (via bakers)
- Great River Organic Milling
Availability rotates by harvest. Search the berry name plus “food grade.”
Bakes well as
Mill Hard Red Spring Wheat now
Miller’s desk
Grain to flour
Vital wheat gluten booster
Most bags of vital wheat gluten are 75–80% protein. The booster is added on top of the flour, not swapped in.
Whole-grain flour · Strong gluten
- Whole grain needed
- 505 g
- Flour you’ll get
- 500 g
- Bran left behind
- 0 g
- Protein in that flour
- 72.5 g · 14.5%
- Natural gluten
- 12.4%
- Add VWG
- None needed
- After VWG
- 14.5% protein · 12.4% gluten
About 2.6 cups of berries → 4.1 cups of whole-grain flour. Whole-grain milling is essentially 1:1 by weight; sifting is where you lose bran.
How to mill it
If the mill bogs, slow the feed. Hard spring is the grain that teaches patience.
Keep stones just kissing — too tight heats the flour and dulls gluten.
Tempering: Worth it: 2% water, rest 8–16 hours, then mill.
Everything the berry holds — bran, germ, and endosperm. Mill 1:1 by weight. Use within days, or freeze.
Milling 101 →Next: bake it
Pick a loaf for this flour
14.5% protein after VWG · Hard Red Spring Wheat whole-grain flour. Sandwich loaf, focaccia, sourdough — the kitchen will scale dough, hydration, and times to this mix.
