For The Love of Bread
Sonoma’s story begins in a small country town, in a tiny bakery tucked behind the Busy Bee general store.
The little bakery in Bellata
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As a young boy, Kerry Connole would watch the local baker at work—kneading, stretching, shaping dough with practiced hands before sliding it into the oven, where it would rise into golden loaves. The warmth, the smell, the quiet rhythm of the craft—it stayed with him.
Years later, on a whim, Kerry leased that same old bakery, restoring it with his sons Andrew and Christian. None of them had baked a loaf before, but they knew they wanted to make something real—bread with soul, made the way it had been for generations.
Lessons from California
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In 1998, driven to understand the foundations of great bread, Andrew travelled to San Francisco, where he spent time with Alan Scott—a legendary oven builder and pioneer of wood-fired baking. It was there that Andrew saw firsthand what these ovens could do—how they shaped the crust, developed deep flavours, and brought out the best in naturally fermented bread.
“I gave them starter and recipes, and they went back and built a small wood-fired bakery. They took what I was doing on a tiny scale and blew it up and kept the quality very high. I had never seen that at that scale. It completely opened my eyes.”Chad Robertson, Tartine Bakery
His journey then took him to Point Reyes, where he met Chad Robertson, a baker whose slow-fermented sourdough set a new standard. Andrew returned to Australia with a head full of ideas, a jar of Chad’s sourdough starter, and a fire in his belly.
The 1,080km bread run
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For two years, the family made the 1,080km round trip from Terrigal to Bellata each week—mixing, shaping, and baking through the night, then selling fresh loaves at Sydney’s Paddington Markets. The bread was different from what people were familiar with—deeply caramelised crusts, an open, airy crumb, a complex, tangy depth of flavour developed through slow fermentation. It was rustic yet refined, simple yet full of character.
People loved it. Word spread.
By 2000, demand had grown and Sonoma moved to Sydney, where Alan Scott built the first wood-fired sourdough oven of its kind in Australia.
A recipe for enduring quality
More than two decades later, Sonoma remains committed to a method that is deliberately slower—a gentle resistance to the rushed, industrial food systems of today. Every loaf is made with freshly milled flour, filtered water, sourdough starter, and sea salt. But more than that, it’s made with patience, care, and the hands of skilled bakers who believe that time is an essential ingredient.
In a world that moves fast, Sonoma chooses to slow down. The result is bread that is deeply flavourful, nourishing, and full of character—bread that honours the artisan traditions of real sourdough bakers, and the simple joy of sharing something made well.
Our mission
At Sonoma, our mission is simple: to bake the best bread we can—bread that tastes great, is made with care, and begins with quality ingredients from growers we trust.
Our flour, grown with care
For more than two decades, we’ve partnered with Wholegrain Milling to source premium-quality wheat, grown with care—even in the face of tough seasons and prolonged drought.
In collaboration with ASP (Australian Sustainable Products) growers, Wholegrain Milling helped establish the Certified Sustainable standard—a commitment to grain that’s as responsible as it is nutritious.
Their approach focuses on long-term soil health, thoughtful crop rotation, and supporting farming communities—agricultural practices designed to sustain, enrich and preserve the land for future generations.
