Testimonials

I would like to say how very much I enjoyed attending your first Sponges and Pre-Ferments course recently. I thought it was extremely well organised, we covered many different breads and techniques and I learnt a huge amount from you. The whole weekend was all I hoped it would be and more, your catering was superb ( we were treated right royally), you were interesting, informative, very good humoured considering our lack of expertise, and entertaining. I shall be saving my pennies up to do another course with you before too long, I hope.
— Stephanie Barrett, May 29, 2010

On the Three-day "Going Professional" course, Sarah Cobbold wrote in BBC Good Food Magazine, Feb 2010: "Paul Merry, an experienced and enthusiastic artisan baker, adapts each three-day course to the participants' requests and interests. My class decided to focus on sourdoughs and the wood-fired oven. There is a lot of teaching, but we were involved in every stage, calculating the quantities in each recipe, making up doughs, shaping the bread and firing the oven. The course was a fantastic confidence builder. We left with a real knowledge of bread, how it works, and how to adapt no matter what the situation."
— Sarah Cobbold, BBC Good Food Magazine, Feb 2010

I am Italian and still go home quite often. I have never had a better ciabatta than these we have made today.
— Laura Stevanato, London, February, 2011

I enjoyed the Sourdough course I attended last Friday. I gained so much knowledge in a short space of time - but also now realise how much more I still have to learn! My family loved the bread we made and the leavens have been well looked after. The pace of the course was just right, with a fantastic lunch and lovely informal atmosphere. I hope to book another course soon.
— Stacey Breese, Wiltshire, April 2011

Around the long, central table that fills much of the classroom, beginners and aspiring artisan bakers alike weigh, measure, mix and shape under Paul’s watchful eye. He carefully explains baker’s percentages, the importance of slow fermentation and the need for good flour. At least 20 per cent of the people in these courses are professionals in food in some way; but most students are household bakers who want to get better. He says: “ I find it a real pleasure to teach. First of all, I enjoy sharing my knowledge. That’s the principal thing. The second is that I like the contact with the different people who pass through my hands”.
— Kylie Walker, Food & Wine Editor, The Age, Melbourne, August 2005

“You taught us a lot in a very short space of time: how to prepare, work, and handle dough. The course itself was excellent. We all had a good time and I certainly came away with a much better understanding of the breadmaking process.”
— Jasper Buch, Henley, January 2006

“Paul Merry is a calm and patient teacher, good at confidence building, and offers an endless stream of vivid insights into the mysteries of yeast, gluten and kneading, on the principle that the more you understand, the better the chances of you doing things right.”
— Philippa Davenport, Financial Times, April 2005

Thank you for the wonderful and informative course. I really enjoyed the experience and will most certainly put your course notes to the test over the next few days. I can not remember when I have enjoyed learning so much new information.
— David Cornwell, Essex, March, 2011

Next come bridge rolls made with the whitest of white steel-ground flour and enriched with butter. Under Paul’s encouraging eye and through his clear remarks we learn about different types of flour, how to shape cobs and bloomers, and to roll up pan loaves tightly. We make rye/wheat mixtures and use the giant mixer to create a dough for cottage and farmhouse loaves. We form the bridge rolls with delight and the plaited loaves with even more. Our confidence increases and so does our bantering…..Paul is an excellent teacher…
— Ian Irvine, The Independent Magazine, June 2005

"Just a short note to say thank you for Friday's course. Despite having lots of loaves from Friday's baking, I decided to make some more loaves on the weekend while everything was still fresh in my mind. The result is ten times better than anything I have made before, much lighter and with a much better crumb and texture.
I feel that I have really moved forward and, for the first time, that I am making proper bread. Thanks again, and best wishes for the future.
p.s. The whole family agrees that Michael's flour (we tried the granary for this batch) is absolutely delicious!"
— Simon Miles, Feb 2009

“I cannot recall ever having returned home from a course bubbling over with so much enthusiasm. I can hardly wait to put into practice what you taught me. My wife’s reaction to the bread I brought back was that it reminded her of how bread used to smell…..”
— David Brown, Minety, Wiltshire, November 2006

If you have any inclination at all towards baking, I recommend making sourdough yourself. Paul Merry’s PANARY courses in Dorset are an excellent way to start: he has a knack for demystifying a process that is sometimes overcomplicated in bread-making books.
— Nikki Duffy, The Guardian Weekend, May 2005

I had the joy of attending Paul's "basic" one-day bread making course at his rustic premises near Shaftesbury, in the water powered flour mill. Paul greeted us warmly and we were quickly introduced to flour's water absorption, kneading, shaping, and secrets such as bubbling, tightness, dough temperature etc. His wealth of knowledge, passion, humour and genuine people skills meant we all left the day with armfuls of bread and deeper respect and appreciation for a commodity which is so undervalued relative to the amount of nurturing, artistry and alchemy that goes into its production - truly British, slowly grown, beautiful, golden bread.
I heartily recommend Paul and a PANARY bread making course to anyone.
— Juliette Morgan, Cambridge, December 2008

I want to say a big thank you for a brilliant day yesterday at Panary. The basic course was pitched just right for me and not only taught me the necessary science behind the bread baking, but also answered the questions that I had been struggling with for a while. I really enjoyed the hands-on work and have come away with a better understanding of the process, which I can now use to improve my baking further at home. Altogether a thoroughly enjoyable experience and a course that I would strongly recommend to anyone who appreciates "proper" bread and the sense of achievement that comes with baking!
— Valerie Clinch, Nov 2011

I would like to say how much I enjoyed the "Going Professional" course. The setting at Cann Mills provides a perfect environment for your relaxed and informal style of instruction. The mix of experience and skills amongst the group was quite wide for such a small number, yet you managed to pitch the course at a level where we all felt engaged in each activity. I particularly enjoyed the free flowing discussions that accompanied the baking sessions, and your "blue chair" moments were a good way of dealing with specific topics. I came away from the three days feeling invigorated, with a renewed enthusiasm for creating good and healthy bread for my customers, and an increased confidence in my skills and ability to develop as a baker. Now I have just had my first baking session and markets since the course. The knowledge I gained regarding dough handling and table skills meant that the work load was actually easier physically. This weeks baking will start to show the improvement in the finished loaves.
— Ken Horne, Pin Pastry in Devon, Sept 2010