Passing the 80-year-old yeast
to the future.

I met the previous master of "Coffee & Bakery Arles" when I was running a coffee shop in another location.

Arles had long been loved in this town. The master was a caring person who treated a youngster like me warmly. Shop owners from the neighborhood used to gather at Arles to plan events.

Once, when I was looking for bread to start a morning menu, the master kindly offered, "Why don't you use ours?" His bread was amazingly flavorful and paired perfectly with coffee. It quickly became popular among customers.

I kept sharing the customers' praises with him, which made him happy, and he started talking with me more often.

One day, the master confided in me: "Could you take over the shop and the bread yeast?"

That was when he told me about the "Levain yeast, nurtured over 80 years."

"Here is a yeast we've carefully grown for 80 years. Independent shops that still bake with inherited yeast are rare now. It's truly valuable, so I want you to carry it on."

He joked, "If you come once a week, you'll learn to bake it," but turning him down wasn't an option. I made up my mind and started my training at Arles while still running my own coffee shop.

The "once a week" turned out to be far from the truth (laughs). In the end, I had to be there every single morning to learn anything.

Watching the master at work was a series of shocks. He made baking look effortless. But when I tried, I couldn't do it at all. Even before advanced techniques, I couldn't manage basic movements like rounding, cutting, or lifting the dough.

"The way you use your hands and body is fundamentally different." My hands, accustomed to brewing coffee, were powerless against the living dough. Yet, the master guided me strictly but warmly.

The master continued baking with all his might until the end. He tried to teach me everything—from baking bread to selling little croissants. Seeing his dedication made my resolve to "inherit it properly" even stronger.

I cannot let the master's passion and the 80-year-old "Levain yeast" die out. With that sole thought, I continue baking today.

We have many customers who visit Arles almost daily. The presence of these local people is my driving force.

Every day, I face the bacteria that have lived for 80 years, reading their changing "expressions" and making fine adjustments. I want to continue cherishing this routine to pass the yeast onto the next generation. Today, too, the Arles oven is filled with the aroma of bread.