Bread Comparison

FWIW, here are two loaves:  on the left is one made with all white flour; the one on the right was made with a 50/50 blend of white and white whole wheat.  Both turned out extremely well (or as extremely well as things get with me).

Everything else is the same (except the amount of water used in making the dough). I generally use 3 3/4 cups of flour, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 1/4 cup sourdough starter, and about 1 2/3 cups of water. Baking is 35 minutes at 475 followed by 15 minutes at 450 with the lid off.  I bake it in a Romertopf clay baker. It initially rises in a large mixing bowl with plastic wrap over the top.  I put it in a proofing basket with a liner for the final brief rise (I'm not a Breadtopia affiliate and get nothing from anyone buying things there; the links are for reference only).

The countertop rise is about 8-9 hours at ambient temperatures, though when it's cold in the house I either let it rise for a longer period of time (up to 12 or even more) or put it in the oven on the bread proof setting, which keeps the oven at 100 degrees.  After forming the loaf, it rises about another 25-30 minutes while the oven is heating to 475.