Founded in 1846 by Dom Rosendo Salvado, New Norcia is Australia’s only monastic town. The 16 resident monks lead a traditional life of prayer and reflection in a community noted for its splendid buildings of Spanish architectural influence. The town is registered on the National Estate and 27 of the buildings are classified by the National Trust. In 1993 New Norcia Bakeries was granted permission to use the original wood-fired oven at the monastery (installed in 1886) to produce authentic artisan breads with a characteristic chewy, golden crust and a slightly smoky, toasted wheat flavour. Response to the breads was enthusiastic from the outset, with the sourdoughs acclaimed as being amongst the best in the world. In 1996 we were fortunate to locate and recommission another 100 year old wood-fired oven in the Perth suburb of Mount Hawthorn. With the two ovens working in tandem to produce a range of breads, pastries, biscuits and cakes, New Norcia Bakeries soon established a reputation as Western Australia’s finest artisan bakers. Recently, the ever-growing demand for New Norcia breads led us to source and incorporate modern equipment specifically designed for artisan bread-making. This, together with our adherence to time honoured baking practices and our policy of employing only highly skilled bakers, has enabled us to expand production without compromising the unique character and flavour of our products.