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+#### Scoring Bread
+
+**What is scoring?** “Scoring” is the word used to describe the cuts
+made in a loaf of bread before it is baked. Some breads are not
+scored. For example many loaves baked in pans are not. However, almost
+all free-formed “hearth breads” are scored.
+
+**When is scoring done?** Scoring is generally performed just prior to
+loading the loaves in the oven. French rye breads (pains de siegle)
+are sometimes scored right after shaping, before proofing.
+
+**Why are breads scored?** Intentionally creating a weak spot on the
+surface of the loaf prevents the loaf from bursting at weak spots
+created during shaping.
+
+The type of scoring performed controls the direction in which the
+bread will expand during “oven spring.”
+
+The pattern of cuts made, the angle at which they are made and the
+depth of the cuts influences the rate of expansion and the formation
+of an “ear” - a raised flap of crust at the edge of a cut.
+
+The pattern of cuts can create a pleasing visual pattern on the
+surface of the loaf. While there are some very traditional patterns,
+for example for baguettes, the baker can use the scoring pattern to
+identify the type of bread or to create an unique pattern
+that identifies the loaf as coming from his or her oven.
+
+**What do you use to score bread?** The blade used to score bread is
+often referred to as a lame (pronounced "lahm.") This is simply a
+French word with means “blade.” Breads may be scored with straight or
+curved razor blades, either held in the hand or mounted on a handle.
+Scoring may be performed with other sharp, straight blades, even with
+a straight razor. Some bakers prefer serrated blades.
+
+For some types of scoring, a straight blade is preferred.  Straight
+bladed knives are preferred for cuts made with the blade held
+perpendicular to the loaf's surface. This sort of cut is generally
+used for round loaves ("boules"). For other types of scoring, a curved
+blade works better. Curved lames are generally used for long breads
+like baguettes which are scored with cuts parallel to the long axis of
+the loaf.
+
+Video on Choosing a Blade: <http://youtu.be/vF7eFluzHXc>.
+
+**How are the cuts made?** The scoring stroke should be firm, rapid,
+smooth and decisive.  For the beginner, it may help to take "practice
+swings" or to visualize the movements and totally focus one's
+attention before making the cuts. Understanding the functions of
+scoring and the effects of the variables described can help, but there
+is no substitute for experience. In this respect, scoring bread is no
+different from an athletic skill or any other art or craft. (Tourist:
+"Please, sir, can you tell me how to get to Carnegie Hall?" New
+Yorker: "Practice, practice, practice.")
+
+The cuts should generally be ¼ to ¼ inch deep. A wet,
+sticky dough requires a more shallow cut than one would make
+in a dryer dough.
+
+**Scoring a boule (round loaf):** The angle the blade of the knife
+makes with the surface of the loaf is important in determining how the
+cut will open up. If you want the cuts to spread equally from the cut
+and to open quickly, as is traditional with round loaves (boules), the
+knife should be held vertically – at 90 degrees to the surface of the
+loaf.
+
+Video on Scoring a Boule: <http://youtu.be/gnL7mvR9wFg>.
+
+Besides the "tic-tac-toe" pattern, boules can be scored with diamond
+patterns, simple crosses or much more elaborate and creative patterns.
+
+**Scoring a long loaf (bâtard):** If you want the cuts to spread more
+slowly and create an "ear," as is generally desired with long loaves
+(baguettes and bâtards), the knife blade should be held at a shallow
+angle with the surface of the loaf, at about 20-30 degrees or so. Many
+find using a curved blade helps make this type of cut. The blade is
+held with the concave surface facing up (away from the loaf). A flap
+of dough is created that will lift up to create an “ear” as the loaf
+expands and, by lifting gradually, slows the expansion of the loaf.
+This prolongs the time during which new areas of dough are exposed to
+the direct heat of the oven and results in greater overall expansion –
+a larger "bloom."
+
+Video on Scoring a Bâtard: <http://youtu.be/UC5HLCWAyMo>.
+
+**The effect of scoring on loaf shape:** 
+Michael Suas, in his book "Advanced Bread & Pastry," provides some
+information about how scoring patterns influence loaf shape. Scoring
+is not just to make a visually pretty design on the top of a loaf. It
+is also how the baker controls the direction in which the loaf
+expands. This impacts the shape of the loaf cross section (rounder or
+more oval), the height of the loaf and, for a boule, whether it stays
+round or ends up more oblong.
+
+According to Suas, long loaves like bâtards and baguettes are
+traditionally scored parallel to their long axis. This may be a single
+long cut or multiple cuts that are almost parallel and overlap
+somewhat (for ¼ to ¼ of their length, generally). This pattern
+promotes sideways expansion of the loaf, resulting in an oval cross
+section when the loaf is sliced.
+
+For breads with high-rye content which have lower gluten and less oven
+spring, the traditional objective is to encourage a higher rise in the
+oven spring resulting in a rounder cross section. This is achieved by
+"sausage" or "chevron" cuts.
+
+Boules are scored in a variety of patterns with differing effects on
+how the loaf expands. The common "tic-tac-toe" pattern and a simple
+cross will direct the expansion upward. More complex patterns like
+diamonds result in a relatively flatter loaf.
+
+One of most interesting effects is that scoring a boule with multiple
+parallel cuts encourages expansion at a right angle to the cuts. This
+results in an oblong loaf shape.
+
+**What's the point of an ear? Controlled bloom!:** 
+This topic is not about the auricular anatomy of elves (or Vulcans).
+It's about scoring breads.
+
+Scoring loaves creates a visually pleasing pattern, and it helps
+control the expansion of the loaf as it bakes.
+
+What Suas called "the classic cut" is parallel to the long axis of a
+baguette or a bâtard. The cut is made with the blade at a shallow
+angle to the surface of the loaf. The cut should be shallow - about
+1/4 inch deep. Paradoxically, this shallow cut results in the flap
+lifting better than a deeper cut would, thus forming a nice "ear."
+Hamelman (pg. 80) points out that "a deep cut will simply collapse
+from its own weight."
+
+The angle of the blade is important. "If the angle is not achieved and
+the cut is done with the blade vertical to the loaf, the two sides of
+the dough will spread very quickly during oven spring and expose an
+enormous surface area to the heat. The crust will begin to form too
+soon - sometimes before the end of oven spring - penalizing the
+development of the bread. If the cut is properly horizontal, the sides
+of the loaf will spread slower. The layer of dough created by the
+incision will partially and temporarily protect the surface from the
+heat and encourage a better oven spring and development." (Suas, pg.
+116.)
+
+**In summary:** in order to achieve an optimal bloom in baguettes and
+bâtards, one must attend to 3 variables when scoring them:
+
+1. The cuts should be almost parallel to the long axis of the loaf.
+
+2. The blade should be held at about a 30 degree angle to the surface
+of the loaf.
+
+3. The depth of the cut should be shallow - about 1/4 inch.
+
+Variable shading of the bloomed crust confirms that the
+desired slow but prolonged opening of the cut during oven
+spring occurred.
+
+**A final word:**
+This tutorial focused on the mechanics of scoring, but the other steps
+in bread making impact the behavior of the cuts you make and the final
+appearance of your loaves. In fact, every single step, from your
+choice of ingredients and their proportions – your formula – to how
+you steam your oven plays a role in how your cuts will open. Your best
+looking loaves will result from a series of choices that are mutually
+dependent, where how you score a loaf takes into account the other
+choices you have made about the formula, mixing, fermentation,
+shaping, proofing and baking.