Into a large bowl, measure your active starter and the water and mix together with a fork or Danish whisk. Add the whole wheat flour, and use your hands to mix everything together until the flour is fully hydrated and there are no dry bits. If needed, add a little water.

Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a damp towel and allow the dough to rest for a full hour to give the flour time to fully absorb the water. Preform a series of 4-6 stretch and folds, then cover again and set aside.

Wait 30 minutes, and preform another series of 4-6 stretch and folds. Repeat after an additional 30 minutes for a total of 3 stretch and folds.

Begin the bulk rise. Allow the dough to set at room temperature for 7-10 hours or until the dough has doubled in size and looks puffy and full of air. It should jiggle when shaken.

Dump the dough onto your work surface. Gently pat the dough into a rough rectangle and shape your loaf using four folds. I start at the back and carefully lift with two hands and fold the back edge 2/3rds over the dough, like and envelope fold. Gently press the edge into the dough to seal. Repeat this with the left edge, then the right edge. Finish by folding the bottom edge all the way across the dough, flipping it seam side down in the process. Use the edges of your hands to gently pull the loaf towards you in a circular motion, to seal the seam and create more surface tension.

Place the formed dough upside down into a mixing bowl or proofing basket lined with a floured tea towel. Allow to rise for 1-3 hours until it passes the poke test. Press down on the dough with your finger, it should spring back slowly but not collapse under your finger.

Preheat oven with a Dutch oven or heavy-lidded pot to 475 degrees.

When ready to bake, set parchment on the counter and dust with flour. Flip the bread onto the parchment and score as desired with a sharp knife or lame. Us the parchment to transfer the bread into the pre-heated pot. Bake with lid on for 20 minutes. Remove lid and bake an additional 15-25 minutes, until the bread has a dark golden crust and registers 200 degrees with an instant read thermometer.

Let your sourdough loaf cool completely before slicing. Enjoy with good butter!