And that’s why I trust your opinion. To me, that one has a nice dark finish - not charcoal briquettes. Don’t know what that black sea anemone is doing on it though.
I think the first one is the one I have a biggest question on - that bottom section looks super dark.
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I’m surprised no one has mentioned how their breads seem almost gummy/underbaked on the inside?! while being charred on the outside! Their style is very purposeful and makes great toast. I do have to say that it seems like the crust is darker than when they first opened the B&M. I like the crust a dark mahogany but the char is over doing it. These days my prefered bread is at Gjusta.
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If you refer to the OP on Lodge that Jase started, photos def show what you mention.
Photo 2 is bordering on the darkest I’d fine still acceptable, and the loaf in the upper half of Photo 3 looks great. Photo 1 is too burnt, IMHO, and I don’t like how burnt the edges of the seams are in Photo 4 (although hard to tell how the loaf is in general b/c some of the seeds are also black).
Called this out in my post back in April
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Agreed! I haven’t been back to the Emperor’s New Bakery in months.
So bummed the Blue Bottle/Chad Robertson Deal fell apart.. A couple of hits from the main deck guns of the mighty U.S.S. Tartine would take these bros down a couple of notches. 
Also, no Craftsman and Wolves.
My brother asked Chad about their LA update and he told him hopefully next year. No one is more eager about Tartine than me.
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Thanks, fingers crossed it happens.
My wife wants cheese for dinner. Need a good bread, right? We were close to Lodge today, so I dropped by to see if they had a round that would work for us. About 6-8 breads were on the rack, and I asked the person for one with the least char. This one somewhat reminds me of the original versions.
The other breads were varying degrees darker.
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Nice! Please let us know how it turns out (flavor, inside, etc.). Which flavor did this end up being? Multigrain?
So you’re saying politely that the other loaves were what most people would considered burned? 
I asked, “So this the seeded…” 
The counter person said, “Yes - the seeded.” 
“Oh - OK - the seeded…”
'Uh huh, the seeded."
So my assumption is it’s their basic “country” loaf that has been finished with seeds. 
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Varying degrees of burnt. The loaf in my pic has a slight char along the very top of the ridges. The others were baked to the point where the char had spread across the smoother areas of the crust.
Ideally, being there in the first half of the day would have given a better sampling. I was there around 2PM. I don’t know if the remains rounds are “the last kids on the.playground to be picked,” or if my round is the rare one that is purposely finished, just entering the char zone, for the more timid folks like me.
The bread was top notch as usual. Five of us ate the bread - all approved. No acrid/harsh flavors. The bread had a full, nutty flavor from the roasted seeds. Chew was wonderful and just moist. Slightly sweet and just a little sourdough tart as the bread was chewed.
I tried the darkest portions of the crust and depth and complexity of flavor is what I kept getting. I ate the bread with camembert, sharp cheddar and scamorza cheeses,as well as four different salumi and prosciutto, and itt was wonderfully hearty with it all.
I think the next step is to go a tad darker to see how that turns out. On one hand, I have to go with my senses. But on the other hand, the folks at Lodge obviously know bread better than me.
Thanks @bulavinaka.
One other question: Did you eat the bread “as is” or did you try toasting it?
Because one popular form of consumption with bread is to toast it (make homemade garlic toast, or a bruschetta, etc.).
I wonder if Lodge’s inherently dark / already near-burnt bread would end up being burnt even if you lightly toasted it at home?
We ate it as is. I’ve applied olive oil with a little salt and briefly toasted slices or chunks in the oven in the past.
The interior on this loaf seems not as moist as ones in the past. Posters Sgee and aaqjr had described the interiors as, “wet and gummy,” which I also experienced to a certain degree in the past. But we didn’t sense that on this experience.
I think their bread toasts up great FWIW but I do it in a pan or griddle with a little butter or EVOO. Cant say how it would do in a toaster oven
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I usually pour some evoo on a sheet pan, smear around the slices or chunks of bread in the oil, sprinkle a little salt and slide it in the oven at 450 for 5-7 minutes. Just depends on the level of moisture in the bread. Sometimes I will instead finish with Maldon salt. I have not tried the broiler.
I have done what you do on a cast iron skillet, or on the BBQ grill if I happen to have it going - these results are more to my liking. But with 4-5 mouths to feed, this can be time-consuming for something with a very small window for optimal taste/texture. The oven method is a lazy man’s compromise - I can be very lazy.