Yeah, I love the Georgia Smokies---probably the last undiscovered wild country in the U.S. Everything that NC offers, but without the crowds.
If you do get to Nora Mill, check out their Pioneer Porridge. It's a combination of something like 7 grains, and makes a really great cold-weather breakfast.
In terms of store-bought, I prefer the King Arthur flours, and don't care about paying the premium. Martha White is pretty good, too. The store brands run a very distanct third (and are packed as 4-lbs, not five, so the "savings" may be more imagined than real). But nothing compares to fresh, stone-ground fllours.
The fact is, though, that even premium flours are so inexpensive that I've never paid attention. There are other places to cut corners, IMO. With bread, it's all about the flour.
Rhonda: I'm not sure exactly what you mean by bread pans. For hearth-style loaves I use half sheets pans of aluminized steel. These get covered with parchment paper and sprinkled with either semolina flour or cornmeal. If you have nonstick sheets---which is likely in most households---you should still use the parchment paper & flour.
I also have a baking stone that stays permenantly in the oven. Start by preheating 50-100 degrees higher than the formula says, then lower the heat after putting the dough in. This is particularly important if you use steaming.
For loaves it depends on the size; I have both 1-lb and 2-lb loaf pans. For the monkey style bread, any round, oven-proof bowl will do. I used to use a Bundt pan. Recently I found a ceramic ring mold that is more convenient to use.
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