SRF Reservations!

Brisket_Fanatic

So my brother footed the bill for a Black SRF Brisket for my Pops 65th Birthday and my job was to cook it. It wasn't a total fail but definitely a disappointment with all the hype. I trimmed very little or the 15.5 pound beast and kept it indirect with a dome temp at 250, Oak smoke and an 1" water pan for the drippings. All thermometers have been calibrated. Everything seemed to be going well and put the beast on at midnight.  About 6am I went out to check on it and temp was a tad low around 200 so bumped the vents a bit and it came back to temp quickly. Few hours later I noticed the fire was mostly in the front which is odd since it's normally hotter in the rear which is where the point was.  I probably should have rotated it 90 degrees but just left it.  Around 190 I checked a few spots of the flat and they were nice and tender with some jiggle. Few spots of the flat more on top of the point were quite firm. Let it go a little longer and just couldn't wait any more. So we ended up letting it rest on the counter for about 45 minutes until the sides were done at 515.  The flavor was really nice and beefy which we loved but both sides of the flat were overdone and the middle was underdone.  The point was amazing and a small portion of the flat was money. Lived the taste but I guess my expectations were way too high. 

Any suggestions or similar experiences are welcome. 

SmokeyPitt

One thought is in the raw pic it appears hanging over the drip pan on the front and sides. Since the drip pan had water in it, the temp just above the drip pan was lower so the sides cooked faster. This may have contributed to the sides being overcooked compared to the middle. 

I have only done one SRF black and it turned out really good, but honestly it wasn't as magical as some of the reviews I have read. It was definitely the best brisket I have made, but I didn't find it was leaps and bounds better than the choice packers I have made in the past.