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The BEST charcoal ?

13

Comments


  • tech284 said:

    I am going thru charcoal really fast is the (Green Egg Charcoal) the best one to use I would love to find bigger chunks so I wouldn't have to use soooo much

    I used to use BGE charcoal, but now have switched to John Henry Food Company's Hardwood Lump Charcoal.  To me anyway, the sizing is better than BGE's & more importantly it costs less. I get it at the BGE dealer .... & it supposedly comes from East Texas.
    Where are you getting the John Henry? I
    have only found it one time in bham. Last time I checked they only had BGE. I have been using RO and it seems to be ok but has often had rocks, clumps of dirt, metal straps. The dirt smell can upset a cook. The RO that I have used was sized at 0-3". The John Henry was more like 3-6". Wife is picking up 3 bags of BGE that I will use tonight with some chicken.

    I went to bed last night mean and woke up meaner !  
    "Matt Dillon"

  • henapple
    henapple Posts: 16,025
    I've only found it at Harp's.
    Green egg, dead animal and alcohol. The "Boro".. TN 
  • EggRacer
    EggRacer Posts: 400
    edited March 2013
    Ozark Oak is the best for me. My dealer always has a good supply and I like the way it performs during my cooks. Very little to no junk in the lump, burns clean and no popping.
    XLBGE & LBGE
    North Richland Hills, TX
  • michigan_jason
    michigan_jason Posts: 1,346
    I just use kingsford match light....... =))



    "Entrepreneurs are simply those who understand that there is little difference between obstacle and opportunity, and are able to turn both to their advantage."

  • michigan_jason
    michigan_jason Posts: 1,346

    "Shampoo is better, I go on first and clean the hair!"

     

    "Conditioner is better, I leave the hair silky and smooth!"

     

    Sorry, my twisted brain thought of this as soon as I started reading this post.

     

    Carry on....



    "Entrepreneurs are simply those who understand that there is little difference between obstacle and opportunity, and are able to turn both to their advantage."

  • AlbertaEgger
    AlbertaEgger Posts: 1,387

    Does any one use or have tried Dragin Breath lump, my dealer has some in? Currently I am using BGE.

    County of Parkland, Alberta, Canada
  • dlk7
    dlk7 Posts: 1,053

    Does any one use or have tried Dragin Breath lump, my dealer has some in? Currently I am using BGE.

    I really like dragon breath - Todd at Smokinfyrpit brought me 10 twenty pound bags last year when he was visiting relatives near Nashville.  It has decent size pieces and burns really hot and works great on Low and Slows too.  If I could find it locally, I would use it exclusively.

    Two XL BGEs - So Happy!!!!

    Waunakee, WI

  • milesbrown4
    milesbrown4 Posts: 314
    I have used BGE & Wegmans Lump - but Wicked Good is my go to lump.  Gotta get some RO!
  • Eggcelsior
    Eggcelsior Posts: 14,414

    "Shampoo is better, I go on first and clean the hair!"

     

    "Conditioner is better, I leave the hair silky and smooth!"

     

    Sorry, my twisted brain thought of this as soon as I started reading this post.

     

    Carry on....

    Oh really fool!
  • AlbertaEgger
    AlbertaEgger Posts: 1,387
    dlk7 said:

    Does any one use or have tried Dragin Breath lump, my dealer has some in? Currently I am using BGE.

    I really like dragon breath - Todd at Smokinfyrpit brought me 10 twenty pound bags last year when he was visiting relatives near Nashville.  It has decent size pieces and burns really hot and works great on Low and Slows too.  If I could find it locally, I would use it exclusively.
    Thanks dlk7 I will try dragon breath out for the next bag.
    County of Parkland, Alberta, Canada
  • Little Steven
    Little Steven Posts: 28,817
    This is kind of a pointless response but out of all the lump I've used, and that is a few bags, Maple Leaf is far and away the best. It's a pointless comment cause they no longer market it in the US. With that said, Costco sometimes carries Basques Nature Glo which is second best IMHO

    Steve 

    Caledon, ON

     

  • Lit
    Lit Posts: 9,053
    The Basques is natures own right not nature glo? I have bought several bags at a local egg dealer and was happy. Like $15 for 18 pounds.
  • egger ave
    egger ave Posts: 721
    Jellyworm said:
    I have been using Stubs, bought at Costco.  32# bag is $16 and some change.  I am on my third bag and have been very impressed so far. I like the quality and price over BGE.
    Same here, it's decent lump at a good price. There is a lot of mesquite lump for sale here in Texas. I don't care for mesquite lump unless I am grilling steaks. I understand restaurants like it because it burns hot and fast. The flavor is too strong for chicken and fish IMHO. 
    1 Large BGE, 1 Mini BGE, 1 Minimax BGE, Original wife and 3 dogs living in the heart of BBQ country in Round Rock Texas. 

    "The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don't do anything about it."

    Albert Einstein
  • Eggscriber
    Eggscriber Posts: 276
    If you really want to get technical, it seems as if some charcoals are better for long cooks and others are better for a quick steak.  Cowboy is super light and small which like sawdust lights fast. burns fast and hot which is ok sometimes.  The better ones are dense and burn long but sometimes are harder to light.  Certain grocery stores like Harris Teeter sell their own brand of lump.  It's almost as dense as coal.  It can can take a while to light and can spark but is cheap.  I agree that the best I've used is Wicked Good and Ozark Oak.
  • Denevan
    Denevan Posts: 24
    Denevan said:
    I picked up some wicked good from Ace Hardware when they had a "spend $100 save $20 special". Five 22lbs Bags came to just under $85 with free shipping to the store. That works out to 16.99 per 22lbs bag -- not too shabby! 
    To clarify for Blewis212: I really like Wicked Good - its pricey but I got a great deal on it making it as cheap or cheaper than a lot of nomally less expensive and lower quality lump... if the sale comes up again and you can spend $17 on 22lbs of wicked good or $15 on 17.8 lbs of cowboy lump  -- I highly recommend going for the wicked good!
  • chainsaw19
    chainsaw19 Posts: 257
    Came across a metal band in my BGE brand tonight, don't like finding that kind of junk in my charcoal.
    Large BGE Middletown, MD
  • I like Wicked Good the best. Been an Egghead four years and tried maybe 6 or 7 different brands. Keep going back to the Wicked Good.
  • WiltOnTilt
    WiltOnTilt Posts: 102
    Came across a metal band in my BGE brand tonight, don't like finding that kind of junk in my charcoal.

    Wow what a coincidence, I just found a metal band in my lump yesterday, but it was royal oak from Walmart not BGE brand. What the hell is going on with these?
  • mb99zz
    mb99zz Posts: 183

    Came across a metal band in my BGE brand tonight, don't like finding that kind of junk in my charcoal.
    I hate that too.  Creeps me out and makes me wonder where this stuff is coming from. I had a bad experience trying Cowboy brand this week.  Had a no-BS softball sized rock (may have been concrete) in the bag.  The kicker was what looked like a tree branch that was a foot long and thick -- about 6" in diameter.  Crazy stuff.   The bad smoke lasted way longer than the BGE brand. I thought Royal Oak makes BGE brand lump.  

    I am eager to try Wicked Good.  The closest dealer to me is the Dizzy Pig store (Virginia).  I need to call them to see if they have any in stock.  It may be worth the 40 minutes to get there and try it.  
  • ccpoulin1
    ccpoulin1 Posts: 390
    I use RO because of availability.  I have found that if you buy it at restaurant depot, it is cheaper (10.09 for a 17.6 lb bag, and sometimes goes on sale for 8.99) it is in a larger bag, and seems to have bigger pieces than the 8.8lbbag at walmart.  I want to try WGWW, but nobody near me carries it, and i dont want to buy a pallet just to try it.

    "You are who you are when nobody is looking"

  • Charlie tuna
    Charlie tuna Posts: 2,191
    Yesterday i was at my local Sam's Club.  They started selling "Best Of The West" lump about a year ago.  I tried a couple of bags and threw the second bag in the garbage, it actually had 6 inch diameter tree limbs that would not burn -- like they were made of plaster!!  Really was crap !!  Well, the second pallet sat in the store with little change for the last six months.  Yesterday they had it marked down -- Original price was $11.89 for a 20 pound bag, now it is $9.89.  You would think an operation as big as Sam's Club would investigate a product before putting it in their store!! 
  • Little Steven
    Little Steven Posts: 28,817
    Lit said:
    The Basques is natures own right not nature glo? I have bought several bags at a local egg dealer and was happy. Like $15 for 18 pounds.
    Yes...my mistake. When the Costcos have it it is much cheaper

    Steve 

    Caledon, ON

     

  • Stoater
    Stoater Posts: 292
    Wow, tried this today and loving it, hardly any dust nice pieces and burned clean very quickly, picked it up today at costco in st catharines, 10.99 a bag, lovley jubley.
  • Stoater
    Stoater Posts: 292
    sorry that was natures own by basques.
  • mb99zz
    mb99zz Posts: 183
    Anyone ever order Wicked Good from Ace online and have it shipped to their local store? 
  • Eggcelsior
    Eggcelsior Posts: 14,414
    mb99zz said:

    Anyone ever order Wicked Good from Ace online and have it shipped to their local store? 

    A lot of eggers do. Free shipping to store.
  • dlk7
    dlk7 Posts: 1,053
    Terrible experience with Humphrey's Lump Charcoal.  I ordered four, forty pound bags from the Humphrey website $24.95 per bag and $52 to ship it to Franklin, TN.  All four bags were filled with very small pieces and dust.  I built a sifter with one inch chicken wire to save any pieces that wouldn't clog up my eggs.  Out of the 160 pounds of charcoal they shipped, only 80 pounds was usable.  I called their customer service line 3 times and left messages twice with no call back.  Worst customer service ever.  I would never order from Humphrey's ever again.  You may be ok if you can feel the bag you are buying but I wouldn't trust them to send you decent lump sight unseen.  Too bad because the half that was usable burns hot and has very little ash.  The Wicked Good I get from Ace is always a good size and burns just as good as Humphreys with no hassle.  Too bad Humphrey's doesn't care about customer service.

    Two XL BGEs - So Happy!!!!

    Waunakee, WI

  • Denevan
    Denevan Posts: 24
    mb99zz said:
    Anyone ever order Wicked Good from Ace online and have it shipped to their local store? 
    That's exactly what I did - I bought 5 bags got $20 off.  Took about a week to get to the store. They called me up and said your charcoal is ready -- super easy and great charcoal.  I will keep going back. 
  • Denevan
    Denevan Posts: 24
    I just looked up coupons for Ace: this one came up -- ACERMN15J - give it a try and let us know if it works... ($15 off $100) so buy 5 bags and get $15 bucks off... 
  • cortguitarman
    cortguitarman Posts: 2,061
    dlk7 said:

    Terrible experience with Humphrey's Lump Charcoal.  I ordered four, forty pound bags from the Humphrey website $24.95 per bag and $52 to ship it to Franklin, TN.  All four bags were filled with very small pieces and dust.  I built a sifter with one inch chicken wire to save any pieces that wouldn't clog up my eggs.  Out of the 160 pounds of charcoal they shipped, only 80 pounds was usable.  I called their customer service line 3 times and left messages twice with no call back.  Worst customer service ever.  I would never order from Humphrey's ever again.  You may be ok if you can feel the bag you are buying but I wouldn't trust them to send you decent lump sight unseen.  Too bad because the half that was usable burns hot and has very little ash.  The Wicked Good I get from Ace is always a good size and burns just as good as Humphreys with no hassle.  Too bad Humphrey's doesn't care about customer service.

    Wow, this is surprising to hear. I've ordered from them and my lump has been great. Nice big pieces consistently. I will agree that they're hard to get a hold of. You will always get an answer at the Brookville plant, but Lee Humphrey who handles shipping is not as easy. I have Lee's email address and he usually responds very quickly through email. It is unfortunate that you had a negative experience. I love Humphrey and use it exclusively.
    Mark Annville, PA