Lazzari Lump Hardwood (Oak)

Maizeandbrew18

Has anyone switched from Lazzari to anything different?  I don't know any different in terms of lump since this is all I have used but I am finding huge discrepancies between size.  I am getting huge chunks that I almost have to hammer into smaller pieces.  If so, what else does everyone recommend?  I can get Lazarri for $25 for 2 20 lb. bags.   Or do I stick with Lazzari?  

caliking

If you like how it burns, stick with it. You can make big pieces smaller, bur you can't make smaller pieces bigger.

Maizeandbrew18

caliking said:

If you like how it burns, stick with it. You can make big pieces smaller, bur you can't make smaller pieces bigger.

Part of my reason for entertaining more options as well is the fact I've had a fire die on me.  It seems this stuff blocks airflow quite a bit.  I'm not sure if this is true of all lump brands.

boatbum

Fired dieing is a no no.  switch charcoal.

SMITTYtheSMOKER

Big pieces enhance air flow, small pieces can kill air flow.  Lazzarri Oak is very good, Lazzari Mesquite is the worst. IMO

caliking

@1310monster: I've wanted to try their tandoor grade lump in my tandoor for years, but could never figure out a way to buy  a reasonable amount for a reasonable price. I would be very interested in what you think of it.  

Maizeandbrew18

I ended up trying it one more time...got a 20 lb. bag of Lazzri Mesquite and a 20 lb. bag of Lazzari Oak.  I did a fire last night with Mesquite and wow is that ever hot stuff.  I had fire coming up to my platesetter.  It seems like these bags are a good in terms of large/medium/small pieces.  I might've had a bad batch last time.

I also saw a 20 lb. bag of "The Good One" at Ace but it was $17.99 (pretty steep).  Anyone have any luck with this stuff before?

Eggcelsior

Costco business delivery has Lazzari Mesquite 40lb bags for 13.28 each delivered. There is a $20 dollar surcharge for orders under $250.

They only ship to certain areas, though:

All prices listed are delivered prices from Costco Business Delivery. Merchandise can only be shipped to businesses within the greater Puget Sound, San Francisco Bay, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, San Diego, Phoenix and Atlanta metropolitan areas.

acegg77

Granted, I'm a newbie... only have my egg since April. I had execllent results with the BGE charcoal. But it is expensive so when it ran out I took a flyer on the Lazzari Oak... about $17 for a 20 lb. bag compared to the $31 for the BGE brand. 

I would not buy it again. Not only did it take much longer to light, there was no way it would burn as hot, and the fact there there were rocks in the bag... it was just false economy compared to the quality of the expensive BGE brand (Royal Oak?)

Flavor. I could hardly taste the "smoke" compared to BGE. 

I did nothing different between the two brands... but the Lazzari would hardly ever get above 450 degrees and would take 40 minutes to do so. It also took two fire-starter square to lite. There was little or no imparted flavor to my steaks and chicken.

I wrote to the Lazzari people (they are nearby in San Francisco) and asked them why they put their name on their Mesquite brand but not on their "generic" brand... which they claim is oak. They were very nice and wrote back saying that the generic is made in Mexico and was designed to be a low margin product of lesser quality for restaurants and they didn't want to "brand" because of that. Think about it. If they won't put their name on it, what does it tell you about it?

The other day I ran out (thankfully) and moved back to the BGE brand and it was a huge world of difference. The pieces were "graded" and it lit faster and got way, way, way hotter in almost no time at all... 400 degrees in 10 minutes. It took Lazzari 20 mins to reach that... if I was lucky.

Cheap "is" as cheap "does." I won't go back. Yes, I know a lot of people have good results with this "off brand" and maybe I just got a bad bag (complete with some rocks!)... but there is no way I would recommend this product. 

I was at Whole Foods (aka Whole Paycheck) the other day and they had 8  lb. of "natural hardwood charcoal" http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/products/real-hardwood-charcoal  for about $9 as I remember. I should have picked up a bag to try but it was stacked outside the store and I forgot as I was checking out. 

Yeah, I don't like paying $31 for a 20 lb. bag of lump, but I found that the difference in my cooks was huge and if I have to, I'll just bite the bullet and buy the BGE. I'd like to find where I can buy Royal Oak in the Sacramento area. I've not found it yet. 

If you are thinking about Lazzari, well, my experience with a 20 lb. bag was terrible. I hope yours is better.

Maizeandbrew18

acegg77 said:

Granted, I'm a newbie... only have my egg since April. I had execllent results with the BGE charcoal. But it is expensive so when it ran out I took a flyer on the Lazzari Oak... about $17 for a 20 lb. bag compared to the $31 for the BGE brand. 

I would not buy it again. Not only did it take much longer to light, there was no way it would burn as hot, and the fact there there were rocks in the bag... it was just false economy compared to the quality of the expensive BGE brand (Royal Oak?)

Flavor. I could hardly taste the "smoke" compared to BGE. 

I did nothing different between the two brands... but the Lazzari would hardly ever get above 450 degrees and would take 40 minutes to do so. It also took two fire-starter square to lite. There was little or no imparted flavor to my steaks and chicken.

I wrote to the Lazzari people (they are nearby in San Francisco) and asked them why they put their name on their Mesquite brand but not on their "generic" brand... which they claim is oak. They were very nice and wrote back saying that the generic is made in Mexico and was designed to be a low margin product of lesser quality for restaurants and they didn't want to "brand" because of that. Think about it. If they won't put their name on it, what does it tell you about it?

The other day I ran out (thankfully) and moved back to the BGE brand and it was a huge world of difference. The pieces were "graded" and it lit faster and got way, way, way hotter in almost no time at all... 400 degrees in 10 minutes. It took Lazzari 20 mins to reach that... if I was lucky.

Cheap "is" as cheap "does." I won't go back. Yes, I know a lot of people have good results with this "off brand" and maybe I just got a bad bag (complete with some rocks!)... but there is no way I would recommend this product. 

I was at Whole Foods (aka Whole Paycheck) the other day and they had 8  lb. of "natural hardwood charcoal" http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/products/real-hardwood-charcoal  for about $9 as I remember. I should have picked up a bag to try but it was stacked outside the store and I forgot as I was checking out. 

Yeah, I don't like paying $31 for a 20 lb. bag of lump, but I found that the difference in my cooks was huge and if I have to, I'll just bite the bullet and buy the BGE. I'd like to find where I can buy Royal Oak in the Sacramento area. I've not found it yet. 

If you are thinking about Lazzari, well, my experience with a 20 lb. bag was terrible. I hope yours is better.

I just made the switch to Royal Oak (found it in Michigan) and it was $5.25 for an 8.8 lb bag.  I stocked up and I will never go back to Lazzari.  Less ash and you're right, the "smell" isn't there.  Much better quality with Royal Oak.

LeoHat2

When I lived in teh Seattle area, a place called Cash N' Carry had Lazzari Mesquite in 40 pound bags. I liked it. I thought it burned nice and hot for quick cooks and burned a little hot for low/slows but not horribly bad. I don't remember the price but it was a good deal.