Real Newbie question: do different types of lump charcoal make important different smoke

Abter

I have learned about adding different wood chips or chunks to the charcoal in my egg to produce different smoke flavors.  Does the type of wood the charcoal is also add flavor to the smoke?  I am currently using charcoal listed as having hickory and oak.  If these were chips I added I would expect to have a strongish smoke great for beef or pork.  Should I expect hickory/oak charcoal to produce similar smoke characteristics?
{Hey, I SAID it was a real newbie question }

RRP

Welcome aboard! IMO most people can't tell the difference from the smoke given off by the popular lump brands from domestic woods. Now with wood from foreign countries I feel there is a noticeable difference. Also there clearly a taste (bitter to me anyway) of using mesquite lump.

fishlessman

some are stronger flavored, some not much flavor, some need more startup time  before burning clean. pretty much i can cook on any and no real favorites. if i had to choose one it might be one of the canadian maple lumps just because i like how it smells in the backyard

lousubcap

Lump charcoal will add a smoke profile of its own independent of any added smoke wood.  There are degrees of "smokiness" across different brands of lump.  Said another way, some are more smoke neutral than others.  
Rockwood and Wicked Good Weekend Warrior are very smoke neutral, while I find  Royal Oak (and it's private branded products) to impart a more smoky flavor.  FWIW-
Experiment and go from there.

nolaegghead

Yes, but how well your fire is built and stabilized can make an even more noticeable difference.

Mosca

I agree with lousubcap and nolaegghead: Royal Oak can be a little smoky, but a well built fire will make it much more neutral. 

fishlessman

pay attention to what nola said. newbies tend to rush things, you want a clean burning stabilized fire. you want to smell the fire and make sure its burning clean, the smell test is the only way to do this. if the fire isnt stabilized and its dropping in temp your snuffing it out, it adds a sootier smoke. burn 20 bags of whats close to you before mail ordering all the different lumps, you will learn more figuring out the fire that way, 20 bags is only a few months anyways cowboy is the lump that seems to be everywhere, start up to clean burning can be frustrating with that lump, you sometimes have to wait it out but its cheap and everywhere, its the only lump i would tell someone thats new to avoid, its also what i use most of the time

Abter

Thanks...what a GREAT community.  Right after I bought the cowboy lump at HD, I found the Naked Whiz's comprehensive charcoal info and testing pages.  I was not amused when I found Cowboy lump (2013 vintage) ranked by readers as # 84 out of 92 (the editor/testers gave it an "average" rating).
Fishless:  you must be a lawyer!!!  Only a lawyer could ever write a sentence like "its the only lump i would tell someone thats new to avoid, its also what i use most of the time"  with a straight face 

YukonRon

I bought Cowboy a very long time ago, in weber years, Dumped it into the grill, and a bunch of parquet wood floor tiles fell out. On close examination it looked as though the acrylic coating had not even been charred off. I chose not to use that brand since. It may have improved over the years, but I would not know.

I have used others since then, and it really does come down to letting the burn work its magic, wait for it to stabilize then proceed with your cook. Some take longer than others, but hey, you got a BGE, the greatest equalizer on earth. It makes us all great cooks.

Welcome to OCD Hell my new friend. Getting here is nothing like the cost of staying here. Wallet genocide is about to begin. Just have fun, post some food shots. You can never leave.

As you have seen, this forum is loaded with some of the most intelligent folks I have ever had the chance to get to know (as well as one can on forums). They are experts on all things BGE. I learned more in one week reading the posts here, than I did in a month of experimenting.

I also learned how to fix cars, wire my house, build a kitchen, spend more money, and the list continue to grow. Again welcome and have fun.

4Runner

Don't forget...build a bridge across a small creek.  I got loads of info on that one.

OP - For me, the most critical difference isn't lump is for low n slows.  I used BGE, Cowboy, Publix, Wicked Good, and finally Rockwood.  I have found a good thing with RW so I'll highly recommend that brand.  Experimentation is a good thing.   Good luck.  

fakewiig

Thanks for the insights!
I'm finishing up my second and last free bag of BGE lump that the dealer tossed in with purchase of my egg.
I've seen Royal Oak around these parts, so I'll probably get that next.

Mikee

Royal Oak is one of my favorites; however, what you get in the bag is not always controlled by the manufacture. How it's handled once it leaves the factory to you get it is out of their control. I had RO lump with less than a cup of dust/chips to a 1/3 of a bag with tiny pieces.

As for smoke flavor, there is no, to very little, difference if the wood is converted to pure charcoal. Where the difference lies is that the manufactures do not create a 100% charcoal product. The remainder of what is not pure charcoal will have an impact on the cook. Why buy 100% charcoal and then add 10% Oak when you can buy 90% charcoal made out of Oak for 1/2 the price.

Perhaps its just me. When I cook on the Egg I like a little bit of the smoke flavor. Those who want neutral to no smoke flavor lump are probably the same people adding wood chunks to their cooks.