What changed with Royal Oak ?

My last several bags have been Royal Oak, and I was thinking about how quick it cleaned out.  I actually cooked biscuits the other day on the Egg, and you couldn't taste any smoke at all.  

Personally I have seen no difference over the years, but if you are buying it one bag at a time there are multiple reasons for multiple differences! 

I bought several bags recently and have not seen any change.

Last fall grabbed two 8Kg bags of RO for <$10 each at the HD in Bellingham. Over the past few week have used them both. They were packaged the same but must have come from two different planets. One was full of non-carbonized pieces, smoked too long and sparked like crazy. The other bag was fantastic. One of the most neutral bags of lump I've used. 

I have seen RO in the Home Depots as well for $12 for a 17# bag.

Charcoal is an organic product, which is sourced from multiple stands of wood which are everchanging.  This isn't genetically modified corn, grown in the same field with the same techniques year after year, producing a controlled uniform product.

I think it could be, where a producer might plant trees every year with the express purpose of producing charcoal by harvesting every 8 or 10 year old crop.  But that's much more expensive than the current system, which is to acquire stands of hardwood from wide ranging locations with all the attendant variables.

As much as we may complain that a particular brand is smokier or smaller or bigger or smaller than it used to be, it's still a lot cheaper than it would be if it were expected to be the same from bag to bag.

I think we tend to get used to a certain brand, and don't notice differences because we are entrenched.  When that brand changes though, we sense it as some failure (or improvement).

It's really just the nature of a, well, 'natural' product. 

Sometimes I get a tough steak, or a rotten apple in the bunch.  Same thing.

SenecaTheYounger said:

Charcoal is an organic product, which is sourced from multiple stands of wood which are everchanging.  This isn't genetically modified corn, grown in the same field with the same techniques year after year, producing a controlled uniform product.

I think it could be, where a producer might plant trees every year with the express purpose of producing charcoal by harvesting every 8 or 10 year old crop.  But that's much more expensive than the current system, which is to acquire stands of hardwood from wide ranging locations with all the attendant variables.

As much as we may complain that a particular brand is smokier or smaller or bigger or smaller than it used to be, it's still a lot cheaper than it would be if it were expected to be the same from bag to bag.

I think we tend to get used to a certain brand, and don't notice differences because we are entrenched.  When that brand changes though, we sense it as some failure (or improvement).

It's really just the nature of a, well, 'natural' product. 

Sometimes I get a tough steak, or a rotten apple in the bunch.  Same thing.

Man you hit the nail on the head for sure! it's lump and in the grand scheme of things it's good stuff even with a few little problems. G M

I just bought 3 bags of RO and have opened two of them so far and have been very pleased with the lump.  Larger pieces, not much VOCs, and little ash.  I was very surprised since I gave up on RO about a year and a half ago.  I have been using Ozark Oak all winter and like it a lot, but will start using RO until the quality drops.

For the last 6 month or more I have thought that my RO bags had way too many small pieces in them. Other than that, I haven't noticed a difference. (There were always some moon rocks.)

I use RO for most my day to day, and keep a bit of Rockwood and OO that I got from Firecraft on hand for special cooks and low/slows. I've noticed that the last few bags of RO I've used have had better looking pieces, but I think that might be  because of the way it's handled. I used to get it at Bi-Mart or Wal-Mart and  the bags always looked a bit thrashed, lots of rips and thus a lot more smaller pieces and dust. The bags I've been getting from from Home Depot since they started carrying it have been in great shape and the pieces have been bigger and more uniform. I haven't noticed an increase or decrease in smokiness.

@tksmoke

I love royal oak. Good stuff.