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Royal Oak vs. BGE lump
schafe98
Posts: 46
I've been an Ozark Oak fan since I bought my egg 2 years ago. I was very disappointed when they went away. I've seen a lot of discussion on both RO and BGE lump so I finally got a hold of a bag of both to try out. I don't know that I could tell much of a difference in flavor but the size of the chunks was certainly different. In the little 8.8lb bags of RO that I got there were zero pieces I would characterize as "large". I was wondering if you've all had this issue or if these were just mishandled and thrown around causing breakage, etc.?
Vacaville, CA
LBGE, Weber Summit, UDS, Weber Classic, Weber Smokey Joe, La Caja China
LBGE, Weber Summit, UDS, Weber Classic, Weber Smokey Joe, La Caja China
Comments
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Both are made and manufactured by Royal Oak. You just get charged more for the bag saying Big Green Egg!
"The pig is an amazing animal. You feed a pig an apple and it makes bacon. Let's see Michael Phelps do that" - Jim Gaffigan
Minnesota -
They are both Royal Oak lump. I've heard that re-branded "premium" bags like BGE or Primo get the "pick of the litter"(I don't know if this is true but I guess it may be a reason that justify the pricing beyond the color of the bag).
If it's just one bag, there is a good chance that it's been bounced around. As many will tell you, when picking bags, hold one up and turn it over. If you hear what sounds like a waterfall of clinks, it's mostly small pieces.
I've used both kinds and I've had RO bags with similar sized chunks to BGE. Ultimately, no matter the size, it all burns the same. -
I use to buy the smaller bag of RO, but switched to the 17 pound bag now that it's available at Home Depot. I definitely noticed a difference in the size of the lump that comes from the larger bag. I guess it's true..size matters!
Large BGE, Medium BGE, Kamado Joe Jr, 36" Blackstone Griddle Blackstone Tailgater and Roccbox owner/operator from Los Angeles -
My last two 17 lb. bags at HD of RO were at opposite ends of the spectrum. The first bag had a lot of medium and small. The current bag of RO has lots of large and med. The bags were not purchased at the same time.
Tulare, CA - Large BGE -
Here in Los Angeles, pricing for RO is anywhere from $9.50 to about $14 dollars for a bag of their finest. The BGE brand ... GULP ... $25 dollars!!
Saw a guy walk out of BBQ's Galore with 4 bags of the BGE branded lump, wanted to tell him something but he was all done and paid for. Rookie mistake ...lolI've slow smoked and eaten so much pork, I'm legally recognized as being part swine - Chatsworth Ca. -
You cannot judge lump size by only a few bags - for any brand. Handling in transit and in the store goes a long way for determining if there are any larger pieces in the bag, or not.
Not sure what you would call large, but the pieces in the photo came from my last bag of Royal Oak.
Southeast Florida - LBGE
In cooking, often we implement steps for which we have no explanations other than ‘that’s what everybody else does’ or ‘that’s what I have been told.’ Dare to think for yourself. -
I might be in the minority here but I hate big pieces like that! I sit them aside and when I get enough for the bother I take them out to this hardware cloth beater box and whack them!jtcBoynton said:You cannot judge lump size by only a few bags - for any brand. Handling in transit and in the store goes a long way for determining if there are any larger pieces in the bag, or not.
Not sure what you would call large, but the pieces in the photo came from my last bag of Royal Oak.
Re-gasketing the USA one yard at a time! -
RO vs BGE lump is comparable to watching the Raiders and Jets...Green egg, dead animal and alcohol. The "Boro".. TN
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BGE does get the premium pick of the coal from royal oak, for what that's worth. There will likely be larger and more uniform pieces throughout a large sample size. That being said, the handling of the bags is a Huge factor.
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I believe Gordon Food Service Lump is packaged by RO and is 13.99 a 20 # bag and 11.99 when you buy 5 or more plus because I signed up for there email list I get 10% off e mail coupons which is what I typically do.Charlotte, Michigan XL BGE
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I'm assuming that the Raiders are RO (cheap and bad) and the Jets are BGE (overpriced and equally as bad)?henapple said:RO vs BGE lump is comparable to watching the Raiders and Jets...
Two Large Eggs, 6 gal Cajun Fryer, and a MiniMax in Charlotte, NC - My New Table
Twitter: @ Bags
Blog: TheJetsFan.com -
My two favorite teams are the Rams and whoever is playing the Raiders.HofstraJet said:I'm assuming that the Raiders are RO (cheap and bad) and the Jets are BGE (overpriced and equally as bad)?I've slow smoked and eaten so much pork, I'm legally recognized as being part swine - Chatsworth Ca. -
how exactly is BGE getting the premium stuff out of the R/O production line?
i can't imagine they sort for size. this isn't like bagging potatoes.
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I don't know for sure how they do, but there are many labels bagged under private labels that are RO. There is in fact a pecking order. I assume they have a sorting process. Again, I don't know how, but it does happen. It's not uncommon for purveyors to sort products to maximize their own profit opportunities. Shrimp, crabs, scallops, beef, jewelry, steel, eggs, and yes charcoal.Darby_Crenshaw said:how exactly is BGE getting the premium stuff out of the R/O production line?
i can't imagine they sort for size. this isn't like bagging potatoes. -
Two bags side by side I can't tell the difference....maybe BGE is consistently same size where RO has a bit of dust in the winter months where I amVisalia, Ca @lkapigian
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i would need to see something other than speculation than to believe that RO is giving away their best stuff to BGE and bagging lesser quality chaarcoal under their own name. makes no sense.
as a practical guy, i'm thinking they switch out the bags in the bagger and that's about it.
i have bought enough BGE and R/O that I wouldn't ever be able to tell which was which if you spilled them out on the ground.
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Ok.Darby_Crenshaw said:i would need to see something other than speculation than to believe that RO is giving away their best stuff to BGE and bagging lesser quality chaarcoal under their own name. makes no sense.
as a practical guy, i'm thinking they switch out the bags in the bagger and that's about it.
i have bought enough BGE and R/O that I wouldn't ever be able to tell which was which if you spilled them out on the ground. -
Lots of size variability in the big bags of RO and more size consistency in the bags of BGE brand, but you pay for that. I found a desicated bird in a bag of RO one time. I wasn't sure about the species. It could have been threatened or endangered, I guess.Dave - Austin, TX
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My thoughts exactlyDarby_Crenshaw said
as a practical guy, i'm thinking they switch out the bags in the bagger and that's about it.Lake Keowee, SC
XLarge, MiniMax, 36" Blackstone
Custom Table, KAB, Woo2, Guru DigiQ DX2,
Family of 5 Meat Eaters -
LOL, I don't know why I never thought of this before. The street I live on is Royal Oak Drive. Hah, my address and my lump.
XXL #82 out of the first 100, XLGE X 2, LBGE (gave this one to daughter 1.0) , MBGE (now in the hands of iloveagoodyoke daughter 2.0) and lots of toys -
I'm no hater...been very very good to me.
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There is nothing wrong with whatever lump you choose to use. If I had my choice I'd use Rockwood all the time, but what I have easily available to me is Royal Oak. I let it burn a lot more then Rockwood before I put the food on but for the cost it still works for me.I raise my kids, cook and golf. When work gets in the way I'm pissed, I'm pissed off 48 weeks a year.Inbetween Iowa and Colorado, not close to anything remotely entertaining outside of football season.
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agreed, @Scottborasjr i have only encountered one charcoal that was unworkable, and it was the South-American Royal Oak which sparked throughout the cook. All the other stuff (Cowboy, R/O, BGE, etc.) is workable. different in some cases, but all workable,
for a while there was a big deal being made about huge pieces, and how that was obviously superior. i couldn't wrap my head around how that was supposed to work, with giant chunks of tree in your cooker.
one of the lightbulb moments early on in my BGE learning curve was when i used all the bigger chunk at the bottom, but didn't think i had enough fuel for an overnight. it was 11pm or so (stores closed). i filled the BGE the rest of the way with a couple bag-ends of chips and smaller bits, spread out on top. that fire seemed to be one of the most stable ever. plenty of airflow below and plenty of contact points for the fire to move and spread. shrug.
most times to me, charcoal is just charcoal. ford to chevy, with minor differences and maybe some different 'flavor' (literally and figuratively). i buy what's nearby and cheap
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Even if charcoal is "sparky" you can usually narrow it down to a single piece of charcoal.
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I absolutely agree...I never understood the distain for ROclifkincaid said:I'm no hater...been very very good to me.
Visalia, Ca @lkapigian -
Tried to look up the number of facilities that Royal Oak Enterprises owns and operates. Couldn't do it, but did find out that there are 12 facilities in Missouri alone that make lump coal. Doubt that they all have the same type of kilns ... nor, are their "pit" masters trained to the same level ... nor, nor, nor ... well, you get the idea. Making lump coal is most likely not an ISO 9000 operation ... every batch is most likely a little different. And every facility most likely produces lump differently.
So, it might be that everyone is right 'cuz you're all getting DIFFERENT lump from Royal Oak. And, although BGE lump and Nature Glo are both made in a Royal Oak facility, they have a high probability of being different once again.
Try BGE, Royal Oak, and Nature Glo in your area. They are most likely made in different facilities by different people in different kilns with different base woods. Nature Glo in our area was better than Royal Oak ... but alas, Nature Glo is no longer available, so I'm stuck with Rockwood.
Washington, IL > Queen Creek, AZ ... Two large eggs and an adopted Mini Max
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I have used RO, RW, BGE, Cowboy, and Carbon Del Sur lump. My preference is RW and CDS. BGE and RO, in my experience, leave too many fines that clog air holes in the grate and side holes in the fire box. Are they usable? Certainly. I usually end up tossing about 20% out due to smalls and dust. It seems I have better luck with RW and CDS, in temp control and useable lump.
Cowboy sucks."Knowledge is Good" - Emil Faber
XL and MM
Louisville, Kentucky -
Thx--very helpful. Having to clean out more than expected. more little unusable that what I expected. Part of learning curve. Using Ashkicker--love it.BGE Large and MiniMax, Napolean 500. Obsessed with rotisserie.
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It works.
Aledo, Texas
Large BGE
KJ Jr.
Exodus 12:9 KJV
Eat not of it raw, nor sodden at all with water, but roast with fire; his head with his legs, and with the purtenance thereof. -
I'm having troubles with Royal Oak lately. From Home Depot, the last two bags consisted of more than 50% pebble size. I tried to use it, but my fire didn't burn normally - seemed to be starved for air.
Some dust and small pieces is fine, but when more than half the bag is unusable, I'm feeling kinda cheated.
Until they get it fixed, I'll be buying two bags at a time and making one decent bag out of it - then return the dust and pebble size pieces to them in the other bag.
Phoenix
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