What’s the deal with charcoal in 2023??


 
I'm still burning off this stash from back in the day when twin packs would go on sale for $9.99. For probably one year, if they went on sale, I bought. These days, given my use of pellets, splits of wood, LP, and just the two of us now, I'm probably set for many more years :(

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Cowboy Natural 2x20 is $17.92 now at my local Walmart. I still have a stash of KBB 2x20s from the good old days of $9.99.
Buy on sale and buy in volume. Re-use all used charcoal from the WSM in your kettle. Watch for sales all the time.
I’ve heard that cowboy is bad. Is this not true
 
I’ve heard that cowboy is bad. Is this not true
Very rare for a charcoal to be so bad as to be unusable. If it’s a good price, that’s the time to try it. Opinions will vary, but yours is the one that matters for you.

As to the original question, I don’t bbq enough anymore to worry about price but I always try to grab something I like on sale. If you’re going to grill and bbq a lot, you have to watch for sales and then stock up. If it’s a great sale, you need to back up the truck and load up.
 
What we now pay for a a 8lb bag of “Kingsford Regular “which is $30 here in Costa Rica. That’s why I buy the “Kingsford Matchlight” or the pictured Costa Rican/Parguay charcoal which is much cheaper and turns-out good results. I am about the same boat as Jerry M as I only do the BBQ Around four times a month.
 

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I’ve heard that cowboy is bad. Is this not true
At one time, Cowboy Lump had a reputation of poor quality. The natural Cowboy briquet has performed well without rocks, plastic film or scrap flooring. No bad smells or odors on start-up. It burns well under controlled low oxygen smoking. No sparking or popping during light up. Ash is not excess. Every other week I buy a twin pack. I have no complaints.
 
JD Chunxx lump coal in 35# bags. Burns hotter, cleaner and with less ash meaning more heat per ounce. It lasts much linker than any briq and the flavor is excellent. You’re paying for around 30% ash with Kxx briqs. That’s a lot of wasted money.
 
This year I stocked up on B&B orange bag briquettes for $10 each at Walmart and some Cowboy briquettes as well.
I recently picked up a few bags of mesquite lump from a local Mexican market, they had 15lb bags for $5.99.
 
I just got finished using it. It’s not bad but not amazing. The temps were lower than kingsford and they burned up a bit quicker but they smell much better and make the food taste better.
The end product s what it's all about. Flavor is always my top concern. As for burning cooler and faster, the price should more than make up for that. Just use a bit more.
 
I ain't playing Kingsford's game.

I've been picking up mesquite lump a the local Mexican supermarket chain for a while now. 15lb bag for $6-8. Yea, there's slag to deal with but, it smells WAY better than Kingsford.
 
I'm still burning off this stash from back in the day when twin packs would go on sale for $9.99. For probably one year, if they went on sale, I bought. These days, given my use of pellets, splits of wood, LP, and just the two of us now, I'm probably set for many more years :(
Dang! That's awesome
 
In my younger days I would go through about 30-35 bags of KBB or whatever was on sale during the spring/ summer/fall grilling season.
Now that I'm an old fart and with the charcoal restrictions in the summer I might go through 6-8 bags a season. The performer is mostly a lawn ornament now and The Jumbo Joe gets most of the calls as it's more fuel efficient and easier to clean and perfect for two people.
With the addition of the Camp Chef pellet grill, I use more bags of pellets than charcoal now.
 

 

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