Newbie to smoking

I've always loved the taste of smoked meats and talked to several people who have smokers, and finally decided to take the plunge. I figured after all, I brew my own beer so this would be the perfect compliment. I received my smoker for Father's Day. It's a Master Forge vertical smoker from Lowes. After reading several reviews on it, and the price being in our budget, I told my wife and kids that this was the smoker I wanted. The first thing (and only thing so far) that I tried was some chicken. And I have to tell you, I never expected it to be so moist. Unfortunately I used a rub recipe that I found on the web that was overpowering. So tomorrow I'm going to tackle a rack of spare ribs. I'm thinking, put a bottle of my home brew beer in the water pan and use a little barbecue sauce near the end. I'm a little hesitant to try another rub recipe. Most of them call for alot of black pepper and cayenne pepper, and I'm afraid of repeating the same mistake I made last time. I would appreciate any tips or comments anyone may have,