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In My Area I have 2 choices in Lump Charcoal Big Green Egg at $18 for 20lbs or Cowboy lump for $11 / lbs, I read the reviews on the 2 Charcoals and Big Green Egg says it burns longer is it worth the extra money for the Big Green Egg
That BGE variety sounds pretty expensive... I have never used it, but I have used the Cowboy brand. The Cowboy brand burns quicker than some of them out there, but produces little ash.
I have found the BGE charcoal to be worth every penny. It will most likely take only half as much to get the same burn time vs. Cowboy if that much. You get what you pay for, no floor scraps or trim pieces in the BGE just nice big generous sized pieces of tree.
Going from memory I think the BGE lump is Royal Oak.
I have to agree that it is worth teh money, little ash, long smoke.
Now i will be testing this theory this weekend as my local dealer was out. I ended up with a no name brand that another smoking buddy recommended, well see ;).
Here's a great site. This dude is a BGE phreak, but it's still great. The link is for ratings on a lot of different types of lump. The recipies page -- not part of this page -- is pretty interesting too. http://www.nakedwhiz.com/lump.htm
At the cost of a BGE, you've got to expect their charcoal to be expensive also. Since they are so well insulated, it seems you should be able to use about any charcoal out there and get your moneys worth.
This is correct. BGE lump is the prime pieces of RO lump without all the little pieces and dust in the bag. RO is good stuff too, I use it some for shorter cooks where a longer burn time doesn't matter and for hotter cooks like chicken or in the grill. RO is a little cheaper, but you will use more.
It is carried at a local lawn and garden store as well as another one on my way home from work. I feel the good lump is worth paying for, but not shipping. I checked online for WGC once and it almost doubled the price to ship it. I suppose it would depend where you are located maybe.
The BGE charcoal is the pretty much the same price as comparable lumps. You just can't compare Cowboy and BGE straight across no matter what the cooker IMO.