First Official CenTex Que & Brew August 9th-11th

[Misplaced Nebraskan]

​

What is it?

Alright Y'all! It's time for Texas to get on the map and join in on the many successful gatherings this site has started. With a shared passion for outdoor (and even indoor) cooking, we want to bring together as many friends and families that we can. There will be opportunities to learn, share knowledge, tips, tricks, and skills. And plenty to eat.

Also, Robert has offered to add some more brew to the que in that he is willing to share some of his skills and knowledge with his brewing equipment. Hopefully with some Irish Red For those interested in learning about home brew, this is a great opportunity and provides more discussion fodder for the gathering.

Who is invited?

Anyone that is willing to travel. No Texas affiliation required. Everyone is family around the pit and welcome to join in. The goal is to make this a reoccurring event and make new friendships and put faces to names.

When is it?

August 9th-11th, 2019. The plan is to make a weekend of it if possible. Those that can, could show up on Friday to start longer cooks that night to be prepared for Saturday. And also a chance for more of the aforementioned camaraderie... Saturday would be the main event of cooking and eating and hanging out all day. The goal would be to have a wide variety of foods to taste and sample for all. From Beef, Chicken, and Pork, to Poppers, Sides and more. You are more than welcome to just come by on Saturday for the feast as well.

How will we cook?

If you have a portable pit to bring, there is a lot of room that Robert ( tx smoker ) has generously donated to this event. Between him and I we will have a lot of sq. inches of cook space available. Or, you can cook in advance and bring a dish with you.

Where is it?

Again, Robert and his wife are kindly opening up their home and space for us to assemble. It will be in Lago Vista, TX, North-West of Austin North of the lake. Address will be made available by PM to those attending so as not to put his personal information online. There will be areas to set up camp on Robert's property and some Hotels just down the road, linked here.

Why do this?

I mean... c'mon. Do we really need an excuse to gather a bunch of BBQ addicts and have a big shindig?!

What say y'all?​

 

[Misplaced Nebraskan]

Attending & items:

tx smoker +1
Misplaced Nebraskan +1
woodwindricky +1
@bigdaddy4760 +3 and Buzz
@bvbull200 (tentative)
@snakehead
@Matt_Tex +3
@tareed94 +1 +2 pups
@TXRick +1
@Thorpd01 +1
@hoity toit +1 (Tentative Saturday)
@GreytQ +1 (Saturday am)




Cookers:
Robert - Santa Maria, XL BGE, T-Pit Smoker, Propane Grill, digital electric stainless steel smoker
Zach - Weber Ranch and 26" kettle
Ricky - 4 Burner Cooktop Griddle
Maner - Reverse Flow Trailer pit and charcoal Grill

Beef:
reverse seared Piedmontese sirloin roast (Robert)
Shoulder Clod (Zach)
Fajits (Maner)
Dino Ribs (Maner)
Two Wagyu Briskets (Maner)
Ground Chuck (Robert)



Pork:
Pork Belly Burnt Ends (Zach)
Pork Butt (Maner x 2)


Poultry:
Smoked Turkey (Ricky)


Seafood:
Swai (Gerald)

Other:
Sausages (Maner)
Breakfast Fatties (Zach)
Biscuits And Gravy (Maner & Gerald)
Breakfast Sausage (Robert)
Bacon (Robert and Maner)
Pickles (Robert & Zach)
Smoked Cheddar Cheese (Robert)

Sides:
Deviled Eggs (Zach... well, the wife...)
Poppers (Maner)
Anasazi Beans (Maner)
BBQ Shrimp (Robert)
World Famous Salsa! (Gerald)
Tater Salad (Robert)
Mac & Cheese (tareed94)

Dessert:
Cheesecake Squares (Connie)
Cupcakes (Maner via Christa x36!!!)


Drinks:
Robert: Margs, 2 kegs of beer, water
Zach: Water and some whiskies
Maner: Beer and water


Misc:
Trash Cans - Robert
Trash Bags - Robert
Napkins - Robert
Paper Plates - Robert
Plastic Ware - Robert
Foil Pans (Maner)
Saran Wrap/Foil (Maner)
Charcoal
Wood Splits (Maner - Oak, Mesquite, Pecan)
Bluetooth speakers? (tareed94)
Tents
air beds
sleeping bags
Coolers
Canopy (Maner and Zach)
Tables (Maner x2)
Chairs (Maner, Zach x4)
To go boxes (Zach)
Games (tareed94 jenga or cornhole)


Ice:
Robert has a big commercial ice maker and should have us covered!

What else?

 

[Misplaced Nebraskan]

Tentative Menu / Schedule
Aim for 15:00 Saturday to have the big items done?

Friday August 9th:

16:00 - Arrival time (open for discussion with Robert)
Feel free to come sooner, just let tx smoker (Robert) know.

Dinner - Burgers, Wings, Quick Snacks and eats (or Piedmontese Roast?)
Plenty-o-libations possibly Meatloaf

Start up Maner's trailer for the overnight cooks

• Clod
• Briskets
• Pork Butts
• anything else that needs time

Saturday August 10th:

Breakfast - Fatties, Biscuits and Gravy, Eggs, Bacon, yada yada...

Around 15:00? Aim for the main event? That way those that are just swinging through have time to eat, relax and enjoy the day?

Veritable smorgasbord of food eating pleasures!

Snack the rest of the day away on everything. Unless we want to try and do a lunch and then a BBQ Dinner? Thoughts?

Sunday August 11th:

Breakfast tacos with leftover Q.

Pick Up. Pack Out. Nap the rest of the day and recover before Monday.

 

[Misplaced Nebraskan]

@rabbithutch
@Thesmokerapprentice
@bigdaddy4760
@bvbull200
texomakid

 

[tx smoker]

Great start Zach!! I have a LOT of info to share and will jump in the fracas real soon but can't right now. I have an appointment with a couple of friends at my little pub for some cold adult libations. I'll do my best to get on board with all the amenities, equipment, and opportunities either later today or tomorrow.

In a nut shell, this is gonna be a Texas sized kick in the a$$!!

Can't wait!!
Robert

 

[tx smoker]

Alrighty then...it's time to expand on what Zach has said. This may get a bit lengthy but it's well worth the read....I promise

ACCOMMODATIONS​

We have a sizable chunk of land and have spent many hours cleaning it up. The area to the left of the house looks like national park land. There is ample space to set up tents if you're into camping. It would be primitive camping but we do have bathroom and bathing facilities available in the house. If you wanna come with a small camper or RV, I could possibly get you water but electricity would be a virtual impossibility. The area has lots of trees to provide shade from the Texas sun. Ricky and Connie always get the guest bedroom when they come but we do have a trundle bed in the office that can sleep two people. If you'd like to come for the overnight haul, first person to "reserve" the trundle bed gets it. We also have a really nice queen sized air mattress that we can set up in the game room which is VERY comfortable to sleep on. I believe Zach is planning to do the overnight gig and starting Friday and I'm pretty sure Ricky and Connie will be coming in Friday. I have scheduled to take Friday off so will be here all day to welcome our guests.

COOKING ARSENAL
I have 5 cookers set up on the patio, all of which are available for you to use. First is the 42" Lynx Professional propane grill. It is a 4-burner unit with one of the burners being an infrared rotisserie burner in the rear and a second one being the infrared sear burner on the right side. That burner can be used on lower heat just for grilling or will go to 1100* for a flash sear or Cajun Blackened. I do have a rotisserie for this if you wanna do something a bit different

Next is the custom built 54" T-Pit. It is propane fired and probably one if the easiest smokers you'll ever use to maintain temps. The propane is regulated with a micro adjustable needle valve so you can literally dial it in to within a degree or two of where you want it and it'll pretty much stay there. Smoke is generated by chunks of wood in a stainless steel pan set on a grate above the two 6" low pressure burners. It is reverse flow from both ends so will maintain perfectly balanced temps throughout the cooking chamber. I have hickory, pecan, apple, and mesquite available.

Third is a commercial grade stainless steel digital electric smoker. Smoke is generated with one of the two A-Maze-N products. I have a myriad of pellets available so take your pick :-)

Next in line is the Sunterra Santa Maria grill that has been highlighted several times recently, including a pic that Zach included in his original post to this thread. I only have mesquite for this but can get something different if needed. It is a 36" grill and as seen in the pic Zach posted, it has the rotisserie if you'd like to go that route. I built and installed a configuration of 4 log lighters in the grill which are connected to a propane supply. With this, you can have your wood lit up and be cooking in a hurry. Once you have the wood burning, just turn the gas off.

Last but certainly not least is the XL Big Green Egg. This is undeniably the best engineered, best built, most versatile and reliable piece of cooking equipment on the planet. If I could only have one cooker, this would be it. I have oak lump charcoal for this but you can easily add whatever wood you'd like to add. There are not a ton of accessories available but I have the most important one: the plate setter. This is an absolute necessity to do low and slow cooking.

If need be, I also have a 30" Dynasty grill in the garage that I can bring out and set up. This also is an ultra high quality grill and has been a work horse for me for a LONG time. Zach will be bringing his 37" Weber Ranch. We will have a total of 7 cookers available if necessary. As Zach said, that'll give us a lot of square inches of cooking space


BREW ETC
I've been making my own beer for over 20 years and have the processes pretty well dialed in. I am willing to do an exhibition early Saturday morning making beer for anybody who would like to see how brainlessly easy it is and how little equipment is required. I put off starting to brew my own thinking it was extremely involved and took a bunch of expensive equipment. I was wrong on all counts. Certainly you can make it more difficult than it needs to be and you can spend a fortune on equipment but you don't need to and still turn out world class beer. The entire process takes 3 hours start to finish so we'd need to get started early. The majority of the time is spent standing around waiting so there is time during the process to work on other stuff for food. Just let me know if anybody is interested and I'll make sure to have everything we need.

I'll be setting up a margarita table on the patio complete with tons of ice (I just bought a commercial ice maker) and there'll be a keg of home brew iced down and the party tap running. Prudence tells me that I'd better have a second keg cold and make sure at least one of them is Irish Red Ale

AMENITIES
For your pleasure we have the swimming pool that will be dialed in perfectly for relaxation and to cool off. It's likely to be quite warm. We also have a huge game room in the house equipped with a pool table and poker table. I doubt many people will want to be inside but it's an option if you choose to exercise it. Please bring swim suits and towels. Every time we provide towels, we seem to lose a bunch of them

SEATING
The patio is almost 1000 square feet and completely covered. We have tables and seating for 14 on the patio. The pool deck is equipped with 6 nice chairs, all with ottomans, and there are 3 side tables. If you don't mind sitting on a stool, we can seat 12 more on the pool deck. There is also space to eat inside if you just need a break from the heat.

MORE BBQ FODDER
Zach posted a pic of his amazing looking brisket. Thought I'd toss on up covering a different angle of the BBQ spectrum. I'd always wrapped my ribs until I saw a post here from a guy that does his on a higher temp, does not wrap, and glazes them. This is my first run with unwrapped ribs and my first time using a glaze. These were done on the BGE and came out fantastic!! This is now my go-to method of smoking ribs.

One thing I should mention is that I only have 2 Maverick 732 thermometers and 1 instant read thermometer. Those are certainly available for use but you may want to consider bringing your own if you think you may need it.

Please feel free to respond to this post or shoot either one of us (Zach or myself) a PM if you have questions, need clarification, need directions / address, or anything else. We really want to pull out all the stops and make this one for the record books.....but we need your help to do it I promise, you won't be disappointed!!

Signing off for now,
Robert

 

[Misplaced Nebraskan]

Excellent info and stockpile of cookers! Thanks Robert.

As Robert eluded, I will have two kettles available, a 26" and the Weber Ranch 37". Possibly the 22" as well if needed...

I think between the two of us, we may just need fuel and wood! Hopefully that makes it easier for people to come on in and have fun without worrying about bringing a rig.

Lastly, if there is enough interest but the dates need adjusting, I think we can discuss changing it up to accommodate (hopefully) if possible. I know this is shorter notice than most events I've seen, but I'm hoping we can get a good turnout!

 

[texomakid]

I see I was called out! Now getting called out for a Texas BBQ invite ain't a bad thing but my lovely wife and myself will be heading to Colorado to celebrate our 20th Wedding anniversary to so some "Wheelin" in our jeep on the Alpine loop & Joe Bonamassa at Red Rock (bucket list item.) I'll have to read about it here on the forum but if this becomes a yearly event we WILL be at a future event. We love the Hill Country. Sounds like fun.

 

[Misplaced Nebraskan]

I see I was called out! Now getting called out for a Texas BBQ invite ain't a bad thing but my lovely wife and myself will be heading to Colorado to celebrate our 20th Wedding anniversary to so some "Wheelin" in our jeep on the Alpine loop & Joe Bonamassa at Red Rock (bucket list item.) I'll have to read about it here on the forum but if this becomes a yearly event we WILL be at a future event. We love the Hill Country. Sounds like fun.

well that sounds like a valid excuse and pretty OK time right there... That trip is on our list as well. We rock the Taco though, so I guess there is supposed to be bad blood between us. Jeepers vs Tacos and all ya know But I will be interested in pics from the wheeling for sure! enjoy it!

Congrats in advance on the 20 years too!

And yes this will be a yearly thing. Gotta get our feet wet first though with this one then we can do it bigger next year!

 

[tx smoker]

"I think between the two of us, we may just need fuel and wood! Hopefully that makes it easier for people to come on in and have fun without worrying about bringing a rig."

I know how cumbersome it can loading up a bunch of stuff for a road trip so I'll toss out a couple offers:

The smoker woods and pellets I currently have available are already noted but if somebody wants to use something different, just let me know. I'll pick it up so you won't need to worry about packing and transporting it.

I'll also offer to buy some meat if there is a cost or transportation issue involved with you bringing it. I'll happily pick up brisket, ribs (beef or pork), pork butts, or whatever else you may want to cook. Just let me know and I'll make a stop on Thursday and grab it.

It was not planned this way, just strictly coincidence. I placed a sizable order of Piedmontese beef two days ago that is being delivered on Wednesday the 7th, two days before our event. This order along with what will still be in the freezer from my three previous orders will give a bunch of different steaks and several different roasts to sample if there is interest in giving it a try. Just say so and we can figure out what you want to cook and I'll get it out to defrost.

Sweetening the pot a bit,
Robert

 

[tx smoker]

I had another thought (brain fart??) this morning for a possible second option of activities / exhibitions: sausage making. If anybody has dabbled with the idea of making sausage but has not pulled the trigger, we can do a run with it. You make it, I'll walk you through the process. I have a ton of great recipes, all the equipment, and virtually every spice known to man....as well as plenty of meat in the freezer. Here is the only caveat. To do both beer and sausage, somebody would need to be here early on Friday for one or the other. There won't be time to do both on Saturday morning. Truth be told, if the decision is made to do both, I'd prefer to do the sausage on Friday and beer on Saturday. Regardless of which day we do the sausage, it can be smoked on Saturday, added to the coffers for dinner, and you take what's left home with you. The sausage would definitely benefit from being done Friday so it can hang in the fridge overnight to bloom and get happy though.

Adding options,
Robert

 

[woodwindricky]

 

[woodwindricky]

Thought I'd add this to the mix. We'll bring our 4 burner 604sq" Camp Chef flattop to the party. help with cooking side dishes and will be great for making breakfast in the morning.

To those of you considering taking Robert up on his beer and sausage making class. Robert is the MAN! He has taught me everything I know about both! And yes, it is a simple process. If you can boil water and follow a receipe, then you too will be able to make great craft beer. I've been doing it for 3yrs now.

Robert also started me on my curing meats and makeing sausage journey. I now make my own bacon, pastrami, roast beef, and am into dried artisan sausages big time. Bottom line is if you really want to learn how to brew beer and/or make sausage, Robert is a wealth of great info!!

 

[tx smoker]

Damn Ricky....you're making me blush, now stop that

Seriously my friend, I am humbled by your accolades but the reality is that all I've done is pass along information as it was passed to me by some of the great people in this forum. It's the legacy of SMF. You have certainly embraced the lifestyle with gusto and enthusiasm!!

There is no question that doing so much stuff yourself can be a life changer. Heck, look what it's done for Connie. She can actually eat real food now without fear of getting sick. You just can't get food or beer of the same quality and flavor buying it commercially. Yes, it takes time and commitment but it's well worth the effort.

Very much appreciate the offer to bring the griddle. I can see a huge benefit having that on hand. I can also see about 10 pounds of homemade bacon on that thing one morning for breakfast. We'd drive the neighbors nuts!! Oh well...all they need to do is join SMF and they can attend.

See everybody in a month or so,
Robert

 

[tx smoker]

Hey y'all! A couple weeks ago Tracy found this really good pre-made margarita mix. We have been enjoying it quite a lot hanging out in the pool so thought I'd pick up a bottle or two for our Cen Tex Que & Brew event

Here ya go. This is 24) 2 liter bottles. At worst, this will hopefully get us through Friday evening and Tracy can run into town Saturday morning to get some more

Hee hee hee,
Robert

 

[Misplaced Nebraskan]

Thought I'd add this to the mix. We'll bring our 4 burner Camp Chef flattop to the party. help with cooking side dishes and will be great for making breakfast in the morning.

To those of you considering taking Robert up on his beer and sausage making class. Robert is the MAN! He has taught me everything I know about both! And yes, it is a simple process. If you can boil water and follow a receipe, then you too will be able to make great craft beer. I've been doing it for 3yrs now.

Robert also started me on my curing meats and makeing sausage journey. I now make my own bacon, pastrami, roast beef, and am into dried artisan sausages big time. Bottom line is if you really want to learn how to brew beer and/or make sausage, Robert is a wealth of great info!!

Thanks Ricky! that will come in handy! and I second all the accolades. Glad y'all can make it up. I know it'll be a blast.

Hey y'all! A couple weeks ago Tracy found this really good pre-made margarita mix. We have been enjoying it quite a lot hanging out in the pool so thought I'd pick up a bottle or two for our Cen Tex Que & Brew event

View attachment 400024

Here ya go. This is 24) 2 liter bottles. At worst, this will hopefully get us through Friday evening and Tracy can run into town Saturday morning to get some more

Hee hee hee,
Robert

Welp... That should help get the conversations flowing!

 

[tx smoker]

"Welp... That should help get the conversations flowing! "

It's gonna get something flowing....I'm just not sure what it'll be. Conversation is always a good start though

Ice maker working over-time,
Robert

 

[Misplaced Nebraskan]

Bumping this again for visibility. Gonna have to go out and start finding TX members so I can tag them in here. I know there has to be more on here that would be interested in this.

I'll do some tagging in a bit

 

[Misplaced Nebraskan]

Tagging y'all based on location for potential interest to join or to help tag other people that may be interested as a heads up! The more we can get together, the merrier!

@gary s
@sammartin
@tallbm
@bvbull200
@bigdaddy4760
@bdskelly

Or feel free to swing in here and BS a little.

 

[tx smoker]

Zach....thanks for letting these folks know what's going on with our little shindig. I see some names here of folks I'd love to meet. Let's hope at least a couple of them are willing to take a ride to the Hill Country.

Fingers X'ed,
Robert