Walmart Hickory

[oregonbbqtime]

So we've been at this for a few months now with success everything has been quite good. Until this big bag of Hickory from Walmart. We had been buying the Weber brand wood and the food has been phenomenal.

Everything lately, since the new bag of Hickory from Walmart, we've smoked has had a bitter grainy sawdust taste. And not just taste but like physically chew on the grainy bits. At first I thought it was psycho sematic. But We tried going back to the Weber pecan and some Cherry wood that fell down at my family ranch and the flavor climbs back up to quality taste. Any thoughts?

 

[SmokinAl]

I have been using the hickory splits from Walmart & really like them.

Lately, it's all I burn in my Lang.

Al

 

[lancep]

That's good to hear Al, I've been thinking about giving those a whirl. I still have a year till my wood is ready so I'm stuck on store bought until then.

 

[lancep]

So we've been at this for a few months now with success everything has been quite good. Until this big bag of Hickory from Walmart. We had been buying the Weber brand wood and the food has been phenomenal.

Everything lately, since the new bag of Hickory from Walmart, we've smoked has had a bitter grainy sawdust taste. And not just taste but like physically chew on the grainy bits. At first I thought it was psycho sematic. But We tried going back to the Weber pecan and some Cherry wood that fell down at my family ranch and the flavor climbs back up to quality taste. Any thoughts?

Are burning these logs for fuel or just adding one to charcoal for smoke?

 

[cksteele]

well there is always a possibility that its not hickory. the supplier from walmart might have thrown "wood" in the order to walmart to fill the quota unless you buy the wood directly from a good wood guy who cut the stuff down himself  you really dont know.  

also hickory is  not the same everywhere there are a number of hickory species  and regional subspecies.  so  for instance  hickory in Louisiana  is gonna taste  different then hickory from Michigan.  depending on where  they got the wood it might be hickory but a species with poor flavour for smoking bbq