First Brisket Success!

[Soopagloo]

This is my first smoked brisket ever. 13.5# before trimming, 11.4# after. Rubbed with 50/50 salt and pepper. Started around 8PM and pulled at 1PM the next day. 8 oz of hickory at 225 degrees with internal to 195. Wrapped in foil and towel and rested in oven for 2 hours. I felt it was a tad salty, but apparently I was the only one. Even my 3 yr old loved the leaner flat slices. My next one I'm going 75/25 pepper salt and internal 190. The outer flat was just a little dry for my tastes, although it was plenty tender and passes the pull test.
*edit* Smoked in a 3d model.

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[SuperDave]

Congrats on your first brisket.  Unless you also want your next brisket to be hotter, consider using some garlic and onion powder to replace some of your salt ratio.  I usually use equal parts of those 4 to make my brisket rub.

[volscrazy65]

I haven't done a brisket yet.  You have to trim that much, 2 lbs?  Did you trim the fat cap down thinner?  I had no idea.

[SuperDave]

I haven't done a brisket yet.  You have to trim that much, 2 lbs?  Did you trim the fat cap down thinner?  I had no idea.

You pay for some weight in fat when you buy a packer brisket.  And depending on the grade, it can be quite substantial.  Not uncommon to have fat cap sections 1 1/2" to 2" thick on a packer brisket.  If you buy a trimmed brisket flat, none of this will apply.  But packers are the best for taste and results. 

[ibbones]

Great first post.  Welcome and yippee on the brisket.

[drains]

Good job! The bark looks really good.

[Soopagloo]

Out of curiosity, I checked out the trimmed briskets while grocery shopping yesterday. They all seemed to have too much of the cap trimmed off and most had a bald spot here and there. The Franklin BBQ videos of him trimming a brisket were good enough to teach this noob how to do it, so I'd gladly pay the extra weight to have it done right. It sure helped having so much info in these forums.

[Kennr]

Congrats! Looks great. Using 8oz of wood, was the smoke taste not bitter? I cut down to 3 oz of oak on my last one and the smoke is still a little bitter and overpowering. I think maybe I need to give the inside of my 3D a good cleaning just in case it got over-smoked on a previous cook.

[Soopagloo]

Congrats! Looks great. Using 8oz of wood, was the smoke taste not bitter? I cut down to 3 oz of oak on my last one and the smoke is still a little bitter and overpowering. I think maybe I need to give the inside of my 3D a good cleaning just in case it got over-smoked on a previous cook.

Not bitter at all. The wood burned out sometime between 3AM and 9AM. I had just enough of the included hickory left over after the seasoning for the brisket. I saw your earlier threads and was wondering if holding those lower temps are allowing the meat to take on more smoke than desired. Looking at the times, I pulled mine out of the smoker 1 hour after yours had just hit 150 degrees. How did the total times compare between the first two cooks? I'll add, take what I say with a grain of salt, as my experience with brisket is a grand total of one.

[SuperDave]

Ken, your bitter taste is due to combustion, not the amount of smoke.

[Kennr]

Ryan, my first one I cooked at straight 225 and pulled it after around 14 hrs if I remember right. It was also a 12 pounder.
Dave, that's why I started this one at 185, trying to avoid combustion. Here is a pic of my box after the cook. It doesn't look like combustion was the problem. The only thing left I can think of is excess smoke buildup inside the cabinet.

[old sarge]

Oak has a lot of tannin in it and that could account for bitterness.