Real wood chunks and splits at Pinecraft Barbecue.

Wood chunks and splits in the catalog

Why keep two different wood lines in our catalog instead of one? Big Green Egg sells its wood in kiln-dried chips and chunks, in species that include hickory, mesquite, oak, apple, pecan, cherry, and whiskey barrel, which covers the range from a fast chip toss on a hot fire to a slow chunk buried in lump charcoal for an all-day cook. Big Green Egg's kiln-dried wood chunks come packaged in a 9-liter bag and the chips in a smaller 2.9-liter bag, so a cook can grab the size that matches whether they are running a quick weeknight chicken or a full brisket on a lanai kamado.

Barrel Proof takes a different route to the same fire. Barrel Proof wood blocks are sourced directly from Kentucky white oak bourbon barrels for authentic flavor, meaning the wood already carries years of bourbon soaked into its grain before it ever hits a grill grate. Barrel Proof reuses excess barrels that would otherwise go to waste and packages the chunks in a resealable, lined 2-pound bag, which is a practical detail for anyone storing wood in a humid Sarasota garage. Dropped alongside charcoal or on top of gas grill lava rock, the blocks give pork and poultry a sweeter, whiskey-toned smoke than a standard hardwood chunk.

Between the two lines, most home cooks and small caterers can match wood to whatever they are working, whether that is a kamado session that calls for a straightforward fruitwood chunk or a pork shoulder that benefits from the barrel-aged sweetness. Pinecraft Barbecue carries both the Big Green Egg chip and chunk sizes and the Barrel Proof blocks; ask us what you can come try in the Sarasota showroom, and anything not in the catalog is available to order in the same bag size and species listed here.