First brisket on my Brazos offset was not a success.

[Hlzr]

One thing I should have mentioned is that it was under 40° for the entire cook. On my Green Egg, outdoor temp. has very little effect on cooking. With my new offset, I'm sure I burnt a lot more logs than I would in the summer.

This would decrease your efficiency even further and facilitate more fire/air moving through your smoker. Compare the fuel you used on this oct recent cook with doing a brisket on your Egg.

I'm not familiar with the tuning plate but what I have tried to remember is a traditional offset cooks from the top down, rendering the fat, why the top rack doesn't give the best results. I personally wouldn't be making any modifications to my smoker after just one cook with so many variables. Hope this helps

 

[Bald-Headed John]

Yes, an offset cooks from the top down. The tuning plate deflects the heat down to cook from the bottom up which is where I believe the burning came from. In forums I see with a Brazos, a lot of people are removing the tuning plate and even the baffle which you need an angle grinder to remove. The tuning plate just drops in place. I have been smoking for about 30 years and have done a number of briskets. All ranging from good to excellent. I'm confident I have my basics down. After seeing blackdogbbq21's post having the same experience, I'm going to bet removing or not cooking over the plate will make a big difference. On a side note to anyone who thinks briskets are difficult, except for this brisket, the Aaron Franklin method has never failed me.

 

[ModelMaker]

"the Aaron Franklin method has never failed me equals, going to his pit for dinner!
Ed

 

[Bald-Headed John]

Soooo... is that a good thing or a bad thing?