I started with KBB and a Kettle and wsm, then PBC and now stick burner. As my tastes have evolved and changed I am bothered by the KBB flavor in particular but pretty much all briquettes, and prefer to use all wood. I do use wood chunks with the charcoal and I have tried different brands Trader Joes, Stubbs, and many lumps. That being said charcoal is sooo much easier for me when time is a factor and I dont mind it as much on Pork Butts or Chicken but for some reason on ribs I am bothered enough by the flavor Id rather not use charcoal at all on them. It comes down to individual taste, which can evolve over time. Some people are more sensitive to certain flavors. I work in the beer industry and a big part of our QC is sensory analysis. There is plenty of research that shows the huge variance in how individuals perceive flavors and aromas as well as the fact that a person can be blind to certain compounds due to genetics. Interestingly women have been shown to have more sensitive tastebuds. Its also well documented that with training almost anyone can become a much better "taster" in regards to consistently identifying individual flavor/aroma compounds. All that being said there are so many factors both subjective and objective that go into our individual taste preferences that it is very tricky to objectively judge these subtle differences with Q. I do agree with a previous poster who said the worst Q can come from 100% wood. Green wood or a poorly maintained fire is a recipe for ashtray Q that almost everyone would find offensive.
I think the tricky part of it all and what tends to create some negative feelings, is that to a certain extent, and I will stick to beer because I am no Q expert, is that the more you learn the more flaws you can objectively pick out. There are times when someone is drinking a beer that has obvious technical flaws, say its oxidized, infected or whatever, things that are objectively wrong with this particular beer. But the inexperienced drinker doesnt have enough experience to be able to recognize them and they say this is a good beer. Well to me no its not, that doesnt mean they cant enjoy it but I believe its not a good representation of what its intended to be. I think all of us can relate to this on some level. Whatever your area of expertise is you certainly can critique it better than someone with little or no experience. You notice little things that dont matter to the average person but are obvious to you. With BBQ I think its even trickier because there is very little scientific analysis done on the final product so you have very little objective data to go from. Its almost entirely up to the individuals tastes and perceptions. A well equipped brewery lab can tell and show you exactly whats in that beer and how close it is to their ideal specs. Not so in BBQ. Now is wood better than charcoal? For me yes but I wouldnt presume to say its true for everyone. Adding to the confusion, at least for me is that the Judging Body KCB seems to have an entirely different criteria for what is the ideal Q than you would find in the most respected BBQ joints in the country. Sorry for the length of this post but this topic does fascinate me because I think its much more complex than it appears.
