ok, sorry i stopped posting updates...things got hectic as i had to make potato salad and such...
so, here's what happened. i really didn't have the luxury of waiting all night for the brisket to finish. so, after removing from the foil, i decided to re-foil and cook to 185 because the temp seemed to rise quicker in the foil. when it got to 185, i took it out, the temp dropped to 180. i put it back in the smoker until it got to 185 again in an attempt to 'finish' any possible bark i could. i then removed from the smoker and re-foiled for 1 hour to let the juices redistribute...i am sure that my methods were wrong in many ways because...
i started to slice the brisket and it was...dry. not overly dry or so dry that it wasn't good (it was actually still quite tasty and everyone loved it) but it certainly wasnt as moist as i would like.
so keep in mind i've only been smoking for 3 weeks, and this was my first brisket, but will someone please tell me the way i did it was wrong so i will feel better about this? haha
i grossly underestimated the cooking time using the '1.5 hours per lb' as a guide so i was forced to compromise. i did what i thought was best and it did finish much quicker than i feel it would have had i cooked all the way through without foiling, but the brisket turned out dry and with not much smoke ring might i add...
any input by anyone? and keep in mind i do not mind any criticism as i am doing my best to learn...