# Does pellet type/flavor really matter?



## jlud (Apr 9, 2019)

as many here have mentioned the smoke profile from the pellet grill is less than charcoal or wood and I am ok with that.

My question is, given those limitations does it even matter what type you use or if any flavor provides the most smoke flavoring?  I typically prefer hickory, but haven’t found any local.  And 40 pound bags of pit boss competitor blend are 13.50 at Lowe’s....is there any benefit in spending more or more flavor to be had?

Thanks!


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## daveomak (Apr 9, 2019)

Pellet flavor is most realized if you use an AMNPS or AMNTS for adding smoke...


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## jlud (Apr 9, 2019)

Great point, should mention not looking to add a tube, just wondering if any value in spending my time or money on different pellets in general.


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## MNholla (Apr 9, 2019)

I have the nearly identical question. Would these be ok to use in my A-MAZE-N? Or, could I use these to mix with flavored pellets?


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## bregent (Apr 9, 2019)

jlud said:


> My question is, given those limitations does it even matter what type you use or if any flavor provides the most smoke flavoring?



I have done blind tasting, and others have as well, and the conclusion is that nobody can tell the difference between different wood species on a pellet grill. However, hickory does seem to provide the strongest smoke flavor. The flavor is not different than the other pellets, just more of it. The one notable exception to this is mesquite which does give a stronger and more unique flavor.   

Where are you located? If you're burning a lot, consider a group buy of Lumberjack. Depending on where you are located you should be able to get them more 40 cents or less per lb.


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## daveomak (Apr 9, 2019)

Flame consumes smoke...  Flame also makes for higher temperatures....  That's why a pellet smoker can get high temps..


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## Misplaced Nebraskan (Apr 9, 2019)

for pellets, the main difference in brands is quality, filler wood, BTUs produced, and pellet size.  I have not run any tests but I stick with B&B (rebranded lumberjack iirc) as it's readily available close by.  I need to bulk order some pellets at some point.  Most likely Lumberjack.

some pellets say "pecan" "cherry" "oak",  but are mostly ash or alder and small amounts of identified wood.  The ones that are 100% of the labeled wood, will say so and I believe those are worth it.

As for switching between wood types, I can't say I've seen a difference in taste as 

 bregent
 said.  May have to run a test myself at some point to see.


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## retfr8flyr (Apr 9, 2019)

I have found Lumber Jack to be my go to pellets. They are 100% the wood described on the bag, without any fillers, flavored oils, or other products.


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## BuckeyeSteve (Apr 9, 2019)

I'm using the CookinPellets Perfect mix and I really like it.  Very clean burning with my AMNPS and mailbox mod.  Great flavor.


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## SlowmotionQue (Apr 9, 2019)

CookinPellets Perfect Mix was/is my go to pellet.

But now I've tried Lumberjack 100% Hickory the last few cooks, and just picked up another bag this past Sunday.

I'm hard pressed to tell any taste difference in food grilled with it or food grilled with  CookinPellets Perfect Mix.  In fact, I'm more than hard pressed.  I simply cannot tell the difference in food taste between it and CookinPellets Perfect mix.

But both of them produce a very light  smoke flavor if used without a smoke tube, which I don't use when grilling at higher temperatures.  It's like choosing the best of the light smoke flavors.

I like CookinPellets Perfect mix, and still have plenty of it.  It's $37.00 for 40lbs.  Lumberjack around here is $14.99 for 20lbs.  I might have a new go to pellet if I can tolerate the additional ash that the Lumberjack does produce.  That Lumberjack does get the grill hot quick though.  I'm told that this happens because of the smaller size of the Lumberjack pellets.

*Edited:*  Looks like I'll  be sticking with CookinPellets Perfect mix for the low and slow temp 225*-250* cooks.

The above comments were made with regard to grilling at 425* plus, where smoke flavor is going to be scant anyway.

Today I did a comparison test of sorts at lower temps using CookinPellets Perfect mix vs Lumberjack 100% hickory.

At the lower temps, namely  225*, and letting it run for around 30 minutes after that temp is hit,  CookinPellets Perfect Mix definitely produces more thin blue smoke than does Lumberjack 100% hickory, which "should" translate to better flavor at lower temps.

With the Lumberjack Hickory, under the same conditions, I could saw little to any smoke.

This informal test might not apply to the Lumberjack Maple, Hickory Cherry blend though. and I am comparing the CookinPellets Perfect Mix, which is a blend of Hickory, Maple, Pecan and Cherry, with the straight hickory Lumberjack.  So I admit that it may not be a fair test.

The Lumberjack definitely produced more ash.


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## jlud (Apr 9, 2019)

So everything I’m reading here is if the pit boss comp pellets work for me at 13.50 for a 40 lbs bag but I’m up and I’m most likely not missing anything :)

Thanks all!


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## bregent (Apr 9, 2019)

jlud said:


> So everything I’m reading here is if the pit boss comp pellets work for me at 13.50 for a 40 lbs bag but I’m up and I’m most likely not missing anything :)



Sure, but as I said, hickory will produce more smoke flavor. The pit boss pellets are probably mostly lighter flavored woods. So if you want more smoke flavor, give a 100% hickory pellet a try. If you're happy with the amount of smoke flavor you're getting, no need to switch.


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## mike243 (Apr 9, 2019)

Try the Lumber Jack Char/Hickory if you want some flavor


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## JWFokker (Apr 9, 2019)

You will only notice the difference at lower temps. High heat destroys many of the compounds that impart wood flavor.

Pellet grills/smokers and their firepots are better at producing heat than smoke. You don't get much vaporization of volatile chemicals because they are literally burned up by rapid combustion.

Wood chunks and splits take longer to heat through and burn. Much more vaporization taking place because combustion is slower.

Pellets NEED to smolder or you don't get much out of them.


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## tallbm (Apr 9, 2019)

I'm not a pellet smoker owner so I cannot speak from direct experience.  I have however read a TON of posts from the pellet smoker guys.  It seems that when they really really want good and distinguishable smoke flavor they load up a AMNPS Tube with the pellet they want the flavor from.

Armed with this info if I owned a pellet smoker I would burn the cheapest pellet I could find (probably Pit Boss pellets) for heat and then use an AMNPS Tube with the BEST wood pellets I could find (for me 100% woods that Lumberjack offers).

Now, I am an electric smoker guy who uses pellets in my AMNPS tray for my smoke and I CAN tell you that there is ABSOLUTELY a difference in flavors from different wood pellets.
The Pit Boss Competition Blend (PBCB) is mild in flavor but the flavor is good.  I usually burn two rows at once OR I mix 50% PBCB and 50% pure hickory pellets and I get great flavor.

With Lumberjack 100% pellets I get great flavor no matter what.  I'm blown away at how amazing the 100% Mesquite pellets are with anything beef related.
I also run their 100% pellets in the following woods and the flavors are also great:

Maple - for my ground Venison Pastrami
Apple - sausage, bacon, and other stuff.  I also a love blending it with Hickory for sausage and bacon. My favorite blend for bacon is 70% Apple, 30% Hickory
Cherry - rarely run it by itself I usually blend it with something else
Pecan - I use it mostly on turkeys
Mesquite - anything/everything beef related - it can't be beat.  It also is amazing on chicken and turkey
As you can see with the 100% Lumberjack pellets of each of the flavors above I can blend to any ratios I like.  My Hickory is Pefect Pellet brand which is also 100%.  I would try 100% Hickory from Lumberjack but I have yet to run out of my 40 pounds of PP hickory.

Anyhow I hope this gives you some good insight.  I'll stop rambling now :)


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## Misplaced Nebraskan (Apr 9, 2019)

daveomak said:


> Pellet flavor is most realized if you use an AMNPS or AMNTS for adding smoke...





tallbm said:


> I'm not a pellet smoker owner so I cannot speak from direct experience.  I have however read a TON of posts from the pellet smoker guys.  It seems that when they really really want good and distinguishable smoke flavor they load up a AMNPS Tube with the pellet they want the flavor from.
> 
> Armed with this info if I owned a pellet smoker I would burn the cheapest pellet I could find (probably Pit Boss pellets) for heat and then use an AMNPS Tube with the BEST wood pellets I could find (for me 100% woods that Lumberjack offers).
> 
> ...



Thank you both! Will have to finally order a tube and give this a go!  

Does SMF have a discount link or anything that anyone knows of or an affiliated link?


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## tallbm (Apr 9, 2019)

Misplaced Nebraskan said:


> Thank you both! Will have to finally order a tube and give this a go!
> 
> Does SMF have a discount link or anything that anyone knows of or an affiliated link?



No link that I know of.  Maybe someone else will have some recommendation of how you may want to go about getting the best deal on an AMNPS Tube for the pellet smoker :)


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## mike243 (Apr 10, 2019)

Walmart sells the oval tube for about$20 ,pellets do provide different flavor profiles but without 2 meats side by side you might be hard pressed to tell which if you don't eat a lot of smoked food and a lot of smoke already in the smoker you will get flavors from past cooks imo


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## daveomak (Apr 10, 2019)

Misplaced Nebraskan said:


> Thank you both! Will have to finally order a tube and give this a go!
> 
> Does SMF have a discount link or anything that anyone knows of or an affiliated link?




Yes, there are sale prices on Todd's FB page and on here about every 2 months...
Order $49 and the shipping is free...  

https://www.amazenproducts.com/


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## Misplaced Nebraskan (Apr 10, 2019)

daveomak said:


> Yes, there are sale prices on Todd's FB page and on here about every 2 months...
> Order $49 and the shipping is free...
> 
> https://www.amazenproducts.com/


should be easy enough.  Guess I'll see if I can hold out for a sale.  Thank you sir.


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## dubob (Apr 10, 2019)

I'm just a newbie to this pellet grill craze, so you may want to take this with a grain of salt.  I asked some questions about smoke tubes on 4 different smoking meat forums and from the answers and my own research decided on this product from Amazon Prime for $14.95 + tax.  Here is a link to the Pellet Smoker Tube, 12'' Stainless Steel – Click HERE. I especially like the hexagon shape as opposed to round to prevent movement once placed in position.

There are 55 reviews for this product, and none are below 4 stars.  I have never used it yet because I just got it last week.  But I will be using it mostly for smoking fish when I do – salmon & trout.


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## jlud (Apr 18, 2019)

So my last couple burns I cleared out the pellet boss comp blend and did straight bbq delight.  Significantly less ash for the two cooks I did.  It’s not scientific and they weren’t the same, just what observed from similar cooks.


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## dward51 (Apr 19, 2019)

One thing I've noticed that I think makes a difference is the make up of the pellets.  Some are 100% "hardwood" and others are 100% "flavor" wood, which can be a little confusing.

100% "hardwood" usually means the wood in the pellet is all hardwood.  Usually it is a large percentage of a base wood such as alder which is virtually flavorless with some smaller percentage of the flavor wood such as cherry, hickory, etc... added in.

100% "flavor" wood means if it's cherry, its made from 100% cherry with no base wood.  Then to make matters more confusing some makers include the bark of the flavor wood tree and others do not (it's still 100% flavor wood, but again the bark is more like filler for some woods, where with others it is a good thing).

I find a huge difference in the 100% flavor wood pellets and have been using Lumberjack with good results.  Their blends are still 100% flavor wood.  Some woods are hard to keep lit in 100% wood, so those work better in blends, but a blend of all flavor woods (ie, competition blend, superior blend, etc...) works great.


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## jlud (Apr 19, 2019)

I bought the lumberjack Char Hickory today at dicks and the Traeger completion blend or whatever its called at Costco.  Anxious to see if any difference.  Couldn’t find hickory.


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## mike243 (Apr 19, 2019)

the char hickory is great, I been mixing it with some others 50/50


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## tallbm (Apr 19, 2019)

mike243 said:


> the char hickory is great, I been mixing it with some others 50/50



Does the Char Hickory give any smoke ring from the charcoal burning? :)


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## mike243 (Apr 20, 2019)

I get a smoke ring with any of them , I don't have a real long cook using them yet but I may put something on tonight and will pay close attention the next time I smoke something. Trying to decide what to cook for tomorrow as the family's having a Easter dinner ,


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## texomakid (Apr 20, 2019)

I never miss a pellet thread! My current choice is CookingPellets Perfect Mix & Hickory (My 2 "Go To" pellets.) The Apple Mash hasn't really impressed me but I like the Black Cherry and I'm trying the Sweet Maple for the first time this weekend. I too want to use 100% no filler pellets so I plan to try the Lumberjack brand next. I'm curious about their Pecan and other pellets they sell.

I love the smell of the Perfect Mix when cooking with it.


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## Bearcarver (Apr 20, 2019)

tallbm said:


> I'm not a pellet smoker owner so I cannot speak from direct experience.  I have however read a TON of posts from the pellet smoker guys.  It seems that when they really really want good and distinguishable smoke flavor they load up a AMNPS Tube with the pellet they want the flavor from.
> 
> Armed with this info if I owned a pellet smoker I would burn the cheapest pellet I could find (probably Pit Boss pellets) for heat and then use an AMNPS Tube with the BEST wood pellets I could find (for me 100% woods that Lumberjack offers).
> 
> ...




I agree with everything Tall said above.
However I use Hickory Pellets in my AMNPS from Todd @ Amazing Smoker for about 95% of all of my Smokes.

Bear


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## zwiller (Apr 20, 2019)

Not a pellet grill owner and doubt I will ever be but I can tell you with 100% certainty I can distinguish the pellet type in my MES AMNPS setup so I am firmly in the heck yeah it does matter camp.  I've tried lots and run oak on pretty much all hot smokes like ribs and butt.  I use a blend of cob, oak, and PM blend on cured stuff.


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## SlowmotionQue (Apr 20, 2019)

texomakid said:


> I never miss a pellet thread! My current choice is CookingPellets Perfect Mix & Hickory (My 2 "Go To" pellets.) The Apple Mash hasn't really impressed me but I like the Black Cherry and I'm trying the Sweet Maple for the first time this weekend. I too want to use 100% no filler pellets so I plan to try the Lumberjack brand next. I'm curious about their Pecan and other pellets they sell.
> 
> I love the smell of the Perfect Mix when cooking with it.



I'm with you on the Perfect Mix.

Definitely give a bag of Lumberjack a shot.   But I'm thinking that you are going to end up going back to the CookinPellets perfect mix like I have after trying Lumberjack.  If you're going to buy some Lumberjack, then I'd recommend buying one bag of it at a time.

I bought a couple of bags of Lumberjack 100% Hickory, and a bag of Char Hickory and it leaves too much ash for me.  Ash that over a long cook could get on food.  I have also now found that it doesn't offer much in the way of taste over the CookinPellets Perfect mix.

It does have the advantage of price over the Perfect Mix though as it can be had for cheaper, and local retailers carry it.

I ended up mixing the last bag of the Lumberjack 100% hickory with 3 left over bags of Rec Tec Ultimate blend which is said to be 1/3 red Oak, 1/3 White oak, and  1/3 hickory. 

I'll be sticking with Perfect Mix  in the hopper, and A-Maze-N hickory or Pecan in the smoke tube for awhile.

But good luck in your planned trial of Lumberjack.


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## BuckeyeSteve (Apr 20, 2019)

I'm adding Lumberjack hickory to my Perfect Pellet Mix and getting great results.


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## indaswamp (Apr 20, 2019)

jlud said:


> Great point, should mention not looking to add a tube, just wondering if any value in spending my time or money on different pellets in general.


Pellet smokers were designed to burn pellets with a certain BTU's per pound. This is why you see a lot of oak blended into the pellets. Oak is a dense wood with a high BTU rating. 
Pellet smokers do not run very well on most pure flavoring pellets. Best to use those in an AMNPS or AMNTS to get the smoke you want.


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## indaswamp (Apr 20, 2019)

JWFokker said:


> You will only notice the difference at lower temps. High heat destroys many of the compounds that impart wood flavor.


^^^^this


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## metsfan2152 (Apr 20, 2019)

I been using apple mash from CookinPellets in my AMNPS. Its not bad not much of a huge flavor though. I would like to try some others in my AMNPS. Right now i been using pit boss in my hopper. From what i read is the hopper is really just for fuel and keep the fire burning. It is very clean burn. The AMNPS is really where you get the flavor from. Whats everyone favorite pellets for there AMNPS. I want to try some other ones. I usually like sweet like apple or cherry.


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## mike243 (Apr 20, 2019)

Try the apple mash in the amnps in order to get the full flavor of it, no high heat there


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## jlud (Apr 20, 2019)

My 2 cents from multiple cooks is that the pit boss comp pellets, while really cheap at 14 bucks for 40 pounds, really produce a noticeable increase in ash deposits throughout the smoker which obviously get on the food as well.

I’m inclined at this point to get bbq delight quality or higher....trying the lumberjack char hickory this afternoon on Tri Tip


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## metsfan2152 (Apr 20, 2019)

jlud said:


> My 2 cents from multiple cooks is that the pit boss comp pellets, while really cheap at 14 bucks for 40 pounds, really produce a noticeable increase in ash deposits throughout the smoker which obviously get on the food as well.
> 
> I’m inclined at this point to get bbq delight quality or higher....trying the lumberjack char hickory this afternoon on Tri Tip


Yea, I am going to try some other competition blends. I might try some lumberjack next.


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## Bearcarver (Apr 20, 2019)

metsfan2152 said:


> I been using apple mash from CookinPellets in my AMNPS. Its not bad not much of a huge flavor though. I would like to try some others in my AMNPS. Right now i been using pit boss in my hopper. From what i read is the hopper is really just for fuel and keep the fire burning. It is very clean burn. The AMNPS is really where you get the flavor from. *Whats everyone favorite pellets for there AMNPS.* I want to try some other ones. I usually like sweet like apple or cherry.




About 95% of my Smokes get Hickory from Todd @ Amazing Smoker.

Bear


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## ross77 (Apr 22, 2019)

Everyone has different taste preferences. My wife likes less intense smoke and I like more. 

I’ve tried a variety of brands and woods in my pellet smoker. I probably couldn’t tell you what pellet was used to smoke a piece of meat but I can tell the intensity of the smoke flavor. 

I’ve settled on Lumberjack 100% hickory for most of my cooks. Good flavor and intensity. I’ve tried a few comp blends: LJ, Pit Boss, Traeger and Bear Mountain. Just not enough flavor for me. 

I haven’t had any ash issues on the food with any of the brands. 

I always ask my wife how the flavor is without telling her what pellets I used. The 3 consistent responses: Comp Blend- “very light/no smoke”. 100% Hickory- “good smoke”.  Mesquite blend- “too bitter”. 

One other thing I noticed. If I have a lot of smoke on my clothes/skin it’s harder for me to notice it in the food.  Yesterday I smoked a brisket and while it was resting I took a shower and the flavor seemed more intense. Not scientific but just an observation. :)


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## metsfan2152 (Apr 22, 2019)

I think i am going to try LB hickory. That seems to be what a lot of people like.


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## jlud (Apr 22, 2019)

The lumberjack char hickory I tried on my first Tri Tip was great!  Guests commented on smoke flavor and I thought it was just enough to be there and not overwhelming the taste of the meat.  I will keep using these or the pure hickory if I could find local.  Up to this point I had no discerning flavors or smoke taste...so perhaps it was Tri Tip related but man did it come out perfect! Best cook I have ever done and super easy....I can see why people do this instead of brisket and I preferred it over brisket.  Cattleman’s Tri Tip rub was awesome as well.


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## WBDubya (Apr 22, 2019)

Anyone try the Lumberjack competition blend?


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## sweetride95 (Apr 22, 2019)

WBDubya said:


> Anyone try the Lumberjack competition blend?



I have, it's a nice smoke profile. I go back and forth between it and their 100% hickory. 
I have been using a bag of their char hickory lately. It's a little bit spicier version of hickory. Not sure it's going to be a regular smoke though.


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## ross77 (Apr 22, 2019)

WBDubya said:


> Anyone try the Lumberjack competition blend?



Yes. Burns fine. Not much smoke flavor IMO but your tastes may vary.


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## jlud (May 10, 2019)

So I did the same trip tip, same seasoning, same temp.....and went from Lumberjack Char Hickory to Traeger gourmet blend from Costco.  Lumberjack had a significantly better “smoke” flavor, to me it was very noticeable.  

I’m done pellet testing, and as many others have done I will be going only LJ Hickory or char hickory.


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## jmtyndall (Dec 1, 2019)

sweetride95 said:


> I have, it's a nice smoke profile. I go back and forth between it and their 100% hickory.


Do you find a noticeable flavor difference?

I'm getting a pellet smoker and coming from a stick burner where I have been using 100% cherry for most smokes, but have also started using oak for beef (tri tip and brisket). Picking up a pellet smoker for the convenience and now I'm trying to figure out what pellets to get. Hickory seems to be the most popular flavor pellet, but I'm worried because I see a lot of people saying they give everything a bacon-y flavor. 

Pecan has been highly reccomended to me for my stick burner but it looks like it will be similar to, if not slightly milder than, hickory. Anyways, I know I like oak, so I might just start with that and then see if I want to work up to pecan or hickory for some more smoke.

As a second bag I'm on the fence with some of the fruit woods. I'm used to using cherry wood, but many fruit wood blends add some apple. I think this gives a bit more intensity than 100% cherry? 

Anyways, sorry for the long post. I just dont want to end up with 100 bags of pellets taking up all my garage space!


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## Bearcarver (Dec 1, 2019)

Personally I don't notice a big flavor difference, other than how strong one is compared to another. I think they all taste like smoke.
However I use about 95% Hickory, because for me everything else is a bit too weak, except Mequite, which is too strong.

Bear


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## kstone113 (Dec 2, 2019)

I believe you get a little more from the 100% ones as others have said.  Last night I bought pellets(I buy LJ), I got 100% hickory and char-hickory.  I did get some 100% cherry also.  I "think" it makes a difference.  But if you really want smoke like from a stick burner, you needs to add something like a heavy D from smokedaddy or a cold smoker added.  I'm going to add the cold smoker from smokedaddy to my rec tec.


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## WBDubya (Dec 2, 2019)

I've been using the LJ 100% Hickory for awhile now and it's a great pellet.  I may try Cooking Pellets Perfect Blend in the future, it gets great reviews as well.


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