Here’s a quick update before I hit the shower and get ready for people to show up. The smoker was running a little hot, so I shut two of the lower vents and left the one facing the wind open 50%. The vent change was around 4:45PM and now 45 minutes later, the lid temp is down to 220˚F and the pork roast has been stable at 132˚F. I think that’s an ideal temp for rendering the existing fat in the two cuts and we should get some juicy results.

Also, I’m sticking with maple this time and not mixing in any hickory like before. I think that will give us an honest flavor and not cloud the salmon like previous smoke attempts.

Side note: Watch your favorite grocery stores every other day for meat bargains. When an item gets within 48 hours of it’s “sell by” date, it usually gets reduced 50% in price. That makes it easy to pick up high-end meat for a bargain price. If you freeze it right away, you’re OK, but why not “smoke’m if you got ’em”?