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	Name:	John C -
	Subject:	I do
	Date:	3/18/2010 2:55:59 PM

use a drip pan for my vertical smoker. Not needed for my horizontal one. I agree that black char is not good for health or the taste of Q for that matter. I don't consider it a sign of great Q. Although I would submit, when I have seen it (on boston butts mainly) that 99% of the char is not due to "fat smoke" but:

1. leftover petrochemical residue - due to people cooking with fresh charcoal (ie non gray). This also happens when people refresh their charcoal based heat supply by tossing in new, black charcoal on top of gray ones. That lighter fluid stuff they inject in it to make it "EZ light" comes off and portions of it settles on the food. Not healthy nor tasty. Much better to get a charcoal chimney, light it there, let it gray over, THEN add it to your smoker.

2. Over smoking. Many times people will put wood chips on non-stop throughout, eg, a 12 hour cook cycle. Unnecessary, in my opinion. After about a 1/3 of the cook cycle I lay off of the wood smoke because the meat has warmed up enough that its pores are closed and therefore not absorbing any more flavor from the smoke. So you risk all those carcinogens from the smoke simply settling on the meat. I think there is such a thing as too much smoke.

Again, these are all my tastes and preferences. Everyone is different, that's what is great about bbq - experiment and see what you like. Although, I don't know many people that enjoy the taste of lighter fluid.