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Fellas -

I got a whole, untrimmed brisket today that weighs in at close to 16 lbs.  I will follow the process outlined by our host, homebbq.  I have some concerns about the amount of time to smoke a brisket of this size.  Does anyone have any experience with finishing a brisket in the oven?  I saw a discussion of this on another site.  They suggest pulling the meat from the smoker when the internal temp. hits 170.  They say to wrap in heavy-duty foil, stick a polder in it, and cook in an oven at 300 degrees until an internal temp of around 200.

I welcome your thoughts on that method.

Also, do you recommend spraying periodically with an apple juice mixture?  I have seen mention of this process which I guess is designed to keep the meat moist.  I love the bark and that's what I am striving for.  I couldn't be happier tomorrow to find a dark, crusty exterior on that thing.

Lastly, I am planning on using a Mesquite/Apple wood mixture.  If I don't hear back before I get going, I will report my results afterwards.

Cheers!

Beltwaybbq

Just wanted to report back on how my brisket turned out.  Overall, I have to say that I am very pleased with the result. 

I cooked it fat side down and decided not to mop or spray the meat during cooking which resulted in a nice, dark colored bark.  I smoked with both apple and mesquite.  The smoke flavor was not very pronounced.  I think I would smoke a little longer to see how that changes things in future.  I smoked by the way for about 30% of total cook time which was roughly 12 hours.  The meat came off at 170 internal temp.  I double wrapped in heavy-duty foil and then transferred the brisket to a 300 degree oven with polder inserted.  I have to say that this "finishing" process really worked well.  The oven evenly brought the roast up to temp.  I pulled it out when the polder hit 200.  I dropped it into a cooler lined with newspaper for about an hour.  When it came out of the cooler, it was still very warm.  I sliced it across the grain and juice came pouring out.  The whole roast was moist and delicious.

It was well worth the effort.  I have more confidence that I can do this cut of meat well and will make a few changes next time.

Happy Q'ing!

Beltwaybbq