Equipment:
Weber Genesis
Weber Spirit Special Addition, with Griddle and Grillgrates (just got)
Thermoworks Smoke (2)
Thermoworks Thermapen (2)
Thermoworks IR (1)
Maverick IR (1)
Penzey's Spice rack with loads of spices
Hobbies:
Cooking, wine, guitar, golf, beach, board games, travel, herb gardening
Must Resist Intense Gravitational Pull! Black Hole?
So my favorite local hardware store switched from True Value to Ace. I swung by to pick up some lawn care items and saw this! They are already a Weber, Kamado Joe and Traeger dealer.
They also had some other new items so I picked up some Blues Hog!
If not cooking outdoors, I am cooking on the stovetop with my 14" carbon steel wok, 12" CI skillet, or in the oven with my two Lodge CI pizza pans, or two dutch ovens. I've also got a nifty Lodge carbon steel grill pan that rocks for veggies outdoors.
I miss my local Ace! It used to be 1 mile from my house. Lowe's and Home Depot put it out of business. Now, there MIGHT be one 50 miles away in a more rural area...
I have 5 of them in the general area, but the closest one is about a 20 min drive away. I also picked up a jar of Blues Hog recently. They only had the Smokey Mountain, so I got one of them. I've never had Blues Hog before.
Dewesq55 I like the Blues Hog as a glaze on my ribs, and use the Blues Hog Tennessee Red on my pulled pork. I buy it once or twice a year in gallon jugs when the Kansas City BBQ Store has a free shipping special, usually around Memorial Day or Black Friday.
Same here. I used to love going to the local ACE hardware store. I was pleasantly surprised to find that there are still a few in Lafayette when I moved here about 5 years ago.
Last edited by Beefchop; February 28, 2020, 09:08 AM.
I've got 3 ace hardwares and a true value within 10 minutes and all of them have really stepped their game up over the last 2 years. Grills, smokers, accessories, all kinds of charcoal and seasonings. I'm digging this trend
Same thing has happened at my semi-local Ace Hardware. The BBQ real estate in the store has increased over the past 2 years. They carry rubs and sauces that I would have to order online before. So now I have another good place for BBQ-related cruising through.
Smoker:
Landmann Smoke Master Series Heavy Duty Barrel Smoker (COS) - With mods including 2 level rack system with pull-out grates
Masterbuilt ThermoTemp XL 40" Vertical Propane Smoker
Weber Smokey Joe with mini-WSM Tamale Pot modification
The Good One Marshall
Gas Grill:
BBQPro (cheap big box store model) Stainless steel 4 burnerswith aftermarket rotisserie.
Brook King Regal S490 Pro
Charcoal Grill:
Weber Smokey Joe Charcoal Grill 14"
Thermometer:
2 x Fireboard 2 with Drive cable and 20 CFM fan and Competition Probe Package
ThermoWorks Mini Instant Read
Lavaworks Thermowand Instant Read
ThermoWorks IR-GUN-S Industrial Infrared Thermometer
ThermoWorks ThermaPen Mk4 x 2
ThermoWorks Thermapen ONE
Govee Bluetooth Thermometer with 6 probes
Miscellaneous:
Anova Sous Vide Immersion Circulator - 1st generation
Anova Sous Vide Immersion Circulator - wifi/bluetooth connected
Favorite Beer:
Anything to the dark side and malty rather than hoppy. Currently liking Yuengling Porter and Newcastle Brown Ale. In a bar or pub I will often default to Guiness
Favorite Spirit:
Bourbon - Eagle Rare for "every day"; Angel's Envy for special occasions, Basil Hayden's, Larceny
Favorite Wine:
Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon Super Tuscan Sangiovese (Including Chianti Classico Riserva) Brunello di Montalcino
Favorite Meat(s):
Pork - especially the darker meat. I love spare ribs and anything made from shoulder/butt meat
Chicken - Mainly the dark meat and wings
Beef Ribeye steak
Favorite Cuisine to Cook:
Can't list just one: Indian, Chinese, Thai, West Indian/Carribean, Hispanic/Latin American, Ethiopian, Italian, BBQ
Favorite Cuisine to Eat:
Indian, followed closely by BBQ.
I forgot to add that all of my local Ace stores carry a larger variety of smoking wood, Including post oak chunks which I can't get elsewhere by me. It's also where I got the expanded metal for my new cooking grates. They are there only place around that has the 13 ga. HD and Lowe's only have the thin stuff by me.
Retired, living in Western Mass. Enjoy music, cooking and my family.
Current cookers Weber Spirit 3 burner with a full insert griddle added. A 22" Kettle with vortex, SnS and a Smokey Joe. The most recent addition is a Pit Barrel Jr with bird hanger, 4 hooks and cover. ThermoWorks Smoke 2 probe, DOT, 2 ThermoPops and a Thermapen MK4. A Thermoworks RFX Gateway 2 probe meat thermometer.
Have an ACE here in town. Purchased both the Genisis and Kettle from them. Assembled and delivered no charge. They're also a UPS dropoff, so when I'm retuning something my wife bought on AMAZON and changed her mind, easy return.
I try to support local business as much as possible.
John "JR"
Minnesota/ United States of America
******************************************** Grills/Smokers/Fryers Big Green Egg (Large) X3
Blackstone 36" Outdoor Griddle 4-Burner
Burch Barrel V-1 Karubeque C-60 Kamado Joe Jr. (Black) Lodge L410 Hibachi Pit Barrel Cooker Pit Barrel Cooker 2.0
Pit Barrel PBX
R&V Works FF2-R-ST 4-Gallon Fryer *******************************************. Thermometers
FireBoard (Base Package)
Thermoworks ThermaPen (Red)
Thermoworks MK4 (Orange)
********************************* Accessories Big Green Egg Plate Setter
Benzomatic TS800 High Temp Torch X 2 Bayou Classic 44 qt Stainless Stock Pot
Bayou Classic 35K BTU Burner Eggspander Kit X2 Finex Cat Iron Line FireBoard Drive Lots and Lots of Griswold Cast Iron Grill Grates Joule Water Circulator
KBQ Fire Grate Kick Ash Basket (KAB) X4 Lots of Lodge Cast Iron Husky 6 Drawer BBQ Equipment Cabinet Large Vortex Marlin 1894 .44 Magnum Marquette Castings No. 13 (First Run) Smithey No. 12 Smokeware Chimney Cap X 3 Stargazer No.10, 12 ******************************** Fuel FOGO Priemium Lump Charcoal Kingsford Blue and White B&B Charcoal Apple, Cherry & Oak Log splits for the C-60 ************************************************* Cutlery Buck 119 Special
Cuda 7' Fillet Knife Dexter 12" Brisket Sword Global Shun Wusthof ********** Next Major Purchase Lone Star Grillz 24 X 48 Offset
Scotch: Current favorite- The Arran (anything by them), Glenmorangie 12yr Lasanta, sherry cask finished. The Balvenie Double Wood, also like Oban 18yr, and The Glenlivet Nadurra (Oloroso sherry cask finished) among others. Neat please.
About meReal name: Aaron
Location: Farwell, Michigan - near Clare (dead center of lower peninsula).
Occupation:
Healthcare- Licensed & Registered Respiratory Therapist (RRT) at MyMichigan Health, a University of Michigan Health System.
HawkerXP, I went in an Ace a couple of weeks ago to get some Blues Hog sauce, and I swear the pbc whispered "come here, son, HawkerXP told me to talk to you" lol
If not cooking outdoors, I am cooking on the stovetop with my 14" carbon steel wok, 12" CI skillet, or in the oven with my two Lodge CI pizza pans, or two dutch ovens. I've also got a nifty Lodge carbon steel grill pan that rocks for veggies outdoors.
My dad bought the first generation Weber Genesis at the local Ace Hardware back in 1985 I think, around the time they came out. It had a redwood side table, red porcelain finish, and he used it for 20 years before replacing it. Me? I would have kept it going longer, but I didn't know he threw it out!
Ace is great that way. I’ve bought a Spirit and Genesis assembled and delivered from them in two different places. And they took the old crappy grill to boot.
I have had to resist the PBC at my local Ace a few times as well. And I picked up some of the Blues Hog Original the last time I was in Ace. Very, very sweet. It is great for something like pork belly burnt ends where you almost want sickeningly sweet. Great flavor and I know some people cut it with some other sauce to temper the sweetness a bit.
You may want to try the Tennessee Red too - its very good, but thinner and spicier. I've not tried it on ribs, but on pulled pork mostly. My son in law says the original Blues Hog is like pancake syrup, and he's about right!
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