So how did it turn out???

 

and I must have been good this year because Santa got me  Weber 22 1/2" Smokey Mountain Cooker so I finally have a dedicated smoker and can take the Weber kettle grill back to grill only status.

That must have turned out pretty good Wayne. I love smoking pork butts. Much of the advice given is great advise.

 

I have smoked them so many different ways I can't count. I've settled on a pretty good rub and home made sauce but the thing I do that's a little different is I smoke with Pecan and Green peach wood. It gives the meat a smooth flavor that I have grown to love. It's so hard get a farmer to cut a peach tree up though. I have to find an old orchard with some deceased trees. If you are interested in a great rub and an outstanding Memphis style sauce I'll see if I can find the file and send it to you. 

Pics being edited for posting currently.

 

All I can say is that it turned out awesome! I did end up brining for 8 hours, using the same rub that I posted (with more brown sugar), using the mustard to make it stick, did a 3/4 apple and 1/4 mesquite mix. The times and temps were spot on (even though I did fall asleep and the temp spiked for a little bit LOL). It's very difficult to keep a constant perfect temperature in the smoker when it's 15 degrees outside and the wind is blowing.

 

After doing this, I can see what you mean about the fat cap. I envisioned this sinewy thing on top of the pork but when it was all chopped up together the flavor that it added was freaking amazing.

Ok, now the pics...including all the food together. The ham was not smoked, just warmed in the oven. The other two things I made were smoked mac 'n' cheese and a sweet potato casserole.

 

 

 

 

 

*drooooool* I can only imagine the late night sammies!! Nice work Wayne!

Looks great!

Fluke - a good time to get fruit woods is when the orchards prune the trees. It varies based on what they're growing, but if you have orchards near you, they're usually happy to have you take away some of their waste. You may even luck into any trees they're removing for various reasons (illness, spacing, variety, etc.).

I live 20 minutes from the "Apple Capital of the World", Adams County PA. Apple wood is never a problem. The whole county is covered in fruit tree orchards.

Good spread there. Looks delicious!

Looks like it turned out real good!!  Now next time trim that fat cap and you get that much more bark which is my favorite part  

I would also suggest trying pecan wood some time. it gives pork a really good sweet smoke flavor and really accents the brown sugar and spices nicely.