Looking for lump hardwood charcoal in SE PA.

[sixfofalcon]

I didn't stock up enough in the fall, and now I'm out of lump.

Lowe's, Home Depot, Whole Foods, and the local grocery stores all seem to be down to just Kingsford and Match Light <gag> for the wintertime. Last winter, I managed to find a couple mom 'n' pop hardware stores that had a bag or two of lump laying around and that got me through the winter months. This winter, no one has any lump charcoal on hand--I guess retailers are leaning out their inventory. I am NOT happy with the prospect of roughing it with Kingsford. One hardware store will special order 20# bags of Humphrey's, but I think it's a bit pricey at over $25/bag. I am willing to drive a bit if I can pick up 60# or more at a decent price (<$1/lb.)

Incidentally, some people look at me like I'm nuts when it's 20 degrees out and I'm asking if they have any charcoal. Others are more sympathetic.

[bam]

Here in philly I get mine at a lumber yard 1900 east lehigh av or resturant depot . If near Reading try Fred's Music & BBQ also try Ace hardware. BBQ Guru sells Humphrey in Warmister .
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[necron 99]

If you have DoItBest or Ace hardware stores in your area, you can order lump on-line from their respective web sites with free ship-to-store, so no shipping fees. DIB offers Royal Oak lump and Barbecue Wood Flavors lump, Ace offers Frontier lump.
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[sixfofalcon]

Thanks for the replies! I'm in Roxborough not far from Restaurant Depot, but unfortunately I don't have any contacts in the biz anymore and I know they are very strict about not selling to the public. I'll check into the other options mentioned here.

[sixfofalcon]

While wandering around a PathMark store on my lunch break today, I found that they had about 10 bags of Nature's Mesquite lump charcoal. The price was $5.99 for a 6.6# bag which is not too bad in my opinion, if the stuff turns out to be any good.

Since I refuse to use Kingsford except as a last resort, and I won't be making it out to any of the BBQ specialty stores in the next week, I decided to take a chance and I picked up 3 bags of the Nature's Mesquite to hold me over. I just checked out the review of this product on The Naked Whiz and it was quite a rave, so I'm optimistic.

[1MoreFord]

You might contact Humphrey Charcoal and find some dealers in your area.

There's a guy on another forum from the Lancaster area that finds it locally and really likes it.

http://www.humphrey-charcoal.com/product.html
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[necron 99]

[Real Montana Charcoal]

Isn't Humphrey's in your neck of the woods, you may see if they will sell directly to the general public, many will. I know I have talked to someone from Humphrey somewhere in PA.
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[sixfofalcon]

Humphrey is on the other end of the state--about a 5 hour drive from here. I only find it at one local place during the spring/summer/fall months, and even then the price is a bit steep so I'm always on the look-out for better deals. A lot of the local hardware stores favor Qik (I think that's the name) or Cowboy, and again, most of them don't bother restocking during the winter months (most people are wussies about cooking outdoors in the winter.)

I did a tri-tip last night with the Nature's Mesquite. It's a pretty good product. Lots of larger (baseball-sized) chunks, very dense, and the stuff burns HOT. It did spark like crazy--looked like the Fourth of July when it was in the chimney starter, and I blew through a whole 6.6# bag in about an hour because the stuff burns so fast. I think I'll probably blend the NM with something else in the future unless I'm direct-grilling.

I also found a few bags of America's Choice lump charcoal the other day at a local supermarket. I'll pick up a few of them when I can, but I'm not sure if it's something that they will re-stock before spring rolls around.

[edubbrulez]

I've picked up Humphrey's lump charcoal at Pottstown Rolls Mills last year. They had 40 lb bags which was really nice.

Also - check out Wegmans if you have one close. The have a store brand lump that I think was five dollars a bag. It wasn't as good as the Humphrey's stuff but better than Kingsford.

[Dr. Smokenstein]

I'm from West Chester and I get mine from a beer distributor. They also have Mali Lump in a butcher shop that I frequent. Also, I noticed Kmart is bringing out their BBQ goods and they have Royal Oak lump there. Good luck in plight for lump.

[sixfofalcon]

Thanks for all the suggestions! Spring is right around the corner now and hardware stores are starting to stock charcoal again. My local SuperFresh store restocked the America's Choice Natural Lump Charcoal after I snatched up the last bag a few weeks ago, so I'll always have that option in a pinch. (The stuff is pretty decent actually, but they only carry small bags so it's not my first choice.)

I've also been having pretty good results with the Kingsford Competition briquets in my offset. I still plan on getting a pretty big qty of Humphrey when I get the chance--maybe I'll hit up that Pottstown Rolls Mills and get a few 40# bags.

[edubbrulez]

[mgreg]

Humphrey has a site they call "The Charcoal Store." The web address is charcoalbq.com. They'll deliver 40# of lump charcoal to your door for $32.99. The service is fast. I ordered some on line on a Sunday evening and it was here on Tuesday. Of course, I live in Pittsburgh which isn't that far from their plant in Brookville. I would think shipment to S.E. Pennsylvania would take about two days.

[sixfofalcon]

I think I had looked at that website before but the prices were a lot higher back then. I wonder how long the current prices will hold out. I'm seriously thinking about a full pallet...
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