Which side up ?

[justpete]

Fat side up.

[JGW]

Heh, little late.  Work has been hell.

Fat side up.  Brisket, butt, don't matter to me.   ;D

[Pachanga]

Fat cap up or fat cap down is the subject of much debate.  In the calmer of these discussions, someone is still going to get hurt.

Some say fat down to keep the heat from drying the bottom out.  Some say fat side up to self baste all the way through the brisket.  Some say flip the brisket half way through for the best of both worlds.  

The answer is, everyone is right.  Cap up or cap down depends on the smoker; whether it is a vertical or horizontal, the protective heat and smoke plate, how the heat travels through the smoker, the position of the exhaust chimney, the protective rub or slather, the frequency of basting, the temperature and the amount of moisture involved.  

Mostly, in the unmodified  Bradley (I do not have any experience with a modified Bradley), I would suggest fat cap up, even though I have smoked several briskets and left the bottom brisket fat cap down because it was being basted from the brisket above while being protected from the heat below by the fat cap down.  This is counter intuitive because the heat source is from the bottom.  Normally, I would place the protective fat cap toward the heat source.

A person needs to know their smoker and how to use it.  In the Bradley, if I use a mustard slather or other protective coating, I generally go fat cap up due to high moisture content, low heat, adjustable heat circulation, convenience and lack of memory cells to tell me when to flip, twist or somersault (alcohol may be a contributing factor of the later).

When I say adjustable heat circulation, I am referring to a method I use in the Bradley.  If the bottom of the brisket seems to be drying, lay a piece of foil on a flipped empty basket underneath the brisket (not the rack the brisket is sitting on), blocking the middle of the rack.  If the foil tries to move around, press it between two baskets. You can also form a bowl and add water for more moisture and a further lowering of the heat directly beneath the brisket. The direct heat will bypass the bottom of the brisket and the heat differential between the top and bottom of the brisket will lessen.

OU has suggested to form a bowl and catch the drippings for a gravy or to add back to the meat.  He pours a warm beer into the bowl. I like that idea.

Good luck and slow smoking,

Pachanga