Cuisinart Vertical Charcoal Smoker

I was extremely excited for this smoker to arrive. I've been wanting to start smoking meat during the summer and with upcoming nice weather, I thought this would be a perfect smoker to begin with.This is a simple smoker with what seems to be the essentials to smoking great meat. It does not have all the bells and whistles but does carry a better price tag for a beginner. It has a thermometer on the outside, easy access vents and a manual to help you start. Of course this is a charcoal smoker but the ability to be able to put wood chips along with it is great. It really does add another element of flavor to the meat.It is a perfect size for just me and my husband. We are able to fit plenty of meat to entertain. I suppose the only bad thing is having to wake up so ... MoreI was extremely excited for this smoker to arrive. I've been wanting to start smoking meat during the summer and with upcoming nice weather, I thought this would be a perfect smoker to begin with.This is a simple smoker with what seems to be the essentials to smoking great meat. It does not have all the bells and whistles but does carry a better price tag for a beginner. It has a thermometer on the outside, easy access vents and a manual to help you start. Of course this is a charcoal smoker but the ability to be able to put wood chips along with it is great. It really does add another element of flavor to the meat.It is a perfect size for just me and my husband. We are able to fit plenty of meat to entertain. I suppose the only bad thing is having to wake up so early so that the meat has enough time to properly cook. But it is so worth it!We have not cleaned it yet because we read it is good to get a patina on it before it's first wash. But I think a good hose down will do the trick.We really love our new smoker!

1. It takes longer than 15 minutes to assemble.2. You need some type of wrench to tighten screws.3. Assembly instructions are not clear regarding charcoal parts, for example coal grate and pan. Regarding the pan, the vent cut out leads one to believe that that piece should be turned and exposed to air.4. The fire ring is flimsy and will deform and likely rust and break before the end of the smokers life.5. The tabs holding the grates are too long resulting in having to spill the water basing making a mess.6. The assembly latches are misaligned, do not compress tight, and when carrying the assembly it falls apart. I happened to have had the assembly fall apart over a wood floor and the sharp sided legs gouged the floor.7. The video is cheesy and more a ... More1. It takes longer than 15 minutes to assemble.2. You need some type of wrench to tighten screws.3. Assembly instructions are not clear regarding charcoal parts, for example coal grate and pan. Regarding the pan, the vent cut out leads one to believe that that piece should be turned and exposed to air.4. The fire ring is flimsy and will deform and likely rust and break before the end of the smokers life.5. The tabs holding the grates are too long resulting in having to spill the water basing making a mess.6. The assembly latches are misaligned, do not compress tight, and when carrying the assembly it falls apart. I happened to have had the assembly fall apart over a wood floor and the sharp sided legs gouged the floor.7. The video is cheesy and more a sales pitch rather than a helpful tool that explains how to load, start coals, adjust temperature. Right now I have no clue how the bottom venting system is supposed to work. Also the video and instruction sheet shows a charcoal starter being used and of course that does not come with the smoker.

UnboxingThe smoker was well packaged and easy to get out of the box. There was minimal use of Styrofoam, which is always something that I appreciate. The lightweight/thin Styrofoam that was used in the box did crumble significantly during transport, I assume. There were hundreds of these little pieces that puffed out of the box during unpackaging and were stuck to the metal by static electricity. This made quite a mess that required post assembly vacuuming. I also had to vacuum the smoker itself to get all the Styrofoam off so that all the little particles would not burn/melt during first use. This was little more than a minor inconvenience.AssemblyThe instructions for assembly were very straightforward and mostly easy to ready. It might have helped a little ... MoreUnboxingThe smoker was well packaged and easy to get out of the box. There was minimal use of Styrofoam, which is always something that I appreciate. The lightweight/thin Styrofoam that was used in the box did crumble significantly during transport, I assume. There were hundreds of these little pieces that puffed out of the box during unpackaging and were stuck to the metal by static electricity. This made quite a mess that required post assembly vacuuming. I also had to vacuum the smoker itself to get all the Styrofoam off so that all the little particles would not burn/melt during first use. This was little more than a minor inconvenience.AssemblyThe instructions for assembly were very straightforward and mostly easy to ready. It might have helped a little to have a zoomed in view of the latch assembly for eyes that are not as sharp as they used to be. Having the screws, washers and bolts packaged and labeled in groups was very convenient for easily identifying the required parts in each step.The instructions stated 15 minutes for assembly with only a screwdriver needed. Total time for unboxing and assembly for me was 40 minutes taking my time to lay everything out and examine the instructions. I found that I needed a couple different size screwdrivers to effectively tighten the different size screws. I also needed a pair of plyers to hold the bolt steady as I tightened the screw. Otherwise the screw and bolt would turn together.There were only two minor complications during assembly.First - Placing the latches on was a little tricky by yourself as the screw holes are covered by a piece of metal held in place by a spring…like a clothes pin. I had to hold the metal piece up against resistance as I inserted the screws. I also had to hold the bolts in place with the pliers. This made it a little difficult but not too bad. Probably much easier with another set of hands.Second - The access door was significantly bent at the corner so that it would not insert and close properly. I was easily able to bend it back so that it would close but the form of the door does not completely conform to the shape of the smoker. I am confident that if I spend a little time manipulating the door, I can get it to where it looks like a perfect fit.OperationWorking the smoker could not have been easier. The charcoal ring made it very simple to estimate the necessary amount of charcoal. I ran the smoker twice without any food on the grates to burn off manufacturing oils, season the smoker and get an idea of how much the temperature would fluctuate before I had a dinner on the line. I expected difficulty in maintaining a set temperature of 225 to 250 degrees but it just seemed to naturally hover in that area with very little maintenance required from me. I have had side smokers in the past and found the temperature much more difficult to control in those.For my first meal, I decided to use one of the recipes from the little booklet that came with the smoker…bacon wrapped chicken. I was interested to see how small pieces of meat held up during a several hour smoke. I followed the directions as exactly as possible. Three hours at 250 degrees. I had some trouble initially because I lit the charcoal unevenly. By the time I had all the coals grey, some were already aging and not providing enough heat. This caused my temperature to hit 200 and stay there. Iput a few chunks of mesquite in with the coals and was soon at 225 and was easily able to stay between 225 and 250 for the full three hours. I only added a handful of wood twice during that time. The door provided easy access to the coals when adding wood, though there was not a lot of room to maneuver in there because the water bowl is so close to the coals.So, even though I had a difficult start (my fault), I found it easy to recover and easy to maintain temperature over the three hours. The bacon wrapped chicken came out very tasty and had a good level of moisture to it. I think next time, for that recipe, I will go for 2 – 2.5 hours instead of three, but in all fairness, it did say three hours or when it looks done.Coal cleanup was a snap. Simply remove the top barrel and the coal grate and pour the ash into a bucket. It took me all of one minute.SummaryIn summary, I found the smoker easy to assemble and operate. The thinness of the metal and how easily the door was bent gave me concern that the unit would not hold heat well and cause me to have difficulty in maintaining a set temperature. I could not have been more wrong. It was quite easy to maintain a set temperature over those three uses. I can’t stress how much I appreciate that. Having used a smoker with a side box in the past, maintaining a stable temperature has always been a challenge. The lightness of the metal also ensured that I could easily remove and replace the top barrel to have access to the coal bed. I would have no reservations about referring this smoker to others. I really feel like this would be a perfect smoker for someone first entering the world of smoking due to its ease of use and ease in maintaining a set temperature.