Smoked brisket (smoke-absorption test)

Put one unwrapped brisket in the oven to an internal 140F and hold it there; this took about two hours 45 minutes.

Put a second unwrapped brisket in the oven to an internal 165F; it slowed past about 155F and took over five hours.

Trim the briskets and season with a 50-50 mix by volume of kosher salt and black pepper.

Put the 140F, 165F and a raw brisket straight from the fridge on the smoker side by side, the raw one in the middle.

Smoke all three for the same time, about 225F with good smoke for a couple of hours and then hotter, four to six hours in all.

Wrap all three in butcher paper, nothing else inside, and finish the two unfinished briskets in the oven to tenderness and the same finished temperature.

Next day, unwrap, slice the flat and taste in order of expected smoke, least first.