Tom, I took your advise and picked up the "apple wood" chips. Thank-you. Unfortunately, I couldn't bring myself to NOT soak the chips. Actually, I think I soaked them too long. The grill was at 600deg for over 20minutes and there was only a faint smell coming from the tube. My guests (more like my wife) were getting impatient, so on went the ribs. Since she baked them in the oven first, they weren't on the Q long enough to absorb any of the smoke smell or flavour.
Just as I was removing them, the tube came alive with copious amounts of smoke. I yelled in and had her send out some frozen chicken breasts. Having cooked on straight natural gas for the past decade, this was a revalation. They came out awesome. The applewood imparted a wonderful mellow flavour that wasn't overpowering. I am almost depressed that I missed so many years without smoking!
So next time, I will cut the soak time in half (from an hour down to 30min), or take your tip and not soak them at all.
Shawn
