The Unboxing: Weber’s “new” 26 3/4 inch One Touch Gold – Part 2

Now that she was assembled, I was curious as to how she compared to the 22. My first impression was, “whoa”. She just looks big.

As the photo shows, the 26 rightfully sits up a lot higher than the 22. I like the higher grill height, as it brings it closer to the level of the 650. “Less bending over” is always a good thing in my book.

The design features are exactly the same as any other Weber kettle. Thankfully Weber included the rubber handle on the top vent too. The green OTG next to it does not have one, while the Performer in the back does. I cannot tell you how many times I have burned my hand on the green kettle’s vent because I was used to the Performer. I need to order one from Weber.

Cooking surface:

So it really is bigger! Although in this picture it doesn’t, at least to me, look like as much of a difference as you would think. The 26 boasts 508 square inches of grilling space. The 22 has 363. For further comparison, the 650 has 624 square inches (which does not include the warming rack). I don’t think this picture gives credence to the amount of grilling space you get with this thing.

The distance between the main grate to the charcoal grate is 5 inches, which is the same as the 22. However, the distance between the bottom of the charcoal grate and the kettle is 6 inches on the 26 and 4 inches on the 22.

Standardization:

The kettle “accessories” are the same as the rest of the kettles. The ash catchers, the wheels, the handles, and even the charcoal baskets.

Now that we know what it looks like, how is it going to take the food? I had a small stockpile of shoulders (Boston Butts) and ribs in the freezer, so I decided to use them as props to get an idea on spacing. On the 22, I have been using my modified grate because I was tired of the charcoal baskets. I don’t plan on buying a new grate to cut up for the 26, so it is back to the baskets. Here are 2 shoulders. You could probably fit a third, but it would be tight.

2 racks of ribs easily fit flat across the grate.

When you add in a rib rack, you can easily fit 4 racks and a shoulder.

And “oh yeah”, I can fit my 16 inch pizza stone!

Well I am pretty excited. It is a big grill. I am curious to see what kind of modifications I need to make to my fuel and cooking times for indirect cooking. I “hope” to throw a shoulder on today. The fact that it is freezing outside isn’t going to make this learning curve any easier.

I have a feeling I will use the grill quite a bit for direct cooking too. With the extra space, I can really spread out my zones. Plus, I have full access to the perimeter. If I decided to host a steak party for some friends, we can all crowd around with beers in our hand cook our own meat. Very cool.

Stay tuned for Part 3, the maiden cook.