What’s the best briquette charcoal for smoking a pork butt?

I really like the Weber briquettes. I would go with those if you can get them. If not, Kingsford blue bag.

I used to be a real snob about using lump charcoal, then I read this.

LINK

Basically, it says briquettes work best. And it quotes competition BBQ guys like Harry Soo who say things such as "I use whatever briquettes are on sale" or "I use whatever briquettes the sponsor is giving away"

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move to lump and never go back.

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Lump doesn't work too great for the snake method.

I like kingsford for the snake method in my Weber kettle. I’m just not good at knowing how lump will heat. Kingsford is very consistent and predictable.

I use kingsford for the consistency, i found lump to be too “unpredictable.”

Kingsford makes a competition briquettte with less additives. It worked well for me in a WSM.

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Lump is for grilling. Briquettes for smoking.

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so much wrong in this statement.

Lump is way cleaner and better all around... for grilling and smoking. Briquettes are filled with other garbage such as sawdust, starch, paper, and God knows what else to bind them together. In addition to all that, when using briquettes, you’re left with a smoker filled with ash to clog up your vents. I’ve tried briquettes in my smoker one time because I was drunk and out of lump... it’s a messy disaster compared to lump.

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Lump is inconsistent temperature wise.

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Not the case on my BGE.

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On top of all this, using the snake or minion method with lump doesn't work. When I'm on a long smoke with a brisket or butt, the last thing I want to do is mess with lighting more charcoal every couple hours.

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Do what works for you.

I basically draw the line on briquettes v lump based on cook time. This is because, over time, I noticed that briquettes give off their own smoke that, although not unpleasant to smell, does impact flavor. The next time that you light a chimney of briquettes, notice all of the smoke that comes out once your tinder is gone. Notice again when you’ve got it all lit and you transfer your charcoal to your smoker (but before you add your wood).

Lump isn’t nearly as smoky and, to the extent that it is smoky, it tends to be wood smoke instead of binder smoke (glue smoke).

But the downside is that lump doesn’t burn for nearly as long as briquettes will, so if I need a long low and slow, such as for a pork shoulder or for a brisket, I go with briquettes (being sure to let the glue smoke die down before putting the meat into the smoker) so I can get that long and sustained cook. Anything else gets lump. I want to taste wood smoke rather than glue smoke.

But when I do use briquettes, it’s Kingsford blue.