There’s charcoal… and then there’s what The Good Charcoal Company is doing. This isn’t just fuel—it’s the quiet co-pilot behind some of my best cooks. From the first spark, you can tell it’s different. It lights fast, burns clean, and doesn’t throw off that harsh, chemical funk that ruins flavor before you even get rolling. What you get instead is pure, honest heat—the kind that lets your wood, your seasoning, and your technique actually shine. The lump size? Solid. Not a bag of gravel dust like some others. I’m talking real chunks that give you control—whether I’m running a screaming hot sear for a tomahawk straight on the coals or settling into a steady burn for a longer cook. It holds temp like a champ and responds when you adjust airflow, which is everything in live fire cooking. Flavor-wise, it stays in its lane—in the best way possible. It doesn’t overpower. It supports. That means when I layer in Tennessee cooking wood or finish with a glaze, I’m tasting what I built… not fighting the charcoal. And here’s something that matters to me: it’s made from reclaimed wood. So while I’m out here cooking over fire, I’m not burning through forests to do it. That’s a win. Bottom line—this is the kind of charcoal that lets you cook with confidence. No guesswork. No weird burns. Just consistent, clean heat that shows up every time. If you’re serious about live fire, this isn’t optional gear… it’s foundational.

I started using this lump coal last summer after I first seen it at my local Sam's club. I've used it in my grill as well as my wood burning smoker and have cooked briskets, pork shoulders, ribs, pork bellies, chicken, roast, and steaks. Now I've got 3 cooks in my new gravity feed smoker which the lump coal works well in. In the past I have only bought premium lump coal brands and I have to say this matches any of the premium brands at a better value.

We are extremely impressed with the Good Charcoal Company Lump charcoal! As a BBQ competition team, consistency is what we need, for us this charcoal provides a consistent burn rate allowing steady temperatures in our drum smokers without having to reload charcoal throughout the long cooks or continually adjust the fires. Whether we are cooking in our backyard or on the competition circuit, the Good Charcoal Company charcoal’s combination of consistent sizing, reliable burn and heat output has made it our go-to charcoal hands down!! We have compared other charcoals side by side with The Good Charcoal, for us there is no better option!! Overall performance of this lump charcoal in our opinion is above and beyond all others we have used in our backyard and on the competition circuit.

I bought this charcoal after someone in my office forwarded me the article from the Washington Post last summer about how eco-friendly the Good Charcoal Company has become - saving cheetah population (I've been obsessed with cheetahs ever since I was little and then we went on safari). The charcoal is a really great all-natural option and doesn't have the overwhelming flavor of other lump. I read somewhere that pieces were a little smaller, but my husband said that he was really happy with the charcoal and our family loved our Easter BBQ. We didn't even use as much as we thought, and brought some over to our neighbor the next weekend.

Where's the lump charcoal? Second bag I purchased and it's full of small shale bits. I'll have to try a different brand.

I was very excited to be able to purchase Lump charcoal at Sam's due to the great price but, as soon as I opened the bag and started loading my grill, I was sad and disappointed with the product. I knew then, another trip back to the store was on the horizon. I am not a fan of briquettes at all because of all the chemicals and heat limitation so I had to go to a different store to get charcoal. Luckily, there's a Walmart next to Sam's and I was able to shop a GREAT selection of lump charcoal at Walmart for a fair price ($15 for a 15lb bag). Product was returned to Sam's and I do not intend to buy it again.

I tried this last summer, the bag was practically full of crumbs.. thought ok, maybe I just got a bag that had been tossed around. Grabbed a bag this year , it was the same . Not lump more like crumbs. Disappointed in product , packaging is nice.

It's fine if you like cooking with Charcoal powder. To call what was in the bag I bought lump is a joke. Based on other reviews, I'm disappointed that Sams sells this product.

Easily some of the worst chacoal I've ever had the displeasure buying. Made the mistake of purchasing 4 bags of this crud and every one of the bags the charcoal was in small 2" to 3" sized coal. Couldn't keep my offset smoker at 250 degrees due to the charcoal being so closely packed that the fire would try to go out. So very disappointed with this charcoal. In the past I've always bought my lump charcoal from Sam's won't be buying again till they get a different brand in. Don't buy this charcoal, it's crap. Should not have been called "lump" charcoal - more like pebble charcoal.

I bought this “charcoal” a couple years ago and a lot of people had reported the same problem, no lumps, a year later a gave it another shot and, again, no lumps. Here we are again for the 3rd and last time, no lumps.