STEP 1

Tree collection

Trees are collected from our beautiful British woodlands and forests. They are all either wind fallen, coppiced or felled as part of a forestry programme. Each tree is identified by species and taken into account to ensure we’re in-tune with the tree population's health and nurturing its regeneration.

STEP 2

Seasoning

Trees are stacked in Charcoal yards to season. A newly felled tree can have up to 70% moisture and for great charcoal, it needs to be closer to 20%. The only natural way to do this is through exposure to the elements, time and patience. Seasoning lasts from 6 months to 2 years.

STEP 3

Preparing for fire

The seasoned logs are split and if necessary, further kiln dried to achieve the perfect moisture levels. The dried logs are then placed systematically into a specialist oven called a charcoal retort (which come in lots of different shapes and sizes).

STEP 4

Lighting the Flame

Once loaded and sealed, the retort chamber is super heated from an adjacent fire box, to anywhere from 300°C - 500°C depending on the species of wood. Such high temperatures enable the wood breakdown process - expelling moisture, oils and flammable gases from the wood.

STEP 5

The Pyrolysis Process

Pyrolysis is thermo-treatment where wood is exposed to high temperatures in an oxygen-starved chamber. It creates chemical and physical separation without ever making contact with a direct flame. This carefully monitored process carries on until gases are completely burnt off, indicating that the wood has completed the conversion process and is now 90% carbon, incredible charcoal and worthy to be part of the House of Charcoal family.

STEP 6

Cooling, Grading, Packaging

Once the charcoal is below 40C, it’s emptied from the retort and is ready for grading. The charcoal passes over a filter which sorts the chunks, leaving dust and small bits behind and allowing the larger pieces to graduate into craft bags. Each craft bag is hand-sealed to keep the contents clean and contained.

STEP 7

Storage and Delivery

After that, our British charcoal is stored and awaiting your next order.