Brisket was a worthless cut of meat about 40 years age and was ground up to be used in burgers or just thrown away. Until someone had the sense to smoke it for several hours with spices and a delicious new dish was born. Brisket needs to be marbled with fat and have a layer of fat on the outside this keeps the meat moist during the long cooking process. Spices and good smoke are both important elements of a tasty brisket. The smoke is what gives it that sweet flavor and the spices add the tangy flavor. There is a (smoke) ring of 1/32 to 1/2 inch most times. The smoke ring is the result of a chemical reaction between smoke & Air (nitrogen)