Product test: Thüros T4 BBQ station

You probably know someone who has one. Or at least you know someone who knows someone who has one. Or maybe you even have one yourself? What? A column grill, of course. The round or square grills made of thin stainless steel sheet that seem to be slowly rotting away in every other allotment garden, on every campsite and on numerous sports fields. If you're smiling knowingly now, you know what I'm talking about. But what you might not know is that this grilling principle is by no means limited to the thin sheet models from the hardware store or supermarket. These grills are even available in good quality. And they can even be upgraded so that they can also be used for indirect grilling. They are manufactured by a German company called Thüros that is actually not that unknown. And we're testing their T4 with a water bowl and BBQ hood as accessories.

Assembly
The funnel grill, as Thüros calls it, basically consists of three parts: base, column and funnel. The assembly is accordingly straightforward. There are eight screws and four nuts; the device can be assembled in less than 15 minutes even by someone with little manual skills. The end result is a grill that, with a 3,600 cm² grill surface, offers significantly more space than any 57 cm ball. And one that you can reasonably assume will be passed on to your grandchildren. Because not only are the eight screws in question enough to give the T4 enormous stability. Thüros uses V2A stainless steel of a respectable thickness. This makes the grill fairly indestructible - that's why there is a 25-year guarantee on the body. However, it does make the grill a little more expensive - the T4 "naked" costs 299 euros, the water bowl costs 39.90 euros and the hood 99 euros. This means that our grill costs just under 440 euros in total.

Indirect grilling is possible with the divider for the charcoal tray or with the water tray. Or with both, as shown here.

Eight screws and four nuts are all you need to assemble it. This makes the grill much more stable than many other models.

Operation
Lighting is pretty quick. It doesn't matter whether you light the briquettes or charcoal in the charcoal bowl of the grill or in a chimney starter that you put in the switch. The Thüros simply develops an impressive chimney draft. High heat is therefore no problem at all. But it will be exciting to see how the Thuringian manufacturer masters the challenge of indirect grilling at a slightly more moderate heat. Because at first glance this seems difficult due to the funnel shape. But why? However, the difference to the kettle grill in this respect is much smaller than it seems. After all, the ball also ultimately converges at a point at the bottom. If there were no charcoal grate, indirect grilling would not be possible. It is no different with the T4: There is either a sheet that divides the charcoal grate or the water bowl, which can also be used to divide the charcoal surface. Depending on the desired heat, you place a few briquettes either on one side or to the right and left of the bowl. The temperature is regulated using the ventilation slider at the bottom of the column and using the lid fan. So much for the theory. In practice, the T4 is a little bit finicky. As you might know from some kettle grills whose air supply control doesn't close quite properly. The Thüros also draws air from the side, for example via the openings for the handles of the grill. And a little through the gaps between the base, funnel and column. It's not a lot, but it's enough to prevent the grill from going out completely when the ventilation openings are closed. For many things, this isn't a big problem. In our test, we were able to set the grill fairly steadily at 175° C despite a relatively large amount of briquettes. For lower temperatures, however, you have to play around with the amount of coal. Accordingly, the T4 is perhaps not the ideal machine for pulled pork. What the grill is excellent for, however, is steaks. Simply because it gets a considerable amount of heat from the chimney draft. At the same time, it offers the possibility of further cooking because it can also provide a respectable indirect area.

The T4 offers a lot of surface area, both directly and indirectly. The number of drumsticks is more than enough for a child's birthday party.

Conclusion:
The Thüros T4, in combination with the BBQ hood, is a grill that is a little outside the mainstream. It is not a real BBQ device, but it can grill indirectly and is suitable as a steak machine. It impresses with its simplicity and high quality materials. And with a lavish range of accessories, which includes a charcoal shaft that is used to heat a rotisserie from behind rather than from below. This is actually something that hardly any other manufacturer in the charcoal sector offers for 1,295 euros.

To the manufacturer’s website:
https://www.thueros.de/classic-t4-holzkohlegrill/