The Koala doesn’t spend much time in my kitchen our kitchen, but like most red-blooded kiwi males, The Koala is happy behind a barbecue (with beer in hand). We haven’t had a barbecue for a few years so The Koala and I bought ourselves a charcoal barbecue for Christmas. Introducing our Charmate 57cm Premium Charcoal BBQ. There were 3 options for this size which we dubbed the cheapie ($80), the middle of the road ($200) and the Weber ($400). We went for the $200 option and also picked up a cover, a barbecue tool set, a lighter, Manuka wood chips and 2 bags of hardwood lump coal. Yes, we got ourselves coal for Christmas! We must have been bad this year.   Gas barbecues are super popular here in New Zealand because they are quick, convenient and cheap to run. But we figure, we cook with gas in our kitchen every day. We know what gas cooking tastes like. We would like a new experience please!   Charcoal is different to gas (no shit). You get a …