This also can bring new information or perspectives on the topic. This is a good thing!

For the life of me i cant even remember this post or who was asking about this since it was over a year ago. But good insight to reread all the comments

Yeah, I didn’t realize how far back it went until after I had read it and replied.

twilliams what ClaytonD says is all correct and in addition, it is what imparts a “cured meat” flavor that is not identifiable but everyone knows what it is! Not adding cure to a brat is fine but then unless you can keep the brats out of the danger zone 40-140° F then I wouldn’t cold smoke. Cold smoked Brats. It’s an interesting idea but doesn’t seem needed, Brats are a fresh product. If you want some smoke on them then I would cook them on a pellet grill or add something like the Flip Professional to a gas grill.

Many years ago our family business made both a smoked and unsmoked bratwurst, both of which were cured and fully cooked, ready to eat products. So to say all brats are fresh is not entirely accurate, although the fresh variety may be more common.

A quick internet search pulls up several brands of both cooked and cooked/smoked bratwurst sold commercially.

But do your Brats really need smoke?-Generally no as it was designed as a Fresh Sausage, but there are exceptions- Coburger Brats have traditionally been grilled over a Pine Cone Fire. This is how I like them.