Barbecue time at the T3 Awards and our top choice is Napoleon Pro 22

The best barbecue, sponsored by AEG, is smokin' hot. Best get those chicken thighs on

T3 Awards 2019: best barbecue: Napoleon Pro

Thanks to the miracle of global warming, more and more people in the UK are getting the chance to use their barbecue grill more often. We've spent the last few years building up a massive list of the top grills and right now the one that stands out is the Napoleon Pro – or, to give it its full and slightly mysterious name, Pro 22 K Leg. It's just won the 2019 T3 Award for barbecues, sponsored by AEG – a brand that itself knows a few things about great cooking. 

You have to go some to beat Kings of the Kettle Weber in a barbecue showdown but that's what Napoleon has managed to do with the Pro 22. Superbly designed and engineered in Canada, this charcoal kettle grill is a real connoisseur's choice. 

The '22' part of the name refers to the hefty, 22-inch cast iron grill. Crucially, this can be placed at three different heights, meaning that as your coals head towards the end of their useful life, you can just move the grill closer to them. This is also very handy if you're looking to sear meat at super-high temperature. Adding to the grilling cleverness, the grates are also hinged, so you can add more charcoal without having to dismantle the entire thing.

The Pro 22 also has a brilliantly accurate thermometer mounted in the porcelain-enamelled steel lid. This uses offset hinges, making it easy to lift, and there are also four sturdy legs.

All told, this Napoleon grill is a joy to use and a beauty to behold. Get hold of one – which can be easier said than done as stocks are often limited and sought-after – and it's guaranteed to brighten your summer. 

Duncan Bell

Duncan is the former lifestyle editor of T3 and has been writing about tech for almost 15 years. He has covered everything from smartphones to headphones, TV to AC and air fryers to the movies of James Bond and obscure anime. His current brief is everything to do with the home and kitchen, which is good because he is an excellent cook, if he says so himself. He also covers cycling and ebikes – like over-using italics, this is another passion of his. In his long and varied lifestyle-tech career he is one of the few people to have been a fitness editor despite being unfit and a cars editor for not one but two websites, despite being unable to drive. He also has about 400 vacuum cleaners, and is possibly the UK's leading expert on cordless vacuum cleaners, despite being decidedly messy. A cricket fan for over 30 years, he also recently become T3's cricket editor, writing about how to stream obscure T20 tournaments, and turning out some typically no-nonsense opinions on the world's top teams and players.

Before T3, Duncan was a music and film reviewer, worked for a magazine about gambling that employed a surprisingly large number of convicted criminals, and then a magazine called Bizarre that was essentially like a cross between Reddit and DeviantArt, before the invention of the internet. There was also a lengthy period where he essentially wrote all of T3 magazine every month for about 3 years. 

A broadcaster, raconteur and public speaker, Duncan used to be on telly loads, but an unfortunate incident put a stop to that, so he now largely contents himself with telling people, "I used to be on the TV, you know."