Directions
1. Soak plank in a deep baking sheet filled with water and porter ale for at least 1 hour. This can be done during the first stage of cooking the ribs.
2. Light one side of your barbecue, and preheat until the temperature gauge shows 350°F (175°C). Sprinkle ribs liberally with salt and pepper and place ribs meat side up on a roasting pan. Cover pan tightly with foil and place on the unlit side of your barbecue. Bake for 1 ¼ hours.
3. In a sauce pan over medium heat on the stove, or on the side-burner of the barbecue, combine BBQ sauce, maple syrup, sesame seeds, garlic powder, and one bottle of porter. Bring to a boil then simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
4. Remove ribs from the roasting pan, and baste with still warm sauce. Retain ½ of the sauce for the additional basting. Place ribs on soaked planks, bone side down. Put the planks with the ribs on them on one side of the barbecue with low heat directly underneath them. Turn the other side of the barbecue to med-high and close the lid. Keep temperature around 350°F. Planks should begin to smoke within a few minutes and produce a fragrant smoke.
5. Adjust the amount of smoke you would like to add to your ribs by increasing (turning up) or decreasing (turning down) the direct heat underneath the planks, and opening/closing the lid. Allow ribs to cook on the planks for 25 minutes. Use remaining sauce to baste ribs several times throughout cooking.
6. Remove planks with ribs from the grill and place the planks directly on a plate or tray for serving. Serve with apple sauce.