Makes: 8 to 10 servings
Mix the water, salt, apple juice, bourbon, peppercorn and sugar into a 5-gallon bucket lined with a resealable bag. Stir until the salt and sugar is dissolved. Add the turkey into the bag with the brine. In a garbage bag-lined ice chest filled with ice, place the bucket in and surround with ice. Keep in a cool place and let brine 12 hours or overnight. Turn the turkey after 6 hours. Remove turkey from the brine and pat dry with paper towels.
Place the turkey in a roasting pan fitted with a roast rack, breast side up. Rub the turkey with olive oil and massage the seasoning onto the turkey. Stuff cavity with slices of apple. Allow to sit for one hour before cooking.
Heat firebox with hardwood lump charcoal until smoker reaches 275 degrees. Add mix of hickory and apple wood chunks. Place the turkey on the smoker and add 1/2 cup of chicken broth to the pan. Cook for one hour. Spray the turkey liberally with chicken stock. Repeat the basting every hour. When skin becomes a deep, golden brown, cover the bird with foil for the remainder of the smoke. Cook until the internal temperature of the breast registers between 165 and 170 degrees F (about 4 to 5 hours depending on the size of the bird). Remove the turkey to a large cutting board and let rest for at least 20 minutes before carving.