I like the way Ash burns, and when straight grained it generally splits very easily, but I like the way Black Cherry coals up better than Ash even though Ash may have more BTUs.
I have also learned that the wood you prefer often depends on your stove and flue setup. Ash is one of the easiest hardwoods to burn and does not require much draft.
Conversely, if your draft is "too good", Ash will often not last as long as you wish.
I'm running the same air tight 55 gal drum stove, but the flue setup in our new cabin (mostly vertical with lined pipes) is 10X better than our old set up (uninsulated pipes with a lot of horizontal). Our two primary sources of fuel up there are Ash and Black Cherry.
For the overnight, we used to prefer Ash in the old cabin, in the new cabin we usually choose Black Cherry or a mix.
You don't want to get up in the middle of the night, and you always want coals in the morning!
