BCS dubbel - carbonation volumes (confused about how much to carbonate)

Hello.

I brewed Dubbel from Brewing classic styles 3 weeks ago and I'm going to bottle tomorrow.

Looking at the guidelines for Dubbels the recommended carbonation volumes is 2.3 - 2.9 vols in Beersmith. Looking at other calculators, the recommended volume for dubbels is usually 1.9 - 2.4 (i.e. http://www.kotmf.com/tools/prime.php).

The recipe in the books says condition this recipe to 3.0 - 4.0 vols.

Now I'm starting to think there might be some different measures or why is there so much difference in these recommendations?

I at least want to ferment my dubbel with higher rather than lower carbonation and I'm leaning towards using this calculator with the volume set to 3.5: http://www.northernbrewer.com/priming-sugar-calculator/

Should I go higher (4.0)?

"Correct" carbonation levels are purely subjective, which is why there are so many different suggestions. Remember, they are all just that, suggestions. Carb it however you think it will taste best.

JuanMoore said:

"Correct" carbonation levels are purely subjective, which is why there are so many different suggestions. Remember, they are all just that, suggestions. Carb it however you think it will taste best.

Click to expand...

This is true to an extent, but traditionally, Dubbels are highly carbed.

I think the book is the most correct. I would go no higher than maybe 3.3 if you're just using regular bottles (give yourself a safety margin for bottle bombs), but up to 4.0 if you're using the thick Belgian ones (or the tall 500ml German hefeweizen bottles, or even champagne bottles).