Beer Temperature for Bottle Priming

I've brewed plenty batches so far, but there is still one small question I have about bottle priming. I want to be absolutely sure I have been doing this right.

When priming calculators ask your for the temperature of the beer in order for the bottles to carb well, do they mean:

1- The actual temperature of the beer at the time of bottling.
Say it's 68F.
2- The actual temperature of the beer during 2-3 weeks of carbing.
Say it's 73F.

They are looking for the temperature of the beer at the time you are ready to prime because the temperature will determine how much CO2 remains dissolved in the beer and that has to be accounted for in the final amount of CO2 you desire. If you don't account for that you will get overcarbed beer. Ask how I know that. Have you ever opened a bottle and before you can start pouring the foam starts coming out of the bottle and by the time it quits you have half your beer on the counter top?

I go with the actual temperature at the time of bottling. This temperature will be very close to describing how much carbon dioxide is actually still in solution. The calculator will give you an estimate of how much priming sugar to add, for the yeast to eat and produce more carbon dioxide and develop pressure inside the bottle, to force a certain amount of extra carbon dioxide into solution. Very simplified version of how Henry's Law works.

It is the temp before bottling. but while the temp at bottle time is normally right, this confused me when I started cold crashing. If I cold crash then transfer to a bottling bucket and the beer is still 50f, I calculate for 68-70 which is my normal temp after fermenting/before bottling.

Actually it is supposed to be your peak temp after primary fermentation ends. There is a temperature dependent amount of co2 that beer can hold on to- after primary fermentation you aren't making any more co2, and your beer has had the most come out of solution at that highest temp.

hebbs said:

actually it is supposed to be your peak temp after primary fermentation ends.

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