Carbonation

I kegged my second batch and set the C02 to 50psi for 18 hours and then gradually reduced (30, 25, 20, 20) over the last few days. The beer tastes carbed properly but the bubbles seem smaller than I had expected.

The aforementioned method that I used is just me playing and getting a feel for process and evolution of the beer. Obviously I will learn more and methods will change as time goes on.

On my first batch the bubbles seemed more like a north american carbed beer after the keg was half empty.

Can carbonation be deceiving? I mean even though it feels right, would just letting it settle for a week have an affect? My senses could be wrong about the current carbonation, but it feels like if I allowed more in at higher pressures the beer would change from crisp with a creamy finish, to foamy almost as soon as it hits the palate.

You don't need to use 50psi...it depends on temp and how many volumes of CO2 you are shooting for. At 40F I just set mine at 15psi and let it sit for a week, that gives me about 2.5 volumes.

I've found better results just setting my pressure between 10-15psi and letting it sit for a week. I know there are many ways to carb up the beer, but I've tried a few methods such as setting it to 30psi for a few days then gradually bringing it down, setting it into the 20s, rocking the keg back and forth for 10 minutes and letting it sit for a few days then bringing it down to serving pressure, or just setting it a little above serving pressure, let it sit for a week, and I have to say the 'set it and forget it' method seems to give me the best results.

If you dont like the set and forget for a week method, then you can burst carb. However, as mentioned above, I wouldn't use 50psi. Set it at 30psi for 24-48hrs and then drop it to serving pressure after that. Your desired volumes are based on temp and the pressure you set it at.

Use this chart for carbonation. It's easy to read. Temps down the left side, pressure up top, and whatever desired volume is in the middle. I print this out and put it on my kegerator.

http://www.kegerators.com/carbonation-table.php