Priming solution volume?

[MaltLicker]

How much water do you use to prime 5.0 gallons of beer? 

I've been using 16 oz (0.5L bottle of Deer Park) and it occurred to me last time that was more than a beer. 

I used 12 oz this morning, but the CS was relatively low for the Scottish 80/- I was bottling.

Does it matter, as long as it dilutes the CS?  Is it more scaled to the amount of CS you're using, or the volume of beer?

[SleepySamSlim]

Well the first point I'll make is I have adjusted my partial boil setup in BSmith for a 5.5g - which means that after losses in transfers and samples I am bottling (and carbonating) exactly 5gal.

That said ... this is one of the areas I've not really dived into in any detail. The original instructions from the LBS said use between 3/4 to 1 cup corn sugar to 1 pint water. Use 3/4 a cup for more restrained carbonation - British ales etc. And there are 4 tablespoons to a 1/4 cup. So most of the time I just ball-park it with 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons. Although I just bottled a Southern English Ale with 3/4 cup.

I guess for me right now (just completing my first year of brewing) I'm still groping with the other processes and getting a handle on them. Carbonation is definitely important - but for causal drinking its not a big deal. That said - one of my taster / testers did indicate a porter had too much fizz and tingling on his tongue. So there are some guidelines I need to start thinking about.

I know that you have many of your beers judged so this is a critical issue as you try to be style specific. Looking forward to learning something on this thread. And I've got to brew a Scottish 60 or 70 this Winter !  

[MaltLicker]

I do enter comps, but the real issue is that I bottle everything, so I get one shot.  And since I'm doing 3 gallons at bottling time, 16 oz is 4% of the final volume, so dilution of the malt/body is a concern.

Long ago, I think I was doing 8 oz in 5 gallons and felt the CS was not spreading around the volume of beer well enough, so I increased the amount of water.