Give Me A Reason
Untied Brewing Company

Traded for this a while as I went away for part of the summer. I've become a fan of Untied as their offerings have gotten steadily better over the last few years but this one took just a teeny step back. No, this wasn't a bad beer and I enjoyed it but I think there may have been too many hops here and too much going on for anything in particular to stand out in the end.

The pour to this was a cloudy, peachy shade of honey with just a bit of light seeping in around the edges. Not a lot of head topped this off and even less lacing was left behind as I worked my way through this as only a few dots remained in the middle of my pint glass before slowly siding down to the liquid. Loads of peach, tangerine, and tangy fruit in the nose as the taste was just as light on the palate and acrid in nature. Tough to discern the influence of the vanilla beans and even though to see how this was a Milkshake beer, as some actual lactose sweetness and creaminess might have taken this up a level or two. Plenty juicy and nicely carbonated, this had the underlying feeling of a fruit or vegetable patch as there was a rustic, natural undertone to this beer that gave it the identity that it needed.

That also hid the alcohol well since this certainly didn't feel like something that was listed as 8.3% ABV. Dated 5/18 with "REASON" written underneath that date, this held up well over the last 4 1/2 months as there wasn't any sediment visible in the liquid during my time with this. I wasn't so much disappointed with this as I expected a bit more based on the hops and description of this beer but on a mild day such as this, I enjoyed kicking back with this and wishing that fall wasn't around the corner...

 

On draught at the brewery. Served in Untied's signature tulip glass. It pours a dense, murky, dirty orange color. On draught there is very little head although I suspect a can pour would have a better appearance. A fairly subdued nose with orange, lemon, lime, and a whiff of cream. The smell is clearly influenced by the Motueka hops. Its taste opens with tangerine and tart lemon and grapefruit. There is strong base of bready malt in the background. There is also an earthiness characteristic of the Simcoe hops. As it warms I begin to taste the vanilla but it's less pronounced than I expected. It's not overly bitter but finishes with noticeable astringency. I think the Citra and Amarillo hops dominate the taste. The mouth feel is thick and creamy with an appropriate level of carbonation and the 8.3% ABV gives it good substance. Overall, Give Me a Reason is a bit hard to describe. To my taste it doesn't have the sweetness characteristic of a "milkshake" IPA but it's citrusy and refreshing. It's not as delicate and nuanced as some of Untied's other DIPAs. While I would gladly drink it again it lacks the star quality of Untied's best DIPAs.