Untitled Art "Raspberry Cheesecake" IPA

These berry beers don't tend to do well. It's not that I particularly object to the inclusion of berries in a beer, but I find that they tend to imbalance the beer pretty significantly, and that results in a lower overall score. The fact that they've chosen raspberries and this particular beer means that they've picked a berry that I am not particularly fond of in the first place. I also wasn't sure whether to categorize this is a fruit beer (as raspberries are not a fruit) or as a desert beer (as IPAs are not typically considered dessert beers). Nevertheless, I used both tags. It's my blog, and I'll do as I please.

The berries are definitely giving an interesting red tinge to the beer which results in a color that is best described as blood-riddled-honey. There isn't a particularly massive head on this beer, and it dies down pretty quickly to a thin veneer of tiny bubbles that gets stronger around the glass. The distributed white specks that are hovering inside the meat of the beer are almost mesmerizing by the way that they maintain consistent neutral buoyancy. The aroma is indeed raspberries and a heavy, sweet cream with a noticeable yeast lingering behind. I did not have high expectations entering this, but the aroma is fantastic.

First sip is an odd duck. The flavor doesn't really hit until the end of the swallow, and it's surrounded by wateriness, a little sweetness, and a dairy funk that puts me more in mind of the nitrous oxide that comes out of the spray can of whipped cream when it's low. No, I'm definitely not a fan of the sip. And I wish I could put my finger on exactly what was wrong with it, but it's just very off. Maybe a proper swig will solve this problem.

Tip-in is raspberry syrup sweet and tart with carbonation just tingling to let you know it's there while that strange dairy - almost like someone tried to make crème brûlée with regular milk -  creeps in from the sides. The middle streams with more raspberries and a sweet malt rising up with a yeast cautiously entering the picture. The finish is a terrible display of bitterness, soured dairy, raspberry stems, and unpleasant nonsense.

Bottom Line: Not a beer I can recommend.

0.75/5