diff --git a/abra b/abra
index 0d32f7b..291f478 100755
--- a/abra
+++ b/abra
@@ -2019,8 +2019,7 @@ sub_recipe_release() {
 
   for compose_file in "${compose_files[@]}"; do
     mapfile -t services < <($YQ e -N '.services | keys | .[]' "$compose_file" | sort -u)
-
-    if ! printf '%s\0' "${services[@]}" | grep -Fqxz -- "app"; then
+    if [ "$compose_file" = "compose.yml" ] && ! printf '%s\0' "${services[@]}" | grep -Fqxz -- "app"; then
       # shellcheck disable=SC2016
       warning 'No `app` service found; which one should we use for the version number?'
       select service_item in "${services[@]##*/}"; do