Breakfast & Furious
La P'tite Maiz

33 cl can poured slightly warmed into a snifter in Toulouse, France. Little spritz of head is stubbornly offered up above a deep brown brew.
Having read the ingredients, I came into this experience with high hopes:
Water, barley & wheat malts, oat flakes, hops, cocoa, cinnamon, ginger, clove, lactose, sugar and yeast.
OK then!
On the nose, it’s prunes soaked in an allspice bath. Pleasant enough.
Full pull and sit back.
First thing is the spice mixture is jumbled. Thankfully the cinnamon is used sparingly, but it’s noticible. There’s a chocolote note that shares space with sweet black cherries. I think the brewer chickened out with the cloves. Barely a whimper. And I couldn’t find ginger (nor the professor or mary anne) anywhere. The hops come blaring up the middle for a gain of seven on third down, but come off as almost sour, and a bitter taste lingers long enough to mute the spices from popping on the finish. The 12% ABV leaves a skid mark on the tongue.
Mouthfeel is smooth from the addition of oats and lactose, but don’t add density. It’s kind of a thin brew, really. There is medium-touches-high carbonation.
Overall, this is a muckeyed up RIS that’s wonky and disproportionate. If you’re gonna say “clove and ginger”, bring some! So, minus the bear, it doesn’t suck. It carries the hallmarks of a RIS.
And it works as a Breakfast Stout at 10:00 AM on Saturday morning with a croissant chaser.,.