I recently travelled to Toronto for a company event and had to make sure that I visited Bar Volo, one of my favourite spots in the city. Bar Volo brews a pretty diverse selection of beer styles and their numerous taps include their beer, guest beer—and a small number of beer engines for cask ale. On this visit, I made sure to try Volo Piccola, an English dark mild conditioned and served from the cask.
Appearance: Piccola is served in a glass mug and appears a murky chocolate brown in the dim light of Bar Volo. It comes with a perfectly dense head of foam that lasts from your first sip to your last—in fact, when you're done the beer, the head is still there at the bottom of your glass. There is absolutely no lacing.
Aroma: It smells very faintly of smoke and roast, like coffee or chocolate.
Flavour: Piccola's flavour profile can best be described as a combination of watered down coffee with chocolate malt—and believe it or not, I mean that in a good way. This is an absolutely delicious beer. There's also a slight mineral character, possibly due to the water profile.
Mouthfeel: The body is perfect. It is thick but also somewhat slick with the low carbonation you expect from cask ale. This beer is exceptionally crushable.
Overall: Piccola is exactly what I wanted it to be. It is bang on the style. One of the best beers I've had all year.
Rating: 4.5 out of 5.