Taste Some Cocktail Magic!

What a great event! The Exchequer is a must destination for anyone who likes good cocktails (and beers) and tasty bites — what a great combination. From Hendrick’s High Tea to the Passion Fruit Thyme (Mojito) — everything was great and Darren, our host/​bartender extraordinaire for the evening, had great stories to go with his cocktail making magic. We started with our Tea — so clever and yummy — I could see wiling away many an evening with a spot of this tea. We went on to new old fashioned’s, artisan beers and an espresso martini — not to mention yummy pork belly — is their anything that goes better with drinking — yes, fried calamari and potato wedges. Thank you to Annie, really great event, as always.

I do love the cocktails me! So another great event. Really nice to catch up with fellow Unilocalers and even nicer to try some cocktails.
I dont think I have ever tried any of the ones we were given. I really enjoyed drinking the gin from the teacups — that was new for me.
Darren kept us entertained with lots of info on all things mixoligy! This guy knew his stuff and has really got me thinking about so called deals where establishments offer 2 for 1 cocktails. (only half a shot in each). My only fault would be that we neber got to sample the mojito — may favourite cocktail in the whole wide world! Especially as Darren made a point that the use (I think) 7 year old vodka and its meant to be the best.
Anyway I guess that means I have to go back to try it myself.

Another eye-​opening world expander of a night. Comfortably squeezed together at the bar in the back, Darren & his assistant whisked us through a world of cocktails & craft beers with the ease of seasoned artisans.
I can enjoy gin? Apparently — as Darren served us the Hendrick’s High Tea. Bourbon can taste like Christmas? Passion fruit & thyme are beautiful together? All affirmative. All tempting in their own right. Not to mention the stories Darren wrapped around each one made them all the more alluring (except the beers — they could be descended from highborn lords or infused with diamonds and they will still make me wrinkle my nose in childlike distaste).
And then, in came some top-​notch gastropub appetizers. Soft pork belly nibbles, hearty roasted potato wedges, & crispy calamari topped off the night, & lo, my tummy rejoiced in its tastiness.
Overall, this event ticked all my boxes: a comfortable venue and location, knowledgeable & entertaining staff, new learning experiences, & fun conversations with some of my favorite Unilocalers. It was a gorgeous night — well done, Annie & The Exchequer!

The Exchequer bar. It’s a classy spot and this event didn’t disappoint. I was really impressed by the staff, who were both friendly and informative, while they went to work producing some excellent cocktails.
When I entered I met Annie and I seen a row of tea cups along the bar. Privately I wondered about drinking alcohol from them but before I could even judge myself a tea pot full of Hendrick’s gin arrived and my delicious fantasy was realized.
Clearing my palate with a slice of cucumber, I then sipped on an Old Fashioned and swore to Fiona L. I could smell Christmas cakes in the stiff, zesty drink.
Two more delicious drinks followed along with some finger food and beer samples. It was a great evening and I thank Unilocal,The Exchequer Bar and all who were there. I will be back!

Another great Unilocal elite event put together by Annie and the team of the Exchequer bar, special thanks to Darren who mixed unique and really tasty cocktails for us to sample.
The night started out with Hendrick’s high tea which was a really nice and refreshing cocktail best part it was served in pretty Porcelain tea cups — I say High Tea just got new defined and I really like it that way ;) Besides this we were able to try three more cocktails and sample some beer. My fave was the passion fruit & thyme caipirinha which had this light herby but unique taste to the classy caipirinha– perfect match to a summer night out!
While enjoying those cocktails and catching up with some follow Unilocalers we got to try some bar bites which were tasty and perfect to match the drinks.
All in all an amazing evening with refreshing and tasty cocktails combined with food and lovely company-​looking forward to the next one already!

Although I arrived an hour late, I still made it in time for tasty nibbles and the very decadent coffee cocktail!
A huge thanks to The Unilocal team for yet another corker of an evening and of course to the Exchequer for hosting such a lovely event.
Always nice to catch up to with fellow Unilocalers too :)

My first Elite event was a success and much more than I had expected!
The event was structured as a two hour cocktail making class. Not only did we have the opportunity to see how the drinks were made, we were given the back story on each one of the drinks, which made drinking each one of them even more enjoyable!
The bartender of the night was Darren, the host with the most! Darren and his crew made us a wide range of delicious cocktails from the classic Old Fashioned, which I now have a new appreciation for, to High Tea and Espresso martinis! The Old Fashioned was smooth and bright, with a perfect balance of whiskey, bitters and a bright taste of citrus. My second favorite cocktail of the night was the High Tea, made with Hendricks Gin, it was bright, refreshing, with hints of cucumber to call out the notes in the gin with a hint of pepper to confuse your taste buds and explode in your mouth. Although Darren is a cocktail man, this did not stop him from showing us a few other home brew beers that he enjoys. Boy, does he know his stuff! I never thought that I liked whiskey or certain kinds of beers, but did he ever open my eyes.
Halfway through event, we had a few nice nibbles, followed by a taste of an espresso martini as dessert, YUM! Being a Gastro Pub, The Exchequer offers more than bar food, serving up delicious nibbles and mains and is a great place for a date night, any night of the week!
I have been to The Exchequer before, but now I have an entirely new appreciation for the establishment with it’s cocktails, knowing that Darren personally created over 23 of the cocktails on their menu! It was really great to see and talk to someone that is as passionate about what they do as Darren is. He doesn’t rush through his drinks, he takes his time knowing that he loves what he does and wants to make the most premium drink for the customer. If one of the 32 specialty cocktails doesn’t tickle your fancy, try one of the 52 bottled beers. There is sure to be something in there for everyone.
I had an absolutely lovely time and met some new fellow Unilocalers! Thanks Annie for making it happen!

This was I think my first Elite event, I wasn’t actually sure what was going to happen.
As it turns out, it was basically 2 hours of drinking nice drinks and eating nice food.
I have never been in the Exchequer before, but this will change as its a really nice gastro-​pub/​cocktail bar/​real ale bar. Everything was great about the place, from the staff to the environment and the drinks.
Darren the head barman was the man of the night (aided by his fellow cocktail maker waiters). He’s an obviously passionate man about alcohol. Darren’s take on drink’s is to give the customer quality at affordable prices to get people back in. He certainly knows his stuff and travels the world looking for nice drinks for us to try.
I’ve been to a couple of places in Dublin for cocktails and this is the only time I really enjoyed all the drinks I tried. They really do make some good cocktails.
Add to this a massive selection of bottle conditioned beers and variety of other drinks and you have a great bar.
We also had some great finger food near the end. If the gastropub food is as good as the finger food is looking to be a great place.
Overall the event was great, thanks Annie.

Another great Elite event, thanks Annie L!
And to Darren and his crew at The Exchequer, who know their stuff and are very proud of the service they provide here: all in the name of great cocktails.
Starting with a quirky Hendricks Gin cocktail, infused with cucumber. Called the High Tea, is served in Hendricks branded teapots and teacups, sticking out pinky obligatory.
Next we were treated to an Old Fashioned, which gives you that «whoa» kick a good cocktail should give, while it still remaining smooth.
Onto the third, which was a twist on the Caipirinha, it included passion fruit and thyme. Who knew that would work? Darren clearly did.
The final cocktail was a coffee infused hit, that really did hit the spot. And kept me trucking for the rest of the evening… I probably shouldn’t have finished my partners sample (he’s not a fan of coffee).
Intermingled with some yummy finger food and some fine craft beers samples, we were treated to an excellent evening at the Exchequer. It was also great to see the other Unilocalers, old and new.
Another Unilocaling Elite success methinks.