A COCKTAIL bar has been stirring up plenty of excitement with its blend of unique drinks, quirky events and love for all things local.

Dark Bear proved to be a roaring success in 2018, having opened in March, and it looks as though things will only get better as founders and friends Lloyd Brown and David Smith reveal what’s in store for 2019.

Kicking things off; a Burns Night celebration. To mark the occasion, Dark Bear is hosting a masterclass on January 25 surrounding Scotch whisky specialists Douglas Laing and their impressive range of malts.

If you’d like to join in the celebration, which starts at 7pm, you’ll get a drink on arrival, tasters of the whole range and haggis pizza tasters supplied by The Stable, Bridport.

A Valentine’s Day special with Bathtub Gin will see Lloyd deliver a history of gin before guests infuse and compound their own with various botanicals, illustrating the process and the skill required in balancing flavours.

This event is limited to eight couples and each will take home a 200ml bottle of their own cold, compounded gin.

To book either of these, email Lloyd-brown@hotmail.co.uk

It’s been a busy 10 months for Lloyd and David, who transform Aroma on East Street, Bridport, into Dark Bear from 6pm until late Wednesday - Saturday.

As well as hosting their own workshops and masterclasses, the pair, who have more than 20 years’ bar experience between them, pride themselves on offering something different - and are passionate about using local ingredients to do so, meaning you can find around 15 seasonal cocktail on their ever-changing menu at any time.

Though cocktail-focused, the bar offers a range of Dorset and Glaswegian beers, wine, cider, gin and whisky in homage to David’s Scottish roots and Lloyd’s Dorset background.

For those who didn’t get the chance to visit in 2018, Lloyd and David took Dark Bear to them, popping up at venues and events across the county.

Amongst all this, they found time to enter the Observer Food Magazine Awards – and were acknowledged as runners up in the ‘Best Place to Drink’ category representing the West Country.

They ended the year on a high, when award-winning drinks historians and cocktail specialists Jared Brown and Anistatia Miller, well-respected internationally in the drinks industry, gave a talk for them at the LSI.

Bridport and Lyme Regis News:

SPECIAL GUESTS: Jared Brown Picture: SIMON EMMETT

Jared is master distiller for the multi-award winning Sipsmith distillery.

There’s plenty more in the pipeline for Dark Bear as the duo look to make 2019 an even better year, and you can find regular updates on their Facebook page.

And that’s not all...

Lloyd, owner of the Grey Bear Bar Company, has teamed up with Groves Nurseries to run a series of masterclasses at the Ivy House Kitchen.

On the first Saturday of each month, the team at Ivy House will introduce guests to local food and drink suppliers - and Lloyd will be on hand to show you which drinks are perfect for setting off that particular speciality.

The first session, A Stroll Through Gin Lane, will centre around the history of gin, touching on its roots, the gin epidemic right through to distillation and the modern craft gin movement.

The event, which includes a G&T on arrival followed by two cocktails and tasters of three different gins, will take place on February 2 at 7pm.

Events to follow include Coffee and Cocktails with the Dark Bear and Full Circle Coffee Company, The Pursuit of Beertails (a collaboration with The Pursuit of Hoppiness), an Aperitivo night with Mercato Italiano, Baboo Gelato and Lloyd Brown cocktail evening and a Tiki cocktails and BBQ night.

Tickets for each event cost £25 per person. For more information, visit grovesnurseries.co.uk