Mixing Wine & Politics at The Dominion League Bar in Perth
Disclosure: I was invited to attend the launch at The Dominion League as part of Yelp.
I have never been to such a crazy bar launch! Yep that’s right it basically involve walking through the streets of Northbridge in Perth for half an hour with a junk brass band, aptly named the Junkadelic Brass Band.
While marching through the streets we were sporting protest-like signs with slogans across them like:
- Join the Movement – 84 Beaufort Street
- Future PM of Western Australia
- Liberte Egalite Cocktailerte
- Vote Yes for Mischief
To start with I thought we had actually joined a real protest!!
After all that marching we finally ended up at our destination which was 84 Beaufort Street. Funnily enough it use to be the old Court Wine Bar which is right beside the Court and Police Station. Ahhhh all the political innuendo now makes sense!
So for those of us not up with our WA political history, like moi, The Dominion League was founded in 1930 by a Mr. Keith Watson, it advocated the secession of Western Australia from the rest of the Commonwealth. The league was known for their numerous rallies and public meetings which tapped into the general discontent brought on by the depression.
Ok enough history, let’s get into today and why even if you’re not a political buff, you can still enjoy Perth’s newest bar, The Dominion League!
Here are some very convincing reasons why you should go check it out:
- It plans to become the home of “sophisticated mischief” in Northbridge
- It’s a dual level venue; with a street level bar for the sophisticated and a cosy basement bar for the mischief as I like to think
- There is a decent selection of craft beer and cider on tap
- They have over 300 spirits on offer
- They promise ‘moorish’ food at both bars championed by head chef Kurt Sampson and team
- The bar is run by the same owners of the Mechanics institute and Mrs Brown’s Bar in Perth
In terms of the launch I thought it was pretty chilled and laid back. The bartenders were absolutely awesome, keen for a good chat about booze.
The drinks were tasty, I had a glass of Laurent Perrier on arrival followed by a Spagliato #2 (Aperol and Rosso married together and topped with Prosecco for $16) and then a taste of a Honeycomb Old Fashioned (Monkey Shoulder Whisky, Maple Syrup, Walnut Bitters and Honeycomb for $16) and then a lovely Maritime Fizz (Tanqueray Gin, Lime, Grapefruit, Soda and a Salt Rim for $18) to conclude the night.
In terms of food, we enjoyed veggie chips and humus, devils on horseback, lamb empanadillas and this super tasty roll with medium done beef.. it was insanely good and I would no doubt go back just for another one of those rolls again!
Check out The Dominion League food menu below:
So what’s the wine list like you all ask? It’s a tidy 1-pager with 4 sparklings/Champagne, 14 whites, 2 roses, and 14 reds. All wines are available not only by the bottle but by the glass too which is very cool. Bottles start at $38 and glasses of wine at $8.50.
All the wines are from Aussie except for the Laurent Perrier of course from France. There are some tasty names on the list like; Cullen, Pemberley, Snakes & Herring, Stormflower, Express Winemakers and Tomfoolery. In terms of grape varieties, nothing too out of the box, there is a Dolcetto & Lagrein, Aglianico and Gruner Veltliner. After speaking with one of the managers they said that the wine list is still a work in progress, so I’ll look forward to keeping an eye on it. Check out The Dominion League wine menu below:
For more information, check out the The Dominion League website or Facebook page.
