The Luxury Institute has released its annual Luxury Brand Status Index (did you know that even luxury brands have their own status index?) for the wine and spirits category. The index is based on surveys of the wealthy, sampling more than 1,200 American consumers with an average weighted income of $342,000 and an average weighted net worth of $2.9 million. Here are the top-rated brands in each category:

Champagne and sparkling wine: Dom Perignon
Cognac: Courvoisier
Gin: Hendricks
Liqueur: Grand Marnier
Rum: 10 Cane
Scotch: Macallan
Table wine: Opus One
Tequila: Patron
Vodka: Grey Goose
Whiskey: Woodford Reserve

I've already expressed my unyielding love for the mint julep here on Slashfood. So I'm happy to announce that this years Tales of the Cocktail competition is based on none other than my beloved julep.

What's in it for you, bartenders? How about cash money and the honor of having your julep selected as the official cocktail of the 2009 Tales Of The Cocktail festival and published in the official recipe book by Mud Puddle books.

According to noted cocktail historian and one of the judges of the this competition, David Wondrich, bartenders should consider these definitions when creating their juleps:

- A Julep can be based on spirits, wine (or fortified wine) or a combination of the two.
- It must be made in a tall (10-14 oz) glass with cracked or shaved ice.
- It may contain citrus or other fruit juice, but only in a proportion not to exceed 1/8 of the total volume of liquid (not including ice).
- It must include fresh mint.
- It must contain sugar or some other sweetener.

For full rules and guidlines plus the entry form, follow this link to Cocktailtimes.com.

Oh, and if you haven't circled your calenders yet, this years Tales Of The Cocktail will be July 8 - 12th

There's a stigma attached to those who extol the virtues of proper glassware. But the fact is -- they're right. The vessel used for your drink will affect not only the liquid that's poured inside, but also the way it hits your tongue, and the flavor your taste buds register.

I used to blow this off as overly fastidious, fancy schmancy posturing. I hated getting pints of beer or glasses of soda because it always tasted flat to me. I preferred that crisp bite out of the bottle -- glass be damned!

But then I experienced the differences for myself. While visiting a winery a number of years ago, my friends and I sat in on a glassware class. A myriad of shapes and sizes were placed in front of us, and we tried white, red, and sparkling wine in the different glasses. Each tasted different as it was moved from the standard white glass, to the wider red, to the narrow flute. We were shocked, and we vowed to always try to have the right glass for the right wine, because what's the point of paying more for a good wine, if you can't experience its full flavor?

But it's not just a matter of wine. Recently, I was making dinner and decided to open a bottle of craft beer that I had loved at my favorite pub a few months prior. I popped off the cap, took a drink, and curled my lip -- it not only tasted nothing like I remembered, but I hated it. I thought back and remembered that I drank the beer at the end of the night. Did I have bad, delusional drunken taste buds? I read the side of the bottle, which suggested a specific stemmed glass. I found something close, poured it in, and it became the beer I remembered -- rich, full, and wonderful. Me, the bottle lover, had found a beverage that tasted much, much better out of the bottle.

Now this doesn't mean that you need to have a specific glass for every different type of beer or booze. Get the right glasses, or something very close, for your favorite beverages, and stick to standards for the rest.

Think about it -- why splurge on a great scotch, wine, beer, or other beverage if you're just going to throw it into any old glass?

Read on to see a rundown of the glasses that make each beverage pop, and consider this not only a great guide for your own collection, but an excellent gift for the liquor, wine, or beer fiend on your gift list.

Brandy Snifter

The brandy snifter works like a wine glass – gobletted top and stemmed bottom. But this version is a larger, more bulbous, and you only pour a small amount into the base. Unlike other stemmed glassware designed to keep a drink cold, the snifter is designed for the drinker to cup the glass, warm it with their hand, and sniff the aromas with the slightly narrowed rim.






Old-Fashioned/Rocks Glass

The shorter version of the highball, this is called a rocks glass because it's often used in drinks served "on the rocks." It's wide, it holds the ice well, and it's the go-to glass for most bar-served mixed drinks. This glass is often used interchangeably with the highball.





Highball Glass

This is the other popular glass of the liquor realm. It's the mainstay for any drink that teams alcohol with a mix – gin and tonics, rum and cokes, you name it -- especially when the mix is in a large quantity. The tall stature allows adequate room for ice, liquor, and mix. The versatility of this glass makes it the vessel any bar should stock.

Yesterday afternoon, I thought idly about heading down to the Wine and Spirits shop to pick up a bottle of something bubbly. As McCain conceded to Obama's unarguable victory, I wished that I had followed through with that fleeting though, as a glass of champagne or sparkling wine would have topped off the historic night nicely.

However, from what I've heard, most of you were far more motivated than I to ensure that you had a celebratory tipple last night. If you're still feeling the pain, one way to cure your aching head is with a glass of Brandy Milk Punch. Anita of Married with Dinner has posted a simple, soothing recipe. If you don't need it today, keep it one bookmarked for future mornings after.

Mmm, seasonal punch, fall cider, apple-related-alcohol, whatever you want to call it, it's good. Warm or cold, alcoholic or non, even spicy or streudelly, there are a number of ways to enjoy a good autumnal apple drink. Here are links to eight delicious recipes!

1. A solid booze-free basic
2. Classic brandy with cider
3. Heat up some apple juice and put rum and a cinnamon stick in it. No link required!
4. A whiskey version
5. Cider with tequila!
6. An ultimate indulgence with hibiscus and cayenne
7. Decadent cider streudel (streudelly)
8. Chilled and sparkling!

Click here for more things you can do with apple cider.

Tired of not being in the know?

Everyone knows that every night, somewhere, people are drinking for free. Various bars have promotions from liquor companies, nights when they want to pack the house, and special events that result in totally free drinks, and often free food, as well!

Whether you're visiting or a resident, visit My Open Bar for free drinks in:

• New York City
• Los Angeles
• San Francisco
• Chicago
• Honolulu
• Miami

My Open Bar lets you know what time, what's free, and where it is. All you have to do is show up! They even have mobile and RSS feeds.

Special thanks to my friend Brandon A. for the tip.

I've never had an Angel's Sangria, but this Sinner's version sounds pretty good. Normally, Sangria is made by macerating fresh fruit in brandy and sugar, and mixing with wine and club soda, ginger ale, or juice. The Sinner's Sangria cuts the macerating step: the extra alcohol is already in the port, after all. So (pardon the pun) it's sinfully easy and sinfully potent. This recipe is from Sandeman Founders Reserve Port from Portugal.

Sinner's Sangria

1 bottle of Sandeman Founders Reserve Port
1 liter ginger ale
1 orange cut in small slices
1 green apple cut in small cubes
4 oz. fresh squeezed orange juice

Directions: Combine all ingredients into a medium size punch bowl.

White Sangria is lovely in summer (that must be the Angel version), but I love red Sangria in fall and winter. The extra brandy (or Port, in this case), will send nice warm fuzzies down to your toes.

Know what gives a Mai Tai its signature sweet, or what morphs a Martini into a Gibson? Just wanna know a dram more about mixology? We've got the quiz for you.

There's an exceptionally steep curve when it comes to spirits savvy, so we're just hoping there's a li'l something in there to quench everyone's thirsts. Take the quiz and c'mon back to gloat or glower.

Cocktail Ingredients Quiz

We already know that although it's creamy and delicious, eggnog might be one of the worst Holiday cocktails out there. However, there are a few others that you might want to avoid just to get a jump start on those health- and weight-related New Year's Resolutions:

• White Russian, made of coffee liqueur, vodka, and cream, it has 863 calories!
  
• Mudslide, which is basically a White Russian with the addition of Bailey's Irish Cream and chocolate syrup. No wonder it's 851 calories.
• Hot Buttered Rum Latte exceeds the recommended daily intake of sugar by 36 grams.
• Chocolate Martini is probably the least evil on the list because "chocolate is healthy." It's also 438 calories.
• Admittedly, we had never heard of the Blushin' Russian, and wonder why not because it has delicious Amaretto in it! Oh yeah, maybe because we'd rather take 404 calories as a Big Mac.
• Mulled Wine is bad?!?! We were crushed, but if you make it yourself and cut back on the sugar, you'll do better than the usual 356 calories and 40 grams of carbs.
• Eggnog, surprisingly, is lower than the previous half dozen drinks with only 343 calories, but we think it's evil comes from the fact that you drink at least one every night, everywhere you go, from Thanksgiving to New Year's.
• Brandy Alexander has 297 calories. Oh well. There goes another luscious creamy drink.
  
• At 210 calories, Irish Coffee is the slimmest of the cocktails, but let's not get crazy. It's still 210 calories that you could down in 20 seconds (you'll also burn your mouth, but that's not the point, now is it?)

Over the past year I have mentioned that the micro-distillery movement in the US has started to pick up rapidly over the last few years. From only a handful a few years ago, there are over 100 presently in business and many more on the way. Laws in various states have changed, with micro-breweries starting up distilleries and making premium spirits.

In this article at the NY Times they talk a bit about the scene. Expect to see the number of micro-distilleries grow even more rapidly. Bill Owens at the American Distilling Institute is helping these businesses start up and grow, sharing information, publishing newsletters, providing resources, and providing moral support as well. Colleges and Universities Like New York's Cornell University are giving courses and workshops on Artisan Distilling. (I hear there are a few openings left in this years workshop going on next Monday. I'll be there.)

Heck, even I'm opening a micro-distillery early next year. I partnered up with a winery and we are rapidly growing into a brewery, distillery, and hard cider-works. Our additional licenses are well on the way, and I am ordering my custom built, hand crafted, copper still. As soon as the still arrives I'm going to be making premium brandy, gin, rum, and whiskey of all types. Sorry no vodka, that market has so many new entrants that it is ridiculously overcrowded. By the way, the photo shows approximately what my still will look like.

It's five o'clock, and the hour couldn't have come any sooner for a nice little cocktail.

Food blog Married...with Dinner has put together a drink based on two cocktails she tried in other places: La Cinque at Bemelman's Bar in New York, and Rosmarino at Perbacco in San Francisco. She takes the best from each -- pear-flavored vodka, lime juice, Angostura bitters, sparkling wine from La Cinque and rosemary syrup from Rosmarino -- and makes up her perfect combination. She calls it the Rosemary Five, for the five ingredients in it.

Click over to Married...with Dinner for the exact recipe!