Tales of the Cocktail Announces
The 2nd Annual Cocktail Film Fest

Tales of the Cocktail and W New Orleans invite movie buffs and libation lovers to indulge in celebrating the cocktail with three films. Cheryl Charming aka Miss Charming™, cocktail author and founder of MissCharming.com, plays hostess for the silver screenings.

Miss Charming™ has been in the food and beverage industry since 1976: tending bar, authoring cocktail related books (9 so far), teaching bar tricks to Walt Disney World bartenders, and cocktail consulting. Currently residing in Downtown Orlando, Miss Charming™ is a member of The Bartenders Guild, The Museum of the American Cocktail and maintains the website www.MissCharming.com.

Chef Roberto Bustillo, Jr. of Zoë Restaurant will prepare inspired hors d’oeuvres for the day. Chef Bustillo has won two Gold Fleur de Lis Awards from New Orleans Wine and Food Experience in 2006 and 2007 and a Silver Fleur de Lis Award in 2008. Zoë Restaurant and Lounge is located on the second floor of the W New Orleans.

The Film Fest schedule is as follows:

Saturday, April 11, 2009
4 pm. King Creole
7 pm. Meet-n-Greet Dean Serneels, the Mad MXologist
8 pm. Cocktail
Midnight Moulin Rouge

*Seating for all films are dinner party style*



Saturday, April 11th

King Creole (1958)
4 pm.
This Elvis Presley summer hit of 1958 was filmed in New Orleans when he was 22 years old. The cast and crew blocked off the entire top floor of the Roosevelt Hotel (now Fairmont Hotel and soon to be Waldorf Astoria). King Creole was Elvis' last B&W film and is considered by critics to be his best. Elvis plays a nightclub busboy turned nightclub singer and even though there are many bar scenes not one single cocktail is mentioned, so we will be serving famous New Orleans cocktails including the Sazerac, Hurricane and Ramos Gin Fizz. Retro candy, popcorn and Louisiana inspired small bites will be served and popular soundtracks to look forward include Trouble, Hard Headed Woman, King Creole, New Orleans, and Dixieland Rock.

Meet-n-Greet: Dean Serneels, the Mad MXologist
6-8 pm.
Come meet Dean Serneels as the Mad Mixologist! This Dean of Drinks is an Inventor, Hospitality Consultant, Entertainer, Motivator, Flipping Mixologist and owner of Flairco.com. Dean will be sharing his skills in a hands-on bottle flipping workshop and while entertaining you with his magic and moves on the bar. Dean has won over 22 bartending awards, appeared on the FOOD Network and has been the bartender trainer on CMT's Search for the Ultimate Coyote. Dean is also the creative mind behind all of the Flairco brand bartending products. Join Dean as he flips, spins and tosses the Pink Squirrels, Sex on the Beaches and the fictitious Blue Turquoise from the film, Cocktail. Landshark beer will also be available.

Cocktail (1988)
8 pm.
Cocktail finally turns 21! And what better way to celebrate this summer hit of '88 than with dinner, drinks and a movie New York/Jamaican style! This film kick-started modern flair bartending worldwide and introduced three hit songs, Kokomo, Don't Worry, Be Happy and Addicted to Love. We celebrate the 21st birthday with Jamaican style food and birthday cake.

Moulin Rouge (2001)
Midnight
Can-Can you join us for a midnight enchanting screening of this lush and visually-rich modern musical that was nominated for 8 Oscars? The Green Fairy will be upon us as we serve Absinthe in glass blown fountain. Nibbles, bottled water and French wine will also be available.

Tickets and Special Rates
Tickets are required for Tales of the Cocktail Film Fest and can be purchased online at www.TalesoftheCocktail.com as of February 15, 2009 for $25 per showing. A special room rate of $109 at the W Hotel New Orleans available Thursday, April 9, 2009 through Monday, April 13, 2009. Please use promotion code LIF. For event guests, a rate of $12 per car will be available. For questions, please call 1-877-WHOTELS for assistance. Book a room online at www.TalesoftheCocktail.com.

About Tales of the Cocktail
Tales of the Cocktail is an internationally acclaimed festival of cocktails, cuisine and culture held annually in New Orleans, Louisiana. The event brings together the best and brightest of the cocktail community—award-winning mixologists, authors, bartenders, chefs and designers—for a five-day celebration of the history and artistry of making drinks. Each year offers a spirited series of dinners, demos, tastings, competitions, seminars, book signings, tours and parties all perfectly paired with some of the best cocktails ever made.

About the New Orleans Culinary and Cultural Preservation Society
The New Orleans Culinary and Cultural Preservation Society is a non-profit organization committed to preserving the unique culture of dining and drinking in New Orleans and the storied bars and restaurants that have contributed to the city’s world-wide culinary acclaim. This organization supports members of the hospitality industry through education and the production of events like Tales of the Cocktail and, most recently, Trails of the Cocktail, a scholarship program for emerging talent in the New Orleans cocktail industry.

About W New Orleans Hotel
W New Orleans has whatever you want, whenever you want it. Voted number one hotel in New Orleans by Gambit Weekly readers, W New Orleans is truly a savvy traveler’s dream come true. The property boasts 423 guest rooms and 10,000 square feet of meeting space. Delight in Zoë, featuring innovative New Orleans cuisine by Chef Roberto Bustillo, winner of the 2006 and 2007 gold Fleur de Lis award at the New Orleans Food and Wine Experience. For more information, visit www.whotels/neworleans.

Tales of the Cocktail Salutes Our Generous Spirits of Their Sponsors
Ardent Spirits, Aunt Sally’s Pralines, Bar Products, B-Native, Bols Crème de Cacao, Bols Curacao, Bols Peach Schnapps, Chattanooga Bakery, Inc, Chilled Magazine, Chocolate Devil, Creole Creamery, Fee Brothers, Fire Fly Vodka, Flairco, Flour Power, Full Bucket Photography, Glacéau, Hendrick’s Gin, Herbsaint Liqueur d’Anis, Houmas House, Hubig’s Pies, Jill DeGroff’s Cocktailian Calendar, Krispy Kreme Doughnuts, Land Shark Beer, LSZ Communications, Lucid Absinthe, Miss Cheryl Charming, Museum of the American Cocktail, Old New Orleans Rum, Pat O’Brien’s, Peychaud’s Bitters, Piccadilly Cafeteria, Roosevelt New Orleans, Sazerac Rye Whiskey, Spir-it, Sysco, TAG Bar Tools, Tea Forte, Turner Classic Movies, Vieux Carre Absinthe