Winner: Pintxo People, Brighton

Tobias Blazquez-Garcia is the man who created the impressive cocktail list at Pintxo (pronounced 'Pin-cho' in case you don't speak Catalan) People, and between that, a wide-ranging wine list (from Jerez sherry to Krug, via all manner of vinos from around the world) and a rather good Basque-region restaurant, this little corner of Barcelona in Brighton is fast becoming one of the city's hottest bars. There are lots of classics on the list - including no fewer than 10 takes on the Martini, and plenty of stuff the average drinker might not have come across before. Their Canapé Cocktails are served in undersized glasses so you can experiment with different flavours without getting too sozzled. The bar food is a lot more than just stomach-lining - pintxos are little tapas-style snacks, the Spanish equivalent of canapés - so fill up on padron peppers, escalibada (roasted aubergine with red pepper and cumin) or chorizo cooked in cider, if only to make sure you don't fall off their uber-opulent silver bar stools.

· 95 Western Road, Brighton (01273 733223)

Runner-up: The Rake, London

'This is supposedly the smallest bar in London,' says Myleene Klass of her local, The Rake, 'but I've got one in my living room that would rival it.' At only 13 x 7ft though, plus a pretty decked garden, The Rake is a tiny drinking den as well as a hugely popular one. With over 130 beers from everywhere from Holland to Indonesia, this little, unassuming bar is a major draw to Borough Market for those people not solely interested in spiced chorizo and aged cheddar. Try a bottle of their golden La Chouffe ale and, if the bar space is too full, sit under heaters in the equally tiny covered garden instead. You don't have to be a real-ale enthusiast to enjoy it; The Rake caters for self-confessed 'girly' drinkers like Myleene, too: 'I like their fruit beers a lot,' she says.

· 4 Winchester Walk, Borough Market, SE1 (020 7407 0557). Myleene Klass presents 'The Screening Room' for CNN International, starting next Friday

Best of the rest

Scotland

Bramble
16a Queen Street, Edinburgh (0131 226 6343)

A labyrinthine basement bar, with a great cocktail list that tends towards the inventive, and a huge array of bottled beers.

Wales

Lion Inn
Trellech, Monmouth, Monmouthshire (01600 860322)

A proper pub with local cider, the occasional perry and hand-pumped beers.

N. Ireland

The Potthouse
1 Hill Street, Belfast (028 9024 4044)

Buzzy bar with a nightclub, set on the 17th-century site of Belfast's first pottery.

Yorkshire & Humberside

Jake's Bar
29 Call Lane, Leeds (0113 243 1110)

This place pulls no punches when it comes to hard liquor, so grab one of their famed burgers (there's a 100 per cent cow-free one made from bulgur wheat and mushrooms) before you knock back a Ring of Fire - made with chilli-pepper bourbon.

North west

Alma de Cuba
Seel Street, Liverpool (0151 702 7394)

A Caribbean bar in a deconsecrated Catholic church? Sounds crazy, but it works very well.

North east

Tokyo
17 Westgate Road, Newcastle upon Tyne (0191 232 1122)

Four bars in one, including a roof garden, where you can drink in winter under cover of an enormous sail, this is a seriously stylish watering hole. Knock yourself out with a Tokyo iced tea: lime, vodka, Bombay Sapphire, Bacardi Oro, Cuervo Gold, Grand Marnier and Midori, topped with lemonade.

Midlands

World Service
Newdigate House, Castlegate, Nottingham (0115 847 5587)

Housed in an impressive 17th-century building, the bar's eclectic food menu changes daily. Small rooms available off the bar for intimate dating opportunities.

Brass Monkey
11 High Pavement, Nottingham (0115 840 4101)

If you can get past the notoriously fussy bouncers, the exotic cocktails (priced at £5, or £3.50 at happy hour) are served by friendly staff. NB, Wednesday is student night.

East Anglia

The Free Press
Prospect Row, Cambridge (01223 368337)

Guest beers, a decent ploughman's, no smoking, no music and no mobile phones. What more could you want from a pub?

South west

Apple Cider Barge
Welsh Back, off the Floating Harbour, Bristol (0117 9253500)

Converted Dutch barge offering 40 ciders and Pieminister pies. The 8 per cent Old Bristolian is only sold in halves, presumably to avoid drunken drownings.

South east

Raoul's
32 Walton Street, Oxford (01865 553732)

A 24-page drinks menu offers non-alcoholic smoothies alongside cocktails invented by the award-winning bar staff, all made with freshly pulped ingredients.

London

Gordon's Wine Bar
47 Villiers Street, City of Westminster. (020 7930 1408)

Home to Samuel Pepys in the 1680s, Gordon's now welcomes crowds of serious drinkers to its subterranean candlelit bar.

Lost Society
697 Wandsworth Road, SW8 (020 7652 6526)

A former 16th-century barn complete with resident ghost, Rose Devereaux, where themed Art Deco-style rooms and a secluded 'secret' garden attracts London's louche set.