SANDY BLOCK
www.legalseafoods.com/index.cfm/page/Sandy-Block/pid/25039
Sandy Block joined Legal Sea Foods as Vice President of Beverage Operations in 2004 after a long association with CEO Roger Berkowitz cemented by their mutual love of wine and food. His extraordinary educational qualifications and relentless focus on quality selection swiftly elevated Legal’s beverage program to new heights. Among his first steps was to introduce a state-of-the-art comprehensive training program, The Beverage Seminar Certification Series, which requires attendees to complete 18 hours of classroom study, read a 125-page book of practically focused lessons Block has authored, and pass an hour-long written examination. To date, several hundred employees have successfully completed this course. He also developed a basic training system, focused on what he terms “The Language of Love,” in order to enhance servers’ beverage description skills. A further innovation, meriting extensive media coverage from Sante, WineSpectator and other industry journals, has been implementation of ‘Raising the Bar,’ Legal’s innovative signature cocktail menu that marries the culinary and beverage arts.
A history of achievement in the wine industry A former Sommelier, Block was the first American resident on the East Coast of the United States to have been certified as an expert Master of Wine, and is one of only 23 Americans and 257 individuals worldwide to hold this prestigious title. To achieve this honor requires passing an examination which involves writing 13 lengthy essays covering every aspect of wine, as well as achieving favorable results on a blind tasting test requiring candidates to identify and assess the varietal composition, region of origin, vintage and quality level of 36 wines. He is also holds membership in the Chaine de Rotisseurs and the Confraria do Vinho do Porto, as well as being recipient of the Corporation des Vignerons de Champagne’s Diplome d’Honneur. Block writes and lectures regularly in the United States and abroad, travelling as far afield as New Zealand to present seminars. Over the years his particular specialty has been researching more effective ways to communicate about wine and food together. His extensive credits include serving as Wine Editor at The Improper Bostonian, and writing monthly columns for the Massachusetts Beverage Business Journal for several years as well as contributing articles to The International Wine Review, the Quarterly Review ofWines, Wine & Spirits Magazine, The New England Wine Gazette, The Boston BusinessJournal, Boston Magazine, Travel Smart and L’Officiel du Vin. He authored “Selecting Wines for Vegetarian Cuisine,” a chapter in Chef Ron Pickarski’s Eco-Cuisine, and has frequently appeared as an expert commentator on television and radio programs.
Block previously served as Assistant VP of Wine for Horizon Beverage Company, General Manager of Whitehall Imports, and VP of Product Strategies for the Whitehall Companies. He serves on the Editorial Advisory Board of Cheers Magazine, the Sante Magazine Executive Symposium Committee, and the Executive Board of Boston University’s Elizabeth Bishop Wine Resource Center (where he has taught advanced courses since 1999). He developed the curriculum for the accredited Wine Studies program at Boston University and for several years taught a mandatory wine tasting course to aspiring chefs at the Cambridge School of Culinary Arts. Block also operated the Boston Wine Center, a school he co-founded in conjunction with the World Trade Center in 1994.
An Honors graduate from Vassar College, Block earned a Master’s Degree in American Intellectual and Cultural History from the State University of New York. Prior to entering the wine trade he wrote scripts for radio, and taught history. Married and a father of two sons, he has just completed writing his first novel.