Master sommelier John Blazon has been appointed vice president of sales for Spire Collection, the top tier of Jackson Family Wines. Blazon was offered the position during a recent visit to California to attend a meeting of sommeliers. He will assume the new position immediately.

Blazon, one of 103 in the country to achieve the master sommelier level -- and one of three in the Orlando area -- is credited with instituting the wine program at Walt Disney World and personally conducted seminars and tasting for restaurant staffers. Over the course of his 13 years with Disney, Blazon led the company to have more restaurant workers with some level of sommelier certification than any other in the world. Disney laid Blazon off in March.

Among the wineries under Blazon's direction are: Anakota, Arcanum, Archipel, Arrowood Reserves, Atalon, Cardinale, Ch. Lassegue, Ch. Vignot, Freemark Abbey Bosche & Sycamore, Hartford Family, IO, La Jota, Legacy, Lokoya, Stonestreet Single Vineyards, Verite, & W.S. Keyes.

He will be based in Orlando and will continue his mission to raise the level of wine awareness in the community.