The 2008 Food Network South Beach Wine & Food Festival is expected to attract approximately 40,000 people February 21st – 24th. Considered the “Super Bowl” of food and wine festivals, this year’s extravaganza will feature more than 100 of the best and brightest chefs and wine professionals who will share their expertise in seminars and cooking demonstrations as well as enliven the events as guests. Schrager has also added a sister event to the 2008 festival: Fun and Fit as a Family, a series of interactive sessions addressing childhood obesity where chefs and fitness experts will teach kids and their families about how to follow healthier lifestyles.

Since 2000 as Director of Special Events and Media Relations at Southern Wine & Spirits, Schrager received the Silver Spoon for his unique combination of business acumen, showmanship, enrichment of the wine and culinary milieu and his numerous philanthropic efforts. The Food Network South Beach Wine & Food Festival supports Florida International University’s School of Hospitality and Tourism Management and its Southern Wine & Spirits Beverage Management Center, eponymously named for the dominant industry supplier.

Schrager is a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America. Prior to joining Southern Wine & Spirits, he spent 17 years at InterContinental Hotels. Schrager also partnered in the opening of several South Beach hot spots including Torpedo, CHOW and The Spot with actor Mickey Rourke.

Southern Wine & Spirits of America manages a diverse portfolio of wines, spirits, beers, and domestic and imported bottled waters. It represents more than 1,500 wine, beer, and spirits suppliers from around the world, offering some 5,000 different brands. The company ships more than 70 million cases a year and has operations in 29 US states. Southern Wine & Spirits and Schrager are involved in multiple events year-round, both commercial and philanthropic, and successful combinations of both. The FOODARTS 2008 Silver Spoon award is a tip of the hat to that winning alliance