Edited by

Marianna Sigala · Richard N. S. Robinson

Wine Tourism
Destination
Management and
Marketing
Theory and Cases
 Wine Tourism Destination Management
and Marketing

“This book consolidates under one cover various research insights and case stud-
ies from different parts of the world (including Greece) contributed by well-
known academics, all experts in their field. The book is a highly beneficial tool
for those seeking in-depth information on how to use wine tourism as a powerful
marketing tool to enhance awareness and visitation to their regions and wineries.
The book is a must read by students and industry professionals alike wishing to
obtain a holistic understanding and up-to-date practical knowledge about wine
and its role in developing tourism experiences and destinations.”
—Maria Triantafyllou, Director, Wines of Greece

“The main novelty of this book the overview of five topics crucial for the
effectiveness and the success of every wine destination: tourism behavior and
attitudes, wine destination marketing, wine experiences, wine routes and co-cre-
ation, and collaboration activities between stakeholders. A must read for DMO
directors and officers as well as an insightful reading for students taking M.Sc.
and Ph.D. courses in the fields of viticulture, tourism, and place branding.”
—Alessio Cavicchi, Associate Professor, Food Marketing and Agribusiness,
University of Macerata, Italy

“This book provides a captivating and much-awaited selection of wine tour-

ism cases focusing on marketing aspects of this phenomenon. As wine regions
increasingly embrace wine tourism as a potential marketing tool to increase sales
and enhance their image as destinations, this book constitutes a valuable resource
for marketers and winery operators alike.”
—Abel D. Alonso, Senior Lecturer, Business Management, Liverpool John Moores
University, UK

“This book provides a welcome addition to the literature on wine tourism. With
an extensive array of themes and cases studies the international perspective pro-
vides useful insights into tourism destinations seen through the lens of wine.”
—C. Michael Hall, Professor, University of Canterbury, New Zealand
“Make time to read this book. if you are a student, researcher, or practitioner in
the field of wine destination marketing, there are valuable lessons to be learned
from experts and case studies about the best practices in the growing and eco-
nomically vital field of wine tourism.”
—Armand Gilinsky, Jr., FJ Korbel Bros Professor of Wine Business,
Sonoma State University, USA
Marianna Sigala · Richard N. S. Robinson
Editors

Wine Tourism
Destination
Management
and Marketing
Theory and Cases
Editors
Marianna Sigala Richard N. S. Robinson
University of South Australia Saint Lucia, QLD, Australia
Adelaide, SA, Australia

ISBN 978-3-030-00436-1 ISBN 978-3-030-00437-8 (eBook)

https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8
© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2019
This work is subject to copyright. All rights are solely and exclusively licensed by the
Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights
of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction
on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and
retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology
now known or hereafter developed.
The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this
publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are
exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use.
The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and
information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication.
Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, expressed or implied,
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This Palgrave Macmillan imprint is published by the registered company Springer Nature
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The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland
 Acknowledgements

The co-editors would like to extend their deep appreciation to the many
expert authors who contributed to this book, and their responsiveness to
the many and varied demands for revisions and administrative processes.
We are also very grateful to the many wine and tourism professionals,
who have helped us to collect industry insight and gain a better under-
standing of current wine tourism issues in order to develop this book.
Again, we are grateful for the supportive team at Palgrave. In particu-
lar, we acknowledge the dedicated and meticulous services of Ms. Laura
Foley, who again provided administrative and communications sup-
port and enabled us to focus more fully on the academic aspects of this
project.

v
 Contents

1 Introduction: Wine Destination Management

and Marketing—Critical Success Factors 1
Marianna Sigala

Part I Wine Tourists: Who Are They and What Do They

Want from Wine Destinations?

2 Understanding the Wine Tourist Markets’ Motivations,

Travel Constraints and Perceptions of Destination
Attributes: A Case Study of Winery Visitors in Sardinia,
Italy 9
Aise KyoungJin Kim, Giacomo Del Chiappa
and Ester Napolitano

3 Wine Tourist’s Perception of Winescape in Central

Otago, New Zealand 29
Joanna Fountain and Charlotte Thompson

4 The Image of a Wine Tourist and Impact on Self-Image

Congruity 45
Marlene Pratt

vii
viii    Contents

5 Motivations of Wine Travellers in Rural Northeast Iowa 67

Oksana Grybovych Hafermann and Samuel V. Lankford

6 Seeking the Typical Characteristics of Wine Tourists

in South Greece 71
Panagiotis Tataridis, Kanellakopoulos Christos,
Kanellis Anastassios and Gatselos Lazaros

Part II Wine Destination Marketing: New Approaches

and Practices

7 E-Storytelling and Wine Tourism Branding: Insights

from the “Wine Roads of Northern Greece” 77
Christina Bonarou, Paris Tsartas and Efthymia Sarantakou

8 Building a Wine Tourism Destination Through

Coopetition: The Business Model of Ultimate Winery
Experiences Australia 99
Marianna Sigala

9 Developing and Branding a Wine Destination

Through UNESCO World Heritage Listing: The Case
of the Mount Lofty Ranges Agrarian Landscape 113
Marianna Sigala

10 Effects of the World Heritage Label in Champagne

Region 135
Fabrice Thuriot

Part III Designing Experiences: Developing

and Innovating Wine Destinations

11 Wine and Food Events: Experiences and Impacts

143
Donald Getz
 Contents    ix

12 Pouring New Wines into Old Wineskins? Sub-regional

Identity and the Case of the Basket Range Festival
165
Jonathan Staggs and Matthew Brenner

13 Wine Tourism: Balancing Core Product and Service-

Dominant Strategies 185
Bonnie Farber Canziani

14 Wine Tourism Experiences and Marketing: The Case

of the Douro Valley in Portugal 203
Alexandra I. Correia, Raquel Cunha, Olga Matos
and Carlos Fernandes

15 Managing and Marketing Wine Destinations with

and Through Art: A Framework for Designing Wine
Experiences 221
Marianna Sigala

16 Developing a Destination Within a Destination: The

d’Arenberg Cube, the Iconic Monument of Experiences
That Synergise Wine, Tourism and Art 245
Marianna Sigala and Ruth Rentschler

17 Georgian Wine Museum Is Making a Strategic Decision 275

Natalia Velikova and Tatiana Bouzdine-Chameeva

18 How to Design a Wine Museum: Insights from La Cité

du Vin in Bordeaux 279
Tatiana Bouzdine-Chameeva, Frédéric Ponsignon,
François Durrieu and Jacques-Olivier Pesme

19 OINOXENEIA: A Wine Tourism Event in Aigialeia,

Peloponnese 297
Athanasia Charitonidou, Maria Tsoukala
and Sotirios Bolis
x    Contents

Part IV Designing and Managing Wine Routes: Packaging

and Partnerships

20 Life Cycle of Wine Routes: Northern Portugal’s

Perspective 303
Darko Dimitrovski, Susana Rachão and Veronika Joukes

21 Wine Routes and Tourism Potential in Turkey

327
Sibel Oncel and Medet Yolal

22 Wine Trails in the Czech Republic

341
Martin Prokeš

23 Supporting Tourists’ Mobility in Wine Destinations:

The Hop-On Hop-Off Bus in Swan Valley, Western
Australia 357
Marianna Sigala

24 Seeking Differentiation: Queensland Australia’s

‘Strangebird Wine Trail’ 373
Richard N. S. Robinson

Part V Destination Planning and Development:

Collaboration and Horizons

25 Wine Industry and Wine Tourism Industry

Collaboration: A Typology and Analysis 381
Arwen McGregor and Richard N. S. Robinson

26 Wine Plus Tourism Offers: It Is Not All About

Wine—Wine Tourism in Germany 399
Axel Dreyer

27 The Future of Wine Tourism in the Okanagan Valley:

A Delphi Method Survey 423
Michael Conlin and Alan Rice
 Contents    xi

28 Wine Tourism in South Africa: Valued Attributes

and Their Role as Memorable Enticements 445
Robert J. Harrington, Michael C. Ottenbacher,
Byron Marlowe and Ulrike Siguda

29 Wine Tourism Destinations Across the Life-Cycle:

A Comparison of Northern Greece, Peloponnese
and Crete 463
Maria Alebaki and Alex Koutsouris

30 Wine Tourism in an Emerging Destination: The Côte

Chalonnaise, Burgundy 483
Joanna Fountain and Laurence Cogan-Marie

31 Importance of Tasting Room Activities and Staff

Training in Emerging Wine Regions: The Case
of Northern Virginia 497
Jennifer L. Blanck, Laurence Cogan-Marie
and Lara Agnoli

32 Wine Tourism and Regional Economic Development:

Of Mimesis and Business Models 515
Donna Sears and Terrance G. Weatherbee

33 Positioning the Current Development of China’s

Wine Tourism Destinations: A Netnography
Approach 537
Bob Duan, Charles Arcodia and Emily Ma

34 The Role of Networks, Synergies and Collective

Action in the Development of Wine Tourism:
The Case of ‘Wines of Crete’ 551
Anna Kyriakaki, Nikolaos Trihas and
Efthymia Sarantakou

35 Economic Impacts of a Developing Wine Tourism

Industry in Iowa 571
Oksana Grybovych Hafermann and Samuel V. Lankford
xii    Contents

36 A Vehicle for Destination Development? The Case

of the Wolfville Magic Winery Bus 593
Donna Sears and Terrance G. Weatherbee

37 Metsovo as a Wine Tourism Destination

599
Maria Dimou

38 Epilogue: An Ecosystems Framework for Studying

Wine Tourism: Actors, Co-creation Processes,
Experiences and Outcomes 603
Richard N. S. Robinson and Marianna Sigala

Index
613
 Notes on Contributors

Lara Agnoli is Associate Professor of Wine Marketing and Economics

at the School of Wine & Spirits Business of the Burgundy School of
Business in Dijon, France. Previously, she worked as a research fellow at
the University of Verona in Italy for six years. She holds a Ph.D. in Wine
Economics and Rural Development from the University of Florence,
Italy. Her research is mainly focused on wine consumption behavior,
demand analysis, and wine tourism.
Maria Alebaki is a Researcher at the Agricultural Economics Research
Institute. She holds a Ph.D. in Agricultural Economics from the Aristotle
University of Thessaloniki. Her work appears in peer-reviewed journals,
book chapters, and conference proceedings, while her academic expe-
rience also includes teaching in higher education institutes, supervising
dissertations, as well as participation in research and development pro-
jects. Her academic interests lie in the areas of rural and wine tourism;
consumer behavior in tourism; tourism networks; tourism education;
as well as on the sustainability/resilience perspective of tourism devel-
opment. Currently, she serves as an Adjunct Faculty Member at the
Hellenic Open University; the Alexander Technological Educational
Institute of Thessaloniki; and the Agricultural University of Athens.
Dr. Charles Arcodia is a Professor within the Department of Tourism,
Sport and Hotel Management at Griffith University, Australia.

xiii
xiv    Notes on Contributors

Jennifer L. Blanck holds a Master of Science in Wine Business from the

School of Wine Spirits Business of the Burgundy School of Business in
Dijon, France. She also holds a Master of Education from the University
of Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia, USA. She works in higher educa-
tion and is a freelance writer who focuses on beverage alcohol, culinary,
lifestyle, and other topics. She has more than 25 years of experience in
communications, training, and external relations.
Sotirios Bolis (1966, Greece) has studied at the School of Electrical
and Computer Engineering of Aristotle University (Thessaloniki,
Greece). He has worked for more than ten years in IT business, design-
ing and implementing projects in Greece and abroad (Bulgaria, United
Arab Emirates, Oman, Bahrain, Qatar). Since 2004, he is working as a
consultant in local development, in the agricultural and gastronomical
sector as well as in projects concerning alternative tourism, wine tourism,
local culture, and festivals. He has designed and managed cultural festi-
vals such as “Melitzazz” (Leonidio, GR), “Estella” (P. Astros, GR), “En
Sirmo” (Aigialeia, GR), and “Oinoxeneia” (Aigialeia, GR). He is also
designing and coordinating transnational cooperation projects.
Dr. Christina Bonarou holds a Ph.D. in communication, visual cul-
ture, and tourism from the Panteion University of Social and Political
Sciences of Athens, Greece. She studied Communication, Media and
Culture (B.A.) at the Panteion University as well, where she also com-
pleted her postgraduate studies in Cultural Policy, Management
and Communication (M.A.). She also studied Tourism Planning,
Management and Policy (M.Sc.) at the University of the Aegean on
Chios Island, Greece. Dr. Bonarou has worked as an adjunct professor
and a researcher at the Alexander Technological Educational Institute
of Thessaloniki, Greece, Department of Tourism Management. Her
research interests and publications lie mainly in the areas of visual cul-
ture, tourism sociology and anthropology, communication, cultural her-
itage and special and alternative forms of tourism. She is the author of
the book Visual Culture and Tourism: Representations of Greece in Tourist
Postcards, published in Greek by Papazisis Editions.
Tatiana Bouzdine-Chameeva a Senior Professor of Information and
Decision Sciences at KEDGE Business School (Bordeaux, France), holds
a Ph.D. in Applied Mathematics from Moscow State University (Russia),
she defended the two habilitation thesis—in IS and in management
sciences. Her research is on wine markets, wine distribution channels,
 Notes on Contributors    xv

wine logistics, and wine tourism experience; she leaded of the research
team of Wine and Spirits Management Academy in Bordeaux for more
than five years. She has authored several case studies on the wine and
spirits sector as well as tourism industry. Professor Bouzdine-Chameeva
received honorary membership and awards from the prestigious JSPS
(Japan Society for the Promotion of Science), and several of her research
studies have received Best papers awards on the international academic
conferences. She publishes in top journal such as Decision Sciences,
Journal of Cleaner Production, European Journal of Operational Research,
and Journal of Retailing and Supply Chain Forum.
Matthew Brenner is a Research Assistant and Ph.D. candidate with
the University of Queensland, Australia. With an academic background
in Accounting, Matthew completed a Master of Science in Hotel,
Restaurant and Institutional Management from The Pennsylvania
State University in the USA. While at Penn State, Matthew was also an
instructor in its School of Hospitality Management from 2001–2006.
Matthew has maintained numerous culinary and foodservice manage-
ment positions within various hotels, resorts, restaurants, and private
clubs throughout Australia, Canada, and the USA.
Bonnie Farber Canziani is an Associate Professor in the Bryan School
of Business and Economics at The University of North Carolina
Greensboro (UNCG). She holds a Doctorate in Hotel Administration
from Cornell University, Ithaca, New York. Dr. Canziani’s research
focuses on the management of customer service relationships and busi-
ness profitability in various sectors including hospitality, tourism, wine,
and transportation. Since 2001, she has been involved in marketing and
business research focused on the NC wine and grape industry, with more
recent emphasis on wine tourism. Funded research spans across the trans-
portation, public service, wine industry, and direct selling fields. In the
past five years, she has received seven best paper awards for her research.
Athanasia Charitonidou (1985, Greece) is an artist, curator and
works as Cultural Events Programme Coordinator for the Municipality
of Aigialeia (Greece) and the art exhibitions program. She has a B.A.
in Fine Arts (University of Ioannina, Greece), an M.A. in Museum and
Gallery Studies and an M.A. in European Art Practice from Kingston
University London. Her range of activities covers areas such as paint-
ing, printmaking, photography, as well as creative writing and curatorial
practices.
xvi    Notes on Contributors

Giacomo Del Chiappa, Ph.D. is Associate Professor of Marketing at

the Department of Economics and Business, University of Sassari (Italy),
and Associate Researcher at CRENoS. Further, he is Senior Research
Fellow, School of Tourism & Hospitality, University of Johannesburg
(South Africa). He teaches in the areas of “Tourism Management and
Marketing,” “Destination Management,” “Hotel Management,” and
“Retail Marketing” and has several international teaching experiences as
visiting professor. His research is related to destination governance and
branding, sustainable tourism, consumer behavior, and digital marketing.
He has published books and numerous articles in international scientific
journals. He is a member of the editorial board of several international
scientific journals and acts as Associate Editor for European Journal of
Tourism Research. He regularly trains tourism and hospitality managers.
Laurence Cogan-Marie holds a master’s degree from the prestigious
ESCP Europe. After 15 years abroad working in advertising and recruit-
ment, she co-created a wine shop in Dublin, Ireland and an informative
Web site about Burgundy. She also worked as a wine tourism consultant.
She is currently Associate Professor in Wine Marketing & Wine Tourism
for the School of Wine & Spirits Business at the Burgundy School of
Business in Dijon, France. In January 2016, she launched a major in
wine tourism for BSB’s bachelor program.
Michael Conlin is Professor of Management in the Okanagan School
of Business at Okanagan College, Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada.
He is also an adjunct Professor in the School of Hospitality and Tourism
Management at the University of Guelph and the Faculty of Tourism
and Hotel Management at Royal Roads University. His research interests
are in the area of industrial heritage tourism, wine business tourism, and
future scenario building focusing on the future of work in tourism.
He is the co-editor along with Professor Tom Baum of the pioneer-
ing edited book Island Tourism: Management Principles and Practice
(Wiley, 1995) and is the co-editor along with Dr. Lee Jolliffe of Mining
Heritage and Tourism: A Global Synthesis (Routledge, 2011). He is
the co-editor along with Dr. Geoffrey Bird of Railway Heritage and
Tourism: Global Perspectives (Channel View, 2014) and is the co-ed-
itor along with Dr. Lee Jolliffe of Automobile Heritage and Tourism
(Routledge, 2017). He is currently working on a book to be titled The
Future of Work in Tourism and Hospitality (Channel View, 2019) with
Professor Baum and several other tourism researchers.
 Notes on Contributors    xvii

Alexandra I. Correia, Ph.D. is Associate Professor of Tourism Studies at

the Polytechnic Institute of Viana do Castelo (IPVC) and integrated mem-
ber Centre for Tourism Research, Development, and Innovation (CiTUR).
She also collaborates as a researcher on Applied Management Research Unit
(UNIAG) and on Applied Research Centre for Digital Transformation
(ARC4DigIT). She is the Head of the Master’s in Innovative Tourism
Development and her main interests include wine tourism, inter-busi-
ness cooperation, Tourism and Digital Marketing, with a special emphasis
on Experiential marketing, and on Social Media Marketing. She presented
papers at national and international conferences, has been a member of sci-
entific committees for conferences and seminars, and has publications in her
area of interest. With experience in the hospitality sector, in the last years,
she has been involved in I&D national and international projects, along
with projects with local private and public organizations.
Raquel Cunha is graduated in Tourism and with a Master in Tourism,
Innovation and Development from the Polytechnic Institute of Viana
do Castelo. She completed a training course under the Mobility Action
Program—Leonardo da Vinci at Red IBERTUR—Heritage, Tourism
and Sustainable Development Network, participating on projects to
the development of sustainable resources in the tourism sector, with
emphasis to archaeological tourism. She participated on the promo-
tion of one of the Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe. Her main
interests include Wine Tourism, Marketing Tourism, in particular Social
Media Marketing in Tourism, and Cultural Tourism. She is currently a
researcher in a funded research project on Tourism and Heritage Routes.
Darko Dimitrovski has Ph.D. in Geography and Master’s degree
in Hotel Management. He is Assistant Professor at the University of
Kragujevac, Faculty of Hotel Management and Tourism in Vrnjacka
Banja, Serbia. Currently, he is involved in postdoctoral research fel-
lowship at University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro, Vila Real,
Portugal working on the project INNOVINE and WINE. His research
mostly focuses on sustainable and niche tourism.
Maria Dimou is physicist with OIV M.Sc. in Wine Management. She
has worked as sommelier, wine consultant, and wine columnist. Since
2004, she has been working as Marketing Manager at Katogi Averoff
Hotel and Winery and as wine educator at Le Monde Institute of Hotel
and Tourism studies. https://about.me/mariadimou.
xviii    Notes on Contributors

Axel Dreyer is Professor for Tourism Management/Marketing at the

Hochschule Harz, University of Applied Sciences, in Wernigerode (since
1993). He also is Honorary Professor for Sports Management at the
Institut for Sports Sciences of the University of Goettingen (since 1996).
After studying business administration as well as journalism and commu-
nication sciences (graduated with a degree in business administration),
he received his doctorate in Goettingen from the Faculty of Economic
Sciences with a dissertation on the subject of sports sponsoring (1986).
Axel Dreyer is co-founder of the German Society for Tourism
Research („DGT“—Deutsche Gesellschaft für Tourismuswissenschaft
e.V.). He was the founding director of the Institute for Tourism Research
and is working in various positions as a researcher and lecturer at the
Harz University. At present, he is spokesman of the Commission for
Wine an Culinary Tourism of the German Society for Tourism Research.
His publications focus on tourism markets and tourism marketing.
The main topics include service quality and customer satisfaction, tour-
ism marketing in general, sports tourism (cycle tourism/hiking tourism)
and cultural tourism, in particular wine tourism, which has been his main
research area since 2006.
Bob (Yichen) Duan is a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Tourism,
Sport and Hotel Management at Griffith University, Australia.
François Durrieu is Marketing Professor at Kedge Business School.
He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Social Sciences, Toulouse.
His research interests include wine marketing (packaging, product, and
tourism) and research methods in several management areas with other
researchers. His research has been published in the following journals:
International Journal of Wine Marketing, International Journal of
Wine Business Research, International Journal of Retail & Distribution
Management, Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Journal of
Business Research, Journal of International Marketing, International
Management Review, and Revue Française de Ressources Humaines. He is
a co-author of book on structural equation modeling and books chapters
in research methods, wine marketing, and international marketing. He is
co-authored of a case study in wine tourism.
Carlos Fernandes, Ph.D. is Associate Professor in Tourism Studies at
the Polytechnic of Viana do Castelo, Portugal. He obtained his under-
graduate degree at Syracuse University (USA), Master’s at Rutgers
 Notes on Contributors    xix

University (USA), and Ph.D. at Bournemouth University (UK). His

interests include tourism innovation, tourism as a development strat-
egy, gastronomy and tourism and religious tourism. Course leader of
the B.A. in Tourism (UNWTO Tedqual certified) and lecturer in the
M.A. in Innovative Tourism Development. Researcher at the Centre for
Transdisciplinary Development Studies (CETRAD) at the University
of Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro, Portugal. A member of the editorial
board of various tourism related scientific journals. He has presented
papers in more than eighty national and international conferences and
has over forty publications in his areas of interest.
Joanna Fountain is a Senior Lecturer in Tourism Management at
Lincoln University, New Zealand. Her research is focused on the sig-
nificance of agrifood tourism and festivals in enhancing rural resilience,
community engagement, and consumer/tourist experiences in the face
of rapid change for rural regions. Her research interest in wine tourism
dates back more than a decade and encompasses a range of contexts,
including New Zealand, Australia, China, and France. As a member of a
number of cross-cultural and multi-disciplinary teams, she has researched
wine consumption and wine socialization experiences, and the consumer
perceptions of different wine varieties.
Professor Donald Getz, Ph.D. is a leading international researcher,
author, and consultant in the fields of tourism and event studies and
related planning and management challenges. He was co-founder, with
Dr. Bruce Wicks of Illinois, of the first research journal for event studies
in 1993 and has been an invited keynote speaker at numerous academic
and practitioner conferences and workshops.
Dr. Getz retired in July 2009 from his full-time academic position in
the Haskayne School of Business at the University of Calgary, Canada,
where he worked from 1991, and he remains Professor Emeritus at
Calgary. He worked from 1980 to 1991 as Assistant and Associate
Professor at the University of Waterloo in Recreation and Leisure
Studies, and after retirement he has held part-time positions at the
University of Queensland (Australia), University of Stavanger (Norway),
and the University of Gothenburg (Sweden).
Donald received a B.E.S in 1971 (Environmental Studies, Urban
and Regional Planning) from the University of Waterloo, an M.A. in
1975 from Carleton University (Geography), and his Ph.D. from the
University of Edinburgh (Social Sciences) in 1981.
xx    Notes on Contributors

Oksana Grybovych Hafermann is currently an Associate Professor

and Head of the Department of Health, Recreation and Community
Services at the University of Northern Iowa. She previously served as the
Division Chair and Associate Professor in the Division of Leisure, Youth
and Human Services, and a Project Manager for the Sustainable Tourism
and Environment Program (STEP) at the University of Northern Iowa.
She specializes in civic and community engagement, participatory com-
munity tourism planning, economic impacts of tourism, tourism mar-
keting, and sustainable development. Dr. Grybovych Hafermann holds
a B.A. in Economics/Management from the Institute of Economics and
Law (Ukraine), M.Sc. in Leisure and Environments from the University
of Wageningen (the Netherlands), and Ed.D. in Leisure Services from
the University of Northern Iowa (USA).
Robert J. Harrington is Academic Director for the Carson College of
Business and Associate Director in the School of Hospitality Business
Management at Washington State University, USA. He received his
Ph.D. in Strategic Management and M.B.A. from WSU, Pullman, USA.
Prior to joining WSU, he was the twenty-first-century Endowed Chair in
Hospitality at the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, Associate Professor
at the University of Guelph, Canada and Dean of the Chef John Folse
Culinary Institute, Thibodaux, LA. Professor Harrington was a Certified
Executive Chef for more than 20 years and has widely published in lead-
ing hospitality, tourism, and business journals. Harrington is author of
Food and Wine Pairing: A Sensory Experience and serves on several jour-
nal editorial boards. Dr. Harrington is a frequent invited speaker and
visiting professor on food and drink pairing, hospitality innovation, and
other hospitality business topics.
Veronika Joukes has a Ph.D. in social sciences and a Master’s degree
in modern history. She began her career at UTAD in 1998 and has since
been linked to its tourism bachelor. She is a full researcher at CETRAD
(recent projects: CULTOUR, DOUROTUR, INNOVINE & WINE
PLATFORM, GEOARPAD, and S.I.L.V.Her). Her areas of interest are sus-
tainable/responsible tourism, health and wellness tourism, wine tourism, his-
tory of tourism, e-/b-learning in tourism, and interactive teaching methods.
Dr. Aise Kim is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Management at
the University of South Australia. She completed her Ph.D. research in
School of Management, at the University of Surrey, UK. Her teaching
 Notes on Contributors    xxi

and research interests include tourist behavior, tourism marketing, des-

tination management, ecotourism, food and wine tourism, and sustain-
able tourism. She actively engages in working with the tourism industry
sectors at both local and international levels and also serves an execu-
tive committee member of Wildlife Tourism Australia Association. She is
currently on the editorial boards of two international tourism journals,
ANATOLIA and Tourism Recreation Research.
Professor Alex Koutsouris is the Head of the Unit of Agricultural
Extension, Rural Systems & Rural Sociology, Department of Agricultural
Economics and Rural Development, Agricultural University of Athens;
Specialist in agricultural extension (interactive innovation (and) com-
munication) and agricultural education/training as well as in sustain-
able rural development, including agritourism. He has published and
presented papers on the abovementioned topics, been guest co-editor
in scientific journals and publications, and served as a member of the
boards of relevant scientific societies and international conferences and
meetings. Currently, he is Associate Editor, The Journal of Agricultural
Education & Extension and invited expert in SWG SCAR AKIS4. He
participates/ed in several international research and collaboration pro-
jects including HORIZON 2020 projects.
Dr. Anna Kyriakaki holds a Ph.D. in Tourism Development, a Master
Degree (M.Sc.) in “Tourism, Planning, Management and Policy,” and
a B.Sc. in Business Administration from the University of the Aegean,
Greece. Currently, she is Academic lab teaching staff in Business
School at the University of the Aegean and Tutor at the Postgraduate
Program in “Management of Tourism Enterprises” at the Hellenic
Open University and at the Postgraduate Program in “Innovation and
Entrepreneurship in Tourism” at the University of West Attica, where
she lectures courses on sociology, management, tourism development,
and planning. Her research interests are in the wider areas of tourism
development, special and alternative forms of tourism and issues in social
(tourism) research. She has contributed to several national and interna-
tional research projects in tourism development, and her work has been
published in international academic journals and conference proceedings.
Samuel V. Lankford is currently Professor and Chair of the
Department of Recreation Administration, and former Interim Associate
Dean of the College of Health and Human Services at California State
xxii    Notes on Contributors

University, Fresno. He previously served as the Endowed Professor

and Director of the Sustainable Tourism and Environment Program
(STEP) at the University of Hawaii, School of Travel Industry
Management, Director of the Recreation and Leisure Science Program
at the University of Hawaii from 1991 to 2001, and a Professor and
Director of the Sustainable Tourism and Environment Program at the
University of Northern Iowa. He specializes in tourism and recreation
development. Dr. Lankford holds a B.A. in Geography and Community
Planning and a M.A. in Park and Recreation Administration from
California State University, Chico. He also holds a Master of Urban
Planning Degree (MUP) and Ph.D. in Parks, Recreation and Tourism
from the University of Oregon.
Emily Ma is an Associate Professor within the Department of Hospitality
and Tourism at University of Massachusetts, USA.
Byron Marlowe, Ph.D. received his Doctorate in Philosophy with a
concentration in Hospitality Management from Iowa State University.
Byron coordinates Washington State University’s Wine Beverage Business
Management program and is faculty in the Carson College of Business,
School of Hospitality Business Management. Byron is an International
Business Fellow in the Carson College of Business and holds several
international visiting lecturer/professor positions at University of Applied
Sciences, Hochschule Harz, Germany, Institut Paul Bocuse, France &
China, and Castello Sonnino Field Study, Italy for his expertise in Wine
Tourism and Food and Beverage Management. Byron’s teaching back-
ground is from Southern Oregon University where he was previously Sr.
Instructor and Hospitality and Tourism Coordinator in their School of
Business and Le Cordon Bleu where he was their Lead Instructor in the
Culinary Management program. Byron is developing his academic liter-
ature around the hospitality and tourism discipline as a researcher with
multiple peer-reviewed academic contributions to the science.
Olga Matos holds a Ph.D. in Archaeology, is Adjunct Professor at the
Polytechnic of Viana do Castelo, Portugal and an integrated researcher at
Lab2PT, University of Minho (Portugal). She works in the area of Cultural
Heritage, Museology, Interpretation and Cultural Tourism. She has partic-
ipated as a researcher in national and international projects, in jury compe-
titions, in several national and international conferences as a speaker and
also has an important number of publications in her area of interest.
 Notes on Contributors    xxiii

Arwen McGregor has had a long interest in the wine industry with
a concentration on the emerging Queensland wine industry. She has a
Masters in Tourism Leadership and completed her thesis focusing on the
wine industry in the Granite Belt. Arwen has held the voluntary role of
honorary secretary for the Queensland Wine Industry since 2013. She
has coordinated the annual Queensland wine awards event and man-
aged the associations social media platforms during this time. She has
been instrumental in submitting the successful Federal international
wine tourism grant application which will benefit the Queensland Wine
Industry. She is currently self-employed in a boutique tourism business.
Ester Napolitano is a Ph.D. candidate at the Department of Economic
and Business Science, University of Cagliari (Italy). Her research is
related to tourism marketing, wine tourism, wine consumer behavior,
and memorable tourist experience.
Sibel Önçel, Ph.D. is an Assistant Professor in Faculty of Tourism at
Anadolu University, Turkey. She teaches courses on culinary arts, gas-
tronomy, and marketing. She has published articles and conference papers
on Turkish cuisine, gastronomy, and food and beverage marketing. Her
research interests include customer relationship management, competitive
strategies in food and beverage industry and consumer behavior.
Professor Michael Ottenbacher is Department Head and a Mary L.
Vanier Endowed Professor of the Hospitality Management Department
at Kansas State University, USA. He received his Ph.D. in Marketing
from the University of Otago, New Zealand and his Master and Bachelor
of Science in Hospitality Management from Florida International
University, USA. Prior to joining Kansas State University, he was teach-
ing at Heilbronn University, Germany, San Diego State University, USA,
University of Guelph, Canada and University of Surrey, UK. In addition to
academia, he has extensive business experience. Dr. Michael Ottenbacher
worked in senior hospitality positions in the USA, UK, France, and
Germany. Professor Ottenbacher has widely published in leading hospi-
tality, tourism, and management journals. He is on the editorial board of
several journals and has been the Co-editor of the Journal of Hospitality
and Tourism Education since 2012. Further, Dr. Ottenbacher has been
a Visiting Professor at the Institute Paul Bocuse in France, the German-
Vietnamese University in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Taylor’s University
in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and HTW Chur in Chur, Switzerland.
xxiv    Notes on Contributors

Dr. Jacques-Olivier Pesme is the Special Advisor to the Dean for

Wine Management Development at the University of British Columbia
(Canada) and Professor at the University of Adelaide (Australia). He
was previously Associate dean at Kedge Business School where he was in
charge of the Wine & Spirits Academy.
Additionally to his academic activities, Jacques-Olivier Pesme is also
the co-founder of the Bordeaux Wine & Business club, board member
of different professional and institutional bodies operating in the wine
sector, and was the Oenovation Price winner in 2004, awarded by the
French Prime Minister for the best technological innovation in the wine
sector.
Frederic Ponsignon is an Associate Professor of Operations Management
at KEDGE Business School. He obtained his Ph.D. from the University
of Exeter (UK) in 2010. His research interests lie in process design, cus-
tomer experience management, quality management, digital transforma-
tion, and service recovery. He’s been involved in a variety of research and
consulting projects with a wide range of organizations including AFNOR,
EDF, La Cité du Vin, Hennessy, TNT, Axa Wealth, AFNOR, FIAT
Industrials, and Devon Police among others. His research has been pub-
lished in leading international journals such as the International Journal
of Operations and Production Management, the International Journal of
Production Research, and the Journal of Service Management. He is also
the author of several practitioner-oriented white papers and books.
Dr. Marlene Pratt is the Discipline Leader of Hotel Management at
Griffith University in the Business School. She is the Primary Convenor,
Hotel Service Operations Management (onshore and Hong Kong)
and is currently teaching in the area of Food and Wine Tourism. Her
research interests and area of expertise lie in marketing and consumer
behavior, wine tourism and consumers and simulations and their learning
outcomes.
Dr. Martin Prokeš is the Distinguished Professor of Wine at Mendel
University in Brno, Czech Republic. His areas of expertise include Wine
Business Strategy, Wine Marketing Management, and Cooperation in
Clusters and Winemakers Associations. In addition to teaching, he cur-
rently conducts research and does consulting with multiple wineries and
other local businesses, especially in projects of wine tourism develop-
ment. He is founder of the winery PROQIN, specialized for classique
 Notes on Contributors    xxv

méthode sparkling wine producer. Prior to coming to MENDELU and

create the brand PROQIN, he worked more than ten years as a market-
ing director for premium wineries in the Czech and Slovak wine mar-
ket. He is teacher and author of education projects at National Wine
Center of the Czech Republic. His projects in research and development
new products with institutional European support are: Secondary prod-
ucts of vines, Grapessed oil; Moravian Wine Trails and Cooperation in
Winemakers Association; Low alcohol sparkling wines, etc.
Susana Rachão is a Ph.D. candidate in Tourism in the Aveiro University
(Portugal) and has an M.Sc. in Tourism, Innovation and Development
from the Polytechnic Institute of Viana do Castelo (IPVC) and a
Bachelor’s degree in Tourism from the same institution. She is a master’s
researcher fellowship at CETRAD (Centre of Transdisciplinary Studies
for Development). Her areas of interest are creative and food tourism,
innovation and product development in tourism with special interest in
destination management.
Ruth Rentschler OAM is Head of School of Management and
Professor of Arts and Cultural Leadership at the University of South
Australia. She has more than 20 years’ experience working in govern-
ance, management, and marketing in the nonprofit sphere and in the arts
at local, state, national, and international levels. She is a DAAD scholar,
a St Hilda’s College, University of Melbourne scholar and recipient of
various awards and prizes. Ruth Rentschler is a well-published authority
in the field of arts management.
Alan Rice is Professor of Tourism and Marketing in the Okanagan
School of Business at Okanagan College, Kelowna, British Columbia,
Canada since 2008. He is also the principal of Kettle Valley Research,
a boutique marketing research firm that specializes in tourism and hos-
pitality research. Alan received his M.A. in Tourism Planning and
Development from California University in 2010. His current research
interests include the wine industry with particular focus on wine tourism
marketing and innovation in tourism education policy and practice.
Richard N. S. Robinson previously practiced as a chef, predominantly
managing foodservice operations in the prestige club, heritage facility,
and hotel sectors, before joining UQ in 2005. He has taught undergrad-
uate and postgraduate courses in hospitality and tourism management
and professional development. His expertise and scholarship in teaching
xxvi    Notes on Contributors

and learning are recognized by awards and advisory appointments at

state and national level. His research projects, often funded by compet-
itive local, national, and international awarding bodies, explore tourism
and hospitality workforce policy and planning, skills development, iden-
tifying “foodies” and wine lovers consumer behaviors and designing and
evaluating education programs. He holds a UQ Research Development
Fellowship, to investigate gaining and sustaining employment for disad-
vantaged youth.
Efthymia Sarantakou has a Ph.D. in Regional Planning and Tourism.
She has studied Architecture, and she has an M.Sc. in Urban and
Regional Planning (NTUA). Currently, she holds a position as a
Scientific Collaborator at the Hellenic Open University, at University
of the Aegean, and at the University of West Attica. From 2015 to
2018, she worked as Head of the Department of Support of Regional
Tourism Units at the Greek Ministry of Tourism. From 2010 to 2012,
she worked as consultant at the Ministry of Environment, participating
in the planning and assess of a number of spatial legislative regulations.
From 2004 to 2008, she worked for the Region of Attica, monitor-
ing tourism enterprises Aid. From 2000 to 2004, she worked as a con-
sultant in the Ministry of the Aegean participating in the formation of
the appropriate regulatory framework for the protection of the histor-
ical urban environment. She has also been involved with projects for
the sustainable tourism development of the Aegean islands. She has an
important writing activity on issues related to tourism development, des-
tination management, and local cultural resource management (chapters
in books, articles in magazines and papers in international conferences
with judges and published minutes).
Dr. Donna Sears received her M.B.A. from the University of New
Brunswick and her Ph.D. from McGill University. Her research focuses
on hedonic consumption experiences, particularly related to wine con-
sumers and wine tourism. She has presented her work at various con-
ferences such as Advances in Consumer Research, Academy of Wine
Business Research, Wine & Culinary Tourism Futures Conference,
Society for Marketing Advances, and International Wine Tourism
Conference. She has also chaired the Atlantic Schools of Business
Conference (2017) and currently serves as President of the Atlantic
Schools of Business Conference Society. Dr. Sears often works with
organizations in the community and regularly presents her work
 Notes on Contributors    xxvii

to community groups. Dr. Sears is actively involved in promoting

Nova Scotia as a tourist destination, sitting on the volunteer Board of
Directors for the Province’s Crown Corporation responsible for tourism,
Tourism Nova Scotia.
Marianna Sigala is Professor at the University of South Australia and
Director of the Centre for Tourism & Leisure Management. Prior to
her current position, she has been an academic staff at the Universities
of Strathclyde and Westminster in the UK, and the University of the
Aegean (Greece). She also has professional hospitality industry experi-
ence. Her interests include service management, experience manage-
ment, Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) in tourism
and hospitality, and wine tourism. She has published nine books, and her
work has also been published in several academic journals, books, and
international conferences. She is currently the co-editor of the Journal
of Service Theory & Practice, the Editor-In-Chief of the Journal of
Hospitality & Tourism Management and the advisor editor of the Journal
of Hospitality & Tourism Cases. She is a past President of EuroCHRIE
and a past member of the executive board of CHRIE. She currently
serves at the executive boards of IFITT and CAUTHE. In 2016, she
has been awarded the prestigious EuroCHRIE Presidents’ Award for
her lifetime contributions and achievements to tourism and hospitality
education.
Ulrike Siguda is from Germany and graduated from Heilbronn University
in 2014. She completed her Bachelor degree in Hospitality Management
with a major in International Management including semesters abroad at
Mahidol University, Thailand. During her studies, she worked as a research
assistant at the chair of Hospitality Management. Her research interests
lie in the area of culinary travel and restaurant management among oth-
ers. After completing her studies, Ulrike gained experience and expertise in
the retail industry concerning international sourcing and buying of edible
goods, cosmetics, beer, and non-food articles. Currently, she is working for
Aldi International Buying.
Jonathan Staggs is a Lecturer at The University of Queensland. He
holds a Ph.D. in Business from The University of Queensland Business
School, a Masters of Business Administration from Griffith University,
and an Honors degree in Political Science from the University of
Queensland.
xxviii    Notes on Contributors

Jonathan’s primary research stream focuses on how innovation occurs

on a regional level and how regional actors can work collectively. Taking
an organizational field perspective, he focuses on the shared meanings,
relational structures, and issue arenas that help a region move forward in
innovation. Additionally, Jonathan currently holds a UQ Teaching and
Learning Grant developing institutional hospitality case studies to create
an innovative and entrepreneurial mind-set among students.
Jonathan’s work has been published in Cambridge Journal of
Economics and also has been presented at leading international confer-
ences. Jonathan has also been an invited scholar at Aalto University in
Finland and Doshisha University in Japan.
Dr. Panagiotis Tataridis is an Assistant Professor at the Department
of Wine, Vine & Beverage Sciences at the University of West Attika and
a former president of the Pan-Hellenic Union of Registered Enologists
(PANEPO). He is an enologist from the TEI of Athens, with a D.E.A.
in Enology-Ampelology from the University of Burgundy (IUVV)
and a Ph.D. from the Institut Nationale Polytechique of Toulouse
(ENSIACET). He is specialized in wine and brewing science, fermenta-
tion technology, process engineering, and sensory evaluation. He has 15
years of academic and 8 years of Quality Manager/Food Safety consult-
ant experience.
Charlotte Thompson graduated from Lincoln University in 2016,
with a Bachelor of Environmental Management and Planning (minor in
Tourism Management). She is interested in tourist behavior and desti-
nation planning, as well as environmental management and community
well-being. Charlotte is currently employed at Lincoln University as a
research assistant and is also working on community engagement strate-
gies for the planning of Christchurch’s coastal region. Her work has been
published in multiple academic journals and resulted in several media
appearances.
Dr. hab. Fabrice Thuriot is researcher at the Centre of Research on
Law and Territory (CRDT), member of the Georges Chappaz Institute
of Vine and Wine in Champagne, Director of Development of SSH in
Law, Economy and Management at the House of Human Sciences of
the University of Reims Champagne-Ardenne, lecturer at the universi-
ties of Reims Champagne-Ardenne, Angers, Paris-I Pantheon-Sorbonne
and Kedge Business School of Bordeaux, France. He delivered more
 Notes on Contributors    xxix

than 100 communications and published more than 100 articles and
books about cultural policies and local authorities in France, Europe, and
North America.
Dr. Nikolaos Trihas holds a Ph.D. in e-Tourism, a Master Degree
(M.Sc.) in “Tourism Planning, Administration and Policy,” and a B.Sc.
in Business Administration from the University of the Aegean, Greece.
Currently, he is a lecturer in the Department of Business Administration
at the Technological Educational Institute of Crete in Greece, at the
Hellenic Open University (Postgraduate Program in “Management of
Tourism Enterprises”), and the Advanced School of Tourism Education
of Crete, where he lectures courses on marketing, management, and
tourism. He has contributed to several national and international
research projects in hospitality and tourism. His work has been published
in several international academic journals and conference proceedings.
His research interests include e-tourism, special and alternative forms of
tourism, and tourism marketing.
Paris A. Tsartas is a Professor of Tourism Development. He teaches
Tourism at the Department of Home Economics and Ecology of the
Harokopio University of Athens. He taught at the Department of Business
Administration of the University of the Aegean (1997–2016) where he
was twice elected as the Department Head (2001–2003, 2007–2009).
Between 2010 and 2014, he has served as the Rector of the University
of the Aegean. He was Chairman of the Board of Higher Education of
Greece (2014). He has also served as Director at the Interdepartmental
Program of Post Graduate Studies in Tourism at University of the Aegean
(2002–2009). Visiting professor and lecturer on Post Graduate and
Undergraduate Programmes at IRESTI, Sorbonne University (2015–
2017), European University in Cyprus (2014–2015), Athens University
of Economics and Business (2014–2015). He is an Editor-in-Chief of
Tourismos: An International Multidisciplinary Journal of Tourism, a
reviewer and a member of editorial boards of scientific journals of tour-
ism (AOTR, JOST, Anatolia, Tourism Today, etc.) and also a member of
a various number of scientific boards. He was scientific director or senior
researcher in a large number of co-funded research EU projects and stud-
ies for the public sector, the local governments, and the private sector. He
is the author of a number of articles, books, and research monographs on
Tourism (in English, Greek, and French) and contributed to a number of
collective edited publications on the same subjects (collective volumes).
xxx    Notes on Contributors

Maria Tsoukala (1958, Greece) has served as a Municipal Councilor

since 2007 and more specifically as President of the Aigialeian Port
Authority, as Chairman of the Municipal Council as well as President of
the Municipal Welfare Business of Aigialeia for four years (2014–2018),
promoting regional aspects of culture, identity, and Aigialeian his-
tory. She has studied Medicine and also works as a doctor specified in
pneumonology.
Dr. Natalia Velikova holds a joint appointment between the Texas
Wine Marketing Research Institute where she serves as the Associate
Director and the Department of Hospitality & Retail Management at
Texas Tech University where she works as the Associate Professor and
teaches wine business courses. Dr. Velikova conducts research in the
area of wine tourism, wine marketing, and wine consumer behavior. Her
research has been published in various highly ranked peer-review jour-
nals and trade publications. Natalia’s expertise is also valued by the wine
and grape growers industries. She has been invited to deliver numerous
presentations of her research at industry conferences worldwide. Natalia
received several grants, including funding from the US Department
of Agriculture and the Fulbright Program, to conduct research on the
development of wine tourism in various wine world regions.
Dr. Terrance G. Weatherbee received his Ph.D. from Saint Mary’s
University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. He currently teaches
Organizational Theory and Research Methods in the Honors program in
the F.C. Manning School of Business at Acadia University. His research
interests are focused upon the intersection of historiography and organi-
zations. Dr. Weatherbee has presented his work internationally in venues
such as the Academy of Management Conference series, the European
Group on Organizational Studies, and the Academy of Wine Business
Research. He is currently researching how organizations in the grape
and wine sector combine rhetorical history and the semiotics of linguistic
materiality to deploy narratives of the past as resources for strategic deci-
sion making and branding in new and start-up wineries.
Medet Yolal, Ph.D. is Professor of Marketing in Faculty of Tourism at
Anadolu University, Turkey, where he mainly teaches issues related to
destination management and marketing, tourism marketing and con-
sumer behavior. He has authored or co-authored several articles, book
chapters, and conference papers on hospitality marketing, consumer
 Notes on Contributors    xxxi

behavior, management of small- and medium-sized enterprises in tour-

ism, and event management. His research interests mainly focus on
tourism marketing, consumer behavior, tourist experience, event man-
agement, tourism development, and quality of life research in tourism.
 List of Figures

Fig. 3.1 Central Otago research boundaries (Source Central Otago

Winegrowers Association, n.d.a) 32
Fig. 4.1 Self-congruity and wine tourism model results
(Pratt & Sparks, 2014) 53
Fig. 4.2 Differences between groups, high and low self-congruity,
high and low involvement 56
Fig. 11.1 A model of wine and food event experiences 145
Fig. 11.2 Logic model for event goals and desired outcomes 153
Fig. 13.1 Alternative winery visit propositions 198
Fig. 16.1 The Rubik’s Cube shape of the d’Arenberg Cube 253
Fig. 16.2 Internal decoration and design of the d’Arenberg Cube’s
restaurant 257
Fig. 16.3 The servicescape of the cellar door at the d’Arenberg Cube 258
Fig. 16.4 The walkway to the d’Arenberg Cube 258
Fig. 16.5 Cartoon displayed at the d’Arenberg Cube 260
Fig. 16.6 Biophilic servicescape design of the d’Arenberg Cube 261
Fig. 16.7 Use of art for food presentation at the d’Arenberg Cube’s
restaurant 262
Fig. 16.8 Art to be consumed at the restaurant of the d’Arenberg Cube 264
Fig. 16.9 The chef’s table at the d’Arenberg Cube 266
Fig. 18.1 The view of the LCV in Bordeaux 282
Fig. 18.2 La Cite du Vin construction phases, fundings and total
cost (Source F. Maffrand “How to associate culture
and wine regions of the world in an iconic place”. La Cite
de Vin official presentation in the International Wine
Conference, Armenia, 2017) 285

xxxiii
xxxiv    List of Figures

Fig. 18.3 The themed areas of the LCV: World Vineyards tour,
the Duo-Buffet of five senses, wine metamorphoses 291
Fig. 20.1 The Port Wine Route development process (Source Authors’
own elaboration) 318
Fig. 20.2 The wine routes of Northern Portugal on the PLC curve
(Source PLC developed by the authors) 321
Fig. 20.3 The Portuguese wine routes on the PLC curve
(Source PLC developed by the authors) 322
Fig. 22.1 Flowchart of the Moravian Wine Route project
(Prokeš, 2018) 342
Fig. 22.2 Preferred forms of Wine Tourism Promotion (Prokeš, 2017) 350
Fig. 25.1 Geographic location of granite belt (Adapted from Golbez
2006) 385
Fig. 27.1 Destination British Columbia regional marketing
organizations map 425
Fig. 27.2 Okanagan Valley: principal enquiry area (Rice 2018) 426
Fig. 27.3 Wineries in the central Okanagan Valley: Kelowna, West
Kelowna (Rice 2018). Sources Esri, HERE, DeLorme,
Intermap, increment P Corp., GEBCO, USGS, FAO,
NPS, NRCAN, GeoBase, IGN, Kadaster NL, Ordnance
Survey, Esri Japan, METI, Esri China (Hong Kong),
swisstopo, MapmyIndia, ©OpenStreetMap contributors,
and the GIS User Community 428
Fig. 27.4 Wineries in the central Okanagan Valley Narramatta
and Summerland (Rice 2018). Sources Esri, HERE,
DeLorme, Intermap, increment P Corp., GEBCO,
USGS, FAO, NPS, NRCAN, GeoBase, IGN, Kadaster NL,
Ordnance Survey, Esri Japan, METI, Esri China
(Hong Kong), swisstopo, MapmyIndia, ©OpenStreetMap
contributors, and the GIS User Community 429
Fig. 27.5 Wineries in the Southern Okanagan Valley and Similkameen
Valley (Rice 2018). Sources Esri, HERE, DeLorme,
Intermap, increment P Corp., GEBCO, USGS, FAO,
NPS, NRCAN, GeoBase, IGN, Kadaster NL, Ordnance
Survey, Esri Japan, METI, Esri China (Hong Kong),
swisstopo, MapmyIndia, ©OpenStreetMap contributors,
and the GIS User Community 430
Fig. 27.6 Round 2: Likelihood of Impact 436
Fig. 27.7 Round 2: significance of impact 438
Fig. 27.8 Likelihood/impact matrix 440
Fig. 28.1 Proposed relationships for wine tourism 454
Fig. 28.2 Evolutionary consumer states impacting behaviors 457
 List of Figures    xxxv

Fig. 29.1 Spatial distribution of authorized wine enterprises within

the three selected regions (Data Greek Ministry of Rural
Development and Food, October 2017; authors’
compilation) 476
Fig. 31.1 USA map highlighting Virginia 498
Fig. 31.2 Location of interviewed wineries (Note Northern Virginia
is in dark green. Interviewed wineries are indicated
through orange circles) 504
Fig. 35.1 Mean spending per travel party 582
Fig. 35.2 Map of Iowa (Highlighted counties in Northeast
Iowa were included in the IMPLAN model) 584
Fig. 38.1 A framework for understanding and creating knowledge
in wine tourism (Adapted from Sigala & Robinson, 2019) 611
 List of Tables

Table 2.1 Travel motivations by the wine-related travel motivation

groups 16
Table 2.2 Perceived importance of wine tourism destination
attributes by the wine-related travel motivation groups 19
Table 2.3 Factors influencing wine travel behaviour 22
Table 3.1 Central Otago wine region (1996–2016) 31
Table 3.2 Description of Central Otago characteristics and features
(n = 174) 35
Table 3.3 Level of agreement with statements regarding Central
Otago 38
Table 5.1 Travel motivations for visiting the wineries/Iowa wine
trail (mean scores) 69
Table 5.2 Alpha values and factor pattern coefficients for travel
motivations (n = 130) 69
Table 7.1 Examples of e-storytelling in Greek wine industry’s websites 88
Table 7.2 Unique stories in Greek wineries’ websites 90
Table 7.3 Good stories are based on good answers 92
Table 10.1 Attendance of other Champagne region UNESCO sites
and wine cellars, in 2015 137
Table 13.1 Demographic profile of respondents compared to larger
collected data sample 191
Table 13.2 Cross-tabulations between winery visitor motives
and profile factors 192
Table 13.3 Winery visit benefits buy-motivated and experience-
motivated winery visitors 193

xxxvii
xxxviii    List of Tables

Table 13.4 NC wine perceptions of buy-motivated and experience-

motivated winery visitors 194
Table 14.1 Aspects related to/influencing wine tourism experiences 206
Table 14.2 Socio-demographic characteristics of respondents 211
Table 14.3 Wine consumption 212
Table 14.4 Motivations for visiting Quinta da Avessada 212
Table 14.5 Aspects that visitors enjoyed the most and the least at
Quinta da Avessada 213
Table 14.6 Level of satisfaction of the visit to Quinta da Avessada 214
Table 14.7 Most referred aspects related to the visit 215
Table 15.1 Commonalities and interrelations between wine and art 240
Table 18.1 The list of the exhibition modules of the permanent tour
of LCV 290
Table 20.1 Contribution of the strategic products for each region 306
Table 20.2 Matrix of motivations versus attractions 307
Table 20.3 Main characteristics of the wine routes in Portugal
(in chronological order) 308
Table 20.4 Outline of participants for qualitative research 314
Table 20.5 Summary of the themes addressed by the interviewees
for the potential Trás-os-Montes wine route 316
Table 20.6 The perspectives of the actors of the Vinhos Verdes
Route and Alvarinho sub-route 320
Table 22.1 Category of events (Prokeš, 2017) 347
Table 22.2 Category of wine tourism, an idea on what wine tourism
(Prokeš, 2017) 352
Table 22.3 The source of information for orientation in wine
tourism (Prokeš, 2017) 352
Table 22.4 Localisation (LQ) and Concentrations Quotients (CQ)
VOC (Prokeš, 2017) 353
Table 23.1 Expected impacts of the bus service on the wine
destination and its business operators 368
Table 25.1 Indicative sample questions 387
Table 25.2 Typology category definitions 389
Table 25.3 Critical collaborative ‘process’ factors and dimensions 392
Table 26.1 Vineyard areas 2015 and characteristics of Germany’s
wine regions 403
Table 27.1 Trends identified in Round 1 435
Table 28.1 Wine tourism attributes: importance, expectations,
satisfaction, and visit enticements 449
Table 28.2 Frequency of tourism aspects 452
Table 29.1 Application of Life-Cycle Theory to wine tourism—main
contributions 465
 List of Tables    xxxix

Table 29.2 Collective actions towards the development of Greece’s

wine tourism 470
Table 29.3 Regional wine tourism development: comparison
of Northern Greece, Peloponnese and Crete 473
Table 31.1 Characteristics of the interviewed wineries 502
Table 31.2 Training methods 507
Table 33.1 Respondent profiles (N = 65) 542
Table 34.1 Profile of responding wineries 558
Table 34.2 The benefits of the network ‘Wines of Crete’ 560
Table 34.3 The advantages and disadvantages of the ‘Wines of Crete’
network for the participating wineries 563
Table 34.4 Level of agreement in various statements about
networking 565
Table 35.1 Mean and median spending per travel party 581
Table 35.2 Logistic regression model for higher and lower spenders 583
Table 35.3 Economic impacts of wine visitors in rural Northeast Iowa 585
Table 35.4 Economic impacts of wine, grape and related industries
in selected Midwestern states 586
Table 36.1 Wolfville Magic Winery Bus season 596
Table 36.2 Wolfville Magic Winery Bus awards 596
 CHAPTER 1

Introduction: Wine Destination

Management and Marketing—Critical
Success Factors

Marianna Sigala

Introduction
Wine tourism goes beyond the cellar doors of individual wineries
(Mitchell & Hall, 2004). Wine tourism relates not only to the products,
but also to the sociocultural and economic space and the people behind
the former. The latter is well recognized by research stressing the impor-
tance of winescapes in the development and evolution of wine tourism
(e.g., Bruwer & Lesschaeve, 2012). This book aims to contribute to
wine tourism research by investigating the management and the market-
ing issues related to the wine destinations. In this vein, this book com-
plements our previously published book (Sigala & Robinson, 2019) that
adopted a micro-level analysis of wine tourism by investigating man-
agement and marketing issues related to the individual wine tourism
­operators’ perspective.

M. Sigala (*)
University of South Australia, Adelaide, Australia
e-mail: marianna.sigala@unisa.edu.au

© The Author(s) 2019 1

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_1
2 M. SIGALA

Tourism destinations are defined as a geographical area to which

tourists travel to visit some attractions (Leiper, 1995). Thus, attrac-
tions constitute the main decisive reason for visiting a particular des-
tination, because they provide the activities and experiences. Wine
tourism experiences are the raison d’etre of wine tourism, and wine
destinations are comprised of the people as well as provide the space
and the elements to co-create them. Wine experiences and winescapes
also contribute to the image, appeal, and attractiveness of wine des-
tinations (Bruwer, Gross, & Lee, 2016). But how wine destinations
can effectively manage their resources, people, and space to support
co-creation, promote their wine experiences, and generate value to
their stakeholders?
The book aims to consolidate international research from all over the
globe to provide theoretically underpinned answers with practical value
and guidelines as well.

Destination Competitiveness in the Wine Context

Four highly cited studies identify the major factors determining the com-
petitiveness of tourism destinations and so, contributing to our under-
standing about the management and marketing factors that destinations
have to consider for increasing their performance.
Crouch and Ritchie’s (1999) model of destination competitiveness
identifies a total of 36 attributes (influential variables) that are clustered
within the following five groups:

• core resources and attractors;

• supporting factors and resources;
• destination management;
• destination policy, planning, and development;
• qualifying and amplifying determinants (location, costs, security,
image, interdependence, and carrying capacity).

Dwyer and Kim’s (2003) destination competitiveness model consists of

four dimensions:

– resources;
– tourism destination management including tourism industry factors
and government factors;
 1 INTRODUCTION: WINE DESTINATION MANAGEMENT AND MARKETING … 3

– situational conditions related to the external (political, economical,

legal, environmental, and sociocultural) environment;
– demand conditions related to tourists’ identification, perception,
and preferences.

In their destination competitiveness model, Gooroochurn and Sugiyarto

(2005) identified the following factors: price, economic openness, tech-
nology, infrastructure, human tourism, social development, environment,
and human resources. Finally, Blanke (2007) identified 13 key elements
contributing to the competitiveness of destinations: policy rules and
regulations; environmental regulation; safety and security; health and
hygiene; prioritization of travel and tourism; air transport infrastructure;
ground transport infrastructure; tourism infrastructure; ICT infrastruc-
ture; price; human resources; national tourism perception; and natural
and cultural resources.
A wine destination may represent:

• a whole tourism destination;

• a sub-system of a tourism destination;
• a compilation of various (wine) tourism destinations;
• a compilation of sub-systems of various (wine) tourism destinations.

The abovementioned cases highlight that wine destinations: may cross

the geographical and administration borders of (wine) tourism destina-
tions; are interrelated and inter-dependent with tourism destinations (by
either being a part of them or the whole part of them). These ­examples
also highlight the need to conceptualize and define the ‘borders’ of
wine destinations from a demand perspective rather than solely supply
perspective. However, whatever is the case, similar to tourism destina-
tions, the competitiveness of wine destinations is determined by the same
­previously identified factors (Getz & Brown, 2006). To enhance their
performance, wine destinations have to consider:

• the management of their wine-related resources;

• the management and provision of ancillary and supporting tourism
services, amenities, and facilities;
• the management and marketing of the destination, e.g., infrastruc-
ture, carrying capacity, stakeholders’ management, networking,
­collaboration and conflict, destination image, and brand identity;
4 M. SIGALA

• the management of the external environmental factors, e.g., regula-

tions, climate change, demographic changes, political factors;
• the management of demand issues: visitors’ perceptions, satisfac-
tion, experiences.

Purpose and Structure of the Book

The book has compiled research studies and practical case studies from
all over the globe that discuss issues covering all the abovementioned
dimensions and elements related to wine destination management and
marketing.
The book chapters are structured within five parts each one focusing
on a specific and well-identified topic.
The first part of the book includes three chapters and two case studies
focusing on wine tourism demand issues that tourism destinations (and
not individual wine operators) need to consider, influence, and manage.
These issues mainly relate to visitors’: segmentation and profiles; motiva-
tions; needs and preferences; destination image perceptions; experiences;
and satisfaction.
The second part of the book includes three chapters and one case
study that investigate innovative ways to promote and build the brand
identity of wine destinations. Marketing strategies and techniques
include: e-story telling; coopetition business models combing coopera-
tion and competition of wine-related stakeholders; and the heritagization
of the destination and its listing in UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
The third part of the book compiles six chapters and three case stud-
ies addressing the core element and raison d’etre of wine tourism, i.e.,
the design of wine experiences from a destination perspective. To design
wine experiences, the chapters stress the need to: consider both demand
and supply/industry issues; synergize various resources; and build stake-
holder engagement and collaborations. Supply issues need to embed
and valorize the cultural and heritage aspects of wine tourism ecosys-
tems, while demand issues need to consider the visitors’ profiles, needs,
and perspectives. The chapters also propose a new and fresh approach
to design highly engaging and interactive wine experiences, i.e., an art-
based perspective.
The importance of stakeholder collaboration and networking is fur-
ther stressed in the fourth part of the book focusing on the design of
 1 INTRODUCTION: WINE DESTINATION MANAGEMENT AND MARKETING … 5

wine routes. Four chapters and one case study explain both the p ­ rocess
and the elements of designing wine routes by providing theoreti-
cal underpinning and practical evidence from four different countries.
Irrespective of the wine destination context, the success of wine routes
heavily depends on: building the related infrastructure and services;
wine experiences; stakeholder collaboration and synergies; policy and
­management framework.
The last part of the book is the largest section of the book featuring
eleven chapters and two case studies. The fifth part includes international
contributions addressing the topic of destination planning and devel-
opment. The chapters identify and discuss the process, the elements/
resources and the actors, the environmental factors, and the demand
issues that wine destinations need to consider and manage in order to
build their ecosystems and wine experiences. Developing and managing
wine destinations is a complex and dynamic process that needs continu-
ous monitoring and management. Destinations operate within a highly
complex and dynamic environment that they cannot afford to remain
stagnant and apart from any evolution. Wine destinations need to be
both proactive and reactive to any environmental change; wine desti-
nations need to address wine demand but also form and reshape wine
demand. The contributions of these chapters explain how wine destina-
tions can build their capabilities, resources, and management systems to
achieve these.
The book finishes with an epilogue chapter that identifies and
stresses the core lessons and contributions of the book chapters.
In doing so, the chapter expands the previously developed model
(originally developed by Sigala & Robinson, 2019) by adding an extra
layer for understanding and advancing wine tourism research. From a
destination management level, the book identifies, adds, and explains
the following elements describing wine tourism research: destinations
as cultural ecosystems providing (new) resources to be synergized
and compiled for enriching and enhancing wine tourism experiences;
destinations as actor engagement platforms enabling but also con-
straining actors to exchange resources and co-create value; wine tour-
ism experiences at destination level such as wine routes, wine trails,
and wine roads; wine tourism as a vehicle to achieve community-wide
outcomes such as well-being and quality of life, as well as sustainable
development.
6 M. SIGALA

Conclusions
The book is not aimed to be exhaustive and all inclusive of all the issues
and factors related to wine destination management and marketing.
However, the book provides an easy framework to understand and use
for developing and promoting wine destinations. The book identifies the
critical elements and processes that destination planners and managers,
wine and tourism stakeholders need to consider for synergizing, combin-
ing and aligning their resources toward a shared goal. The book con-
tributions provide theoretical underpinnings as well as practical advices
and tips that make it a useful and valuable source of knowledge to both
researchers and professionals alike.
We hope that you will enjoy reading the book and use it as a useful
source for better informing your wine tourism endeavors.

References
Blanke, J. (2007). The travel & tourism competitiveness report 2007: Furthering
the process of economic development. Geneva, Switzerland: World Economic
Forum.
Bruwer, J., Gross, M. J., & Lee, H. C. (2016). Tourism destination image (TDI)
perception within a regional winescape context. Tourism Analysis, 21(3),
173–187.
Bruwer, J., & Lesschaeve, I. (2012). Wine tourists’ destination region brand
image perception and antecedents: Conceptualization of a winescape frame-
work. Journal of Travel & Tourism Marketing, 29(7), 611–628.
Crouch, G. I., & Ritchie, J. B. (1999). Tourism, competitiveness, and societal
prosperity. Journal of Business Research, 44(3), 137–152.
Dwyer, L., & Kim, C. (2003). Destination competitiveness: Determinants and
indicators. Current Issues in Tourism, 6(5), 369–414.
Getz, D., & Brown, G. (2006). Critical success factors for wine tourism regions:
A demand analysis. Tourism Management, 27(1), 146–158.
Gooroochurn, N., & Sugiyarto, G. (2005). Competitiveness indicators in the
travel and tourism industry. Tourism Economics, 11(1), 25–43.
Leiper, N. (1995). Tourism Management. Melbourne: RMIT Press.
Mitchell, R., & Hall, C. M. (2004). The post-visit consumer behaviour of New
Zealand winery visitors. Journal of Wine Research, 15(1), 39–49.
Sigala, M., & Robinson, R. N. S. (2019). Wine tourism: Managing and market-
ing wine tourism business (Vol. I). Basingstoke: Palgrave.
 PART I

Wine Tourists: Who Are They and What Do

They Want from Wine Destinations?

Richard N. S. Robinson

Introduction
Research profiling the wine tourist abounds. Some studies have indeed
been assumptive, supposing that if tourist partake in wine-related tour-
ism activities, or even imbibe, they are wine tourists. Nonetheless,
approaches have including demographic profiling, the development
of taxonomies, or profiles of wine tourists, has historically produced
a surfeit of work investigating wine tourist profiles and behaviour and
motivation-based classifications. On the basis that these studies did not
always account for the fact that (a) wine tourists may not be resourced
to travel to particular destinations that generalist profiles assume, (b)
not all destinations might cater for their specialist interests, which (c)
might induce them to travel to particular destinations, Part I of this book
brings together of collection of empirical works that investigate who a
wine tourist is and what do they want—in the context of a specific des-
tination/s. This part of the book takes readers from Australia and New
Zealand in the Antipodes, Italy and Greece in the Mediterranean, and
back to the New World, to Iowa in the USA.
In the first chapter Kim, Del Chiappa and Napolitano ‘cluster’ wine
tourists in Sardinia, according to their experiences of wine-related ele-
ments, such as pricing, wine destination attractions, and general tour-
ism services. They conclude that visitors to Sardinia, and more broadly
to Italy, are likely to fall on a spectrum from wine aficionados, to wine
culture tourists to more casual tourists—and that destinations need to
8 Part I: WINE TOURISTS: WHO ARE THEY …

accommodate for these groups differently. Moving to Otago, in New

Zealand’s south isle, Fountain and Thompson take on the challenge of
discovering wine tourism in a destination and more synonymous with
skiing in Queenstown and tramping around Lake Wanaka than nosing
and supping fresh pinot noirs. They find that indeed, the natural envi-
ronment is a driver of their experiences, but that local marketers could
value-add to the wine tourists’ experiences by promoting and integrat-
ing the region’s cultural heritage. The third chapter takes us across the
Tasman Sea to Australia. Pratt mobilises self-image congruity on a sam-
ple of domestic Australian wine tourists. Similar to Kim, Del Chiappa
and Napolitano, Pratt uncovers four distinct psycho-social segments,
related to different levels of identification with wine tourists, each with
implications for destination managers and marketers.
Two case studies provide further insights into the profile, behaviour
and motivation of wine tourists in other parts of the global wine map.
Moving across the Pacific, Oksana Grybovych Hafermann and Samuel
Lankford take us to rural north-east Iowa, where political and environ-
mental challenges have been overcome and a resurgence of wine is mak-
ing its mark in the traditional ‘corn state’. The case study reveals that
while wine tasting appeared to be the main motive for visiting the win-
eries, scenery and landscape of the Upper Mississippi River, along with
the opportunity to enjoy time with friends and family and taste local
foods, scored similarly high. Findings show that the local businesses
and authorities need to leverage from these motivations as effectively as
they could. The second case for this part comes from Greece. Tataridis,
Kanellakopoulos, Kanellis and Gatselos, who use a predominantly demo-
graphic profiling to conclude that despite strong visitation to Greek
wineries, international tourists have a poor knowledge of Greek wines
beyond well-known varieties and brands.
This collection of studies and cases, while useful in their own right,
signal future directions in destinations between understanding the pro-
files, needs and wants of their wine tourists—as opposed to wine tourists
generally.
 CHAPTER 2

Understanding the Wine Tourist

Markets’ Motivations, Travel Constraints
and Perceptions of Destination Attributes:
A Case Study of Winery Visitors
in Sardinia, Italy

Aise KyoungJin Kim, Giacomo Del Chiappa

and Ester Napolitano

Introduction
As wine tourism has been significantly growing as one of the ­popular
form of special interest tourism (Sparks, 2007) globally since 1990,
wine tourism destinations have attracted a wider range of tourists with
different levels of wine knowledge or travel motivations. It is noted that

A. K. Kim (*)
University of South Australia, Adelaide, SA, Australia
e-mail: Aise.Kim@unisa.edu.au
G. Del Chiappa
University of Sassari, Sassari, Italy
e-mail: gdelchiappa@uniss.it

© The Author(s) 2019 9

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_2
10 A. K. KIM ET AL.

the profiles of wine tourists have been widely diversified and are differ-
ent between regions and wineries (e.g. Alebaki & Iakovidou, 2011).
Given the growing demand for wine tourism, research on understand-
ing the profile of wine tourists has become essential in order to satisfy
and retain actual visitors and attract new ones by developing new and tai-
lored wine tourism experiences. Several studies have focused on identify-
ing the profiles of wine tourists, by segmenting them according to their
motivations, wine lifestyle, visitor demographics and consumption behav-
iours (Charters & Ali-Knight, 2002; Hall, Longo, Mitchell, & Johnson,
2000). Other researchers have investigated key factors affecting the visi-
tors’ experience, satisfaction with the wine tourism experience and future
behavioural intentions (Galloway, Mitchell, Getz, Crouch, & Ong, 2008;
Getz & Brown, 2006; Sparks, 2007). However, much of the research has
relied on adopting a traditional motivation-based approach (e.g. Asero &
Patti, 2011) or using the industry-driven secondary data to identify two
major segments (such as ‘wine lovers’ versus ‘casual tourists’) depending
on their level of wine involvement (e.g. Colombini, 2015).
To develop a successful wine tourism destination, however, recent
research argues that it is necessary to consider other market segmenta-
tion information in comparison with previous demand-based studies that
have been already carried out in other international tourism destinations.
Indeed, it is noted that tourists’ travel behaviour can be influenced by
both individual and supply-related factors. From a demand perspec-
tive, further comparison on tourists’ expectations or personal barriers is
needed as these personal factors can play a major role as either drivers
of or barriers towards participating in certain types of tourism activities.
In particular, the inclusion of potential constraints into the wine market
segmentation research is necessary as their wine travel behaviour can be
easily prevented by other personal travel constraints, due to their inter-
est in wine, limited time, wine knowledge or high cost of wine-related
trips (Marzo-Navarro & Pedraja-Iglesias, 2012; Sparks, 2007). From a
supply perspective, Byrd, Canziani, Hsieh, Debbage, and Sonmez (2016)
point out that apart from the wine core products, destination attributes

E. Napolitano
University of Cagliari, Cagliari, Italy
e-mail: ester.napolitano@unica.it
 2 UNDERSTANDING THE WINE TOURIST MARKETS’ MOTIVATIONS … 11

need to be considered to understand different types of wine tourism

experiences sought by wine tourists as both various wine products and
supplementary tourism activities can appeal differently to a heterogene-
ous nature of wine tourist segments. Yet, such information on individual
expectations for wine-related travel and perceptions of wine destina-
tion attributes is limited at a specific local context, apart from visitors to
famous major wineries around the world.
Thus, this chapter aims to examine tourists’ wine-oriented motiva-
tions, wine travel-related constraints and their perceptions of wine tour-
ism destination attributes. Specifically, the motivation-based market
segmentation approach is applied to understanding the profiles of wine
tourists visiting the wineries of Sardinia, Italy, as a main case study site
for this research. Italy has gained a well-known wine reputation around
the world and attracted 14 million wine tourists who generated a total
economic impact of 2.5 billion euros in 2016. Despite many well-
known wine tourism destinations in Italy, it seems that limited research
on the wine tourist markets from a demand-based perspective has been
conducted in Italy (Asero & Patti, 2011). Furthermore, according to
the XII Report on Italian wine tourism (Associazione Nazionale Città
del Vino, 2016), the wine tourism industry in Italy is also considered
to be facing some issues such as a limited ability to welcome visitors
(especially given to language barriers) and the relatively poor availabil-
ity of infrastructure and public transport connecting rural and urban
areas. Considering the weaknesses of the wineries in Italy, this empiri-
cal research focuses on understanding visitors’ perceptions of destina-
tion attributes and travel constraints influencing wine tourism behaviour.
Findings will be helpful for destination managers and/or marketers to
develop new products and broaden new markets, especially for the
Sardinia winery case study site, while effectively allocating destination
resources and services to meet the tailored needs of different wine tourist
market segments.

Literature Review
Wine tourists have been considered as individuals who are primarily
motivated by an interest in wine and wine-related activities and second-
arily motivated by the local gastronomy, culture, arts, education and
entertainment activities when visiting wine regions (Cohen & Ben-Nun,
2009). Many authors have acknowledged that there is no single and
12 A. K. KIM ET AL.

stereotypical typology of wine tourists (Charters & Ali-Knight, 2002),

thus underlying the need to apply a segmentation-based approach for
effective marketing strategies. This market segmentation approach
could help to effectively manage the experience design in order to tai-
lor the tourism offer and to deliver added value experience to the dif-
ferent typologies of tourists (e.g. Galloway et al., 2008). Two main
segmentation criteria have been used to define wine tourist profiles,
namely socio-demographic characteristics (e.g. Dodd & Bigotte, 1997)
and psychographic characteristics. Among these latter, existing stud-
ies considered variables such as motives (Alebaki & Iakovidou, 2011;
Gatti & Maroni, 2004), lifestyles (Corigliano & Pastore, 1996), inter-
est in and involvement with the wine product (Charters & Ali-Knight,
2002; Marzo-Navarro & Pedraja-Iglesias, 2012), values and personality
traits (Galloway et al., 2008), attitudes and travel behaviour (Williams &
Dossa, 2003) and experiential aspects of consumption (Getz & Brown,
2006; Sparks, 2007).
One noteworthy study conducted by Hall and Macionis (1998) pro-
filed wine tourists based on their interest/motivation in wine, wine
knowledge and drinking behaviour; three clusters have been identified
(namely: ‘wine lovers’, ‘wine interested’ and ‘curious tourists’) with sig-
nificant differences in their motivations to travel and to practice wine
tourism. For example, the ‘wine lovers’ appear to have a stronger moti-
vation for tasting premium wines and learning about wine culture, while
the ‘curious tourists’ are more interested in enjoying social interaction
and engaging in leisure and entertainment activities. Considering multi-
ple motivations sought by a wider range of wine tourist segments, several
authors have been using similar classifications in different countries by
making incremental modifications to Hall and Macionis’ (1998) study,
thus expanding the geographical understanding of wine tourist behav-
iour with a great emphasis on wine-related activities and services.
However, other researchers argue that there is the need to examine
how wine tourists differently perceive various aspects of wine destination
attributes (e.g. landscapes, gastronomic products, restaurants or cultural
heritage) and which factors limit their participation in wine tourism-
related activities. Especially, this extended market research is essential,
given that it can help to identify wine tourists’ specific responses to a
broader context of wine tourism experiences, beyond wine-related activ-
ities. Indeed, Hall et al. (2000) point out that the wine tourism expe-
rience is influenced by a blend of the numerous attributes of the wine
 2 UNDERSTANDING THE WINE TOURIST MARKETS’ MOTIVATIONS … 13

tourism destinations and wine tourists themselves. Each of these desti-

nation attribute elements can contribute to the creation of the total
image of the winescape in the minds of wine tourists. This suggests the
need to investigate the perceptions of tourists towards the wine region
attributes which underpin the holistic/integrated wine tourist experi-
ence, rather than only focusing on the individual benefit for wine-related
activities (Byrd et al., 2016, p. 20). Moreover, some recent research has
also attempted to gain a deeper understanding of the critical success fac-
tors (e.g. visitor motivations and perceptions) influencing various aspects
of travel behaviour or the main barriers that prevent tourists to under-
take wine tourism activities (such as time, wine knowledge, costs, prox-
imity of tourist destinations, or social pressure) (Gross & Brown, 2006;
Marzo-Navarro & Pedraja-Iglesias, 2012). This additional marketing
information will help wine producers build a complete and unique wine
tourism experience for tailored target markets ranging from wine lovers
to curious tourists.
Therefore, it is evident that wineries and destination management
organisations are still challenged, especially in Italy, by the need to
deepen their understanding around the wine tourists’ expectations and
needs, their motivations, and other travel constraints influencing wine
travel behaviour; in fact, this knowledge would be undoubtedly benefi-
cial to support them in their attempt to design their offer in order to
be more able to meet the desires, needs and expectations of their tar-
get market (e.g. Marzo-Navarro & Pedraja-Iglesias, 2012). Adopting
a consumer-centric perspective, this study aims to investigate whether
wine tourist profile differs based on tourists’ wine-related ­motivations,
and whether significant differences exist among clusters based on
socio-demographic characteristics of respondents, their perceptions of
wine tourism destination attributes, and wine travel-related constraints.

Study Area: The Sardinia Wine Region

Italy is one of the top wine exporters in the world in terms of value and
volume even if Sardinia, the second largest island of Italy, located in the
middle of the Mediterranean Sea, plays a moderate, but fast-growing
role in the national wine sector. Winemaking was historically handled by
cooperatives until the 1980s when production in high volume with rela-
tively high alcohol was restructured to focus on local labels by improving
quality of its own special grape varieties and reducing yields in order to
14 A. K. KIM ET AL.

focus on quality rather than quantity. The wine sector is starting to play
an important role in the region due to its history, environment, culture
and economy. Two national organisations are highly committed to devel-
oping the national wine tourism industry, namely the Movimento del
Turismo del Vino (Wine Tourism Movement), made up of 1000 Italian
wineries, and the Associazione Nazionale Città del Vino, term referring
to the townships of wine areas.

Method
For the purposes of this study, a survey instrument was developed
based on prior literature. The questionnaire was divided into five sec-
tions. The first asked respondents for some general socio-demographic
and travel-related information. The second included a list of
twenty-six items specifically used to investigate the attributes that
­
wine tourists consider when selecting a wine tourism destination to be
visited; the items were sourced from previous wine tourism research
(Galloway et al., 2008; Getz & Brown, 2006; Marzo-Navarro &
Pedraja-Iglesias, 2012). A 5-point Likert scale (1 = not at all impor-
tant, 5 = very important) was used to obtain these responses. A total
list of ten motivation items has been used to explore the main reasons
that lead tourists to experience wine tourism and visit wineries (of
these, five items were targeted for wine-related activities) (Galloway
et al., 2008; Marzo-Navarro & Pedraja-Iglesias, 2012; Sparks, 2007).
A list of eight items concerned barriers to practising wine tourism
such as time, costs and interest in wine-related and tourism activities
(Getz & Brown, 2006; Gross & Brown, 2006; Lam & Hsu, 2006;
Marzo-Navarro & Pedraja-Iglesias, 2012; Mckercher & Chan, 2005;
Sparks, 2007).
In June–September 2015, two trained interviewers, directly super-
vised by one of the authors, collected data for this study, with face-to-
face interactions, from wineries located all around the Sardinia Region;
the specific wineries (n = 10) were selected given their medium-high
involvement in wine tourism activities. Respondents were intercepted at
the end of their visit at the winery to assure that their responses were
able to capture the overall visit experience. At the end of data collec-
tion, a convenience sample of 267 complete questionnaires was obtained
and used in this study. For the purpose of our research, a cluster analysis
approach was adopted.
 2 UNDERSTANDING THE WINE TOURIST MARKETS’ MOTIVATIONS … 15

Results

Overall Profile of the Sample

The overall sample (n = 267) comprised of 52.8% of females and 46.1%
of males. The greatest proportion of respondents were aged between
35 and 54 years (43.9%). Approximately, a third (33.2%) were in the
younger-age group (between 20 and 34 years old) and 16.6% were over
55 years of age. About half of the respondents had university/postgrad-
uate degrees (48.3%), while 36.5% had college qualifications. A majority
of the participants had a job as an employee (31.4%), an executive/man-
ager (16.6%) or self-employed (13.7%), while one-third of them (35.8%)
were retired or unemployed. About 27.3% of respondents were from
Sardinia. Italian domestic visitors represented 34.7% of respondents,
while the international market accounted for 29.2% of respondents. With
regard to past experiences visiting wine tourism destinations, about a half
of the respondents visited the wine tourism destination once (20.3%)
or several times (26.6%) over the last year, while 21.8% had not visited
in the past year. Finally, respondents reported buying Sardinian wines
(63.7%) or Sardinian food (20.4%) at the end of the visit to the winery.

Cluster Analysis
Cluster analysis was conducted to classify respondents into subgroups
on the basis of their responses to the five wine-oriented travel motiva-
tion items (e.g. tasting wine, learning about the wine culture, interacting
with the winery staff, purchasing wines at a reasonable price and pur-
chasing rare and expensive wines). A series of K-means cluster analyses
were performed, ranging from 2 to 4 clusters to identify distinct clusters.
Results confirmed that the three-cluster solution was the most suitable
as it yielded a substantial size for each cluster. Each cluster showed dis-
tinct differences in their wine tourism motivation items, reflecting a gen-
eralist-specialist continuum which ranged from ‘casual wine tourists’ to
‘wine culture tourists’ and to ‘wine lovers’ (Table 2.1).
The three-cluster solution was also validated with a more stringent
discriminant analysis which showed a significant difference (p < 0.001)
in the overall Wilks’ lambda statistics and over 90% of cross-validated
groups, thus indicating high accuracy and reliability of the cluster anal-
ysis. As seen in Table 2.1, the ‘wine lovers’ group (n = 138) consisted
Table 2.1 Travel motivations by the wine-related travel motivation groups
16

Wine lovers Wine culture tourists Casual wine tourists Total ANOVA test
(n = 138) (n = 81) (n = 48) (n = 267)

Mean S.D. Mean S.D. Mean S.D. Mean S.D. F Sig.

Wine-related travel motivations
To have the possibility to taste 4.47 0.747 4.42 0.756 2.94 0.909 4.18 0.972 74.189 0.000
A. K. KIM ET AL.

wines
To learn new things about the 4.41 0.731 4.33 0.775 2.94 0.954 4.12 0.962 66.027 0.000
culture of wine
To interact with the owner and 4.42 0.781 4.35 0.809 2.69 1.075 4.09 1.071 79.622 0.000
employees of the winery and to
learn something about its history
of this company
To have the opportunity to pur- 4.50 0.675 3.28 1.040 2.73 1.005 3.81 1.132 96.885 0.000
chase wines at a reasonable price
To have the opportunity to 4.41 0.690 2.69 0.875 2.52 1.052 3.55 1.211 156.463 0.000
purchase rare and expensive wines
not elsewhere available
General travel motivations
To enjoy new experiences/to 4.36 0.704 4.23 0.810 3.25 0.957 4.12 0.886 36.746 0.000
do something new
To participate in cultural and 3.93 1.071 3.85 1.074 3.15 1.167 3.76 1.124 9.541 0.000
recreational activities
To escape from routine/stress 4.03 0.996 3.63 1.167 2.96 1.166 3.72 1.148 17.822 0.000
of daily life
To share value and experiences 3.94 1.013 3.63 1.078 2.92 1.048 3.66 1.102 17.340 0.000
with other people
To do something original and 3.71 1.259 3.23 1.268 2.81 1.179 3.40 1.291 10.323 0.000
unique
 2 UNDERSTANDING THE WINE TOURIST MARKETS’ MOTIVATIONS … 17

of the largest size of the total sample (52%), exhibiting higher levels of
motivation towards wine-related activities than the other two groups.
The ‘wine culture tourists’ group (n = 81, 30%) also showed higher lev-
els of wine tourism motivations but were less interested in purchasing
wine during their travel. The ‘casual wine tourists’ group (n = 48, 18%)
had a smaller size of the total sample and were moderately interested in
wine-related activities (e.g. wine tasting and experiencing wine culture).
The result of ANOVA analysis confirmed that significant differences
among the three clusters were found in all five items with p < 0.001.

The Profiles of Three Wine Tourism Motivation-Based Segments

A series of chi-squared tests were carried out to check group differences
and develop a demographic profile of each group. However, there were
no significant differences among the three clusters, thus indicating that
the three groups had similar demographic profiles in terms of respond-
ents’ education, place of residence, age and gender.
With regard to the previous wine tourism experience, significant dif-
ferences were found among the three groups (χ2 = 9.419, p < 0.05).
Respondents with higher interest in wine-related activities (i.e. ‘wine cul-
ture tourists’ group and ‘wine lovers’) had experienced visiting the wine
tourism destinations more than ‘casual tourists’ groups, of whom almost
half had no previous wine tourism experience.

Travel Motivations Among the Three Cluster Groups

A series of ANOVA tests were performed to compare different levels of
travel motivations among the three clusters. Significant differences were
found in all the motivation items (Table 2.1). Respondents in the ‘wine
lovers’ group showed higher levels of motivations in all of the wine-re-
lated items (mean > 4.0) compared to the other two groups. The ‘wine
culture tourists’ were highly interested in ‘tasting wine’ (mean = 4.42),
‘interacting with the winery staff’ (mean = 4.35) and ‘learning about
new things about wine culture’ (mean = 4.33) but showed only mod-
erate levels of interest in purchasing wines at a reasonable price
(mean = 3.28). The ‘casual wine tourists’ were moderately interested in
‘enjoying new experience’ (mean = 3.25) and ‘participating in cultural
and recreation activities’ (mean = 3.15) but they showed only low levels
of interest in wine-related experiences (mean scores were less than 3.0).
18 A. K. KIM ET AL.

Perceived Importance of Wine Tourism

Destination Attributes
As shown in Table 2.2, participants were asked to rate the level of impor-
tance of destination attributes that determine the selection of wine
tourism destination. Significant differences were found in 26 items of
the destination attributes among the three groups, except two items
(e.g. tasting the wine produced at wineries and the existence of sports
activities).
The ‘wine lovers’ give the highest importance to wine-related attrib-
utes such as tasting the wine, buying the wine produced at the wineries,
and having wine specialists (mean scores were over 4.0). Similarly, the
wine tasting, winery-related attributes and the appeal of natural environ-
ment were also highly important for the ‘wine culture tourists’ group
(i.e. mean scores were over 3.8), although the scores were lower than
those of the ‘wine lovers’ group. Other attributes such as gastronomic
activities and wine-related tours were moderately important for both
the ‘wine lovers’ and the ‘wine culture tourists’ group (i.e. mean scores
ranged from 3.5 to 3.9).
By contrast, the ‘casual wine tourists’ indicated that tasting wine (mean
= 4.32), visiting wineries (mean = 3.89) and buying wines at the wineries
(mean = 3.83) were moderately important attributes for them. However,
individuals in this cluster were the least likely to place importance on
other wine-related attributes. Furthermore, they considered some of the
other tours/facilities attributes (e.g. gastronomic activities, markets for
agricultural products and participating in cultural tourism in the area)
as being more important (mean scores ranged from 3.09 to 3.35), com-
pared to other winery tour-related attributes (e.g. meeting the winery
owners, organised wine tourism trips; mean scores were less than 2.8).

Factors Influencing Wine Travel Behaviour

Table 2.3 provides an overview of the factors limiting tourists’ participa-
tion in wine tourism.
Results of ANOVA tests indicated that substantial differences were
found among the clusters in relation to two items, namely the high cost
of wine-related trips (p < 0.05) and the level of interest in wine and wine
tourism activities (p < 0.01). The high interest in wine and wine tourism
activities was the important factor for the ‘wine lovers’ who wanted to
Table 2.2 Perceived importance of wine tourism destination attributes by the wine-related travel motivation groups
Wine lovers Wine culture tourists Casual wine tourists Total ANOVA
(n = 138) (n = 81) (n = 48) (n = 267) test
2

Mean S.D. Mean S.D. Mean S.D. Mean S.D. F Sig.

Wine tasting
To be able to taste the wines pro- 4.62 0.687 4.60 0.719 4.32 0.935 4.56 0.751 2.988 0.052
duced at wineries
Being able to buy the wines produced 4.53 0.718 4.25 0.956 3.83 1.185 4.32 0.925 11.305 0.000
at the wineries
The possibility of taking wine-tasting 3.76 1.110 3.31 1.251 2.81 1.154 3.45 1.214 12.725 0.000
courses
Wine reputation
The fame of the wine in the region 3.69 0.959 3.25 1.031 3.15 1.255 3.46 1.064 7.349 0.001
The area to be visited is famous for 3.43 1.188 3.12 1.166 2.81 1.266 3.22 1.214 5.125 0.007
its wines
Winery-related attributes
Being able to visit wineries 4.48 0.737 4.32 0.906 3.89 1.047 4.33 0.874 8.273 0.000
Having wine specialists take care of 4.39 0.834 4.23 0.981 3.69 1.170 4.21 0.977 9.714 0.000
you during visits
The visiting hour of the wineries is 3.94 0.879 3.51 1.102 3.46 1.110 3.72 1.017 6.720 0.001
long/extended
Meeting the winery owners 3.85 1.183 3.62 1.007 2.83 1.226 3.60 1.196 14.102 0.000
The possibility of participating in 3.87 0.942 3.77 1.028 3.00 1.167 3.68 1.058 13.554 0.000
wine production activities
(continued)
UNDERSTANDING THE WINE TOURIST MARKETS’ MOTIVATIONS …
19
Table 2.2 (continued)
20

Wine lovers Wine culture tourists Casual wine tourists Total ANOVA
(n = 138) (n = 81) (n = 48) (n = 267) test

Mean S.D. Mean S.D. Mean S.D. Mean S.D. F Sig.

Wine tours and activities
The existence of well-defined wine 3.62 1.109 3.42 1.071 2.94 1.156 3.43 1.130 6.705 0.001
A. K. KIM ET AL.

routes in the region

The existence of organised wine 3.58 1.168 3.48 1.190 2.76 1.233 3.40 1.219 8.357 0.000
tourism trips
The existence of wine museums or 3.30 1.280 3.11 1.183 2.46 1.031 3.09 1.244 8.611 0.000
exhibitions
Natural environment and gastronomic activities
The appeal of the natural environ- 3.97 1.003 3.99 0.994 3.56 1.050 3.90 1.018 3.333 0.037
ment in the area
The climate of the area 3.57 1.126 3.26 1.253 3.15 1.052 3.40 1.164 3.305 0.038
The existence of specific gastronomic 3.99 0.974 3.67 1.084 3.35 1.120 3.78 1.059 7.262 0.001
activities
The existence of a varied gastronomic 3.83 1.107 3.50 1.222 3.19 1.161 3.61 1.174 6.018 0.003
offer
The possibility of eating at the 3.64 1.156 3.06 1.258 3.11 1.269 3.37 1.235 7.010 0.001
wineries
Tours/activities/facilities
The possibility of participating in 3.79 0.973 3.65 0.868 3.02 1.062 3.61 0.997 11.500 0.000
cultural tourism in the area
The existence of stores/open-air 3.71 1.055 3.41 0.985 3.15 1.063 3.52 1.054 5.825 0.003
markets for agricultural products
from the area
(continued)
Table 2.2 (continued)

Wine lovers Wine culture tourists Casual wine tourists Total ANOVA
(n = 138) (n = 81) (n = 48) (n = 267) test

Mean S.D. Mean S.D. Mean S.D. Mean S.D. F Sig.

The existence of stores/open-air 3.55 1.046 3.33 1.061 3.09 1.139 3.40 1.078 3.573 0.029
markets for artisan products from
the area
The existence of organised trips 3.60 1.239 3.11 1.235 2.96 1.334 3.34 1.281 6.434 0.002
(lodging, visit, tasting, etc.)
The existence of specific lodging 3.40 1.213 2.94 1.218 3.15 1.167 3.21 1.219 3.758 0.025
The existence of leisure/wine therapy 2.93 1.373 2.47 1.333 2.07 1.162 2.64 1.364 8.391 0.000
activities
The existence of activities for children 2.87 1.344 2.46 1.235 2.13 1.064 2.61 1.294 7.018 0.001
The existence of sports activities in 2.50 1.330 2.22 1.304 2.19 1.299 2.36 1.320 1.635 0.197
the area
2 UNDERSTANDING THE WINE TOURIST MARKETS’ MOTIVATIONS …
21
Table 2.3 Factors influencing wine travel behaviour
22

Wine lovers Wine culture tourists Casual wine tourists Total ANOVA
(n = 138) (n = 81) (n = 48) (n = 267) test

Mean S.D. Mean S.D. Mean S.D. Mean S.D. F Sig.

I am interested in wine and 4.12 0.997 3.85 1.085 3.25 1.263 3.88 1.118 11.572 0.000
A. K. KIM ET AL.

in the activities related to it

Wine tourism is not an 3.33 1.322 3.30 1.470 2.90 1.242 3.24 1.360 1.922 0.148
activity/type of tourism for
everybody
I think that there are more 3.13 1.158 3.17 1.034 2.79 1.071 3.08 1.111 2.058 0.130
interesting wine tourism desti-
nations than Sardinia
My parent, relatives and 2.98 1.335 3.08 1.188 2.94 1.295 3.00 1.281 0.214 0.808
friends think that there are
more interesting wine tourism
destinations than Sardinia
In order to fully enjoy wine 3.07 1.407 2.99 1.270 2.69 1.257 2.98 1.343 1.471 0.232
tourism, a basic knowledge of
the culture of wine is requested
You need a lot of time to 2.96 1.229 2.98 0.935 2.70 1.041 2.92 1.115 1.104 0.333
participate in wine tourism
The cost of trips related to 2.88 1.273 2.54 1.073 2.46 1.010 2.70 1.182 3.450 0.033
wine tourism is very high
To participate in wine tourism, 2.59 1.344 2.31 1.281 2.17 1.148 2.43 1.299 2.324 0.100
it is important that the area to
be visited is close to my home
 2 UNDERSTANDING THE WINE TOURIST MARKETS’ MOTIVATIONS … 23

participate in the wine-related trips (mean = 4.12); the other two clus-
ters showed the lowest scores (‘wine culture tourists’: mean = 3.85,
‘casual wine tourists’: mean = 3.25). The high cost of wine tourism trips
was the least important factor affecting wine travel behaviour, espe-
cially for the casual wine tourists (mean = 2.45); the other two groups
reported the highest scores (wine lovers: mean = 2.88, wine culture tour-
ists: mean = 2.54).

Conclusions and Implications

Researchers and practitioners concur that to effectively develop wine
tourism it is vital to understand wine tourists’ expectations, needs or
preferences for wine tourism experience, in terms of what types of des-
tination attributes, services and activities they seek out, and what indi-
vidual factors drive or limit them to engage in wine tourism experiences.
Despite Italy having great potential in terms of wine tourism develop-
ment, there is still a lack of segmentation-based studies aimed at iden-
tifying different drivers or constraints influencing wine travel behaviour
at a specific local context. Therefore, this study was directed to extend a
motivation-based market segmentation approach, with a focus on pro-
filing different segments of wine tourist markets that visit wineries in
Sardinia, Italy. The results of this study revealed that Sardinia attracts a
larger number of wine specialist markets, and three distinctive segments
exist among winery visitors to this region, namely ‘wine lovers’, ‘wine
culture tourists’ and ‘casual wine tourists’. The profiles of these three
subgroups reflect a specialisation continuum, ranging from the novice/
generalist to the expert/specialist, which is similarly identified by the
previous research (Alebaki & Iakovidou, 2011; Charters & Ali-Knight,
2002). That is, the ‘wine lovers’ and ‘wine culture tourists’ expressed
higher interest in wine-related travel motivations in comparison with the
‘casual wine tourists’. The two wine-oriented segments were also differ-
entiated depending on the level of their interest in wine reputation and
wine purchasing behaviour, indicating the ‘wine lovers’ with the highest
interest in purchasing expensive and rare wines, compared to the ‘wine
culture tourists’. As expected, the ‘casual wine tourist’ choices seemed
more driven by general tourism motives such as enjoying new experi-
ences and participating in cultural/recreational activities.
Given the three cluster-based market segmentation, this study makes
a further step in the attempt to gain a better understanding of the type
24 A. K. KIM ET AL.

of destination attributes (pull factors) sought by the wine tourist mar-

ket segments that have been less investigated in the literature. Much of
previous segmentation research often focused on profiling wine tourists’
motivations, socio-demographic characteristics and behavioural features.
The findings provide additional valuable insights into the appeal of desti-
nation attributes, apart from the wine products. Similar to the findings of
the recent research conducted by Bruwer, Prayag, and Disegna (2018),
it highlights that the core wine destination components (i.e. tasting
wine, wineries and the natural environment) are the primary factors that
attract all three wine tourist segments to wineries as these elements are
often targeted as the core destination image in wine tourists’ mind. It
is also suggested that apart from wine products, various winery-related
services and general tourism features available at the destination are
critical as they could be utilised as the bundle of destination benefits—
both tangible and intangible—that pull the tourist to visit, revisit and/
or recommend the destination to others, as emerged in recent research
(Byrd et al., 2016; Sparks, 2007).
Additional findings drawn from this research highlight the need to
understand how potential constraints prevent the tourist’s desire to travel
to the wine region. The findings show that travel behaviour of all three
wine tourist segments appeared to be mostly influenced by the level of
interest in wine and activities related to it, while other barriers such as
time, cost or proximity to the winery were less important factors in affect-
ing tourists’ choice to undertake wine tourism. In our study, significant
differences emerged between the wine tourist subgroups in relation to the
level of interest in wine-related activities and the cost of wine-related trips.
It was found that the ‘wine culture tourists’ and ‘wine lovers’ appeared
to evaluate the high cost of the trip as a potential barrier, compared to
the ‘casual wine tourists’ who were more affected by the level of inter-
est in wine-related tourism activities. Reasons behind this finding may be
attributed to their interest in buying local wines and food products at the
destination and/or participate in guided-tasting and activities related to
the wine that usually are not free of charge, thus generating some concern
about the cost of the trip among the wine specialist groups. This suggests
that a variety of cost-effective tourism activities (e.g. free wine tasting,
meeting local winemakers, visiting wine-related heritage sites or enter-
tainment activities) can be developed as add-on experiences, targeting the
general wine tourists who are more interested in experiencing tourism
services and cultural activities, beyond wine itself. Thus, acknowledging
 2 UNDERSTANDING THE WINE TOURIST MARKETS’ MOTIVATIONS … 25

wine travel constraints could assist wineries to differentiate their tourism

products or services, with tailored special offers which help to stimulate
further interest in wine or minimise higher cost of the trip, as suggested
by Marzo-Navarro and Pedraja-Iglesias (2012).
The findings of this study offer practical implications to Sardinia pol-
icymakers, destination marketers and wine producers in their attempt
to increase the attractiveness of their region and the total wine tour-
ism experience for tourists who are interested in wine tourism activi-
ties. Furthermore, the results indicate that it would be useful to develop
distinctive marketing efforts in attracting three major segments—wine
experts, wine culture tourists or casual wine tourists. For instance, tar-
geting wine experts with wine reputation and a bundle of wine and gas-
tronomic services would be beneficial as they are more prone to buy
rare and expensive wine and explore local food products as souvenirs
(thus helping to spread the brand awareness and image of Sardinian
products). This latter point suggests that tourism can be effectively con-
sidered as a lever to further expanding wine export markets and devel-
oping intimate/strong relationship among tourism marketing and
territorial marketing. More importantly, the cultural aspect of winery
regions can be separately targeted as the core wine tourism experience,
as it can appeal to another emerging tourist market, namely the ‘wine
culture tourists’. This can be done by carefully designed itineraries with
both winery-related activities and supplementary activities that would
stimulate further memorable cultural experience and extend their visi-
tation to other wineries (e.g. cultural activities associated with wineries,
local people and gastronomic culture). As for the ‘casual wine tourists’,
a crucial implication of this finding is the need to focus on increasing
the interest in the wine product for the ‘casual wine tourists’ through
recreational activities that may stimulate further involvement with wine
tourism experience since their lack of interest in wine-related activities
plays as one of the main barriers in preventing them from participating
in wine-related trips. Thus, this study suggests that further development
of story-telling of unique winery culture or recreational activities could
be beneficial for improving potential economic benefits of wine ­tourism
destinations as it can reach out to a larger size of generalist tourism
markets.
Furthermore, the study is not free from limitations. Firstly, it uses a
convenience sample, thus findings cannot be generalised. Secondly, the
study is based on data collected intercepting tourists visiting wineries
26 A. K. KIM ET AL.

while wine tourists might practise wine tourism also in other locations/
attractions (e.g. wine museums, food and wine festival). In the future,
it would be interesting to replicate the study collecting data in other
national/international tourism destinations also considering the possibil-
ity to intercept potential respondents in no winery-related contexts.

Acknowledgements The authors acknowledge the financial contribution by

the Fondazione Banco di Sardegna ‘Lo sviluppo dell’enoturismo in Sardegna:
minacce e opportunità’ [Wine tourism development in Sardinia: weaknesses
and threats] Prot: U820.201.3/AI.744.MGB. Authors also acknowledge the
financial contribution by Contini, a wine producer in the Sardinia Region.

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 CHAPTER 3

Wine Tourist’s Perception of Winescape

in Central Otago, New Zealand

Joanna Fountain and Charlotte Thompson

Introduction
The wine industry of Central Otago has experienced rapid growth over
the past two decades (Oram, 2004; Saker, 2010). From six wineries
and seven hectares under vine in 1990, by 2010 there was more than
100 wineries and approximately 1540 hectares in production (Woods,
Newth, & Lewis, 2012, p. 8). A notable feature of this wine region is
the strong reputation it has as a producer of premium pinot noir; this is
despite the region accounting for only two percent of the country’s wine
production by volume (New Zealand Wine, 2017a) and the commer-
cial wine industry here being less than three decades old (Saker, 2010;
Woods et al., 2012). This global wine reputation is due to a number of
factors, including a strong collaborative network amongst stakeholders in
the industry and an emphasis on a premium market niche for one key
varietal (see Ballantyne, 2011; Fountain & Dawson, 2013; Woods et al.,
2012). Another significant element in this regional branding has been
the strong synergy between the Central Otago wine brand and tourism

J. Fountain (*) · C. Thompson

Lincoln University, Lincoln, New Zealand
e-mail: Joanna.Fountain@lincoln.ac.nz

© The Author(s) 2019 29

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_3
30 J. FOUNTAIN AND C. THOMPSON

promotion and activity in the region. International and domestic tour-

ists have been enticed to the region by images of inspiring mountain vis-
tas and sparkling lakes for decades. In fact, it has been suggested that
‘the seductive physical beauty of Central Otago has played a key role in
drawing consumers to the region’s wines, the alleged thought sequence
being that such God-given beauty must surely provide God-given wine’
(Saker, 2010, p. 228). Wineries have long drawn on the region’s setting
and imagery in their wine labels and branding (Fountain & Dawson,
2013), however, the region’s cultural heritage, particularly based around
the stories of a few hardy wine pioneers, and the nineteenth-century her-
itage of gold mining and pastoral farming, Central Otago adds to the
strong regional brand proposition (Fountain & Dawson, 2014). To date,
however, little is known about wine tourists’ perceptions and experiences
of the heritage of this region.
This chapter reports on the experiences of 178 international and
domestic wine tourists to Central Otago. In particular, it explores
these visitors’ perceptions of the ‘winescape’ of the region. The con-
cept of winescape has gained increasing attention over the past decade,
as the setting where wine tourism takes place is an important compo-
nent of the overall experience for visitors (Bruwer & Johnson, 2010).
While winescape refers to the immediate surrounds of a winery, includ-
ing the buildings, gardens and vineyards, the wider landscape and scen-
ery—including evidence of other agricultural, cultural and historical
practices—influence a wine tourist’s impression or image of a region also
(Getz & Brown, 2006; Hall & Mitchell, 2002). Bruwer and Lesschaeve
(2012) and Bruwer, Pratt, Saliba, and Hirche (2014) have conceptual-
ised and tested a winescape framework in the analysis of wine destina-
tion images in two North American wine regions (Niagara Peninsula and
Finger Lakes). These studies have identified a range of winescape dimen-
sions which combine in visitors’ perceptions of a wine region’s destina-
tion image. While landscape and elements of natural setting dominate,
social and cultural dimensions, including the local residents and service
staff encountered on one’s travels, and built landmarks of regional her-
itage also featured as secondary elements of winescape. The majority of
the identified winescape elements in these studies could be described as
functional components of destination image; the ‘ambience’ of the set-
ting—incorporating the climate and atmosphere of the region—captures
the psychological component of destination image (Echtner & Ritchie,
1993). While this conceptualisation is a useful starting point for research,
 3 WINE TOURIST’S PERCEPTION OF WINESCAPE … 31

there is a need to acknowledge that winescape can have affective com-

ponents; that is, a winescape will often elicit an emotional response and
feelings towards the setting (Pratt & Sparks, 2014).

Context
The Central Otago wine region is the southernmost wine region in the
world, located at latitude 45° south in the South Island of New Zealand.
Characterised by its long hot summer days and harsh winters with low
rainfall, Central Otago’s semi-continental micro-climate provides a chal-
lenging environment for wine growing; however, these conditions are
particularly favourable for producing quality wines, such as pinot noir.
Commercial wine production commenced relatively recently in the
region, in 1987 (Central Otago Winegrowers Association, n.d.b). By
1996, the region was cultivating 376 tonnes of grapes per annum, and
11 wineries had been established (New Zealand Wine, 2005). As shown
in Table 3.1, the industry has expanded rapidly since this time; currently,
there are 137 wineries, with vineyards throughout the region produc-
ing 8324 tonnes of grapes (New Zealand Wine, 2017b). Pinot noir is
the dominant grape variety grown in the district; in 2016 accounting for
almost 70% of all grape plantings (1500 hectares), with the next high-
est variety being pinot gris at 210 hectares (New Zealand Wine, 2017a).
Other grape plantings in Central Otago include riesling (77 ha), char-
donnay (55 ha), sauvignon blanc (42 ha) and gewürztraminer (13 ha)
(New Zealand Wine, 2017a).
The Central Otago wine region is divided into six sub-regions:
Alexandra Basin, which includes wineries and vineyards through-
out Alexandra and Clyde; Bannockburn; Bendigo; Cromwell Basin;
Gibbston, which includes wineries and vineyards in Gibbston,
Arrowtown and Lake Hayes; and Wanaka (see Fig. 3.1). The sub-regions

Table 3.1 Central Otago wine region (1996–2016)

Industry measure 1996 1998 2000 2004 2008 2012 2016 2017

Wineries 11 23 39 75 95 120 133 137

Vineyards (hectares) ** 210 280 703 1552 1917 1880 1896
Harvest (tonnes) 376 605 1009 1439 9495 8115 9177 8324

Source New Zealand Wine (2005, 2017b)

32 J. FOUNTAIN AND C. THOMPSON

Fig. 3.1 Central Otago research boundaries (Source Central Otago

Winegrowers Association, n.d.a)

of Central Otago vary considerably in terms of number of wineries

and conditions. They are characterised by a variety of different land-
scapes that contain a range of soil types, creating regional differences
in grape cultivation and wine production (Central Otago Winegrowers
Association, n.d.b).
 3 WINE TOURIST’S PERCEPTION OF WINESCAPE … 33

Over the past decade, wine tourism has become increasingly popular
amongst both domestic and international visitors in New Zealand. Latest
figures revealing an average of 220,000 international visitors to wineries
throughout the country per year, with visiting a winery fulfilling Tourism
New Zealand’s definition of a ‘wine tourist’ (Tourism New Zealand,
2014). Tourism New Zealand limits their definition of wine tourists
to domestic and international tourists, excluding local visitors. This
obscures the fact that many visitors to wineries in New Zealand are local
residents visiting from surrounding areas on day trips (Alonso, Fraser,
& Cohen, 2007; Baird, 2012). These local visitors are included in the
present study because of their importance for cellar doors. As Tourism
New Zealand (2014) and Baird and Hall (2014) acknowledge, there is
considerable variation in the visitor profile between wine regions and at
the individual winery level. For example, according to the Ministry of
Economic Development (2009) Central Otago is one of the few regions
in New Zealand where international wine tourists outnumber domestic
wine tourists.
There has been limited research on wine tourists and wine tourism
in Central Otago to date. The one study that did focus on wine tour-
ism in the region concluded that winery visitors to Central Otago were
predominantly from the Generation-X and Baby Boomer generations;
included a higher proportion of females than males; and were primar-
ily high earning well-educated professionals (Mitchell, 2004). The study
also revealed that wine tourism was a significant secondary generator of
visitation to the region (Mitchell, 2004). The sub-regions of Central
Otago differ in their appeal to wine tourists. Close proximity to the tour-
ist mecca of Queenstown means that Gibbston Valley, the westernmost
sub-region, attracts a large number of both domestic and international
day trippers. The wineries around the popular resort of Wanaka, to the
north, are well positioned also for the tourist market. By comparison,
Alexandra to the south is more likely to attract through traffic on the
way to these resort towns, or to the popular domestic holiday destination
of Cromwell.

Methodology and Sample Characteristics

An interviewer-administered questionnaire was conducted with respond-
ents in Central Otago over the summer of 2014/2015 using a conven-
ience sampling method. Most surveys were conducted with visitors as
34 J. FOUNTAIN AND C. THOMPSON

they left specific wineries, with permission of these wineries; however,

some respondents were interviewed at other public locations within
Central Otago, such as at reserves or parks. The wineries used in this
study had open cellar doors, substantial visitor numbers, and were geo-
graphically spread around the region in Wanaka, Gibbston, Bannockburn
and Alexandra. To participate in the survey, respondents had to be
18 years or older and to have visited at least one winery on their trip
to the region. Two-thirds of survey respondents were international vis-
itors, and the remaining third were domestic visitors. Given the limited
data on wine tourists in Central Otago, and differing definitions and
methodology used, it is unclear to what extent the resulting sample is
representative.
While the majority of respondents were on holiday, less than half were
staying in Central Otago overnight, with most staying in Queenstown
or Arrowtown, just outside the surveyed region. The sample included
slightly more female respondents than male respondents, and was rel-
atively young, with half of respondents aged between 18 and 35 years.
The majority of respondents were well educated, with three-quarters
having achieved a degree or higher degree. Almost half of all respondents
had previously visited Central Otago, including a quarter of respondents
who had visited the region over ten times. A quarter of international
respondents had previously visited Central Otago, and 92.8% of domes-
tic visitors. The survey explored respondents’ experiences in the region,
including their experiences of winery visitation, patterns of activity and
expenditure; however, it is their perceptions of the destination image of
Central Otago which is reported on here.

Findings: Wine Tourists’ Perceptions of Winescape

This study used two approaches to explore respondents’ impressions of
the Central Otago winescape, an open-ended question and Likert state-
ments of destination features. The open-ended question was similar to
that used by Bruwer and Lesschaeve (2012) and Bruwer et al. (2014)
and asked: ‘What would you say are the Central Otago region’s main
characteristics or features?’ Data from the open-ended question were
entered into a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet, which was sorted to iden-
tify patterns and themes that emerged from the data (Braun & Clarke,
2006), guided by the previous research on this topic which used a similar
approach (Bruwer & Lesschaeve, 2012; Bruwer et al., 2014).
 3 WINE TOURIST’S PERCEPTION OF WINESCAPE … 35

In response to this question, ten common themes were identified

(see Table 3.2). Many respondents cited more than one feature in their
response, and for this reason one response may have been coded in more
than one category. ‘Natural environmental features’ was a relatively
broad theme and dominated the responses; 80% of respondents men-
tioned some element of the natural environment—particularly mountains
and lakes—as a prominent characteristic or feature of Central Otago.
Other natural elements referred to included schist rocks, waterways and
landscape and scenery in general. There was often an affective aspect
to these descriptions; one first time visitor reported: ‘I expected it to be
beautiful, but this is more so’, while another referred to the ‘overwhelming
beauty of nature’. These landscape features were described also as ‘amaz-
ing’, ‘awe-inspiring’ and ‘wonderful’. The percentage of respondents
mentioning this feature is substantially higher than in either the Niagara
region or Finger Lakes (Bruwer & Lesschaeve, 2012; Bruwer et al.,
2014), suggesting that Central Otago is a particularly spectacular natural
setting, as previous commentators have suggested (Saker, 2010).
The next most frequently mentioned characteristics or features were
the wineries and vineyards (24.1%), and the wine itself (21.3%)—propor-
tions similar to those in previous research of this nature. Many respond-
ents made positive comments about the wineries, for example ‘great
wineries’, with a number commenting on the small, intimate and per-
sonal nature of the cellar doors. Other responses alluded to the diversity
of the vineyard locations, again referring to the broader natural setting in
the responses, as the following indicate:

Table 3.2 Description of Central Otago characteristics and features (n = 174)

Central Otago characteristics and features Respondents% Frequency

Destination features—nature-related elements 80.0 142

Destination features—wineries/vineyards 24.1 42
Wine 21.3 37
Sports and recreation activities 19.0 33
Weather/climate 18.4 32
Atmosphere 8.6 15
Agricultural practices and products 8.0 14
Destination features—heritage and history 4.6 8
Service staff and local residents 4.0 7
Food 1.7 3
36 J. FOUNTAIN AND C. THOMPSON

Very different in the winery region, with vineyards in amongst mountains.

Vineyards and orchards, with a beautiful backdrop of mountains and the
Kawarau Gorge.

Other respondents enthusiastically stated that the main feature of the

region was ‘the wine’, with comments such as: ‘amazing wine’ and
‘wineries of wonderful wine’. Several respondents stated that they per-
ceived ‘pinot noir’ to be a main regional feature. Given the focus of this
study on winery visitors, this emphasis on wine and wineries is hardly
surprising.
Unlike previous similar studies, however, nearly a fifth of respond-
ents mentioned outdoors sports and recreation activities as a feature of
Central Otago’s regional image, incorporating adventure activities, such
as bungee jumping and skiing/snowboarding, as well as hiking, cycling/
cycle trails and water sports. Typical comments in this category included:

Lots of outdoor activities, like bungy, rafting, and walking

Nice hiking tracks in the mountains
Recreational activities such as walks, kayaking and general physical activities
Adrenalin activities.

This is an important category, due to Central Otago and nearby destina-

tion of Queenstown also being marketed towards outdoor recreational-
ists. It suggests also that this region may have a more multifaceted appeal
than some wine regions, which may add to the diversity of the visitors
attracted to the region, but could potentially dilute the strength of the
region as a wine tourism destination.

Multiple Response Question

An additional 18.4% of respondents stated that weather or climate was a
main characteristic or feature of Central Otago, contributing to the ambi-
ence of the place. Comments about weather were generally very positive,
such as ‘great weather’, ‘warm weather’ and ‘beautiful weather’, reflect-
ing the very fine and warm weather conditions experienced during the
interview period. Some other comments indicated ongoing exposure
and repeat visitation to the region: ‘Dry warm summers and chilly win-
ters’. The atmosphere (8.6%) added to this sense of ambience. Comments
 3 WINE TOURIST’S PERCEPTION OF WINESCAPE … 37

referred to the relaxing, peaceful and ‘laidback’ atmosphere of the region.

Agricultural practices and products including the fruit and cherry trees,
as well as the farms, were also mentioned by 8% of respondents, reflect-
ing the continuing diversity of land use patterns in the region (Mackay,
Perkins, & Taylor, 2014). The friendly and hospitable nature of the
Central Otago residents and service staff was mentioned (4.0%) and a
couple of respondents (1.7%) mentioned the food in the region. Given
the emphasis on heritage and the local characters who made the wine
industry possible in the marketing of wine brands in this region (Fountain
& Dawson, 2013, 2014), it is somewhat surprising that elements of her-
itage and history were mentioned by a small proportion of respondents
(4.6%), who commented on the history, goldfields and old stone cottages.
Having answered an unprompted, open-ended question about their
impressions of the region, respondents were presented with a list of
statements about Central Otago and asked to rate each statement on a
scale of 1–7, ‘1’ being ‘strongly agree’ and ‘7’ being ‘strongly disagree’.
These statements were developed from a thematic assessment of the key
messages presented in tourism and wine industry promotional material
for the region, and from previously conducted research in the region
(e.g. Ballantyne, 2011; Fountain & Dawson, 2014). The list of Likert
statements was kept deliberately limited, in order to reduce respondent
fatigue, and focused on elements of destination image that was predicted
to be less represented in the open-ended results. Thus, the already well-
known appeal of the natural scenery was not tested in this way, and a
particular emphasis was given to exploring the more cultural elements of
Central Otago’s destination image. Table 3.3 presents results for these
statements, split between positive and negative statements. The Likert
scale statements about the characteristics of the Central Otago region
indicate that perceptions of the region, and particularly the region’s pro-
duce and wine, are generally very positive.
Overall amongst the respondents, the strongest level of agreement was
with the statement the produce of Central Otago is of very high quality,
with 95.2% of respondents agreeing with this statement (answering from
1 to 3 on the scale), and providing a mean average of 1.96. Both domes-
tic and international rated this statement highly, although domestic
respondents rated it significantly higher than international respondents.
A total of 78.4% of respondents agreed that the region offers a wide
range of satisfying culinary experiences, and the proportion of respond-
ents that disagreed with this statement was only 7.5%. When means are
38 J. FOUNTAIN AND C. THOMPSON

Table 3.3 Level of agreement with statements regarding Central Otago

Positive statements regarding Overall mean Domestic mean International mean

Central Otago

The produce of Central Otago 1.96 1.69 2.09*

is of very high quality
Service staff and sales person- 2.15 2.45 2.01*
nel take care of their customers
here
The wines of Central Otago 2.30 1.61 2.64***
are world class
The region offers a wide 2.55 2.10 2.83***
range of satisfying culinary
experiences
Wine tourism is an important 2.61 2.37 2.72
part of the attraction of Central
Otago
Central Otago has an interest- 2.73 2.12 3.13***
ing history
The region offers a wide range 3.29 2.89 3.50*
of cultural heritage experiences
Negative statements regarding Central Otago
Central Otago is an unsophisti- 5.43 5.17 5.56
cated destination
The region is difficult to get 5.17 5.30 5.11
around
Central Otago is too expensive 4.46 4.55 4.43
for the experiences and services
provided
This wine region is not too 4.45 4.90 4.25*
different from any other wine
region

1 = strongly agree, 7 = strongly disagree *significant at .05 confidence level; **significant at .01 confidence
level; ***significant at .001 confidence level

compared, again domestic respondents had a significantly higher mean

on this measure than their international counterparts, and 90.2% agreed
with the statement compared with 71.1% of international respondents
The statement service staff and sales personnel take care of their cus-
tomers here also rated very highly amongst respondents. When compar-
ing domestic and international respondents, it is interesting to note that
international respondents rated this statement significantly higher than
domestic respondents. This could reflect different experiences in the
 3 WINE TOURIST’S PERCEPTION OF WINESCAPE … 39

region or greater exposure to a range of service environments, or cul-

tural differences in expectations and priorities. It should be acknowl-
edged, however, that both groups of respondents rated this feature
positively—84.9% of domestic visitors agreeing with the statement and
89.0% of international visitors.
Over three-quarters of respondents (76.8%) agreed with the statement
the wines of Central Otago are world class. There was a very significant
difference, however, between answers provided by domestic visitors in
comparison with international visitors, with 93.9% of domestic visitors
agreeing with the statement (mean of 1.61), in comparison with 70.5%
of international visitors (mean of 2.64). It is important to note that this
difference may be due to international visitors not being very familiar
with the regional wine brands, with further analysis indicating that 21.6%
of international respondents gave a ‘neutral’ response (4 on the Likert
scale). What this might suggest is the region could do more to highlight
the world-class reputation of the region’s wines in promotional material.
Over three-quarters of respondents (76.9%) agreed with the statement
that wine tourism is an important part of the attraction of Central Otago
with a mean score of 2.61, and no statistically significant differences
between the samples. This is not surprising, given that all the respond-
ents were visiting wineries on their trip, and therefore ‘wine tourists’.
There is much less support for the statements relating to the role of
the cultural heritage of the region to the overall destination image or vis-
itor experience. As outlined above, the promotion of this wine region
at the level of the region and individual wineries highlights the history
of Central Otago (Fountain & Dawson, 2013, 2014); however, com-
pared with many wine regions in the world, Central Otago has a short
history of wine growing, and a relatively short history of human habita-
tion. While the majority of respondents agreed that Central Otago has an
interesting history, there were differences by place of origin; while 84.6%
of domestic respondents agreed with this statement, only 60.8% of inter-
national visitors did so, resulting in statistically significant differences in
means (2.12 domestic; 3.13 international). It is important to note that
very few international respondents actually disagreed with this statement;
instead, over a third (34.2%) gave a neutral rating. This may suggest that
these international wine tourists to Central Otago are unaware of the
rich historical past of the region, or perhaps reflects the fact that many
of them come from places with cultural heritage thousands of years old,
leaving them less impressed by the region’s history. It may reflect also a
40 J. FOUNTAIN AND C. THOMPSON

more parochial attitude to New Zealand history held by domestic visi-

tors. Respondents were even less knowledgeable when it came asked to
reflect on the availability of a wide range of cultural heritage experiences;
just over half of respondents (53.4%) agreed with this statement. This
included agreement from 66.7% of domestic respondents and 46.6% of
international respondents. On this statement, almost a third (30.1%)
of all respondents gave a neutral rating, including 17.8% of domestic
respondents and almost half of the international respondents (46.6%),
which may suggest a lack of knowledge about this aspect of the region’s
destination image.
The remainder of the statements would generally be considered ‘neg-
ative’ appraisals of the winescape of Central Otago, although the first of
these statements—Central Otago is an unsophisticated destination—may
not, in fact, be interpreted negatively. Many people enjoy ‘unsophis-
ticated’ destinations, perhaps conjuring up the idea of ‘back to basics’,
‘non-commercial’ and ‘authentic’ experiences and people; perhaps also
suggesting an unspoilt place. However, it is also the case that some tour-
ist experiences or products, including high-end gastronomic or wine
tourism experiences, may struggle in a region which is perceived as
‘unsophisticated’ and visited for this quality. On this question, there were
no significant differences between domestic and international respond-
ents, with domestic respondents giving a mean score of 5.17, somewhat
disagreeing with the statement, compared to the international respond-
ent mean of 5.56. A total of 7.1% of domestic respondents agreed
with the statement, in comparison with 9.8% of international respond-
ents. As stated above, the fact that domestic visitors were more likely to
agree with the ‘unsophisticated’ nature of the region is not necessarily
negative.
The statement: this wine region is not too different from any other wine
region was agreed with by 32.7% of respondents, with a mean of 4.45,
in the neutral range. There were significantly different means between
domestic and international respondents. The domestic respondents were
more likely to disagree with this statement with 26.0% in agreement and
66.0% disagreeing. By comparison, 35.8% of international respondents
agreed and 46.8% disagreed. This might be a reflection of the interna-
tional respondents’ greater exposure and experience with other wine
regions, particularly those in other parts of the world, or again, based
on a parochial pride on the part of domestic respondents. One respond-
ent commented that the Central Otago wine region was ‘very much
 3 WINE TOURIST’S PERCEPTION OF WINESCAPE … 41

like coastal California/Santa Barbara or the Mediterranean, with many

vineyards’.
Over half the respondents (50.6%) disagreed with the statement:
Central Otago is too expensive for the experiences and services provided;
however, the overall response was a neutral mean of 4.46, with almost a
quarter of respondents (23.2%) giving the statement a neutral response.
The relatively high proportion of neutral responses may be due to a lack
of experience with the region and could be influenced by a number of
factors, including the fact that many respondents were at the beginning
of their Central Otago trip; many visitors were only spending one day
in the region, and some were not intending to spend anything in the
region. A quarter (25.5%) of domestic respondents and 26.6% of inter-
national respondents agreed that the region was too expensive. Only
19% of respondents agreed with the statement the region is difficult to
get around, resulting in a mean of 5.17. Domestic and international
respondents had comparatively similar means, with 16.7% of domestic
respondents and 20.2% of international respondents agreeing with this
statement.

Discussion and Conclusion
Central Otago has been renowned for its stunning natural environment
since the days of early European settlement, and this study has revealed
that elements of the natural landscape dominate in perceptions of the
winescape of the region amongst visitors to wineries. These respond-
ents recognise the quality of the food and wine produce of the region
also, and the range of culinary and wine experiences on offer. By con-
trast, the research has shown that the broader cultural landscape, particu-
larly the cultural heritage, of Central Otago is less recognised by these
respondents. This finding is somewhat surprising, as the cultural herit-
age of the region is highly visible in the landscape, in the remains of old
miners’ cottages and other heritage sites, and in regional wine branding
and marketing of Central Otago (Fountain & Dawson, 2014). While
this result might be explained by the relatively short-time respondents
were spending in the region on their trip—less than half were staying in
the district overnight—the fact that close to half of them had visited the
area before—some multiple times—suggests this element of winescape
remains invisible, or does not resonate with them.
42 J. FOUNTAIN AND C. THOMPSON

Previous studies have shown that wine tourists tend to have the char-
acteristics more generally ascribed to ‘cultural tourists’, including an
interest in learning more about heritage, culture and the arts (Getz &
Brown, 2006; Williams & Kelly, 2001). In this study, the definition of
a wine tourist used to select respondents—that is, having visited a win-
ery—is quite broad and does not match academic definitions which sug-
gest wine should be a primary motivation for one labelled a wine tourist
(e.g. Hall et al., 2000). Acknowledging that some of the respondents in
this study may not be ‘wine tourists’ in this more specific sense, there
may still be opportunities to strengthen the synergies between wine and
heritage in the tourist experiences on offer, and to increase publicity for
the existing opportunities to explore heritage in Central Otago. Creating
collaborations and networks between the wineries and cultural heritage
attractions of the region, in the form of a wine and heritage trail, or by
publicising heritage attractions at wineries and publicising the history of
the region in the winery stories, could add an additional dimension to
the experiences of wine tourists, and a more nuanced and multi-dimen-
sional Central Otago winescape.

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 CHAPTER 4

The Image of a Wine Tourist

and Impact on Self-Image Congruity

Marlene Pratt

Introduction
Wine tourism has developed into a multibillion-dollar tourism sector
that is supported by government bodies within a number of countries,
including Canada, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. Tourism
is particularly vital to regional wineries, where small producers rely on
travellers for wine sales and the viability of their cellar door. Destination
branding and image are key factors in creating a differentiated identity
to capture tourist interest in visitation (Morgan, Pritchard, & Piggott,
2002; Usakli & Baloglu, 2011). As the market is highly heterogeneous,
stereotypical descriptors are potentially inappropriate for wine tourists.
For this reason, understanding the significance of wine regions’ destina-
tion image attributes, as well as the identity attached to wine tourism,
provides insight into wine tourists’ decision-making. This chapter will
explore the link between destination image and self-congruity in order to
provide a richer description of wine tourists attitudes and intentions.

M. Pratt (*)
Griffith University, Gold Coast, QLD, Australia
e-mail: m.pratt@griffith.edu.au

© The Author(s) 2019 45

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_4
46 M. PRATT

Early destination image researchers focused on functional attributes

(Jenkins, 1999), with limited attention to psychological or affective
attributes. Although destination image is now recognised as c­ omprising
both functional and affective attributes, approaches to destination image
research appear to vary, and some researchers have neglected to define
destination image or to clearly specify the theoretical approach used. A
theory that offers an effective foundation for destination image research
is self-congruity theory. Self-congruity theory holds that a product and
its associated images activate a self-schema, which is connected to the
self-concept (Sirgy, 1982), with the result that consumers prefer brands
and/or products that have images similar to their own self-image. Within
a tourism context, self-congruity refers to the degree to which a tour-
ist’s self-image matches the destination image, or the fit between how
tourists see themselves in relation to the image of tourists that visit that
destination (Sirgy & Su, 2000). As the image of the destination is likely
to influence the formation of the destination visitor image (Sirgy &
Su, 2000), understanding the elements of destination image in the tour-
ist’s mind becomes important.
To date, few studies have applied self-congruity theory to tourism
destination research. Measurement of destination self-congruity has
used affective dimensions and personality attributes to assess dimensions
of self-image (e.g. Kastenholz, 2004), and some research has focused
on personality attributes to measure self-congruity with a tourism des-
tination (Beerli, Meneses, & Gil, 2007; Murphy, Benckendorff, &
Moscardo, 2007). However, these studies found that a large number of
respondents could not link the association of a personality attribute to a
tourism destination. Within the tourism literature, evidence is lacking the
effect of self-congruity on the intentions or motivations to visit a desti-
nation (Boksberger, Dolnicar, Laesser, & Randle, 2011; Litvin & Goh,
2002). In particular, a search of the literature revealed no prior studies
that measured both functional and affective destination image attributes
and the symbolic attributes of self-congruity in an integrated model to
predict behavioural visitation intent.
Hence, the aim of this chapter is to briefly provide an overview of
the empirically tested integrated model of destination image to measure
behavioural intention published by Pratt and Sparks (2014). In ­addition,
this chapter will provide further analysis of self-congruity attached
to wine tourism and imagery of typical wine tourists in an integrated
manner.
 4 THE IMAGE OF A WINE TOURIST AND IMPACT … 47

Conceptual Foundations and Literature Review

The foundation for this research encompasses both tourism destination
image literature and self-congruity theory. The model has been
developed with three key constructs determining destination image:
­
functional destination image attributes, affective destination image attrib-
utes and self-congruity. Clearly, wine tourism will evoke varied degrees
of consumer involvement with the product category of wine. Hence, the
moderating effect of involvement is incorporated into the forthcoming
discussion.

Destination Image
Potential tourists’ choice of a destination is based on their favourable
images of the destination (Chen & Tsai, 2007; Woodside & Lyonski,
1989), which are critical in determining intent to visit a tourism des-
tination (Sirgy & Su, 2000). Destination image can be defined as an
individual’s mental representation of knowledge, feelings and global
impressions about a destination (Baloglu & McCleary, 1999). More
specific descriptions of destination image include components of cogni-
tive image, affective image and overall image or brand image (Beerli &
Martin, 2004).

Functional and Affective Destination Image Attributes

The research focus on functional destination image factors has pro-
duced a large list of destination image attributes (Beerli & Martin,
2004; Echtner & Ritchie, 1993). Within wine tourism destination image
research, authors have included functional attributes of the destination
but minimal consideration of the affective wine tourism experience (e.g.
Getz & Brown, 2006; Williams, 2001a). Prior researchers found three
functional dimensions of wine tourism: the core wine product; the
core destination appeal and features; and the cultural experience (Getz
& Brown, 2006). Other investigators developed a structural model to
measure future tourist behaviour that included destination image, atti-
tude, motivation and satisfaction (Lee, 2009).
Affective images and attitudes are more critical than attribute-based
images to the decision-making stage of destination choice (Cai, Wu, &
Bai, 2004; Lin, Morais, Kerstetter, & Hou, 2007; Phillips & Jang, 2008).
48 M. PRATT

Affect has been defined as an evaluation of an object, person or event

as good or bad, favourable or unfavourable, or desirable or undesirable
(Ortony, Clore, & Collins, 1988). In this vein, affective qualities of place
have been characterised as exciting, boring, disgusting, stressful and relax-
ing (Russell & Snodgrass, 1991). The affective component of destination
image reflects the individual’s feelings or emotional response towards
the destination, such as a place to relax and unwind (Dann, 1996). The
operationalisation of the affect construct has often followed a measure of
affective destination image that uses three independent bipolar dimen-
sions: pleasure, arousal and dominance (Russell & Pratt, 1980). Another
approach measures affect through four semantic differential scales: pleas-
ant/unpleasant, relaxing/distressing, arousing/sleepy and exciting/
gloomy (Baloglu & Brinbergs 1997). The bipolar scale was subsequently
altered and used as a seven-point scale separately measuring each e­ motion,
including gloomy, unpleasant, sleepy, distressing, exciting, arousing, pleas-
ant and relaxing (White & Scandale, 2005). However, this scale does not
capture all of the affect associated with tourism destinations, which also
includes perceptions such as romance, adventure and novel e­xperiences
(Galloway, Mitchell, Getz, Crouch, & Ong, 2008), particularly the
hedonic pleasure-seeking nature of wine tourism (Bruwer & Lesschaeve,
2012). The hedonic nature of wine tourism is now well recognised, and
as a result, the ‘experiential view’ of consumption has emerged, including
the aesthetic landscape and the sensation-seeking experience (Bruwer &
Alant, 2009). Similarly, the importance of an authentic experience, value
for the money, service interactions, settings and surroundings, product
offerings, adequate information, personal growth, learning experiences
and indulgence are all vital for wine tourists (Roberts & Sparks, 2006).
Previous research shows specific attributes of wine regions as being
either functional or affective, with emotions as a determinant in decid-
ing whether to visit a wine region (Galloway et al., 2008). These two
components are recognised as two indicators of destination image, where
overall destination image mediated intentions to revisit (Qu, Kim, & Im,
2011). In addition to these two attributes, studies of intentions have rec-
ognised relationship to intentions, mediated through attitudes, as a focal
construct (Ajzen & Fishbein, 1980).

Self-Congruity
The basis of self-congruity models is the notion that the value-
expressive attributes of a given product or brand cognitively match
 4 THE IMAGE OF A WINE TOURIST AND IMPACT … 49

the consumer’s self-concept (Sirgy & Johar, 1985). In line with these
models, as consumers come to prefer brands on the basis of symbolic qual-
ities rather than just functional qualities, the importance of self-congruity
and its impact on purchase behaviour has become more evident (Jamal &
Goode, 2001). Self-congruity theory applied to tourism proposes that the
greater the match between the destination visitor image and the tourist’s
self-image, the greater the likelihood a tourist will have a favourable atti-
tude towards a destination, and the more likely the tourist is to visit the
destination. Recent research within the tourism literature has focused on
the congruity model in the context of destination loyalty (Bosnjak, Sirgy,
Hellriegal, & Maurer, 2011). However, Pratt and Sparks (2014) is the
only study which measures self-congruity by incorporating both functional
and affective destination image attributes into an integrated model to pre-
dict behavioural visitation intent in a wine tourism context.
While self-congruity theory has been influential in consumer research,
results have been mixed owing to varying definitions and methodological
issues of measuring self-congruity. These difficulties led to the devel-
opment of a measure that assesses the self-image congruence experi-
ence directly rather than indirectly through the combination of product
user image and self-image (Chon, 1992; Sirgy et al., 1997; Sirgy & Su,
2000). As the direct approach is superior (Boksberger et al., 2011), it
should be the standard approach used to develop self-congruity models.

Attitudes
Attitudes are often an indication of why consumers behave the way
they do and are used as a basis for predicting consumer choice behav-
iour. Attitude is defined as a global and relatively enduring evaluation
of an object, issue or person (Ajzen, 1985; Fazio, 1986). Attitudes have
been found to lead to intentions, and intentions lead to actual behaviour
(Fishbein & Ajzen, 1975). Attitudes have also been found to mediate con-
sequent behaviours such as future intention to visit a destination (Feng,
Cai, & Zhu, 2006). Self-identity and attitudes have separate independ-
ent effects on behavioural intentions (Sparks & Guthrie, 1998), and as a
result, the attitude construct of wine tourism is included in the model.

Involvement
Involvement is an internal state that indicates the amount of
arousal, interest or drive evoked by a particular stimulus or situation
50 M. PRATT

(Park & Mittal, 1985) and has been described as the key motivating
factor for understanding consumer choices. The effect of involvement
has been found to moderate the effect of congruity where the greater the
involvement with travelling, the more important congruity is (Beerli et al.,
2007). Consumers more involved with a product would also be expected
to possess a more favourable attitude (Mittal, 1995). However, while
consumers who are involved with wine may have a more favourable atti-
tude towards wine, they do not necessarily have a more positive attitude
towards wine tourism activities. Brown, Havitz and Getz (2006) devel-
oped a wine involvement scale comprising three factors: expertise, enjoy-
ment and symbolic centrality. This research is interested in determining
whether involvement-based wine consumers differ on destination image
attributes and self-congruity in terms of their intent to visit a wine region.
In summary, the study investigated destination image with respect to
functional congruity, the affective element of destination image, and the
symbolic aspect of self-concept (Pratt & Sparks, 2014). Self-congruity
theory is referenced with respect to the symbolic attributes of deci-
sion-making, without reference to the affective components of a desti-
nation image. As a result, the destination image is measured through the
functional and affective destination image attributes of wine regions.

Method
The aim of this chapter is to develop a more robust discussion of the
complexities of wine tourists. This chapter will use the integrated model
of destination image to measure self-image congruity of tourists with
wine tourism.

Sample Design and Data Collection

As wine tourism behaviour is related to wine consumption (Brown et al.,
2006; Getz & Brown, 2006), data were collected from wine consumers.
A sample of 5000 wine consumers from Australia were randomly selected
from a mailing house were sent both via email and postal mail (Dillman
et al., 2009). In all, 696 responses were received, providing a response
rate of 12.1% for the email survey and 19.2% for the postal mail survey.
The sample profile is found to be comparable to a broad cross section
of wine consumers (Dawson, Holmes, Jacobs, & Wade, 2011), and as a
result, non-response bias appears to be minimal.
 4 THE IMAGE OF A WINE TOURIST AND IMPACT … 51

Questionnaire Design
The measures for the constructs were developed from the literature,
together with insights gathered from qualitative research (Pratt & Sparks,
2014). Intentions to visit were adapted from Dabholkar and Bagozzi
(2002), Sparks (2007), and Getz and Brown (2006) and measured on a
seven-point Likert-type scale (3 items). Functional destination image
attributes were gathered from destination image researchers (Getz &
Brown, 2006; Leisen, 2001; Williams, 2001b) and affective destination
image comprised four items modified from Hosany and Gilbert (2010) and
White and Scandale (2005). Self-congruity was measured using the direct
score approach focusing on the image of users, that is, the visitors to wine
regions. Using the direct score approach requires a numeric scale to meas-
ure the level of congruence, and the approach is facilitated by a scenario
directive and statement (Ekinci & Riley, 2003). This was achieved through
descriptive adjectives written by respondents in order to ‘bring to the fore-
front’ or activate the image of a typical wine tourist. Self-congruity was also
measured through an indirect approach comprised of three dimensions
of self-concept: actual, ideal and social self-image (Chon, 1992; Goh &
Litvin, 2000; Sirgy, Grewal, & Mangleburg, 2000). The measure of atti-
tudes towards wine tourism is a standard unidimensional measure (Ajzen,
1987; Dabholkar & Bagozzi, 2002). The involvement scale was adapted
from a wine involvement scale developed by Brown et al. (2006).

Results
The final sample consisted of respondents from across Australia, with
32% from NSW and 22% from Victoria. The sample is fairly evenly split
between sexes (female, 52%; male, 47%). Most respondents (72%) were
born in Australia. Of those respondents not born in Australia, the aver-
age time of living in Australia is 24 years (SD = 15.3). Approximately,
half of the respondents (52%) have an undergraduate or postgraduate
degree. The majority are employed, with only 13% not employed or
retired. The average age of the respondents is 46 years old. A third of the
respondents (34%) are a mature couple (with no children at home), and
32% are a family with children under 15 living at home. The top three
groups of occupations are associate professionals such as nurses or police
(23%), managers (22%) and professionals (21%). Household income also
varied, with 45% earning between $100,001 and $180,000.
52 M. PRATT

The level of consumer involvement with wine impacted their descrip-

tion of a wine tourist. Descriptors used by high involved wine respond-
ents include interest, knowledge and passion for wine, wine lover;
educated intelligent; adventurous experience seeker; foodie, enjoy good
food; expand knowledge, inquisitive, explorer, learning, curious; and
knowledgeable. Low wine involved respondents tended to describe wine
tourists as fun, average, semi-retired retired/time to spare, interesting
and professionals/business people.
To fully develop the self-image congruity construct, respondents
described their image of a typical wine tourist from their favourite wine
region, providing over 1900 descriptors. The most common single
descriptors were interest, knowledge and passion for wine, wine lover
(22.7%), relaxing (22.2%), sociable and friendly (20.3%), higher income
earners (16.4%), fun (15.7%) and middle-aged (13.8%).

Model
The focus of this chapter will be to provide further analysis of wine tour-
ists with a brief overview of the results of the model (see Pratt & Sparks,
2014, for a detailed discussion). The final structural model contains the
three exogenous latent variables of functional destination image, affec-
tive destination image, and self-congruity and the two endogenous latent
variables of attitude towards wine tourism and intention to visit wine
regions. The results of the model are shown in Fig. 4.1. Affective des-
tination image provides a stronger significant relationship with attitude
towards wine tourism than self-congruity or functional destination image.
Attitude towards wine tourism was found to be the mediating variable for
each of the exogenous variables on respondents’ intention to visit a wine
region.
The functional elements of the wine destination include: the wine
experience, the food experience and elements of the wine regions. The
wine experience comprised: drinking and purchasing quality wine, win-
ery staff knowledgeable about wine, visitor friendly and an opportunity
to learn about wine. The food experience comprised: lots of restaurants
including excellent restaurants, art galleries and antique shops as well as a
vibrant atmosphere. The final element of wine regions included the rep-
utation of the wine region, with large and modern wineries. Affect is an
important element of wine tourist’s attitudes towards wine tourism and
their intentions to revisit a wine region. Affect encompasses a sense of
escapism and discovery, being relaxed, pleasant and a fun experience.
 4 THE IMAGE OF A WINE TOURIST AND IMPACT … 53

Fig. 4.1 Self-congruity and wine tourism model results (Pratt & Sparks, 2014)

Involvement
Pratt and Sparks (2014) found that wine involvement moderates the
relationships in the model. For the high wine involvement group, both
affective destination image and self-congruity had a significant p­ ositive
relationship to attitude towards wine tourism. Affective destination
image, however, had a stronger relationship with attitude towards wine
tourism than self-congruity towards wine tourism. High wine involve-
ment respondents have a non-significant path between the functional
destination image (measured through the wine experience) and their atti-
tude towards wine tourism. This result differed with low wine involve-
ment respondents, where their self-congruity was not significant with
respect to their attitude towards wine tourism, whereas functional desti-
nation and affective destination image were equal and significant in their
effect on attitudes towards wine tourism. The relationship between atti-
tude to wine tourism and its impact on the intention to visit a winery
was positively significant for both high and low involvement groups.
The average rating for functional destination image, affective destina-
tion image, self-congruity, attitude towards wine tourism, and ­intention
to visit were all found to be significantly higher for the high wine
involvement group than for the low wine involvement group. Intention
to visit a wine region has the largest mean difference of 1.22 between
high and low involvement groups (on a seven-point Likert scale).
54 M. PRATT

Wine Tourism Experiences

The vast majority of respondents have previously visited a wine region
(94%) with an average visitation of 8.75 (SD = 7, N = 568) within
Australia. Just over one-third of respondents (35.9%) have not previously
visited a winery or wine region overseas. The wine region most visited
was the Hunter Valley in NSW (14.6%) followed by the Barossa Valley
in SA (11.3%). The top 20 wine regions cited made up 83% of all visi-
tations. Respondents last visit to a winery was on average 10.8 months
ago (SD = 11.6, N = 598). The wine regions last visited include Hunter
Valley (20.9%), Margaret River (12.5%), Yarra Valley (9.6%) and Barossa
Valley (7.3%). Each of the wine regions listed has the majority of visitors
from its own state. Barossa Valley was the only region that had a larger
spread of visitors to its wine region. The reasons for their last visit to a
wine region varied; however, wine specific reasons were the most com-
mon (37.8%), followed by generally touring through the region (31%).
Other reasons included attending an event (10.5%) or visiting friends or
relatives (9.2%). Another 5% stated they visit wine regions to entertain
friends or visiting family for day trips.
Overall respondents were satisfied (M = 5.6), with their last visit to
a wine region (on a 7-point scale where 1 = very unsatisfied through
to 7 = very satisfied). The overall experience to the wine region was
rated the highest (M = 5.8). Respondents were satisfied with the winer-
ies in the region (M = 5.7). Significant differences were found between
respondents’ satisfaction and their level of wine involvement, where
respondents who had high involvement with wine were significantly
more satisfied with their last visit to a wine region (M = 5.8, SD = 0.9)
than those who had low wine involvement (M = 5.5, SD = 0.9,
t (634) = −3.69, p < 0.000).

Wine Consumption and Wine Behaviour

The majority of respondents are considered regular wine consumers,
where 43.2% of respondents consume wine most days or every day and
37.3% of respondents consume wine weekly. Almost half of all respond-
ents (48%) were members of a wine club or a wineries mailing list, with
the average number of 2.3 memberships (SD = 2.5, N = 334). The
number of bottles of wine that respondents collect or cellar varied with
almost a half of respondents collecting wine (44.7%).
 4 THE IMAGE OF A WINE TOURIST AND IMPACT … 55

Evaluating the wine tourism profile for high and low self-congruent
respondents, significant differences were found in four areas.
Respondents who were not congruent with wine tourists visited
wine regions significantly less than those who had a high level of
self-congruency. Wine consumption was also found to be significantly
higher for respondents who had self-congruency with wine tourists.
More self-congruent respondents consumed wine weekly or most days
compared to low self-congruent respondents. Similarly, self-congruent
respondents were significantly more likely to be members of wine
clubs compared to low self-congruent respondents and collect wine.
Evaluating the wine tourism profile of low and high wine involvement
respondents, a few differences were found. High wine involvement
respondents have previously visited a wine region more often than low
involvement respondents. The reason for visitation also varied, where
low wine involvement consumers travelled more for general touring,
while high wine involvement consumers travelled more for wine-specific
reasons. High involvement wine consumers were significantly more satis-
fied with their last wine visit (M = 5.8, SD = 0.9) than low involvement
wine consumers (M = 5.5, SD = 0.9, t (634) = −3.69, p < 0.000).

Typical Wine Tourist Image

This last section is interested in how the typical wine tourist is viewed by
respondents, in order to fully appreciate the self-image congruity con-
struct. This is important, in order to determine the actual image of a typ-
ical wine tourist that respondents may be congruent with, or likewise,
the image that they are not congruent with. Respondents were requested
to imagine the typical wine tourist who visit their favourite wine region.
Over 1900 descriptors were provided by respondents to describe a typ-
ical wine tourist, ranging from motivational attributes, such as relax-
ing, through to appearance, such as sophisticated. All of the descriptors
were categorised into seven groups: motivation and personality traits,
life stage, socio-economic status, wine-related, tourists, appearance and
other. Motivation and personality traits were the most common with
49% of all adjectives fitting into this category. The most common single
descriptors/adjectives used are

• Interest, knowledge and passion for wine, wine lover (22.7%);

• Relaxed, relaxing (22.2%);
56 M. PRATT

• Sociable, like socialising, friendly (20.3%);

• Higher income earners/financially secure (16.4%);
• Fun (15.7%);
• Middle age mature people (13.8%);
• Educated intelligent (13.1%);
• Adventurous experience seeker (12.5%);
• Tourists (12.3%);
• Foodie, enjoy good food (9.6%).

There were significant differences between low and high s­elf-congruity

respondents and the adjectives used to describe a typical wine tour-
ist. Respondents who had high levels of self-congruity described ­typical
wine tourists as relaxed, relaxing, sociable, likes socialising, friendly, fun,
excited, enthusiastic, vibrant, happy and interesting. Respondents who

Knowledgeable

Expand knowledge, inquisitive, explorer, learning, curious

Foodie, enjoy good food

Adventurous experience seeker

Educated intelligent

Interest, knowledge and passion for wine, wine lover

Couples

Professionals/business people

Semi retired retired/time to spare

All, average

Middle age mature people

Tourists

Higher income earners/financially secure

Interesting

Excited, enthusiastic, vibrant

Happy

Fun

Sociable, likes socialising, friendly

Relaxed, relaxing

0 20 40 60 80 100
N of respondents

high self-congruity low self-congruity high wine involve low wine involve

Fig. 4.2 Differences between groups, high and low self-congruity, high and
low involvement
 4 THE IMAGE OF A WINE TOURIST AND IMPACT … 57

had low level of self-congruity described the typical wine tourist as higher
income earners/financially secure, middle age mature people, tour-
ists, all, average, semi-retired/retired/time to spare and professionals/
business people.
There were also differences found between high and low wine
involved respondents. High wine involved respondents describe wine
tourists as: interest, knowledge and passion for wine, wine lover; edu-
cated intelligent; adventurous experience seeker; foodie, enjoy good
food; expand knowledge, inquisitive, explorer, learning, curious; and
knowledgeable. Whereas low wine involvement respondents tended
to describe wine tourists as: fun, average, semi-retired/retired/time to
spare, interesting, and professionals/business people. See Fig. 4.2, for a
visual comparison and overlap between the different descriptors used by
high and low self-congruity respondents, as well as high and low wine
involvement respondents, which is not mutually exclusive.

Discussion
Cellar door growth has increased where between 2000 and 2009, the
number of wineries rose by 25.3%, from 1200 cellar doors to 1614
(Winebiz, 2012) whereas there has been minimal growth in wine tour-
ism visitor numbers. Therefore, understanding the image and attitudes
attached to this leisure activity is important to increasing visitation to
wine regions. This is achieved by expanding our understanding and
knowledge of wine tourism through its focus on wine tourists and their
impressions of a wine region and of a typical wine tourist.
Self-congruity theory is based on the notion of preferring to purchase
products/services or visit destinations where the visitors have images
similar to one’s own self-image or desired self-image. Wine-related
organisations need to understand the importance of the relationship
between consumers’ comparisons of their self-image and with that of
a typical wine tourist. If consumers feel congruent with the image of a
wine tourist, they will have a more positive attitude towards wine tour-
ism and this will increase their intentions to visit a wine region. Attitudes
are deemed to be one of the major sources for explaining and predict-
ing tourism behaviour (Gnoth, 1997). Furthermore, many attitudes are
formed in order to satisfy the self and not social norms.
Wine tourists are not a homogenous market segment, but have
distinct characteristics which comprise various wine tourist market
58 M. PRATT

segments. The image portrayed of wine tourists can be used in marketing

materials to appeal to each target market: those who have higher levels
of self-congruity with wine tourism activities; those who are high wine
involved tourists; and low wine involved tourists. The description of a
typical wine tourist is discussed based on four segments: high and low
congruent tourists, and high and low wine involved tourists. The first
segment is those tourists who were congruent with a typical wine tourist
(high self-congruity), used positive affective descriptors of wine tourists,
and experiential descriptors. This highlights the positive affective descrip-
tors used to describe wine tourists as relaxed people, who are fun, happy,
vibrant and enthusiastic. The experiential descriptors used were that a
typical wine tourist likes socialising and are interesting people. To con-
tinue to attract congruent wine tourists the affective and experiential ele-
ment is important.
The second segment is those tourists who felt they were not congru-
ent with a typical wine tourist. The imagery they used to portray and
describe wine tourists was narrow, using only demographic descriptors
such as: older retired people, financially secure and business people.
These stereotypes which are still prevalent in some established wineries
would not attract either the congruent or non-congruent segments. The
promotional imagery developed for the self-congruent segment would
slowly change attitudes towards wine tourism for this segment.
The third segment is high wine involved tourists who used a broader
context of descriptors incorporating wine interest, motivational and
affective descriptors. Their profile or description of a typical wine tour-
ist reflects their interest in wine by describing a typical wine tourist as
a wine lover who has an interest, knowledge and passion for wine. This
resonates with the wine experience attribute of the functional destination
image. The other descriptor of a typical wine tourist used is foodies and
someone who enjoys quality food, which relates to the food experience
attribute of the functional destination image. Motivation-type descriptors
were also used to describe a typical wine tourist, someone who is adven-
turous in nature and someone who would like to expand their knowl-
edge, an explorer. Demographic traits were also mentioned, where they
described a typical wine tourist as educated and intelligent. Self-image
in promotions should purposefully reflect the target market, so for high
wine involved consumers image should entail the notions of gathering
new knowledge, perhaps by using images with a winemaker or through
structured educational wine tasting events. Promotional material could
 4 THE IMAGE OF A WINE TOURIST AND IMPACT … 59

also include good food and wine in a new unknown wine region to
­capture the explorer or adventurous nature of wine tourism.
The fourth segment is low wine involved respondents, who tend to
describe the typical wine tourist in a similar manner to those respond-
ents who were not self-congruent with a typical wine tourist. However,
two additional traits were included of a typical wine tourist, that is, fun
and interesting. If the objective was to increase patronage of low wine
involved market segment, then fun and affective elements should be
included in promotions. The increase in events held in wineries, such as
‘A Day on the Green’1 featuring Jimmy Barnes at Sirromet Winery in
Queensland, would also increase the patronage of this market segment.
The image attached to wine regions’ promotions is important in the
destination communications strategy, where the advertised ­ attributes
need to match tourists’ needs and motivations as much as possible.
The challenge for wine tourism-related organisations and wineries is to
determine the unique destination attributes that should feature in their
promotion campaigns, be it the functional destination image attributes
or affective destination image attributes, together with the symbolic
image of self-congruity.
Evaluating the functional destination image construct, this research
found three key factors associated with wine tourism: the wine experi-
ence, the food experience and wine region attributes. These functional
attributes align the dimensions found by Getz and Brown (2006)
although the food experience is encompassed in their cultural experi-
ence attribute. Two of these factors are uniquely focused on the wine
tourism market, that is, the wine experience and the wine region, while
the food experience is a complementary activity. The wine experience
factor weighted heavily on to the overall functional destination image
construct, which represents the essence of the wine tourism experience.
The wine experience included: purchasing premium quality wine, win-
ery staff who are knowledgeable about wine, opportunity to taste lots
of wine, wineries are visitor friendly and it’s a good opportunity to learn
about wine. Interestingly, the functional destination image attributes of
the destination were not found to be predictive in their decision to visit a
wine region in the future for high wine involved tourists, as they may be
considered a basic expectation of high wine involved consumers. Other

1 ‘A Day on the Green’ is an outdoor music concert featuring multiple rock or pop

performers.
60 M. PRATT

items which were part of the wine experience included wineries that are
visitor friendly, staff who are knowledgeable about wine, and the oppor-
tunity to learn about wine. Each of these may be described as motivating
issues for a wine tourist; however, they were not critical in predict-
ing respondents’ attitudes towards wine tourism. It is important to be
cognisant of the finding that high involved wine consumers are visiting
wine regions for wine-specific reasons as opposed to others who visit for
general touring purposes. This may appear to be a contradiction; how-
ever, high wine involved tourists have basic expectations of wine regions
they visit, such as tasting premium wine and an opportunity to learn. As
a result, it appears not as important in their attitudes and behavioural
intentions but should not be ignored.
A leisure experience is generally considered to be more affective-based
as it relates to the immediate experience of entertainment and the pleas-
ure of exploration (Dubé, Cervellon, & Jingyuan, 2003). The affective
attributes or feelings attached to a wine region were the most power-
ful predictor of attitudes towards wine tourism and behavioural inten-
tions for high wine involved consumers. These include affective elements
such as: relaxing, a sense of escapism, pleasant, fun and a sense of discov-
ery. Holiday tourism is a hedonic activity which is particularly prone to
emotional influence and critical in tourism decision-making as found by
Phillips and Jang (2008).
As the majority of wine tourists/visitors live locally, they may not con-
sider themselves to be tourists as such and would view visiting a wine
region as a leisure activity. As a result, the functional destination image
attributes (e.g. quality wine, good restaurants’ or the reputation of the
region) did not impact their intentions as strongly as affect or feelings
towards visiting a wine region. This supports the notion that wine tour-
ists are interested in the experience and how they feel while visiting a
wine region.
Wineries cannot simply focus on wine tasting to encompass the wine
experience, as this is already an expectation of visiting a wine region, and
visitors have greater emotional and experiential expectations from visiting
a wine region. The affect, emotions or feelings attached to wine tour-
ism were very strong with wine tourists, and this could be a result of its
experiential nature. As a food and wine writer recently stated ‘…but my
response to all things that bring me pleasure – like good food and good
wine – is always going to be emotional’ (Durack, 2010). Demographic
factors also need to be taken into account. The younger market segment
 4 THE IMAGE OF A WINE TOURIST AND IMPACT … 61

tends to rate the affective attributes or feelings attached to visiting a

wine region as more important, leading to the experiential nature of the
generation X and Y. Surprisingly, their positive attitudes towards wine
tourism and intentions to visit were the highest of all age groups.

Conclusion
Through its focus on wine tourists and their impressions of a wine region
and of a typical wine tourist, the research reported in this paper contrib-
utes to expanding the understanding and knowledge of wine tourism. As
growth in wine tourism visitor numbers has been minimal, understand-
ing the image and attitudes attached to this leisure activity is critical to
increasing visitation to wine regions. Practical implications are relevant
for tourism state and regional authorities, associations and wine produc-
ers with cellar doors. The implications include recognising the impor-
tance of image attached to wine regions and the image of wine tourists
themselves.
Limitations of this study relate primarily in the form of social desira-
bility bias, which has been found to affect measures such as personality
variables and attitudes, where upward and downward adjustments may
occur (Fisher & Katz, 2000), particularly with respect to self-image and
self-identity issues. A further limitation may lie in the measurement of
the self-congruity construct. While this research found self-congruity
to be unidimensional, other products and services have found it to be
multi-dimensional. With respect to wine tourism, the particular challenge
is the identification of typical visitors. A duplication study would pro-
vide support for the unidimensional nature of self-congruity within this
context.
Finally, tourism involvement can be further explored to determine
whether linkages exist between involved leisure travellers and their choice
of a wine tourism destination, perhaps separating the leisure travel expe-
rience from the tourist travel experience (Mannell & Iso-Ahola, 1987).
In summary, it is apparent there are complexities with high involved
wine consumers and the destination image attributes they associate with
visiting a wine region. The reliance on promoting wine regions with
imagery of the industrial components of winemaking is no longer rele-
vant to this market. They are interested in the experiential elements of
both the wine experience of tasting good wine, intertwined with relaxa-
tion, a sense of escapism, relaxation, and the notion of fun and discovery.
62 M. PRATT

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 CHAPTER 5

Motivations of Wine Travellers in Rural

Northeast Iowa

Oksana Grybovych Hafermann and Samuel V. Lankford

Discussion Questions
Why is it important to understand visitor motivations?
What lessons can be learned from this research?
Using research findings, should wineries modify their offerings, and if
so—how?

Case Study
Motivations of wine travellers can explain needs, wants, expectations
and behaviours and thus should form an integral part of the m ­ arketing
mix and a sound, long-term marketing strategy for those businesses
involved in wine tourism development (Bruwer, 2003). Data on visitor
lifestyles, interests, attitudes and values can provide more powerful and

O. Grybovych Hafermann (*)

University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls, IA, USA
e-mail: oksana.grybovych@uni.edu
S. V. Lankford
California State University, Fresno, CA, USA
e-mail: slankford@csufresno.edu

© The Author(s) 2019 67

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_5
68 O. GRYBOVYCH HAFERMANN AND S. V. LANKFORD

actionable research information than demographics alone (Hall et al.,

2000). Equipped with an understanding of visitor motivations, winer-
ies and vineyards can provide their customers the experience they want
and expect, and not products and services they are assumed to desire
(Marzo-Navarro & Pedraja-Iglesias, 2009). Simply stated, effective mar-
keting is impossible without an understanding of consumers’ motivations
(Fodness, 1994).
The purpose of this empirical research study was to examine demo-
graphic and behavioural characteristics and motivations of wine travellers
in rural Northeast Iowa. Data was collected using a questionnaire-based
survey that sought responses regarding visitors’ party and trip character-
istics, spending patterns, travel motivations and satisfaction with the visit.
Surveys were administered at the three wineries on the Iowa Wine Trail
in April–November 2005; a total of 170 surveys were obtained.
Visitors were asked to indicate their agreement with several motives
for visiting the wineries/wine trail on a 5-point Likert-type scale
(5 = strongly agree, 4 = agree, 3 = neither agree nor disagree, 2 = disa-
gree, 1 = strongly disagree). The list of motivation questions was drawn
from the literature, discussed with the wineries and modified to suit the
local context.
The main motives for visiting the wineries were (in order by mean
scores) “to taste wine” (M = 4.64), “to enjoy the scenery” (M = 4.61),
“to have a good time with friends and family” (M = 4.57), “to relax”
(M = 4.53), “to support local wine producers” (M = 4.32) and “to taste
locally produced foods” (M = 4.21). Table 5.1 reports mean scores for all
motivation items.
Factor analysis (principal components analysis with Varimax rotation)
was used to understand the variance among the thirteen items. Results
revealed three main groups of motives: to learn about the wine and
winemaking process (Factor 1), to gain an authentic Northeast Iowa
experience (Factor 2) and to enjoy having a good time (Factor 3). The
three-factor solution accounted for 63.6% of all variation in the data (see
Table 5.2).
Factor 1 was comprised of five items (0.858 Alpha), Factor 2 was
comprised of five items (0.779 Alpha) and Factor 3 was comprised of
three items (0.774 Alpha). Factor 1 was interpreted as “motive to learn
about the wine and winemaking process”, Factor 2 was interpreted as
“motive to gain authentic Northeast Iowa experience” and Factor 3 was
interpreted as “motive to enjoy having a good time”.
 5 MOTIVATIONS OF WINE TRAVELLERS IN RURAL NORTHEAST IOWA 69

Table 5.1 Travel motivations for visiting the wineries/Iowa wine trail (mean
scores)

Travel motive Mean scorea Std. deviation

To taste wine 4.64 0.58

To enjoy the scenery 4.61 0.50
To have a good time with friends and family 4.57 0.57
To relax 4.53 0.57
To support local wine producers 4.32 0.70
To taste locally produced foods 4.21 0.87
To do something I had always wanted to do 4.10 0.84
To learn about places in Northeast Iowa 4.05 0.89
To learn about the winemaking process 3.82 0.86
To learn about wine and cheese pairings 3.76 0.87
To learn about grape varieties 3.61 0.80
To learn about sparkling processes for ciders 3.36 0.85
To learn about wine label reading 3.25 0.87
aScale 1–5: 5 = strongly agree, 4 = agree, 3 = neither agree nor disagree, 2 = disagree, 1 = strongly disagree

Table 5.2 Alpha values and factor pattern coefficients for travel motivations
(n = 130)

Factor items Factor loadings

Factor 1: To learn about the wine
and winemaking process
To learn about wine label reading 0.896
To learn about sparkling processes for ciders and wines 0.832
To learn about grape varieties 0.815
To learn about the winemaking process 0.712
To gain knowledge about wine and cheese pairings 0.554
Factor 2: To gain authentic Northeast Iowa experience
To learn about things and places in Northeast Iowa 0.746
To taste wine 0.717
To taste locally produced foods 0.700
To support local wine producers 0.652
To do something I had always wanted to do 0.618
Factor 3: To enjoy having a good time
To have a good time with friends and family 0.888
To relax 0.834
To enjoy the scenery 0.588
Eigenvalues 3.15 3.05 2.07
Explained variance 24.26 23.44 15.90
Alpha coefficients 0.86 0.78 0.77
70 O. GRYBOVYCH HAFERMANN AND S. V. LANKFORD

Implications
As wineries shift their marketing focus to include rural features and
attractions, they should also review their current offerings. Visitors
on the Iowa Wine Trail were not quite interested in learning about
the winemaking process, wine and cheese pairings, grape varieties,
sparkling processes for ciders and wine label reading at the time of
the study. It remains unclear whether this is a temporary phenome-
non that will change as the region matures, or a distinct feature of the
Northeast Iowa wine region. When compared with food tourists stud-
ied by Cela, Knowles-Lankford, and Lankford (2007), travellers on
the Iowa Wine Trail were slightly more interested in learning about
the process of growing and producing the products. As such, provid-
ing unique and quality interpretive plans and programs (and perhaps
offering them during events and festivals) might further enhance visi-
tor experiences.

References
Bruwer, J. (2003). South African wine routes: Some perspectives on the wine
tourism industry’s structural dimensions and wine tourism product. Tourism
Management, 24(4), 423–435.
Cela, A., Knowles-Lankford, J., & Lankford, S. (2007). Local food festi-
vals in Northeast Iowa communities: A visitor and economic impact study.
Managing Leisure, 12, 171–186.
Fodness, D. (1994). Measuring tourist. Annals of Tourism Research, 21(3),
555–581.
Hall, C. M., Sharples, L., Cambourne, B., & Macionis, N. (2000). Wine tour-
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Marzo-Navarro, M., & Pedraja-Iglesias, M. (2009). Wine tourism development
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Contemporary Hospitality Management, 21(7), 816–835.
 CHAPTER 6

Seeking the Typical Characteristics

of Wine Tourists in South Greece

Panagiotis Tataridis, Kanellakopoulos Christos,

Kanellis Anastassios and Gatselos Lazaros

Introduction
Greece is a popular tourist destination. The diversity of the Greek land-
scape as well as the history and richness of the Greek vineyard are two
basic pillars on which wine tourism can support its development.
Especially in a period when Greek tourism blooms, the subsequent growth
of wine tourism may contribute to the development of the wine industry.
Therefore, it is essential for the Greek wineries, to profile wine tourists and
identify their motivations in order to devise a better marketing strategy.
Currently, there is no available quantitative regional or national market
study on which a winery can base its wine tourism strategy.

P. Tataridis (*)
Department of Wine, Vine & Beverage Sciences,
University of West Attica (UNIWA), Athens, Greece
K. Christos · K. Anastassios · G. Lazaros
Pan-Hellenic Union of Registered Oenologists (PANEPO),
Athens, Greece

© The Author(s) 2019 71

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_6
72 P. TATARIDIS ET AL.

This project was a preliminary investigation on the profile of individ-

uals who visit wineries during their vacation in well-known destinations
in Southern Greece (Peloponnese and South Aegean islands—Cyclades
and Dodecanese). A questionnaire devised by the Pan-Hellenic Union of
Registered Oenologists (PANEPO) with 19 questions related to demo-
graphics, wine knowledge and preferences, as well as, the familiarity level
with Greek wine, was given to 12 wineries. Collected data concerned
the period from May to September 2016. The results were presented
at the 1st Wine Tourism Congress of Santorini, 14–16 October 2016
(Tataridis, Kanellakopoulos, Gatselos, & Kanellis, 2016). Part of the
purpose of the study was to explore the familiarity of wineries with wine
tourism data gathering and explore their needs.

Key Findings
The majority of the visitors were from Europe (66%) followed by the
USA (20.8%). Younger (<25) and older (>60) people represented only
11.3% of the total visitors (7.1 and 4.2%, respectively). The majority of
the visitors were male (66%), against (34%) female.
Their favourite alcoholic drink was wine (70.2%) followed by beer
(12.1%). The preference for distilled beverages was limited to percentages
lower than 5% for each (Whisky 5%; Gin, Rum and Vodka 3.5%, other
2.1%). With regard to daily consumption, 58.9% drink up to one glass
of wine/day, followed by 27% that drink two (2) glasses/day and 14.1%
with more than two (2) glasses/day. Wide diversity was observed regard-
ing the money spent for a bottle of wine. The participants declared that
they usually buy bottles costing from three (3) up to 150€. The maximum
amount of money spent for a single bottle ranged from seven (7) to 250€.
Among them, 40% has spent more than 50€ for a single bottle, whereas
35% usually spend 17–35€; 60% of the participants prefer buying wine
at related stores (28.4% liquor stores and 27.7% exclusive wine stores)
whereas a significant portion (36.9%) buys wine from the supermarkets.
Only 36% of the visitors considered themselves as wine tourists,
whilst 13% had already visited six (6) to more than 12 wine regions dur-
ing the last three years. The majority (40%) had visited two (2) loca-
tions at maximum followed by 25% with 2–4 visits and 20% 4–6 visits.
Regarding their favourite grape variety and wine region, the participants
did not surprise us, as they mentioned that they like/prefer the famous
 6 SEEKING THE TYPICAL CHARACTERISTICS … 73

international varieties such as Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Cabernet

Sauvignon and Merlot. Regarding destinations, the results coincided
with the origin of the visitors, France was first, followed by Italy, Spain
and the USA.
The vast majority declared that they do not drink Greek wines
(79.4%) on a regular basis. Moreover, almost 50% mentioned that they
do not know any Greek grape varieties. In contrast, 91.4% of those
who tasted Greek wines admitted that they would suggest the wines
to friends and 64% of the visitors had bought up to 3 bottles of Greek
wine; 21% 3–6 bottles whilst a significant 15% bought from six (6) to 24
bottles. Purchase was limited by air travel liquid restrictions. Regarding
the Greek wine/bottle price, 33% of the international visitors said they
would pay from 0 to 10€, 31% from 11 to 20€, and 30% from 21 to
30€. Finally, among the Greek cultivars, Assyrtiko was the most recog-
nizable (26%), followed by Agiorgitiko (16%) and Moschofilero (3.6%).
Approximately, 50% of the visitors gave no answer regarding varieties.

Conclusions
The study highlighted the significance of wine tourism for the wineries
involved. The international visitors’ familiarity level with Greek wines
was low; however, the majority had a positive experience and would
recommend it, as well as the wines. There are significant prospects for
penetration in the international wine tourism market. There are several
questions raised by this study that the wineries need to address. Wineries
need to find ways to adjust their marketing material better, according to
visitors’ nationality and language. Also, they need to find ways to over-
come the lack of lower cost postal/parcel services that did not permit
them to capitalize on wine sales.
Another problem for the wineries is that visitors replied on a volun-
tary basis and there was a need to motivate data gathering. The wineries
did not have a previously set up strategy for data gathering and found it
difficult to do so. Through this project, wineries were exposed to similar
projects (GWRDC, 2014) and expressed a high interest for additional
studies regarding wine tourism and cellar door management. Possibilities
of a collaborative scheme between wineries on a state or national level for
the creation of a wine tourism database and metrics were also discussed.
74 P. TATARIDIS ET AL.

References
GWRDC. (2014). Australian Wine Industry Cellar Door Research Study 2013.
GWRDC USA-1204 Cellar Door Research Project.
Tataridis, P., Kanellakopoulos, C., Gatselos, L., & Kanellis, A. (2016, October
14–16). Investigating the typical characteristics of winery visitors in Southern
Greece. In 1st International Wine Tourism Congress (IMIC 2016), Santorini,
Greece.
 PART II

Wine Destination Marketing: New

Approaches and Practices

Marianna Sigala and Richard N. S. Robinson

Introduction
Destination marketing is an increasingly sophisticated literature focus in
tourism studies. However, wine is increasingly becoming a focal point
of marketing for established destinations offering an array of products
and experiences. More than this, geographic regions rich in vinicultural
and wine-making expertise, heritage and culture are emerging as desti-
nations in their own right. For these reasons, new theoretical and prac-
tical approaches for marketing wine destinations are called for. Another
imperative is that some of the new and novel marketing opportunities
that rapid and ever-changing technological innovations are lubricating,
need to be embraced. Part II of this book brings together of collection
of empirical and conceptual works that investigate some of these new
approaches to marketing wine destinations. Contributions detail exam-
ples from both the New and Old wine worlds.
In the first chapter, Bonarou, Tsartas and Sarantakou detail how new
technological mediums can enhance the ability of winery collectives in
narrating textual and visual stories for marketing their businesses and
destinations. They conclude that a product only focus is being super-
seded by one where wines can embody powerful historical and cul-
tural stories that bring them to life. Marianna Sigala uses the case study
of Ultimate Wine Experiences Australia in order to demonstrate how
the concept of coopetition can be applied for developing and market-
ing a wine destination. Due to their characteristics (i.e., high density of
76 PART II: WINE DESTINATION MARKETING: NEW APPROACHES …

complementary suppliers), wine destinations represent a propitious field

for developing coopetition business models, but their practice in the
tourism field is limited due to myopic internal competition issues. In
the third chapter of this part, Sigala presents another innovative way to
market a wine destination. By adopting the concept of cultural ecosys-
tems, she explains the cultural and heritage value of winescapes and dis-
cusses the benefits of UNESCO World Heritage listing for wine regions
including: wine destination branding and marketing; a plan for pursuing
sustainable (tourism) development; and stakeholder management, collab-
orations and involvement. The practical applicability and value of WH
listing are demonstrated by analyzing the bidding rational, process and
potential benefits of Mount Lofty Ranges (South Australia) that is cur-
rently pursuing WH listing.
The part concludes with a case study provided by Fabrice Thuriot,
which tracks how UNESCO world heritage status has impacted wine
tourism in one of the world’s most acclaimed wine destinations,
Champagne. This later case study provides hard evidence of the role of
WH listing on wine destination marketing and management.
This collection of studies and cases, from both hemispheres, while
useful in their own right, signal future directions in wine destination
marketing—both mature destinations looking to augment their products
with wine-related experiences—and emerging destinations journeying
from wine production to capturing tourists for wine experiences.
 CHAPTER 7

E-Storytelling and Wine Tourism Branding:

Insights from the “Wine Roads
of Northern Greece”

Christina Bonarou, Paris Tsartas

and Efthymia Sarantakou

Introduction: Stories for (and Beyond)

Wine, Tourism and Wine Tourism
Grapevine cultivation and winemaking have always been core elements
of identity for the wine-producing regions all around the world, deeply
rooted in the natural landscape as well as in the local history, culture and
way of living. For the tourism industry, wine constitutes an important

C. Bonarou (*)
Panteion University, Athens, Greece
e-mail: bonarou@gmail.com
P. Tsartas
Harokopio University of Athens, Kallithea, Greece
e-mail: ptsar@otenet.gr
E. Sarantakou
Hellenic Open University, Patras, Greece
e-mail: esarad@otenet.gr

© The Author(s) 2019 77

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_7
78 C. BONAROU ET AL.

factor of a destination’s attractiveness and can be considered as more

than just a product; it is a multisensory experience and at the same time
a powerful symbol of social status, associated with quality tourism and
travellers seeking authenticity and high levels of satisfaction (Charters,
2006; Charters & Pettigrew, 2005; Kivela & Crotts 2006; Tsartas &
Sarantakou, 2016).
As the result of cooperation between the wine and the tourism indus-
tries, wine tourism relies on visitation to wineries, though it does not
“really” exist unless interconnected with the overall “tourist terroir” or
“winescape” of the region (Bruwer & Sigala, 2016; Hall & Mitchell,
2002; Peters, 1997). Wine tourism, as an area of special interest tourism,
is supported by the natural and man-made environment, cultural heritage,
infra- and superstructure, facilities, activities and of course human interac-
tion, offering the visitors a complete experience through the acquaintance
with the place that gives each wine its unique characteristics (Carmichael,
2005; Getz & Brown, 2006; Kokkinis, Kargidis, & Toka, 2010).
For wine enterprises, building a brand and creating a point of diver-
sity through a unique and attractive story about their company, products,
events, activities and destination is essential, especially in an era where
the Internet and the emerging wave of Web 2.0 have expanded access
to information. However, despite the profound impact of the Internet
and online storytelling on promotion, branding and notions of identity,
relevant studies on wine industry websites are limited and to the authors’
knowledge, no previous study of this kind, that we are aware of, has
been conducted in the Greek wine tourism industry. Therefore, the aim
of this chapter is to contribute to the theoretical understanding of wine
tourism online discourse by recognizing the elements of storytelling on
contemporary wine industry websites in Greece and then by identifying
good practices to help wine companies design their narratives for optimal
effectiveness within the wine tourism framework.
Wine tourism has grown significantly since the mid-1990s in terms
of consumer behaviour, industry and destination development strat-
egy, along with the increase in academic interest (Alebaki, Iakovidou,
& Menexes, 2012; Carlsen, 2004; Coccosis, Tsartas, & Grimpa, 2011).
Especially during the past decade, it has become a key component of
both gastronomic and rural tourism, fostering synergies and sustainable
tourism development (Hall et al., 2000; Getz, Robinson, Andersson, &
Vujicic, 2014; UNWTO, 2016). As the phenomenon of wine tourism
is growing, its definitions become more and more complex, focusing on
various aspects of its complexity.
 7 E-STORYTELLING AND WINE TOURISM BRANDING … 79

According to Williams and Lew (2015, p. 249), the most widely cited
wine tourism definition perhaps belongs to Hall and Macionis (1998,
p. 197) who define it as “…visitation to vineyards, wineries, wine festivals
and wine shows for which grape wine tasting and/or experiencing the
attributes of the grape wine region are the prime motivating factors for
visitors”. In addition, Charters and Ali-Knight (2002, p. 312) underline
the fact that various wine tourism definitions encompass several character-
istics including “a lifestyle experience, supply and demand, an educational
component, linkages to art, wine and food, incorporation with the tour-
ism-destination image and as a marketing opportunity which enhances
the economic, social and cultural values of the region”. Therefore, a wine
tourism firm includes a vineyard and a winery and organizes, manages
and offers its visitors a wide variety of services and products, such as hos-
pitality, wine tasting, food, tours and information, cooking courses and
wine production or even special events and recreation facilities such as
picnic areas, meeting rooms as well as retail outlets for local goods, arts
and crafts (Presenza, Minguzzi, & Petrillo, 2010, p. 49).
For the wine industry, tourism is a unique opportunity for the win-
eries to build relations and educate their clients, increase direct selling
and improve their image and brand name, along with the brand identity
of the whole wine region (Getz, Dowling, Carlsen, & Anderson, 1999;
Olaru, 2012; Williams, 2001a). The prevalent organizational formula of
wine tourism is that of itineraries, routes or wine roads, which mainly
involve areas of quality wine production and are designed to give tourists
the opportunity to visit vineyards, wineries and interrelated businesses, as
well as other cultural and natural resources of the wine territory (Asero
& Patti, 2009, pp. 2, 4). Wine routes are thematically signposted, inter-
preted via leaflets and maps and have been widely developed in different
countries including Europe, Australia, as well as South Africa (Bruwer,
2003; Charters & Ali-Knight, 2002; Hall et al., 2000). Wine tour-
ism routes, as it happens with wine brands, depend on the recognition
of their region and are defined in the market by a commercial label that
conveys a unique geographical character, indication or appellation of ori-
gin, such as the Napa Valley (California), Rioja (Spain), Tuscany (Italy) or
Champagne (France) (Fuller, 1997; Kokkinis et al., 2010; Olaru, 2012).
According to Ruschel (2015), in Spain, 42,000 wineries received 2
million visitors in 2014, generating 50,000 jobs, while France wants to
reach 100 million tourists in 2020 and about 20 million of them will
be wine tourists. The National Association of American Wineries (2014)
80 C. BONAROU ET AL.

reports that wine tourism attracts nearly 30 million visits annually and
the Tourism Research Australia estimated that in 2014–2015 there were
15.8 million domestic and 44.2 million international visitor nights asso-
ciated with Australian wineries, with an overall of $9.2 billion wine-re-
lated visitor expenditure (Australian Grape and Wine Authority, 2015).
Compared to famous wine tourist regions, Greece, a country with a
long wine tradition and numerous vineyards and wineries, does not have
a similar flow of visitors to its wine regions, though it has the poten-
tial for developing wine tourism as a leisure activity (Kokkinis et al.,
2010; Sarantakou, 2010; Stavrinoudis, Tsartas, & Chatzidakis, 2011).
Wine tourism is still considered as a relatively new tourism sector and
thus there is a lack of official data. According to the National Inter-
Professional Organization of Vine and Wine of Greece (EDOAO, www.
newwinesofgreece.com), there are five wine regions: Northern Greece,
Central Greece, Peloponnese and Ionian Islands, Aegean Islands and
Crete, while in 2016, according to the Hellenic Ministry of Rural
Development and Food, there were approximately 1000 wineries; how-
ever according to unofficial surveys approximately 240–350 of them
are open to visitors, with less than 40 being certified by the Hellenic
Ministry of Tourism (Alebaki & Iakovidou, 2011; Theodoridou, 2015;
Tzavella & Korahai, 2016).
The wine sector, as with other tourism sectors, has much to gain from
increased exposure, information and promotion, and therefore, from the
use of websites and social media (Alonso, Bressana, Sheaa, & Krajsic,
2013; Sigala, 2014). As Alonso et al. (2013, p. 231) mention, “given
the thousands of existing winery websites, little doubt exists that this
technology is now widely adopted and considered among many winery
entrepreneurs, and regional wine associations (…) targeting the promo-
tion of wine and wine tourism, but also local and regional events that go
beyond the wine theme, including concerts, festivals, local art and crafts,
and other food sectors (e.g. olives)”.
Websites help wineries to market their products and attract potential
customers, domestically and internationally, in a more cost-effective way
compared to what they could access before the Internet era. One of the
basic marketing strategies adopted is to provide information about the
winery, its products, facilities, special events, etc. trying to create a dis-
tinctive brand image (Madhumita, 2013). But is it the mere provision
of information enough? Obviously, in a time where the web has become
to a large degree the most important medium for many of us to gain
 7 E-STORYTELLING AND WINE TOURISM BRANDING … 81

information about almost everything (Malita & Martin, 2010), the chal-
lenge for companies to develop the “right” online story for their brand
is greater than ever. And even more challenging is to connect this story
with regional attributes and go a step further by creating not just a brand
but an attractive and unique identity.

Theoretical Concept: Is Storytelling

the New Wine Branding?

Any discussion on whether storytelling can play an active role in wine

industry marketing and branding should start by asking the question
“what is a story?” followed by “what is a story within the wine tourism
framework?”. It is no exaggeration to say that from cave paintings to oral
myths and legends and from written narratives and recorded historical
events to digital multimedia, stories have always been an intrinsic part of
human societies and cultures, fascinating people and affecting the way we
interact with each other and understand ourselves and the world around
us. Ever since childhood we have been told stories and then as adults, we
continue to tell, read, watch and hear plenty of stories, many times a day,
from our families, friends, colleagues and of course through the media.
Pellowski (1990) underlines the various theories towards the origins
of storytelling based on different academic fields and disciplines, such
as anthropology, archaeology, folklore, literature, philology, linguis-
tics and semiology. A statement by the National Storytelling Network/
USA (www.storynet.org) refers to storytelling as an “ancient art form”
and valuable way of human expression, defining it as “the interactive art
of using words and actions to reveal the elements and images of a story
while encouraging the listener’s imagination”.
As Malita and Martin (2010, p. 3061) point out, as a means for
exchanging information and generating understanding, storytelling has
been used, throughout history, to share knowledge, wisdom and values,
while stories have taken many different forms and have been adapted to
each successive medium that has emerged. Therefore, in the digital era,
the influence of—the so-called in this chapter—“e-storytelling” on vari-
ous aspects of communication, and particularly content marketing strat-
egy, is considered of great significance. Ranging from the simple use of
words and pictures that correspond to a narrative to the complex use of
multimedia, digital storytelling is more than just using technology: “it is
82 C. BONAROU ET AL.

a medium of expression, communication, integration, and imagination”

(Malita & Martin, 2010, p. 3061).
Whether based on reality or imagination, storytelling as a tool, tech-
nique or even art addresses more the emotions of people and less their
mind (Bonarou, 2016). Briefly said, according to Mladkova (2013,
p. 84), a story is a complex system of symbols and as such, stories give
sense to things and events, representing norms, experiences and explana-
tions of reality; the basic values of people and groups are projected into
them and we use stories to create personal and group identities, change
social practices and share information and values. Sole and Gray Wilson
(1999, p. 6 in Mora & Livat, 2013, p. 4) define storytelling as “shar-
ing of knowledge and experiences through narrative and anecdotes in
order to communicate lessons, complex ideas, concepts, and causal con-
nections”. Akgün, Keskin, Ayar, & Erdoğan (2015) indicate that in the
marketing literature, researchers emphasize the storytelling approach as
the framing of information in an understandable, meaningful and mem-
orable way, and as an effective and influential technique to shape brands
and create an emotional investment both on a corporate level and on a
product level.
But not all contents tell a story. Early in the twentieth century, the
Soviet scholar Vladimir Propp, seeking to understand how stories work,
analysed Russian folk tales and prepared the groundwork for a model
applying to all human narratives across cultures, according to which sto-
ries are created by certain “building blocks” (Carter & Joseph, 2013).
Thus, at its simplest form, a “story” has a beginning, a middle, an end
(though not necessarily in that order), at least one basic character and
a central conflict, meaning that the main character must overcome an
“obstacle”. Respectively, according to Fog, Budtz, Munch, & Blanchette
(2010, pp. 31–46) every great story encompasses four basic elements:
(a) message, (b) plot, (c) conflict and (d) characters. Another use-
ful tip concerning the “basics” of storytelling comes from journalism,
where according to the principle of the “five Ws”, a story can be con-
sidered complete only if it answers the questions “Who, What, When,
Where and Why?”, while many times a sixth question is added: “How?”
(Hunter, 2011, p. 66). However, even in journalism, a rich narrative
involves characters with motivations, physical traits and personal stories.
As a business concept, storytelling has a noteworthy impact on how
companies can build strong corporate cultures and credible brands (Fog
et al., 2010). As Jiwa (2016) mentions “people don’t buy what you
 7 E-STORYTELLING AND WINE TOURISM BRANDING … 83

do, they buy how you make them feel and the story you give them to
tell” (…). “If you don’t have a story you are just another commodity”.
A brand story however is more than content and a narrative, written on
a website or a text in a brochure: “Your story isn’t just what you tell
people, it’s also what they believe about you based on the signals your
brand sends. The story is a complete picture made up of facts, feelings
and interpretations, which means that part of your story isn’t even told
by you” (Jiwa, 2016).
According to marketing professionals (von Guenthner, 2016), story-
telling has two categories: stories told by the enterprise itself (brand cen-
tric) and stories told by its customers (customer centric). Brand-centric
stories focus on visual branding, presenting the enterprise or the prod-
uct at its best moments and real-time situations, while the key product
messages emphasize on what the audience can look forward to (e.g.
events, packages, offers). On the other hand, customer-centric stories are
related to the in-the-moment experiences that customers evaluate and
share about the product, the services or the destination. For the con-
sumer to be immersed in the story and have an extraordinary experience,
as Mossberg (2008) discusses, two preconditions are proposed, which
relate to the type of service and the setting: “one is the need for the
experience to take place in a hedonic service consumption setting and
the other is a servicescape that allows the consumer to step away from
everyday reality”.
Although it is quite easy to identify a good story when we hear one,
there is a confusion when we try to define what a “good” story is, simply
because, especially when we speak of storytelling and branding, there is
no fixed formula (Fog et al., 2010, p. 32). However, a good story stimu-
lates word-of-mouth and facilitates and encourages people to pass along
the company’s message, proving that good storytelling “it’s not about
what you want to say. It’s about what you want your audience to remem-
ber and share” (Pappers & Schafer, n.d.). The process of composing a
story is a process of meaning-making, and therefore the challenge for
companies, such as wine estates, is to develop the “right” story for their
brand, strengthen their identity, create value and forge loyal and mean-
ingful bonds with their customers (Malita & Martin, 2010, p. 3061;
Mora & Livat, 2013, p. 4).
In the case of wine tourism, wine is a product like no other,
inextricably connected to the region, its “terroir”/soil, climate and
­
geomorphology and at the same time also inseparably linked with the
84 C. BONAROU ET AL.

local people, their history, their traditional cultivation methods, their

taste and culture. Therefore, storytelling about a wine firm cannot be
separated from the storytelling about the wine tourism destination.
Wineries are parts of the wine region, and a wine region cannot be suc-
cessful without the fame and success of its wineries. Williams (2001b)
suggests that after the 1990s there has been a shift in wine country
imagery from an emphasis on wine production processes and related
facilities to more of an emphasis on aesthetic and experiential values asso-
ciated with more leisurely recreational and tourist pursuits. This seems
to imply even more the strong bond between the wine firm storytelling
and the wine tourism-destination narrative. Each sip of wine not only fills
the mouth with flavour, but also fills the mind with images and the soul
with sentiments. Wine, when tasted at the winery and then bought as a
souvenir and afterwards tasted again after returning home, it can offer
the tourist a great opportunity to travel again back to the destination
through his senses.
In addition, wine storytelling is difficult to be detached from the peo-
ple who produce the wine. Herskovitz and Crystal (2010) highlight that
every story requires a clearly understood central character which people
can identify and with which they can create a long‐lasting emotional
bond. In the case of wine industry, this “strong brand persona” is the
winemaker; and a winemaker against the elements of the nature can be
considered, for example, as a strong motif that leads to high emotional
engagement with the audience. Following Moira, Mylonopoulos, and
Kontoudaki (2015, pp. 142–143), who discuss storytelling on food,
we can also argue that wine (-tourism) stories imply connection of the
winery and its products with specific narratives of mythology, history,
folklore, geography and cultural heritage. Stories connected to other
successful stories are without doubt an important key factor for alluring
tourism storytelling.

Wine Tourism in Northern Greece:

A Qualitative Web Content Analysis

Case Study, Research Questions and Methodological Choices

“Wine Roads of Northern Greece” (www.wineroads.gr) is the first and—
so far—best organized wine tourism network in Greece, outlined in
1997 by a not-for-profit non-stock corporation, which continues today
 7 E-STORYTELLING AND WINE TOURISM BRANDING … 85

as the “Wine Producers Association of the Northern Greece Vineyard”

and carries the trade name “Wines of North Greece” (www.winesof-
northgreece.gr). The joint wine tourism network counts more than
100 members, including 30 open-to-visitors wineries, as well as restau-
rants, traditional accommodation facilities and businesses offering out-
door activities and local products. Today, there are eight wine routes
that cross Northern Greece, namely the wine routes of Thessaloniki,
Halkidiki, Epirus, Naoussa, Pella-Goumenissa, as well as the wine routes
of the Olympian Gods, of the Lakes and of Dionysus, that receive in
total, more than 80,000 visitors per year (2015 data), with the majority
of them being domestic travellers (Alebaki & Iakovidou, 2011, p. 128;
Tzavella & Korahai, 2016).
The official website of the “Wine Roads of Northern Greece” (www.
wineroads.gr) offers among others a presentation of the wine routes pro-
posed to the visitors, along with short descriptions and hyperlinks leading to
the websites of the wineries-members of the Association, since almost all of
them have set up a website to promote their products, build a brand name,
come closer to their clients and—the ultimate goal—to increase visits and
assist sales. To identify the narratives told by the wine estates aiming to suc-
ceed regarding the above, this study adopts a website content analysis that
combines textual and semiotic approaches, and focuses on written work but
also on photographs and videos included in the websites, seeking to unpack
the deeper meanings and the good practices of e-storytelling.
More precisely, the 30 websites of the 26 wineries-members of the
“Wine Roads of Northern Greece”, plus the official site of the Wine
Roads, are studied through a qualitative content analysis, focusing on
narrative and visual representations and the main research questions dis-
cussed are the following:

– How do the wineries use language, images and multimedia to

elicit an effective brand and destination image narrative, creating a
unique identity?
– What concepts do wine enterprises use to attract tourists and what
themes continually recur in the wine tourism e-storytelling?
– To what extent do the wineries communicate their link with the ter-
ritory and promote their participation in organized wine roots? And
the most crucial:
– What is it exactly that makes a story really good, especially within
the wine tourism framework?
86 C. BONAROU ET AL.

Answers to these questions and detailed insights into the use of e-story-
telling could be very valuable to the wine tourism sector as well as to the
local authorities in their efforts to promote both their products and their
region, improve their identity building through their web presence and
raise both their company and destination image profile.
Regarding the analysis corpus, it should be mentioned that in three
different cases (Kyr Yannis, Tsantalis and Boutaris Wineries), the
entrepreneur owns more than one winery, but the website is common
for all. Moreover, in one case the server has not been found, mean-
ing that the website is not online anymore (Babatzimopoulos Winery).
Thus, from the 30 wineries presented on the main website of the Wine
Roads of Northern Greece, available for analysis were 24 (plus one,
the official site of the Wine Roads of Northern Greece, as already
stated). These 25 websites were retrieved between August 2016 and
January 2017.
Concerning the methodology adopted, textual analysis, usually con-
ducted on a relatively small sample of material, provides wordier results
and generally uses verbatim quotations of the relevant material, with its
strength lying in the detailed and in-depth analysis of specific cases. As
Hannam and Knox (2005, pp. 24–25) mention, “doing textual analysis
usually means going slowly and thoroughly through the material a line
or sentence at a time and attempting to think about what was meant and
why” and “the idea is to organize the material so that interesting rela-
tionships or themes can be seen”. As for the semiotic approach, allowing
a considerable analytical freedom and creativity in terms of research, it
also encourages greater depth of analysis beyond the obvious or the lit-
eral to reveal the indirect and often unintentional levels of meaning in
any kind of “text”, whether words narrative, images or video (Echtner,
1999; Hannam & Knox, 2005).

Results and Discussion

As the results reveal, “corporate self-flattery” coexists with storytell-
ing in most of the websites of the wineries-members of the “Wine
Roads of Northern Greece”, in the sense that most wine compa-
nies use to praise their own wine quality, achievements or even brag
about their sales growth. At the same time, the texts, images and vid-
eos provided are structured mainly around the following themes and
concepts:
 7 E-STORYTELLING AND WINE TOURISM BRANDING … 87

– family tradition and authenticity, often reinforced by references to

local history and myths,
– sustainability and respect for the nature and the rural landscape and
– modernity, technological advance and product quality.

Web content analysis shows that regional wine/agricultural identity in

Northern Greece is based mainly on the pursuit of quality. In this con-
text, the subthemes and buzzwords that continually recur are related to
winemaking techniques, appellation, grape varieties, wine ageing, organic
certification, partners and customers. Frequent themes are also associated
with the area where the wine estate is located, giving emphasis to the
geography and geology.
However, listing information such as when the winery was founded,
how well equipped the cellars are and underlining the studies and the
expertise of the winemakers, how passionate they are about their craft,
what awards and distinctions they have received for their products or
even describing how breathtaking the landscape is, although being
important parts of the web content, in total, should not in any case be
considered as storytelling. Moreover, the emotive language quite often
used to describe the wine characteristics, although contributing decisively
in creating “smellscapes” and “tastescapes”, does not set any unique
story on its own.
The analysis also suggests that most of the wine company owners are
usually positioned as the individual identity of the brand and their per-
sonal stories, qualities and life philosophy are superimposed on the wine
itself (see also Sexton, 2013). It is not by chance that two out of three
wineries are named after their owner, while many family photos—usually
old ones, in nostalgic black and white—enrich the imagery of the web-
sites in various cases. Wars, refuge from poverty and persecutions, eco-
nomic difficulties and an area’s underdevelopment are the main obstacles
that the winemakers must surpass, most of the time, to succeed in their
goal. However, following Propp’s analysis (Carter & Joseph, 2013), it
should be highlighted that these obstacles, although mentioned on the
websites, rarely become part of a complete story; they remain just hints,
unable to construct a meaningful narrative.
Characteristic examples of personal winemakers’ stories, interweaved
with the history and the values of the winery, are the following—some of
them resembling a noir novel or a movie script and others in first person
narrative, recalling a personal confession (Table 7.1).
88 C. BONAROU ET AL.

Table 7.1 Examples of e-storytelling in Greek wine industry’s websites

“It was in 1969 when Evangelos Tsantalis, (Tsantali Metohi, Agion Oros,
during a casual day of hunting on Mount www.tsantali.com)
Athos, was caught in a sudden down-
pour, which caused him to seek refuge in
the nearby Russian Monastery of Saint
Panteleimon. When the storm ceased,
Evangelos Tsantalis -in return for the
Monks’ warm hospitality- gladly accepted
the offer for a tour at the surrounding
area of the Monastery. While walking, the
site of vines caught his eye; old deserted
vines, yet at a stunning location -called
Metoxi (me-toh-hee) Chromitsa- with ideal
exposure. That was the moment when the
idea of the rejuvenation of Mount Athos
vineyard was born, an idea that became
a lifetime’s work for Evangelos and the
Tsantali family”. (…)
“In 1963 a cruise to Mt Athos begins, for (Domaine Porto Carras,
the celebration of the 1000 years since the www.portocarraswines.gr/en)
creation of the monastic community of
Athos. Aboard known Athenians and among
them the ship owner Giannis Carras. They
cruise off the shore of Sithonia, entered the
Toroneos Gulf and… the fairytale begins.
Giannis Carras falls in love with the virgin
site”. (…)
“When I was little, I remember watching (Kir-Yianni S.A.-Amyndeon Winery,
my uncle, Costakis Nitsiotas, working on kiryianni.gr)
the wines and an image forms in my mind
of him tasting vintages ageing in different
vaenis, as we used to call the big oak casks”.
(…)
“My father descends from the mountainous (Claudia Papayianni Estate,
part of Arnea. I have always been enchanted www.cp-domaine.gr)
by this place – by its nature, traditions,
architecture and life. In 2003, when I first
started setting up the vineyards and Winery,
there was only one thought on my mind: “I
am going back to my roots”. (…)
 7 E-STORYTELLING AND WINE TOURISM BRANDING … 89

The first story cited above (Tsantali Metohi, Agion Oros, www.tsan-
tali.com) is probably the most typical example of winery’s e-storytelling
where we identify the basic plot components of the Proppian analysis:
there is a story with a beginning (in 1969), a main character (Evangelos
Tsantalis) and obstacles that are to be surpassed (sudden downpour and,
then, old deserted wines). The middle of the story lies in all the efforts
for the rejuvenation of Mount Athos vineyard, and the end of the story is
the contemporary successful outcome.
As the analysis also confirms, the stories of the people and the sto-
ries of the wines tend to merge (Sexton, 2013); taking into consid-
eration that “meeting the wine maker” appears to be one of the main
motivations for the wine lovers in Northern Greece—and not only—to
visit the winery (Alebaki & Iakovidou, 2010), that makes this merging
quite imperative and when the story is interesting, the result can be very
successful. It is worthwhile to mention that according to Alebaki et al.
(2012) winemakers in Northern Greece are more sensitive to building
customer relationships than to purely economic incentives and that in
addition, they are not exclusively focused on the progress of their own
business but they turn their attention to regional development as well as
to raising the profile of the wineries at a national level.
However, these findings come in opposition to the remark that, at
least on the web, wineries do not seem to take advantage of the power
of identity of the “Wines Roads of Northern Greece”. There are wineries
not promoting that they are members of the Association and from those
mentioning it, the majority lack information and stories even about the
wine routes they are part of. On the other hand, it is noted that not even
the official website of the Wine Roads offers stories for all of its wine
routes. An interesting story about the “The Wine Route of Dionysus”
follows, that could have been used also by the individual wineries’ web-
sites and not only by the official portal of the “Wine Roads of Northern
Greece”: “In ancient times, Mount Pangeon, famous for its gold and sil-
ver mines, was the centre of Dionysian worship. According to the leg-
end, this is where god Dionysus was raised and got the horses of King
Lycourgos drunk with local wine” (www.wineroads.gr).
Searching thoroughly the content of each winery’s website, many
interesting stories or hints were found, that could have been promoted
in a better way or even used by the main Wine Roads portal, to allure the
web user to visit the wineries’ website and then, of course, visit the actual
place to feel the essence of this special story. The following questions
90 C. BONAROU ET AL.

prove that behind each answer, there is a unique story that can be found
in each website (as mentioned inside the parentheses); a genuine, charm-
ing, exciting story connected either to myth, history, brand etymology,
famous personalities or even bizarre details (Table 7.2).
If tourism is one means by which modern man experiences life
(Moeran, 1983), then wine tourism can become the means by which
visitors experience quality life and, in particular, nature. The photos and
videos presented on the websites support and sometimes go beyond the
text, increasing the effectiveness of communication by using themes
and colours evocative of the places, products and experiences offered
(cf. Fait, Cavallo, Scorrano, & Iaia, 2015).
Most images range across a wide spectrum of eye-catching layout,
including typical Northern Greece’s vineyards and landscapes, wineries
in both traditional and more modern style and—as already mentioned—
the winemakers and their families. But wine tourists are generally absent.
The concept of Urry’s (2002) “romantic tourist gaze” could explain
this “loud absence” from the shiny illustrations, since the empty natural
spaces seem to be a more alluring call for the future visitors, who are
invited to experience the thrill of being in the place when wine tourism
happens. In any case, testimonials and stories from satisfied tourists could
have been included, adding to the authenticity of the experience.

Table 7.2 Unique stories in Greek wineries’ websites

Which wine did Odysseus use to get the (Maronia Thrace, www.tsantali.com)
Cyclops Polyphemus drunk?
What was the wine choice of King Philip of (Chatzivaritis Estate, chatzivaritis.gr)
Macedonia, father of Alexander the Great?
In which area of Epirus, did the Lord (Domaine Glinavos, www.glinavos.gr)
Byron stayed and found the inspiration to
write his famous poem “Childe Harold’s
Pilgrimage”?
What does “Biblia Chora” mean and how (Estate Biblia Chora, www.bibliachora.gr)
it relates to the ancient civilization of the
Phoenicians, who reached the area of
Pangeon in search of metals?
Who is the wine producer who belongs among (Domaine Gerovassiliou,
the greatest collectors of corkscrews in the www.gerovassiliou.gr)
world, with a collection of more than 2600
pieces in the wine museum of his Domaine?
 7 E-STORYTELLING AND WINE TOURISM BRANDING … 91

Natural environment in wine regions is something to be spiritually

experienced and visual emphasis is given on the themes of discovery,
authenticity and appreciation of nature itself. Images of wine harvest sea-
son prevail, however pictures of winter weather with the vineyards covered
with snow can also be found, creating a specific atmosphere and a different
scenery that tourists might identify with. In general, the wine industry uses
flattering text, bright or warm tones and earth colours (green, red/bor-
deaux, brown and purple dominate), as well as good quality pictures
(although there have been cases with poor quality photos/videos) to over-
compensate for the difficulties and problems facing rural areas. Therefore,
the visual semiotic analysis suggests that the wine represents the “myth of a
good life” and wine tourism symbolizes a high degree of freedom through
the escape from the everyday urban way of living (cf. Uzzell, 1984).

Conclusion: The Wine Road Ahead

In many countries, including Greece, wine is considered as an expres-
sion of a region’s unique identity and as a reservoir of traditions rooted
in antiquity, identifying the local community and its culture. Nowadays,
wine enterprises’ and wine roads’ websites are an integral part of the
wine tourism industry. The emphasis in this chapter has been on how
these websites of Northern Greece communicate their messages via the
use of storytelling. A qualitative content analysis of the sites of all win-
eries participating in the “Wine Roads of Northern Greece”, plus their
official portal, focused on narrative and visual representations, revealing
that this communication is based on terroir and family tradition, combin-
ing nostalgia with modernity, always aiming for product quality.
When it starts at the website and continues at the winery, storytelling
can become the key to a unique wine tourism experience. Although the
identification of a winery’s target market is crucial for strategic planning
in wine tourism (Nella, 2012), genuine and interesting stories can attract
tourists/clients no matter their cluster, group or motivation. It doesn’t
matter if one is a wine expert or an amateur in wine tourism, or even not
interested in wine tourism at all; a good story always catches attention.
Acknowledging that the purpose of storytelling is to arouse emo-
tions and communicate the core values of the wine enterprise and the
destination in a fascinating and memorable way, it has been clarified that
the incorporation of technical elements, winemaking details, etc. even
when using emotional language, is merely corporate communications;
92 C. BONAROU ET AL.

information presented in a self-flattering way, as identified in the majority

of the Greek websites that were studied, cannot be considered as story-
telling (see also Carter & Joseph, 2013).
Storytelling happens when there is a beginning, a middle, an end, at
least one basic character and a central “conflict” or obstacles that need to
be overcome by the winemaker—hero. Such complete stories were not
identified within the wine tourism e-storytelling context; on the majority
of the website narratives, there were only hints of interested (personal) sto-
ries that unfortunately have stayed untold. In other cases, there have been
identified hints that attempt to connect the specific wine’s or winery’s
story with other charming and exciting stories, myth or legends, famous
personalities or even peculiar events and details that trigger curiosity and
imagination. Unfortunately, wineries seem to forget that many times a suc-
cessful story can be built on the success of another story that pre-exists.
And especially in Greece, wine tourism regions seem to have many inter-
esting stories to tell. This is a fact that wineries should take seriously into
consideration when they are about to narrate their own story.
Wine companies grow in response to their region’s identity and
for the wine estates to sell their products, good stories are essential.
Good stories do exist and occur to those who can tell them. And for
these good stories to be told, some basic questions, such as the follow-
ing, need to be answered by wine owners and wine marketers (see also
McCue & Charles, 2013) (Table 7.3).
As the study reveals, emphasis is given on the nostalgic, romantic
tourist gaze, however as Dann and Jacobsen (2003) discuss, this over-
emphasis tends to disregard the fact that the unique character of a place
can additionally be imparted by its aromas, making it therefore neces-
sary for the web content writers to communicate effectively the scents

Table 7.3 Good stories are based on good answers

Why do you exist?
What’s your special story?
What stories exist behind your brand, labels, logos and wine varieties?
What values/attributes distinguish you from competitors and what values/attributes do
you have in common?
What makes your wine region unique? What are the stories of your region?
What makes your wine route (not just winery) worth visiting?
What do you offer, besides great wine?
What do the tourists say about you? What are the stories or your visitors?
 7 E-STORYTELLING AND WINE TOURISM BRANDING … 93

of the destination and manage to capture the fragrant atmosphere of the

wineries.
The Greek wine tourism market full of aromas, tastes and images has
a huge potential but is still not fully exploited. Findings regarding its
marketing and branding need to be dealt with caution, and the general-
ization of conclusions should of course be avoided. Accordingly, future
research should expand to include the websites of wine roads in other
regions of Greece, as well as to consider the perceptions of both win-
emakers and wine tourists regarding successful storytelling. Another
important research aspect is for light to be shed on stories narrated
through social media, evaluate these stories, and study also the impact of
storytelling on word-of-mouth and visit intention.
Through the years, the wine tourism experience becomes more and
more positioned around a core attraction of quality wine, accompanied
by a set of culinary, educational, event hosting and cultural dimensions
(Williams, 2001b). Though, putting the best wine in the bottle alone is
not enough for a wine brand to be successful (Golicic & Flint, 2013),
for a winery to attract visitors and for a wine region to rise as a famous
wine tourism destination. In this context, wine companies and associa-
tions of wine roads should focus on how messages and stories are pre-
sented through the web to generate a specific narrative and overall visual
effect that attract to tourists. As underlined in Carter and Joseph (2013),
almost all the great successes in wine have great stories attached to them,
stories that have become part of the winery’s identity. Powerful stories
use details, are personal and have characters with strong emotions and
triggering actions that can engage the audience. Wine producers ought
to learn, understand and develop their stories, reveal their “hidden
secrets” and share them in a creative and fresh way. And although various
approaches to storytelling can work, we should not forget that the final
experience always depends on the winery’s facilities, the products quality
and the overall experience of the region.

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 CHAPTER 8

Building a Wine Tourism Destination

Through Coopetition: The Business Model
of Ultimate Winery Experiences Australia

Marianna Sigala

Introduction
Demand for wine tourism continually increases and diversifies, but at the
same time, wine tourists also become more sophisticated, demanding and
with specific and varied needs and characteristics. With the entry of new
players at a winery and wine destination level, competition in wine tour-
ism also becomes fiercer and intensifies at a global scale. Competing in
wine tourism should not be harder but smarter by adopting new models,
approaches and practices for achieving enhanced performance and com-
petitive advantage. Coopetition has emerged and is increasingly being
adopted as a new form of competition allowing competing firms to coop-
erate for generating competitive value at an individual and collective level.
Tourism represents a propitious field for nurturing coopetition spe-
cifically because of the high degree of density of suppliers having com-
plementariness and inter-dependencies amongst each other. Although

M. Sigala (*)
University of South Australia, Adelaide, SA, Australia
e-mail: marianna.sigala@unisa.edu.au

© The Author(s) 2019 99

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_8
100 M. SIGALA

coopetition has been studied in the tourism field (e.g. Czernek

& Czakon, 2016; Della Corte & Aria, 2016; Wang & Krakover,
2008), research has not examined yet its potential in developing wine
destinations.
This chapter aims to fill in this gap by investigating the applicability
and the benefits of coopetition for managing and marketing wine des-
tinations. The chapter provides theoretical underpinning and practi-
cal relevance to coopetition by analysing the case of the Ultimate Wine
Experiences Australia (UWEA). To achieve that, a wide literature is first
reviewed for providing an understanding about the concept of coope-
tition and the critical success factors contributing to its effective imple-
mentation and materialization of benefits. Then, the applicability of
coopetition is shown by discussing the case of UWEA. The UWEA
represents coopetitive ecosystem of competing wineries that undertake
various value co-creation practices for achieving a shared goal (i.e. pro-
moting Australia as a leading wine destination) and individual benefits.
The case study explains the drivers, the governance mechanics and the
value co-creation practices of the UWAE.

Coopetition as a Form of a Competitive Strategy

The Concept and Its Applicability in Tourism

Coopetition is a combined word referring to the practice of competi-
tors cooperating together. However, research and industry adoption of
the concept has advanced it from a simple definition combining coop-
eration and competition simultaneously to a more comprehensive and
robust competitive strategy (Della Corte & Sciarelli, 2012). For exam-
ple, Eriksson (2008) defines coopetition as a new approach for ­building
a competitive strategy by building inter-organizational relationships that
transit through a continuum of coopetition with two extremes: coop-
eration and competition. Chim-Miki & Batista-Canino (2017) defined
coopetition as a hybrid behaviour resulting from the cooperation–
competition that occurs between networks, organizations, or within
organizations, (including relationships between competitors, suppliers,
complementary businesses, government agencies, local population and
customers) as a result of joint actions to achieve a common goal despite
individual interests, thus generating co-production.
 8 BUILDING A WINE TOURISM DESTINATION THROUGH COOPETITION … 101

In this vein, coopetition requires the formation of value networks

amongst competing companies, complementary firms, suppliers and/or
customers, which compete on benefits despite cooperating for a common
goal (Brandenburger & Nalebuff, 1996). Thus, in coopetition, organi-
zations work together to create a higher value (Schoo, 2009) or a mar-
ket (Schiavone & Simoni, 2011), while, at the same time, competing for
all types of benefit generated. In other words, competing organizations
coopete in order to first increase the size of the pie (market), and then
compete amongst each other in terms of who is going to get the bigger
slice. Coopetition represents a broad view on competition because, it is
not only for profit but for any type of benefit: value co-creation amongst
coopeting organizations is at the core of this hybrid competitive strat-
egy for achieving competitive advantage (Della Corte & Aria, 2016), as
it is difficult to imitate and emulate idiosyncratic value co-creation mech-
anisms, inter-reactions and synergies developed within value ecosystems.
In this vein, coopetition elevates the level of competition from a single
firm to a network of firms.
Overall, the conceptualizations of coopetition recognize it as a new
form of industry practice and competitive strategy that: combines two
traditionally contradictory and mutually incompatible concepts (cooper-
ation and competition); can occur at different organizational and inter-
organizational levels; with the aim to co-create value by an supporting an
ecosystem platform that allows and fosters coopeting actors to exchange
and integrate resources. Thus, coopetition is a complex and multidi-
mensional concept that has been studied through various perceptive and
theoretical lenses including: competitive strategies; networks; strategic
alliances; and co-creation.
Coopetition has been practised and studied in various industries
(Bengtsson & Kock, 2014) including tourism (e.g. Czernek & Czakon,
2016; Wang & Krakover, 2008). In fact, the internal and external com-
petitive forces (Porter, 1979) of the tourism destination context make the
latter very favourable to the development of coopetition. The following
tourism industry-specific factors tend to induce the formation of coopetit-
ing network arrangements within destinations arrangements (Czernek &
Czakon, 2016; Della Corte & Aria, 2016): intense internal competition;
high degree of complementarity, interdependence but also atomization of
tourism supply; and a high, global, fierce, intense and continuous increas-
ing external competition from other destinations (i.e. easy entry of many
common ‘threats’/competitors, Porter, 1979). To address the ‘common’
102 M. SIGALA

threats, tourism destinations operate like a hub/platform for building coo-

petition ecosystems whereby tourism organizations balance competition
and collaboration forces for co-creating value for themselves and for the
whole destination ecosystem. Coopetition in tourism destinations is found
to lead to (Czernek & Czakon, 2016; van der Zee & Vanneste, 2015):
improvements in collaborative behaviour; sectorial development; mini-
mization of the natural tension of competition; enhancement of tourism
destination competitiveness by boosting innovation; value co-creation and
knowledge sharing.

Critical Success Factors Driving the Formation

and Performance of Coopetition

Various concepts and perspectives have been used for providing a the-
oretical underpinning to coopetition and for understanding the factors
that can lead to its successful implementation including: competitive
strategy, strategic alliances and cluster theory (Porter, 1979), and indus-
trial districts and networks (Lazzarini, 2007). Despite the diverse per-
spectives of these theoretical lenses, all of them converge and agree in
the following factors leading to the formation and influencing the per-
formance of coopetition models.
Coopetition networks are formed when there are agreement and under-
standing of a common purpose and coopeting partners agree and align their
practices towards the achievement of shared goals and collective benefits
(Czakon, Mucha-Kus̈, & Sołtysik, 2016; Czernek, Czakon, & Marszałek,
2017). Coopetition is also boosted when there is a common external threat,
and there is a high degree of interdependence amongst coopetitors; in such
cases, coopetition enables coopeting partners to collaboratively and more
effectively exploit a market opportunity (i.e. appealing, satisfying and/or tar-
geting a market segment) and/or address a competitive threat (Bengtsson,
Raza-Ullah, & Vanyushyn, 2016). Density of firms can also consolidate coo-
petition strategies (Della Corte & Aria, 2016) and so, many studies have
examined the influence of the following factors on coopetition behaviour
(Della Corte & Sciarelli, 2012): co-location factors, district size, spatial con-
centration level, organizational consolidation level, representation level of
small and medium enterprises, level of heterogeneity in the supply, degree of
shared values and interdependence.
Overall, although many of these factors relate to co-location, research
shows that solely sharing the same geographical space is not the only key
 8 BUILDING A WINE TOURISM DESTINATION THROUGH COOPETITION … 103

to creating a coopetition atmosphere. Instead, shared values, collective

benefits through collaborative behaviour and complementarity level are
equally important conditions for fostering inter-organizational coope-
tition relations. To that end, the development of win–win relations for
pursuing collective advantages is also considered as a key success factor
of coopetition (Schoo, 2009), and so, value co-creation strategies (such
as, shared and co-production) need to be pursued as they can lead to
positive results for the coopeting ecosystem (Luo, 2005). The strategic
management literature viewing coopetition as a type of joint strategic
management towards competitive advantage also stresses the need to
develop common strategies such as: planning and management (Chin,
Chan, & Lam, 2008; Dahl, Kock, & Lundgren-Henriksson, 2016);
training and monitoring (Della Corte & Sciarelli, 2012); co-marketing
(Wang & Krakover, 2008) and innovation (Schiavone & Simoni, 2011).
As value co-creation is a major driver for forming as well as joining
coopeting networks, the performance of coopeting strategies also needs
to be monitored, measured and communicated to participating members
both in terms of individual benefits and the achievement of shared goals.
The latter is also important because, coopetition does not mean a perfect
balance between competition and cooperation and the appropriation of
advantages is not and cannot always be equal for all partners.
Coopetition aims to create an effective and value generating symbi-
osis of two forces, namely cooperation and competition. To that end,
research investigating issues in both ends provide useful guidelines on
how to generate value by building effective synergies.
Coopetition needs to manage the tension amongst partners. To that
end, research suggests: the development of a governance system in order
to develop a collective efficiency view (Czakon & Czernek, 2016); the
management of the network as a collective entrepreneurship (Tuohino
& Konu, 2014); the assignment of an external actor for managing the
inter-organizational networks (Bengtsson and Kock, 2014). Hence, a
variety of forms ranging from associations to entrepreneurial ventures
are suggested as an important success factor for managing the coopet-
ing network and ensuring the materialization of collective benefits.
Irrespective of the approach, it becomes evident that the literature highly
recommends the existence of a governance mechanism (ideally over-
looked by a third party) in order to develop, manage and monitor the
implementation of co-creation conditions and practices of the coopeti-
tion network.
104 M. SIGALA

On the other hand, literature investigating the success factors of coop-

eration models (e.g. inter-organizational relations, strategic alliances,
networks) highlight the importance of the following issues on coope-
tition success (Cheng, Li, & Love, 2000; Mohr & Spekman, 1994):
partners’ characteristics and attributes; communication strategies; and
conflict resolution techniques; cooperation amongst companies and
between the public and the private sector.

Ultimate Winery Experiences Australia:

A Coopetition Model for Developing
and Promoting Australia as a Wine Destination

Launched in 2013, Ultimate Winery Experiences Australia (UWEA)

(https://www.ultimatewineryexperiences.com.au/) is a consortium of
premium, award-winning wineries located in spectacular locations and
offering unique wine experiences enabling people to get to know and
interact with the products, their makers and their places. As a group,
the members of the UWEA aim to raise Australia’s profile as one of the
world’s leading wine tourism destinations by being committed to tour-
ism and working collaboratively to showcase the best and most unique
winery experiences available in the country. UWEA aims to make an
impact with a collective voice. Hence, the UWEA is a good example
of coopetition model developed at a country wine destination level for
achieved a commonly identified and agreed goal.
The UWEA currently includes 23 members in 12 renown wine
regions spreading across all the five states of Australia. Members include
worldwide famous wineries such as: Mandoon Estate in the Swan Valley;
De Bortoli in Yarra Valley; Jacob’s Creek, St Hugo and Seppeltsfield in
the Barossa Valley; The Lane and Penfolds Magill Estate in the Adelaide
Hills; and d’Arenberg in McLaren Vale.
The following sections use the previously discussed theoretical frame-
work of coopetition for analysing the coopetition model of UWEA and
discussing its role in generating collective value by contributing to the
development and the marketing of Australia as a leading wine desti-
nation. To that end, the section discusses: the factors that have driven
to the formation of the coopetition model and the shared goals unit-
ing and persuading the members to work collaboratively; the govern-
ance model and mechanism for balancing cooperation and competition
 8 BUILDING A WINE TOURISM DESTINATION THROUGH COOPETITION … 105

amongst the coopeting partners; and the value co-creation practices of

the network for developing and marketing the wine tourism offering of
Australia.

The Formation of UWEA:

Drivers and Shared Goals
In 2013, Tourism Australia (the governance body of tourism at a coun-
try level in Australia) commissioned a research study investigating the
behaviour of 15 Australia’s key tourism markets. The findings showed
that ‘food and wine’ followed by ‘world class beauty’ were named as
the major factors in holiday decision-making. However, the study also
revealed an interesting perceptual gap in the quality of Australia’s food
and wine between those who have visited Australia and those who have
not: from those who have not been to Australia only 26% associated it
with ‘good food and wine’, while this figure rose dramatically to 60%
amongst those who have visited the country. Thus, although research
showed that the global demand for food and wine as part of the travel
experience, it seemed that Australia was lacking the capacity to tap into
this market potential. To address that, in 2013 and 2014, Tourism
Australia announced two campaigns, respectively, (‘There’s nothing like
Australia’ and ‘Restaurant Australia’) to place the spotlight on Australia’s
finest array of produce served in the most stunning locations in the
world.
The launch of UWEA in 2014 coincided with these campaigns of
Tourism Australia in order to further support and enhance these efforts
to unlock the potential of food and wine tourism for Australia. The
UWEA represents a button-up coopeting effort that has been endorsed
by Tourism Australia and State Tourism Organizations and initiated
by wineries in Australia with the purpose to underpin the key mes-
sages of the Restaurant Australia campaign and optimize the opportu-
nity it presents to the Australian wine industry. The coopetition model
was based on building cooperation models within and across industries
as well as between private organizations and governmental bodies. This
was required for numerous reasons: the multidimensional nature of the
wine tourism product and so, the complementarities that need to be
built amongst companies crossing various sectors in order to provide
and develop the wine tourism offering (e.g. tourism providers and wine
106 M. SIGALA

companies the complexity of the wine tourism industry and); the com-
plexity of the wine tourism industry and the synergies that need to be
built for achieving destination competitiveness. Wine Australia (the body
representing the wine industry in Australia) has worked and focuses on
elevating the capabilities and the positioning of Australia’s wine in the
world map, but this alone is not enough for competing in the world wine
tourism map. Capabilities, resources and knowledge from the tourism
sector also need to be synergized and complemented with the existing
resources of the coopeting network of wineries that launched the UWEA
in order to enable the winemakers to attract the tourists and show them
not only their products but also the wine destination and experiences
beyond their cellar door.
Hence, the key message and shared goal of UWEA is to form part-
nerships within and beyond their winery ecosystem in order to position
Australia as a leading wine destination by highlighting and showcasing
the products, the place and the people responsible for exceptional food
and wine experiences across the country. UWEA was designed to grow
visitation and attract high-value tourists who are willing to travel to
Australia to follow their food and wine passion.
Overall, according to coopetition theory, the formation of the UWEA
coopetition network was driven and is supported by:

– the fact that the shared goal enabled members to address a real mar-
ket need and untap a market potential (i.e. an internal weakness to
be converted to an external/market opportunity)
– the alignment of the shared goal with the goals of other partner-
ing organizations (i.e. Tourism Australia, Tourism Boards, tourism
organizations)
– the complementary nature of partnering organizations located in a
destination (i.e. accommodation, wineries, tour operators, tourism
government bodies) that need to synergise competencies, resources
and knowledge for achieving collective and shared goals.

Shared goals that need to be achieved collaboratively due to their com-

plexity are usually both the driver and the glue bringing together
competitors to work together. In fact, UWEA is only one example
of coopetition developed in partnership with Tourism Australia; the
UWEA represents one of the Signature Experiences of Australia, which
are coopetition examples aiming to bring together various (tourism)
 8 BUILDING A WINE TOURISM DESTINATION THROUGH COOPETITION … 107

organizations for packaging and promoting Australia’s outstanding

tourism experiences within a variety of niche areas and special interest
categories. Other examples include: Luxury Lodges of Australia, Great
Golf Courses of Australia, Great Walks of Australia, Indigenous Tourism
Champions, Great Fishing Adventure of Australia and Australian Wildlife
Collection. In each case, Tourism Australia has partnered with select
industry collectives that have a compelling marketing proposition and
share a common goal and vision.

Governance Model and Mechanisms

The UWEA is managed and co-ordinated by a third-party organization
that operates like a marketing representation company and/or an inter-
mediary commissioned to build partnerships and synergies between the
coopeting network and the potential partners (e.g. the travel trade, tour-
ism organizations, tourism suppliers etc.). The UWEA is managed by a
board of directors which is comprised of highly experienced individuals
who share the passion for Australia’s food and wine offering.
The activities and operations of the UWEA are funded by the fees and
other contributions paid by its members. The members of the UWEA
represent a hand-selected collection of premium wineries that have
become part of the network based on the unique personality and top-
class features of their wines, their makers and the memorable wine expe-
riences that go beyond their cellar doors. Membership is by invitation
only and subjects to fulfilment of specific selection criteria. Members
range from big, small, new and old wineries, and they represent the
diversity of experience and quality of products that can be uncovered in
Australia’s wine regions. Setting and maintaining the membership criteria
are important for building and maintaining the UWEA brand, position-
ing the network to the global market as well as communicating its values
and offerings.
Criteria that UWEA members need to satisfy and maintain include:

– High standard and recognized wine quality

– Ability to deliver an outstanding authentic wine experience beyond
the standard cellar door tastings. Wine tourism experience may
include private tastings with key personnel, vertical or barrel tast-
ings, food and wine matching, vineyard and winery tours, and
gastronomy.
108 M. SIGALA

– Location in spectacular landscapes exhibiting the natural and aes-

thetic beauties of Australia
– Infrastructure (i.e. site architecture, design and facilities adding
value to the wine experience, e.g. art installations and retail venues)
with a unique relationship with the land and region, demonstrating
a clear sense of place
– Readiness to engage the travel trade and understand—respond to
market needs
– Qualification demonstrated by commitment to staff training and
qualifications
– Provision to access to a range of packaged accommodation experi-
ences through established regional alliances
– Membership or working relationship with a state or regional tourism
body
– Willingness to engage and offer tourism experiences by collaborat-
ing with other local tourism providers in the region
– Willingness to deliver seasonal events throughout the year, such as
music festivals and art exhibitions
– A concern and clear actions on sustainable practices
– Achieved recognition through state, national or industry wine and
tourism awards
– A willingness to promote pre-bookable wine tourism experiences
that are priced to allow for commission payments to trade distribu-
tion partners.

In addition, wineries of the UWEA network are expected to understand

and fulfil the following responsibilities and duties:

– understanding of the collective vision and mission of UWEA

– payment of the annual membership fees
– share of information to measure and report trends in cellar door
visitation
– access to marketing materials that can be used by UWEA
– hosting and provision of in-kind support to media and trade
familiarizations
– provision of minimum two cases of wine per annum, to be used for
promotional purposes by UWEA
– engagement with travel trade distribution partners
– compliance with network practices recommended in pricing struc-
ture and booking processes.
 8 BUILDING A WINE TOURISM DESTINATION THROUGH COOPETITION … 109

Overall, the members are expected to respect and follow the shared
goals, as well as share and commit resources for actively participating in
the collaborative value co-creation practices of the network.

Value Co-creation Practices

UWEA was forced with the aim to enable its members to enhance their
capabilities and broad their reach into the tourism market in order to
untap the potential of the food/wine tourism market.
UWEA is usually described as operating like an extension of the mar-
keting department of the wineries. Indeed, tourism marketing is a major
focus of UWEA aiming to promote Australia and its members as a lead-
ing tourism destination. Co-marketing practices of UWEA include: social
marketing, media communications, sponsorship and promotional oppor-
tunities; content creation and print collateral—trade brochures, Chinese
translations, point of sale material. UWEA operates its own website and
social media channels, as well as builds marketing partnerships with the
travel trade and tourism industry.
However, the value co-creation practices of UWEA expand beyond
the marketing functions, and they are developed along the whole tour-
ism value chain and system. UWEA provides support to its members in
terms of: advice on developing and delivering outstanding wine experi-
ences, wine trails and special events; pricing strategies; brand position-
ing and building; distribution and sales; travel trade partnerships and
marketing, e.g. trade sales services including product training, contract-
ing, trade show representation and international sales activity; access to
market insights and information; and partnerships with (tourism) organ-
izations. Currently, UWEA is working towards the development of a
booking capability supporting online sales across its members.

Measuring and Communicating Results

UWEA collects and communicates metrics that reflect benefits and
results achieved at an individual member, network and partner level.
This is important so that the coopetition network can build and maintain
trust, participation and commitment of its members and partners into its
goals and co-creation activities.
Metrics representing individual performance that in turn ­ reinforce
members’ commitment to the network include figures related to total
110 M. SIGALA

spend per cellar door visitor. Based on data during the last years, the
total spend per visitor has not only grown from year to year for the
UWEA members, but it is also higher in relation to the total spend per
visitor at wineries not being members of the UWEA.
Metrics representing the ability of the UWEA to enable its members
to reach the tourism market include: the size of the reached global tour-
ism distribution network in terms of the number and the geographical
reach of travel trade partners of the UWEA; and the expansion of the
product range of wine experiences represented by the network, since
the latter can act as a magnet increasing and driving visitation to UWEA
members. Wine tourists behave like golfers, who do not like to travel to
a gold destination with only one or few gold courses, since they do not
like to play golf in the same holes everyday. Similarly, a critical mass of
wineries and other tourism facilities and experiences gathered within a
wine region can be a good magnet for attracting and driving demand,
as wine tourists would be offered a variety of wine experiences and tour-
ist attractions to visit. In this vein, the greater the product and supplier
range of the UWEA, the greater the demand impact and influence of the
UWEA in attracting tourists and increasing the market ‘pie’ that each
member can then compete to drive to its individual cellar door.
UWEA also monitors and communicates metrics that reflect the
achievement of shared goals that are aligned with the goals of its part-
ners. Specifically, the UWEA reports metrics that can demonstrate
its contribution in complementing the aims of the Tourism Australia’s
Campaigns that target to increase the value of food and wine to the
Australian visitor economy. Such metrics relate to figures showing the
trends in: total spend on food and wine in Australia; international tour-
ists visiting an Australian winery; and spend of international tourists in
Australia for food and wine.

Conclusions
Competition in wine tourism intensifies with new competitors con-
tinually entering the market at a global level and with increasing num-
bers but more sophisticated and demanding wine tourists. Coopetition
is increasingly being adopted as an effective way to build capacity to
address current challenges. However, despite the propitious nature of
tourism to support and nurture coopetition models, the applicability and
 8 BUILDING A WINE TOURISM DESTINATION THROUGH COOPETITION … 111

the benefits of coopetition for developing and marketing a destination

have not been examined in the literature.
This chapter provided theoretical underpinning and practical evidence
of the benefits of coopetition by analysing the case of the UWEA. The
latter represents a button-up coopetition venture initiated by winer-
ies in Australia that partnered together as well as with tourism bodies at
national and local level with the shared goal to promote Australia as a
leading wine destination and so, to untap the potential of an increasing
international wine and food market. This chapters used various theoret-
ical lenses for discussing the drivers, the governance mechanism and the
value co-creation activities of the UWEA coopetition network.

Acknowledgements Special thanks to Sally Cope (executive officer of UWEA)

for committing time to share information about the evolution and the operations
of UWEA.

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 CHAPTER 9

Developing and Branding a Wine

Destination Through UNESCO World
Heritage Listing: The Case of the Mount
Lofty Ranges Agrarian Landscape

Marianna Sigala

Introduction
There are numerous reciprocal relations between, wine, tourism and cul-
ture. Wine production and consumption take place in winescapes that
represent cultural and natural landscapes. Consequently, the evolution of
wine tourism is inextricably linked with and shaped in the light of the
socio-economical evolution and cultural geography of their landscape.
Wine tourism experiences are also formed, augmented and enriched by
the elements of the cultural ecosystem (Sigala, 2019a). However, as cul-
tural ecosystems, winescapes are viewed, used and appreciated differently
by their various stakeholders (e.g. wine producers, residents, visitors,
local communities and entrepreneurs).

M. Sigala (*)
University of South Australia, Adelaide, SA, Australia
e-mail: marianna.sigala@unisa.edu.au

© The Author(s) 2019 113

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_9
114 M. SIGALA

This chapter aims to analyse how the process of UNESCO World

Heritage (WH) listing can help wine destinations to identify the ele-
ments and values of their cultural ecosystem as well as to develop a
plan for developing and marketing their destinations based on sustaina-
ble (tourism) development principles. To achieve that, the chapter first
explains the aims, and the process of applying for WH listing as well as
the benefits and the costs that (wine) destination can derive from pur-
suing WH designation. The concept of cultural ecosystem is used for
explaining the cultural and heritage value of winescapes and wine regions
and so, their fit and benefits from WH listing. The applicability of the
WH as a tool for branding, marketing and developing a sustainable wine
tourism destination is discussed by explaining the case of Mount Lofty
Ranges. The case study explains: the criteria under which the region of
Mount Lofty Ranges aims to be WH listed as an outstanding agrarian
landscape; the application process; and the benefits that the region can
achieve in general but specifically as a wine (tourism) destination. The
case study of Mount Lofty Ranges highlights the importance of identi-
fying, involving and consulting a wide spectrum of stakeholders as well
as of using the WH listing process as a learning process and a tool for:
building community capacity, partnerships, awareness and commitment
towards sustainable tourism development and developing plan for pursu-
ing regional (wine tourism) development.

UNESCO World Heritage Listing

Aims and Objectives

In 1972, when the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural
Organization (UNESCO) adopted the Convention Concerning the
Protection of the World’s Cultural and Natural Heritage, the World
Heritage (WH) brand was launched. Its aim was ‘to identify, protect, con-
serve, present and transmit properties of outstanding universal value to the
entire world’ (UNESCO, 2015). Thus, the WH brand has an important
role by identifying a property to be irreplaceable. Its value must be sus-
tained intact in perpetuity so, that future generations can benefit from it
the same way as we do nowadays. To facilitate the implementation of the
convention, the WH committee undertakes activities that centre around
the achievement of its strategic objectives referred to as the following 5 C’s:
 9 DEVELOPING AND BRANDING A WINE DESTINATION … 115

• Strengthen the CREDIBILITY of the World Heritage List;

• Ensure the effective CONSERVATION of World Heritage
Properties;
• Promote the development of effective CAPACITY-BUILDING in
States Parties;
• Increase public awareness, involvement and support for World
Heritage through COMMUNICATION; and
• Enhance the role of COMMUNITIES in the implementation of the
World Heritage Convention.

Listing Criteria and Procedure

According to the view of the WH committee, only those properties
that possess an ‘outstanding universal value’ in historical, artistic or sci-
entific area are admitted to the WH lists. Different criteria have to be
fulfilled in order to be selected, depending on cultural or natural herit-
age. The Convention defines cultural heritage ‘as monuments, groups of
buildings and sites’. Instead, natural heritage is defined ‘as natural fea-
tures, geological and physiographical formations as well as natural sites’
(UNESCO, 2001). Since 2004, natural and cultural heritage sites are
both selected based on specific criteria related to the sociocultural, bio-
logical/natural, aesthetic and historical value as well as the human kind
contribution of the site.
The procedure for the inscription requires a two-step competitive
nomination and selection process at the national and international
level. Applying for inscription is usually a button-up process initiated
by the policy-makers of the site who also need to involve, stimulate
and co-ordinate the whole local community, related local organiza-
tions, agencies and stakeholders. Such engagement and co-ordination
are required not only for the bidding process but more importantly
for valorizing the benefits of the listing process and/or potential final
inscription. Multi-stakeholder involvement and co-ordination addresses
and overcomes the (vertical and horizontal) fragmentation of com-
petences (Cuccia & Rizzo, 2013), it builds ownership, commitment,
social capital and synergies by unifying different (and sometimes con-
flicting) interests and stakeholders under a common goal, i.e. to learn
and hopefully benefit through the process and hopefully positive out-
comes of the inscription.
116 M. SIGALA

Benefits and Costs of WH Listing for Tourism Destinations

Although the main objective of the WH listing is the preservation of
the natural and cultural heritage of outstanding relevance for the future
generations, the former also aims at promoting ‘an appropriate equita-
ble balance between conservation, sustainability and development’ in
the destinations and sites where the UNESCO heritage is located. To
achieve that, the UNESCO introduced the World Heritage Sustainable
Tourism Programme which includes seven main actions aiming to main-
tain a balance between sustainable tourism and the conservation of WH
Sites:

• build the capacity of the site management in dealing with tourism,

by developing a sustainable tourism management plan;
• train the local population in tourism-related activities, so they can
participate and receive benefits from tourism;
• help to promote relevant local products on different levels (local,
national, international);
• attempt to use tourism-generated funds as supplement to conserva-
tion and protection costs at the site;
• share the expertise and lessons learned with other protected areas;
and
• build an increased understanding of the importance to protect
World Heritage, its values and the policies within the tourism
industry.

In this vein, the literature identifies various economic and non-

economic, tangible and intangible benefits of WH listing such as (Clarke,
2009): civic pride, prestige, conservation, preservation and education,
recognizable brand name attracting tourism flows and spending, and
regional economic development. The prestige and awareness about the
cultural heritage and outstanding values of a place can also help to raise
appreciation, feelings and actions of responsibility amongst local com-
munities, organizations and/or visitors to protect and valorize the local
culture (Hall, 2003). WH status also gives access to potential financial
assistance from the World Heritage Fund and ability to raise money
from other international partnerships and organizations. WH listing
requires destinations to elaborate and develop a management plan for
managing and monitoring preservation and sustainable development,
 9 DEVELOPING AND BRANDING A WINE DESTINATION … 117

which in turn can be used as a vehicle to build social capacity and

­commitment for implementing the plan irrespective of the inscription
result.
The WH listing strengthens a destination’s profile, which in turn
enhances promotion, increases visitation desire and stimulates tourism
demand for a place (De Simone, Canale, & Di Maio, 2018; Hall, 2003;
Lee, Phau, & Quintal, 2018; Mazanec, Wober, & Zins, 2007; Ramires,
Brandão, & Sousa, 2018). WH status provides an internationally recog-
nizable, elite, prestigious and meaningful brand name (Fyall & Rakic,
2006; Hall & Piggin, 2002; King & Halpenny, 2014) that people associ-
ate with a high level of positive quality attributes symbolizing something
‘unique’, ‘irreplaceable’ and ‘possessing an outstanding universal value’
(Shackley, 2006) and which in turn influences many tourists to select the
site amongst many other competing destinations (Keller, 1993).
Overall, the benefits of WH listing are summarized as follows
(PricewaterhouseCoopers, 2007; Rebanks, 2010): new identity and des-
tination image; media value; culture and creativity; learning, education
and social capital; civic pride and quality of life; cultural glue and new
interpretation; regeneration; preservation of heritage Unique Selling
Proposition; attracting and coordinating investment, funding, part-
nerships and (new) businesses through strategy; better (new) services;
regeneration; and building quality infrastructure.
However, although the WH brand name can be a magnet attracting
tourism demand (Fyall & Rakic, 2011) and the visitor numbers have
indeed substantially grown over time at several WH designated places,
the literature provides little evidence that this growth derives directly
from the WH listing. Research findings from WH listed destinations
around the globe also show that the power of the WH listing to attract
tourists is diminished because, the WH brand name has failed to: cre-
ate brand awareness (Poria, Reichel, & Cohen, 2011); communicate
any message (King & Halpenny, 2014); and/or explain and help tour-
ists identify what is special about the site (Marcotte & Bourdeau, 2006).
Frey and Steiner (2013) also added that the prestige and demand gen-
erating power of the WH listing is diminished due to the overextension
with respect to the number and types of sites included in the list. WH
listing is also found to: create spatial substitution by concentrating tour-
ism flows in the specific WH designated areas (Patuelli, Mussoni, &
Candela, 2013) and inability to generate demand for developing cultural
tourism and overcoming seasonality (Cuccia & Rizzo, 2013).
118 M. SIGALA

Other undesirable outcomes of WH listing are also identified relating

to destruction caused by an excessive number of visits to the sites (e.g.
overtourism, litter, vandalism and pollution) or by terrorists seeking a
well-publicized target (Cuccia, Guccio, & Rizzo, 2014; Frey & Steiner,
2013). Dallen and Boyd (2003) identified several other problems or
issues at UNESCO sites offering challenges to their management, such
as jurisdiction, strict management controls, change brought on by the
World Heritage.
Overall, research (Bourdeau, Gravari-Barbas, & Robinson, 2017;
Chhabra, 2019; Hubbard, Taruvinga, Nyathi, & Makuvaza, 2018;
Jimura, 2011; Poria et al., 2011) suggests that the ability to extract the
benefits of the WH listing depends on: Whether and how the destination
communicates and makes visitors and local communities aware of what is
unique and special about it; the degree of involvement and awareness of
the local community and stakeholders (residents, entrepreneurs of differ-
ent sectors, agencies, organizations etc.) of the relevance of their cultural
endowment for the present and future sustainable development of their
territory and the ability of the local community to see the WH listing
and tourism development as mutually reinforcing and not conflictual or
disruptive to each other.

Wine Destinations as Cultural

Ecosystems and WH Listing
The reciprocal relations between, wine, culture/heritage and tourism
are discussed in numerous studies looking into (Sigala, 2019a): the cul-
tural meaning and heritage of vineyards; the socio-economic-cultural
values of winemaking and consumption as well as their association with
the socio-economic and cultural development of places; and the heritage
value of wine culture. The growing, making and selling of wine (viticul-
ture and wine production) leads to vineyard landscapes, which are both
physical and cultural landscapes. Wine consumption (wine tourism expe-
riences) also takes place in winescapes, which represent cultural and phys-
ical landscapes (Sigala, 2019a).
The vineyards are recognized as tourismscapes attracting touristic
flows and activity and whereby a variety of tourism services are provided
(Bruwer & Joy, 2017; Getz & Brown, 2006; Quintal, Thomas, Phau,
2015). Johnson and Bruwer (2007) coined the concept of the ‘wines-
cape’ to encapsulate the interplay of: vineyards; wineries and other
 9 DEVELOPING AND BRANDING A WINE DESTINATION … 119

physical structures; wines; natural landscape and setting; people; and­

heritage; town(s) and buildings; and their architecture and artefacts within.
Winescapes can be developed at a macro-level (the wine region or at a
wine route scale) and a micro-level (the environment in a specific estate
or winery) (Quintal et al., 2015). Research shows that both the natu-
ral beauty, geographical setting and rurality and the cultural product of
the winescapes influence wine tourism demand, tourists’ satisfaction, the
image, identity and competitiveness of the wine destination (Bruwer &
Joy, 2017; Carmichael, 2005; Getz & Brown, 2006). This is because,
the visitors appreciate and experience winescapes in four levels of aes-
thetic cognition (Bruwer, Lesschaeve, Gray, & Sottini, 2013): perceptual
(senses are involved, viewing, hearing or smelling); expressive (feelings
and emotions associated with); symptomatic (object signs are sympto-
matic of something else); and symbolic (ideas and imaginations created
in the viewers’ mind). As a result, the winescape elements create a cog-
nitive and affective perception of the winescape and seduce the visitors
to engage into a total multi-sensorial experience (Bruwer, Gross, &
Lee, 2016).
Wine tourism is inextricably linked with and shaped in the light of the
socio-economical evolution and cultural geography of their landscape
within which people live, work and perform their social practices (Sigala,
2019a). Winescapes represent cultural ecosystems (Sigala, 2019a).
Cultural systems are different from social systems as they also include fac-
tors relating to the physical environment, land use and human interac-
tion with place, thereby recognizing landscape as a cultural construction.
Consequently, several studies have used the concept of cultural ecosys-
tems in order to show how the development of wine tourism is rooted in
the socio-economic and cultural landscape of the wine region. For exam-
ple, Mitchell, Charters, and Albrecht (2012) used the cultural systems
approach in order to analyse the relationship between the rural cultural
systems and the production and consumption of wine tourism in two
culturally distinct wine regions: Champagne, France and Margaret River,
Western Australia. In so doing, their study highlights the importance of
situating wine tourism within the wider system of rural land tenure, local
mythologies of rurality and the regional wine cultural complex. Hence,
the cultural uniqueness and distinctiveness of the cultural landscapes of
vineyards provide the trademark and identity of winescapes.
In the same vein, the wine tourism experiences are formed and
shaped out of the fabric of the cultural winescape ecosystems. By using
120 M. SIGALA

the concept of cultural landscape ecosystems, Sigala (2019a) explained

how wine destinations can augment and enrich wine tourism experi-
ences by synergizing wine and culture. This is possible because by being
cultural ecosystems, winescapes can afford numerous aesthetic, cul-
tural, edutainment and ecological values that can provide meaning and
self-development opportunities to their wine visitors (Sigala, 2019a).
The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MEA) (2005) identified sev-
eral intangible benefits that people can obtain by experiencing and inter-
acting with cultural landscape ecosystems such as: spiritual enrichment
(e.g. sacred, religious), cognitive development (e.g. educational, learn-
ing), reflection, recreation, entertainment, and aesthetic experience,
knowledge systems and social relations. For example, vineyards serve as
a motive for creating and/or consuming artwork, as well as places for
spiritual activities and social practices such as weddings, meditation and
rehabilitation (Sigala, 2019b).
Research does not only emphasize the need to understand and see
winescapes as cultural landscape ecosystems. Research also shows that the
various stakeholders of winescapes understand, use, appreciate and value
the various elements of cultural ecosystems differently. For example, by
studying two wine regions (Southeast England, an emerging wine area,
and the counties of Sonoma and Napa, California), Winkler and Nicholas
(2016) found that wine producers and residents held different perspec-
tives about the features and the values of the cultural ecosystems of their
vineyards, e.g. wine producers and residents reported different or even
conflicting values about the vineyard landscape, its nature, conserva-
tion and entertainment benefits. In turn, the type of use of winescapes
is found to significantly influence the tourists’ perceptions of the values
and benefits of cultural ecosystems: Zoderer, Tasser, Erb, Stanghellini,
and Tappeiner (2016) found that in traditionally managed landscapes,
tourists see, use and appreciate them for their aesthetic beauty, leisure
activities and spirituality, while in intensively managed landscapes, tour-
ists consider them as important for the provision of cultural heritage val-
ues. In his study measuring the economic performance of three Italian
winemaking farms, Torquati, Giacchè, and Venanzi (2015) used the con-
cept of Traditional Cultural Vineyard Landscape in order to show how
different stakeholders use and perceive the value of vineyards in conflict-
ing ways: vineyard owners supported the costs of landscape preservation,
in contrast to local community members (e.g. local entrepreneurs) that
solely reaped the benefits of vineyards’ products and value. The study
 9 DEVELOPING AND BRANDING A WINE DESTINATION … 121

concluded that government measures are required to ensure how the

value resulting from the restoration and preservation of the landscape
can be distributed to various stakeholders.
Overall, research shows that the concept of the cultural ecosystem is
a useful tool in order to identify and appreciate the elements that afford
the touristic value of vineyards and wine regions; design, augment and
enrich wine tourism experiences; understand how various stakeholders
comprehend, use and appreciate the value of cultural ecosystems dif-
ferently (and sometimes conflicting); and design land use policies that
respect the perspectives of the various stakeholders and aim to valorize
the value of the cultural ecosystem elements for all stakeholders, the
common good and future generations.
The cultural ecosystems approach explains why wine regions represent
cultural heritage ecosystems and thus, it becomes clearer why some vine-
yard regions like the terroirs of Burgundy (France) have been recognized
with the UNESCO WH designation for their outstanding cultural and
heritage value. For example, the Alto Douro Wine Region is included in
the list of WH Sites as an evolving and living cultural landscape based on
the following criteria (UNESCO, 2001):

• The Alto Douro Region has been producing wine for nearly two
thousand years, and its landscape has been moulded by human
activities;
• The components of the Alto Douro landscape are representative
of the full range of activities associated with winemaking—terraces,
quintas (wine-producing farm complexes), villages, chapels and
roads; and
• The cultural landscape of the Alto Douro is an outstanding example
of a traditional European wine-producing region, reflecting the evo-
lution of this human activity overtime.

These criteria point to the centrality of the wine economy on the con-
figuration of the landscape and on the traces that defined the way its
population occupied the territory, villages (agglomerations), accessibil-
ity and religion, historical value accrues from the coexistence of differ-
ent vineyard plantation techniques (e.g. schist walls, vertical planting and
vineyards with no land organization). Thus, the Alto Douro wine region
also clearly demonstrates the inextricably and reciprocal relation between
wine, culture and tourism.
122 M. SIGALA

Based on the values and aims of the WH listing, several authors also
discuss the benefits that wine regions can derive by applying for WH
designation. WH listing should be viewed as a tool for: supporting sus-
tainable (tourism) development; preserving and valorizing cultural herit-
age; landscape management; and stakeholder management by balancing
(conflicting) interests and by creating synergies, collaborations and social
capital. For example, in studying the Prosecco region, Visentin and
Vallerani (2018) argued how the UNESCO WH candidacy could rep-
resent an instrument for: rural tourism promotion in the context of a
productive winescape; controlling sustainable wine production through
engagement of all the viticulturists; and developing and implement-
ing a desirable model of tourism development that can also help rural
regions take advantage of more sustainable tourism development and
landscape management. Based on data from the Alto Douro wine region,
Lourenço-Gomes, Pinto, and Rebelo (2015) discussed the importance
of UNESCO designation in preserving the mosaic nature of the land-
scape and the culture heritage of the wine region in order to maintain its
touristic appeal, tourism visitation that in turn, can also support the wine
economy.

The Nomination of Mount Lofty

Ranges for WH Listing
The Rational
The region of Mount Lofty Ranges aimed to explore the potential of
applying for WH listing as a working agrarian landscape for a series of
agrarian landscapes stretching from the Barossa Valley to the Fleurieu
Peninsula. A map of the region (including the Adelaide Hills, the
Barossa Valley, Mount Barker and McLaren Vale) and its cultural ele-
ments are visualized at (https://onkaparinga.maps.arcgis.com/apps/
webappviewer/index.html?id=7caf089d53bf45b0b84a55b82bbefd94).
Agricultural landscapes remain the most under-represented category of
WHS status (Erickson, 2001). They are a subset of cultural landscapes,
coming under the category of the ‘organically evolved landscape’,
which, according to UNESCO, … results from an initial social, eco-
nomic, administrative, and/or religious imperative and has developed its
present form by association with and in response to its natural environment
(UNESCO, 2011).
 9 DEVELOPING AND BRANDING A WINE DESTINATION … 123

WH listing for agrarian landscapes is very rare and rarer still for work-
ing agrarian landscapes. The feature of ‘working’ recognizes the dynamic
(vs static-museum status) of the landscape that needs to be preserved
(and not conserved) in order to allow its continuous but sustainable
growing and changing under effective local planning control. Examples
of agrarian landscapes recognized with WH listing include: the Val
d’Orcia in Tuscany, Alto Douro Valley (Portugal), Tokaj wine region
(Hungary), and tequila-producing area of Jalisco (Mexico), Cinque
Terre (Italy). There regions are recognized by WH because of the out-
standing value, exceptional and global importance of their landscapes for
present and future generations. In a similar vein, to qualify for WH list-
ing, the Mount Lofty Ranges would also need to prove the area’s unique
and outstanding qualities, not just for future generations of Australians
but also for the world.

The Bidding Process: The Members, the Scope and Activities

of the Working Group
To explore the potential for WH listing, the four councils of the
respective region (the Adelaide Hills Council; the Barossa Council;
District Council of Mount Barker; and the City of Onkaparinga) con-
tracted researchers (from the University of Adelaide) and a consulting
firm (EconSearch Pty Ltd) to conduct a feasibility study. In addition, a
Mount Lofty Ranges working group was formed to manage and co-ordi-
nate the whole process.
Community participation and commitment were considered as key
success factors of the scoping process and its potential learning out-
comes. Thus, building stakeholder awareness and engagement was set as
a priority of the working group.
To that end, the working group consisted of a project management
group and a project manager (Stephanie Johnston, who is an urban
planner). The project management group was made up from a staff
representative from each council and from key stakeholders (e.g. the
Department of Primary Industries and Regions South Australia, the
South Australian Tourism Commission, the Department of Environment
and Natural Resources and the Department of Planning, Transport and
Infrastructure). Six working subgroups were formed each one over-
looking one important specific area: heritage advisory group, economic
advisory group, landscape advisory group, community advisory group,
124 M. SIGALA

aboriginal advisory group and management advisory group. All the

members of the working group provided ‘in-kind’ budget of partner
time.
Since 2011, the working group meets regularly exploring relevant and
important topics. Numerous workshops (organized in various locations
to enable participation of various stakeholders) have already taken place
and covered various questions including: stakeholder engagement, geo-
graphic scope, the values on which a UNESCO bid might be built, the
bases for generating economic cost-benefit scenarios, the likely implica-
tions of achieving World Heritage Site (WHS) designation, and the bid
process and timeframes. In addition, several seminars were organized
with the purpose to identify, involve and consult various other poten-
tial stakeholders [such as the Department of Primary Industries and
Regions South Australia (PIRSA), Regional Development Australia
(RDA) Barossa and the Department of Planning and Local Government
(DPLG)].
Through these processes, numerous partners, agencies and commu-
nity groups involved in landscape management and planning that face
similar challenges related to agricultural planning, tourism, recreational
and environmental policy were involved and consulted. These stakehold-
ers fall into four broad categories:

• industry, heritage, community and Indigenous representatives;

• councils;
• South Australian government ministers and agencies; and
• Australian government agencies.

The scope of the working group’s activities included the following objec-
tives (Johnston et al., 2012):

• To identify, consolidate and communicate evidence of the outstand-

ing elements of the agricultural landscape and its economic, socio-
cultural and environmental contributions to (South) Australia and
the world.
• To identify the potential economic, social, cultural and environmen-
tal benefits of a successful WHS bid.
• To strengthen existing policies and to provide policy guidance for
improving development strategies for the highly productive agri-
cultural landscapes of Mount Lofty Ranges. Many of the region’s
 9 DEVELOPING AND BRANDING A WINE DESTINATION … 125

stakeholders already have or exploring mechanisms to assist in

preserving and enhancing these landscapes and their food, wine
and tourism economies into the future. The ability of the bid to
be aligned but also strengthen, guide and complement these key
state and federal government policies and priorities was considered
as a key success factor of the bidding process. Hence, it was also
because of this that it was important to build stakeholder awareness,
involvement and buy-into the bidding process.

To achieve the latter, the working group undertook a scoping exercise

that identified and aligned the pursuit of UNESCO WH designation
with the following local, state and federal government policies and strate-
gies (Johnston et al., 2012):

• Proposed Character Preservation legislation objectives and values.

• Clean and green food industry’ focus.
• South Australia’s Strategic Plan.
• The 30 Year Plan for Greater Adelaide.
• PIRSA strategic directions.
• Wine: A Partnership 2010–2015.
• SA Food Strategy 2010–2015.
• Draft National Food Plan.
• South Australian Tourism Plan 2009–2014 and South Australia’s
Tourism Brand Framework.
• South Australian Food and Wine Tourism Strategy 2009–2014
Tourism 2020 and Cycle Tourism Strategy 2005–2009.
• 2011 State Natural Resource Management (NRM) Plan (Draft) and
the Adelaide Mount Lofty NRM Plan.
• NatureLinks and ‘Eat well be active’ strategies.
• A Draft Climate Change Adaptation Framework for South Australia
and South Australia’s Greenhouse Strategy 2007–2020.
• Barossa Regional Road Map; Regional Development Australia,
Adelaide Hills, Fleurieu and
• Kangaroo Island Regional Roadmap and Southern Economic
Development Board Economic Plan.
• Integrated Design Commission Guiding Principles.

Consequently, the feasibility study and report developed by the work-

ing group and in partnership with the community and key stakeholders
126 M. SIGALA

provide: leadership; encourage action and foster valuable partnerships for

better managing the region’s natural resources; and include long-term
goals and aspirational targets for the future.

Identifying and Satisfying the Criteria

for WH Listing

The bidding process comprises two stages: inclusion on Australia’s

National Heritage list (NHL) followed by a bid for World Heritage
listing. Until now, the working group had been working towards sub-
mitting the NHL nomination dossier to the Australian Government
Department for the Environment, which answers questions around:

– the definition of the place and its boundaries according to defini-

tions in the relevant federal government legislation;
– a statement outlining the importance and heritage significance of
the place to Australia;
– the addressing of any number of a total of nine criteria relating to
the values that reflect the national natural or cultural significance of
the place;
– a general history and description of the place;
– a comparative analysis with regard to other comparable sites; and
– a list of references and support material for the statements made
and information provided in addressing each criterion.

To prepare the application for NHL, the scoping exercise involved

the systematic examination of numerous books and other resources in
relation to the NHL Criteria (http://www.environment.gov.au/her-
itage/about/national/criteria.html). A wide and thematically diverse
literature cutting across numerous subjects across time and geograph-
ical place around Mount Lofty Ranges was investigated in order to
identify ‘indicators of significance’ of the landscape. The resulting
scoping report categorises these indicators in terms of natural, indig-
enous or historical values in accordance with the NHL criteria, which
require the site to prove its outstanding heritage value to the nation
(Johnston et al., 2012). The findings of the literature review aiming
to identify landscape ‘significance’ focus around the following com-
mon theme and conclusions that satisfy the NHL criteria (Johnston
et al., 2012):
 9 DEVELOPING AND BRANDING A WINE DESTINATION … 127

• an enduring recognition of the significance of systematic

colonization;
• recognition and celebration of the central influence of the Ranges
upon Adelaide and South Australia; and
• a call for protection and maintenance of the productive and aes-
thetic properties of the Mount Lofty Ranges.

The proposed NHL area does not only recognize the importance of pre-
serving food and wine production in the region as a way to promote sus-
tainable (wine tourism) development, but they also align with one of the
Seven Strategic Priorities of the South Australian Government (SAG),
namely ‘Premium food and wine from our clean environment’ (refer to
www.priorities.sa.gov.au), which seeks global recognition of the state’s
premium food and beverages:

– to position South Australia as a renowned producer of premium

food and wine from its clean water, clean air and clean soil;
– to increase production of high-quality food and wine; and
– to enable food and wine sectors to hold a competitive edge in both
domestic and export markets through innovation and a strong rep-
utation for being clean and safe.

Going forward, at step two, the working group needs to show the
relationship of the NHL criteria to the UNESCO WH listing criteria.
WHS listing requires establishment of (natural, cultural or combined)
Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) based on UNESCO’s cultural cri-
teria. That means its significance is so exceptional it transcends national
boundaries and is of common importance for present and future gen-
erations worldwide. The brief for the consultancy report submitted
to the working group identified three WH criteria through which the
Mount Lofty Ranges might demonstrate OUV; in general, the WH cri-
teria are satisfied because of the systematic colonization, the land-use
and sea-use, and the events and living traditions found in Mount Lofty
Ranges (Johnston et al., 2012). Overall, based on the WH listing crite-
ria, the Mount Lofty Ranges demonstrates outstanding examples that
‘illustrate[…] significant stage(s) in human history’ or are ‘directly or
tangibly associated with events or living traditions, with ideas or beliefs…
of outstanding universal significance’ based on the following argument
(Johnston et al., 2012):
128 M. SIGALA

South Australia was not only the first place in Australia to be success-
fully planned and developed by free settlers, without the use of convict
labour, but also the first place in the world to apply the principles of ‘sys-
tematic colonisation’.

Benefits of Pursuing WH Listing

The working group recognize that benefits from pursuing WH listing
accrue not only through the potential successful listing, but also and pri-
marily through the process of bidding. Analytically, the working group
identifies the following ways in which it aims to generate value and bene-
fits (Johnston et al., 2012):

– from the co-ordination and integration of state and local develop-

ment policies and processes that will protect and enhance the special
characteristics of the Region which may well be lost otherwise;
– from a host of ‘intangibles’ with real consequences that flow from
listing; and
– from the process of nomination, even if listing is not achieved.

In other words, the working group recognizes that the value of WHS
listing is unlocked not only by the designation itself, but also by the
motivation and co-ordinated action of local stakeholders and the inte-
gration of systems of governance marshalled to make the bid work.
The nomination process requires a whole-of-government at all levels,
cross-sector approach involving various stakeholders (e.g. primary pro-
ducers, business, communities and individuals as well as governing bod-
ies) to critically and meaningfully reflect on, upgrade, update and align
various land use policy and development processes (including environ-
mental management, biodiversity protection, climate change adap-
tion, enhanced agricultural production, tourism development, regional,
rejuvenation). This means that the bidding process should be viewed,
managed and valorized as an important way to build multi-stakeholder
commitment and responsibility for co-ordinated and synchronized
action. The bid process also offers opportunities for community par-
ticipation across the region in value chain thinking, healthy eating and
sustainable consumption. In this vein, numerous opportunities arise in
terms of building community capacity, cross-sectoral partnerships, syn-
ergies and possibilities for generating multiplier economic effects and
 9 DEVELOPING AND BRANDING A WINE DESTINATION … 129

development. Overall, the WHS listing can identify and develop a much
more resilient development path for the region that can reverse trends
of agricultural land loss in the Greater Adelaide area and encourages
high-quality architecture, landscape design, improved infrastructure and
transport.
WH listing also provides a powerful ‘place-making’ and a destination
branding tool that recognizes and creates awareness of the economic,
social, environmental and cultural contributions of agriculture and agri-
cultural landscapes to the region. This in turn provides the potential to:

– strengthen local pride, sense of place and identity within the region;
– position the destination in the world tourism map; and
– develop and communicate the unique destination identity and
image worldwide.

The latter clearly identifies the critical economic benefits of WH listing

for the Mount Lofty Ranges region. ‘Branding’ and reputation premi-
ums for local products can provide: a strategic determinant of regional
competitiveness and differentiation; a way to attract investment, busi-
ness partnerships and entrepreneurial activity; and a mean to support
higher economic growth from various sectors (e.g. packing and pro-
cessing, agriculture, winemaking, wholesale/retailing) including (wine)
tourism.
Overall, the feasibility report of the working group identifies a long
list of tangible and intangible benefits deriving from the WH listing
process that represent value generation opportunities in all dimensions
(i.e. economic, sociocultural and environmental) (EconSearch, 2012;
Johnston et al., 2012):

– attract investments, grants and funding in appropriate local

infrastructure;
– unique and high-quality architecture and landscape design and
management;
– global branding and Public Relations opportunities for communi-
ties and local products;
– catalyst effects for business opportunities and entrepreneurship;
– enhanced co-ordination for more sustainable transport policies;
– integrated planning, recreation and environmental policies;
– protection of aesthetic values, heritage, and wildlife habitat;
130 M. SIGALA

– education, learning, community and cultural benefits;

– enablement of (global but also intra- and inter-regional as well
as cross-sectoral) partnerships for socioeconomic and cultural
development;
– increase viability of farming and create a premium value add;
– upgrade and support tourism economy: cultural product and
story-telling;
– attraction and retention of talent: educational, research and employ-
ment opportunities; and
– supporting a joint effort and building stakeholder commitment and
responsibility of action by bringing together for a common purpose
all levels of government, business, communities and individuals
throughout the Mount Lofty Ranges and associated wine and agri-
cultural regions.

Conclusions
Despite the increasing research and awareness of the reciprocal rela-
tion between wine, tourism and culture, very few wine regions and
destinations have successfully valorized the synergies of these concepts
for developing and pursuing a sustainable and competitive destination
strategy and branding their place. By adopting the concept of cultural
landscape ecosystems, this chapter discusses the cultural and heritage
value of winescapes and argues the potential benefits that wine destina-
tions can achieve by pursuing WH listing. The process and benefits for
applying for WH listing are shown through a case study of the Mount
Lofty Ranges. The key learning deriving from this example is that the
benefits are unlocked and materialized when the WH listing process is
viewed and managed as a learning and developmental tool for building
multi-stakeholder involvement, commitment and co-ordinated actions
towards aligned priorities and goals.

References
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and tourism: Global and local relations. London, UK: Routledge.
Bruwer, J., Gross, M. J., & Lee, H. C. (2016). Tourism destination image (TDI)
perception within a regional winescape context. Tourism Analysis, 21(2–3),
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 CHAPTER 10

Effects of the World Heritage Label

in Champagne Region

Fabrice Thuriot

Champagne World Heritage Label

Three criteria (from 10) represent not only the landscape, but also know-
how, organization of the sector and its intangible nature, to register in
the continuing living cultural landscape category as a serial property:

III. As the result of know-how developed over the generations, of an

exemplary cross-industry organization and of protecting the appellation,
and the development of cross-cultural relationships and social innovations.
IV. An agro-industrial system characterized by the omnipresence of chalk,
a supply area – the vineyard, special industrial facilities, prestigious archi-
tecture and promotional tools that have helped to break into markets,
outstanding underground heritage, and a unique brand of planning based
around transport links.
VI. A symbolic image of the Champagne wine –unique in the world–
conveyed by the arts.

F. Thuriot (*)
University of Reims Champagne-Ardenne, Reims, France
e-mail: fabrice.thuriot@univ-reims.fr

© The Author(s) 2019 135

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_10
136 F. THURIOT

Three sites representative of the production work, development and

commercialization of Champagne have been selected to represent the
area of the Champagne controlled appellation of origin (AOC in France)
or protected designation of origin (PDO in Europe) zone:

– The wine historical hills between Hautvillers and Mareuil-sur-Ay

(Marne Valley),
– Saint-Nicaise hill with houses of Champagne and chalk cellars in
Reims and
– The Avenue de Champagne with traders houses and a network of
cellars in Epernay.

Each of the three sites consists of a central part and a wider area, the
buffer zone. A third area, called the area of engagement, concerns the
whole area of PDO/AOC Champagne (320 municipalities). Three pilot
sites have also been selected to set an example for landscaping and sustain-
able management of wine-producing activities. A management plan refers
to central sites but also the engagement area and the pilot sites. Tourism
is one of the enrolment objectives of the management plan and associated
documents (cf. http://champagne-patrimoinemondial.org/uk/).

Tourism Measures
Tourism measures must contribute to the setting’s value of architecture,
heritage, landscape and environment. A destination agreement has been
signed also in 2015 (June 25) with the State to promote the Champagne
region internationally. Eight territories in the Champagne region were
also labelled “Vineyards and Discoveries” since 2013, to promote quality
of the welcome, products and services (from over 500 providers).
The image of the Champagne region is mainly because of Champagne
wine and cellars (71.6%) and vineyards (60%), and then of heritage (38%),
but tourists visit firstly UNESCO monuments before wine cellars and vine-
yards (Regional Tourism Observatory Survey, n° 159, 2016, p. 11). This is
the paradox of the Champagne region! However, lots of tourists visit both.
The Champagne World Heritage label should improve their concordance.
The Champagne appellation area includes two other distinct sets pre-
viously registered in the UNESCO World Heritage: on the one hand,
the Christian royal set of Reims (the cathedral Notre-Dame, St. Remi
Abbey and the Palace of Tau), since 1991, and on the other hand, two
 10 EFFECTS OF THE WORLD HERITAGE LABEL IN CHAMPAGNE REGION 137

Table 10.1 Attendance of other Champagne region UNESCO sites and wine
cellars, in 2015

Cathedral of Reims: 800,000 visitors Champagne Mercier (Epernay): 128,172

St-Remi Basilica (Reims): 150,000 Champagne Vranken-Pommery (Reims):
103,301
Palais du Tau (Reims): 84,124 Champagne G.H. Mumm (Reims): 43,855
Basilica of L’Epine: 35,000 Champagne Moët et Chandon (Epernay):
12,908
Source Regional Tourism Observatory Survey (n° 157, 2016, p. 49)

steps of the path of Saint Jacques of Compostela (the Notre-Dame-

en-Vaux Basilica of Chalons-en-Champagne and the Basilica of L’Epine),
since 1998 (Table 10.1).

UNESCO Registration Impacts

The candidature has gathered all the actors (professionals of Champagne
and of tourism, public authorities, citizens, etc.) to build the application
and develop the visitor experience. The stake is now to use it with other
tools (e.g. wine routes, vineyards and discoveries labels and the destina-
tion agreement) to link the territory to the Champagne brand (about
50% of people know where Champagne is located) and to professionalize
wine tourism with training.
The objective for Champagne tourism is now to pass from one to
1.5 or 2 million visitors in the whole region over the coming years and
upwards to 10 million for wine tourism in France. Champagne region
is part of the national centre of excellence of wine tourism launched in
2015 (23 January).

Questions
Which elements are protected in the Champagne region?
Compare criteria of Champagne to another UNESCO vineyard.
Describe the evolution of heritage and vineyard tourism.
How can tourism tools (cited above or others) be applied to promote
the vineyards?
Which quantitative and qualitative indicators can you use to meas-
ure the impact of heritage and vineyard tourism respecting the
UNESCO label?
138 F. THURIOT

Websites
https://www.champagne.fr/en/.
http://champagne-patrimoinemondial.org/uk/.
http://www.tourisme-en-champagne.co.uk/.
http://whc.unesco.org/en/culturallandscape/.
http://www.arev.org/en/wine-tourism-portal.
http://www.observatoire-tourisme-champagne-ardenne.com/.
http://www.tourisme-en-champagne.com/vignobles-et-decouvertes.
h t t p : / / w w w. r e i m s - t o u r i s m . c o m / D i s c o v e r / H e r i t a g e /
UNESCO-World-Heritage.
http://www.diplomatie.gouv.fr/en/french-foreign-policy/tourism/
the-action-of-maedi-in-promoting/five-centres-of-excellence-to/.
 PART III

Designing Experiences: Developing and

Innovating Wine Destinations

Marianna Sigala

Introduction
The wine tourism demand does not only proliferate and increase, but
it also becomes more experienced, sophisticated and demanding. To
attract and satisfy the contemporary wine tourists, wine destinations
have to apply innovative and creative wine experiences to be distin-
guished and differentiated from competing destinations. In addition,
wine destinations need to design multi-sensorial wine experiences that
can both stimulate tourists’ senses and create positive feelings, but they
can also trigger their curiosity, thinking and mental processes. Thus, it
has become imperative that effective wine tourism experiences are those
that can engage wine tourists behaviourally, emotionally, mentality/
cognitively but also spiritually. This part provides new theoretical per-
spectives (arts-based, cultural-focused approaches), research findings and
practical case studies from all over the globe in order to show how wine
tourism destinations can create interactive and engaging wine tourism
experiences.
The first chapter of the part is contributed by Donald Getz, who
develops a conceptual model that can shape the design of wine and food
events that can go beyond consumption and entertainment in order to
appeal to special-interest tourists. Co-creation, cultural authenticity and
interpretation are at the core of this experience design model for ensur-
ing the appeal and impacts of wine events. The role and the impact of
embedding the unique personalities and narratives of local artisans within
the design of wine festivals are also debated and explained by a second
140 Part III: DESIGNING EXPERIENCES: DEVELOPING AND INNOVATING …

chapter contributed by Staggs and Brenner. In this chapter, they use the
Basket Ranges (a small sub-region within the Adelaide Hills wine region,
Australia) as a case study for showing how the local culture can provide a
unique identity and experience of a wine festival.
The next two chapters examine the demand issues in relation to the
design of wine experiences. In the third chapter, Bonnie Canziani high-
lights the need to provide a wide variety of wine experiences and cus-
tomize them to the needs of the various types of wine tourists. In her
study, she found two extremes of wine tourists namely, wine buyers and
winery holidaymakers, for whom wineries need to provide goods-dom-
inant and experience-dominant experiences. In their chapter, Correia,
Cuntha, Matos and Fernades analysed user-generated-content published
on TripAdvisor and Facebook for investigating visitors’ wine tourism
experience in the Douro Valley of Portugal. The study provides an inter-
esting methodology for collecting data to understand visitors’ behaviour
and evaluations about their wine-related experiences. Its findings also
provide valuable practical implications on how wine destinations can use
user-generated-content and social media for monitoring and improving
their wine experiences.
The next two chapters focus on the use of art for enhancing and
designing new and intriguing wine experiences. In her chapter, Marianna
Sigala builds on the literature about art-based-initiatives (ABI) and
develops a 4C framework that identifies four ways for designing ABI
in order to design highly engaging wine tourism experiences and gen-
erate business value: art to be Consumed, art to be Commoditized, art
to be Co-created and art as a Catalyst. The chapter also provides sev-
eral examples showing how to implement ABI within the wine tourism
context for designing wine tourism experiences that range from highly
passive to be consumed to highly interactive experiences requiring visi-
tors to be active, co-create value and transformation. In the second chap-
ter, Sigala and Rentschler discuss the role of building synergies between
wine, tourism and art for developing wine destinations and experiences.
They use the case of The d’ Arenberg Cube for showing how art is used
for both designing an iconic building and converting it into a live, social
and co-creative experiential space with meaning and cultural significance.
The part also includes three case studies providing additional practi-
cal evidence and examples of the theoretical concepts of the part. The
first case study comes from a new country entering the wine tour-
ism map (Georgia) whereby Velikova and Bouzdine-Chameeva debate
 PART III: DESIGNING EXPERIENCES: DEVELOPING AND INNOVATING … 141

the pros and cons of the idea of building a National Wine Museum in
Tbilisi (capital city) for promoting the wine culture and history of the
country and positioning the country in the international wine map
as a historical wine destination. The second case study is written by
Bouzdine-Chameeva, Ponsignon, Durrieu and Pesme analyse the chal-
lenging issues of experience design and technological innovations in the
cultural wine centre “La Cité de Vin” (Bordeaux, France) by focusing on
the different aspects of museum design and original scenography solu-
tions to meet visitor expectations. The third case study is contributed by
Charitonidou, Tsoukala and Bolis, and it refers to a wine festival organ-
ized annually in Aigialeia, Greece. The wine festival heavily relies on the
local wine culture and heritage and it uses the latter as the theme for
designing a variety of multi-sensorial wine experiences as well as a way to
build a distinctive brand identity of the wine festival.
Overall, this part provides innovative perspectives and theoretical
lenses for designing highly effective and appealing wine experiences.
Art, culture, heritage and co-creations are at the core of the design of
effective wine experiences to satisfy the contemporary wine tourists. The
contributions of this part address the question of wine experience design
by providing insights from both the supply and demand side, as well as
from a conceptual and practical perspective. All chapters provide practical
implications but also ideas for future research in order to further advance
our knowledge in this field.
 CHAPTER 11

Wine and Food Events:

Experiences and Impacts

Donald Getz

Introduction
Wine and food go together, not only offering a tempting blend of tastes
and experiences but forming an important part of many people’s lifestyle.
Food and wine are often the main attraction at festivals and events, and
at many others, they are a necessary complement to entertainment or
business. To foodies and wine lovers, events that feature food and wine
are primary travel motivators.
This chapter examines the nature of wine and food event experiences,
noting similarities and differences, and emphasizing the appeal of their
combination. Part one discusses the food/wine event experience and its
design, drawing on research and the available literature. A generic model
is presented that can guide event planners. In part two, the impacts of
wine and food events are put in focus. A logic model illustrates how
goals lead to desired experiences on-site and to post-event outcomes,
considering the consumer, the host venue and the community and desti-
nation perspectives.

D. Getz (*)
The University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
e-mail: getz@ucalgary.ca

© The Author(s) 2019 143

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_11
144 D. GETZ

Experience Design:
A Model for Wine and Food Events
It is generally wiser to speak of experience co-creation, rather than
design, because those who produce and manage events are really offering
a “service proposition.” This is the language of service-dominant logic,
and it reflects the reality of how personal and group experiences are
shaped by interactions: of visitors with hosts/staff, visitors with other vis-
itors and everyone with the setting or venue. It also reflects the fact that
travel and event experience design has to consider anticipation, travel to,
on-site interactions, and post-event recollection and intentions mediated
by social media and participation in various social worlds.
Foodies and wine lovers in particular tend to belong to such social
worlds and to seek out experiences that shape and confirm their per-
sonal and social identities. Events, in this context, are manifestations of
social-world involvement, they play multiple roles related to identity, and
they offer benefits that “insiders” highly value. Some events can achieve
“iconic” status in their appeal to special-interest groups, rising above all
others by virtue of their uniqueness and symbolic value. And, of course,
there are many who go to wine and food events for simple pleasures like
taste, entertainment and socializing.
Figure 11.1 is a model of wine and food event experiences, combining
results from a wide range of research. For foodies, the primary source
is the book Foodies and Food Tourism (Getz, Robinson, Andersson, &
Vujicic, 2015) which summarizes the literature and reports on a major
international survey of food lovers. That research was based in part on
earlier wine-specific research. Blending the two requires the identification
of commonalities and differences.
The model is intended to focus design on experiences and benefits
desired by wine lovers and foodies, as opposed to audiences who are
motivated by more generic leisure motives. The typical event features
hedonism (i.e., mainly consumption of wine and food, plus entertain-
ment) facilitates socializing and appeals to escapism and novelty seeking.
Such events have wide appeal and might also attract the highly involved,
but they are not in themselves going to generate high-yield, international
tourism.
Co-creation of experiences, in this model, is the real core. “Co-creation”
implies that consumer and event are mutually responsible for the expe-
riences, acting synergistically. The value proposition is a combination of
 11 WINE AND FOOD EVENTS: EXPERIENCES AND IMPACTS 145

SERVICESCAPE: The setting; atmosphere

-learning WINE AND FOOD EVENTS WITH

GENERIC APPEAL: consumption;
-mastery of techniques entertainment

EVENT TARGETED
AT WINE LOVERS
AND FOODIES

-cultural authenticity
-aesthetic appreciation
-celebration and ritual
-creativity
-heritage interpretation

Fig. 11.1 A model of wine and food event experiences

the program (i.e., what you can do at the event), brand values (e.g., this
is what we stand for, including authenticity and learning), and symbol-
ism (e.g., our event is iconic, appealing to the connoisseur). The value
proposition is almost meaningless unless consumers engage in some
way with the offer, and of course, their experiences are going to vary
as consumers interact with each other, the setting and the programme.
Houghton (2008b) developed a co-creation model for wine festivals in
which the interests of wine tourists and wineries (the event organizers)
are matched. In that model wineries want to promote their brands and
product loyalty, gain market intelligence, and increase sales, these goals
have to be realized through the co-creation of attractive and satisfying
experiences.
The discussion begins with the setting, covering servicescape and
atmosphere, then we consider motivations, followed by the four main
components of the diagram.
146 D. GETZ

Servicescape (The Setting Plus Atmosphere)

Researchers have revealed the importance of setting and atmosphere in
creating perceptions of quality and shaping customer satisfaction. The
term “servicescape” is pertinent, drawing from the marketing literature
and referring to how service is delivered and perceived, but “experience­
scape” is a better term for planned events.
The literature reveals important design elements. Yuan and Jang
(2008) found that in the specific context of the wine and food festival
there are strong links between perceived quality and the organization of
the festival, the event facility, and the variety of wines on show. Axelsen
and Swan (2010, p. 446) concluded that “…of the attributes that are
distinctive to wine and food festivals, there are four attributes of a festi-
val that can further enhance consumers’ perceptions, and these include
the unique and different experiences encountered at the festival, the
atmosphere at the festival, new experiences encountered, and the hype
and glamour surrounding the festival.” Bruwer (2014, p. 84) pinpointed
“…service staff, entertainment and catering, comfort amenities, and fes-
tival venue and information as the indicators of quality perception. A
strong positive relationship between overall quality perception and over-
all satisfaction was found.” Mason and Paggiaro (2009) referred to “fes-
tivalscape,” saying it consists of tangibles plus atmosphere (fun, food,
drink, comfort) and is perceived holistically by customers.

Motivation
Findings that apply to festivals in general have been confirmed for wine
and food events, namely that the dominant motivators for most visitors
are generic. This means they are the same for most leisure and travel,
being social needs, escapism, novelty-seeking and hedonism. Chang
and Yuan (2011) reviewed food-festival attendee studies, beginning
with Uysal, Gahan, and Martin (1993). Their research conclusion was
that festival motivations in general confirm the Getz and Cheyne (2002)
framework of combinations of intrinsic, generic and extrinsic motives.
Chang and Yuan recommended that experience design should cater to all
these motivations through combining food, environment, setting, learn-
ing and cultural aspects.
Wine and food events add specific benefits, namely tasting and buy-
ing. The most refined level of motivations pertains to the highly involved
visitor seeking very specific benefits, or higher-order needs, such as
 11 WINE AND FOOD EVENTS: EXPERIENCES AND IMPACTS 147

learning, identity affirmation and communitas with like-minded people.

There is no doubt that motivations change over time and many people
follow travel careers as they become more involved in terms of lifestyle
and social worlds. This was a specific finding in research on wine lovers
(Brown and Getz, 2005) and foodies (Getz, Robinson et al., 2015).
Thach (2007) listed the top ten motivations of wine tourists, and no
doubt they also apply to events in some way: tasting, gaining knowl-
edge, experience the setting and region and hedonism/fun. Dodd, Yuan,
Adams, and Kolyesnikova (2006, p. 23) concluded from their research
that “Fourteen motivational items were identified in which tasting wine,
being entertained, and being with friends were perceived to be impor-
tant motives for young visitors… Young people were found to attach
more importance to enjoying entertainment, finding thrills and excite-
ment, and being with friends.” In a study of wine-festival attendees in
Indiana, Yuan, Cai, Morrison and Linton (2005) identified the following
four motives: festival and escape, wine, socialization and family together-
ness. Park, Reisinger, and Kang (2008) identified major motivational fac-
tors for the South Beach Wine and Food Festival and determined there
were seven factors specific to first-time visitors: desire to taste new wine
and food, enjoy the event, enhance social status, escape from routine life,
meet new people, spend time with family, and get to know the c­ elebrity
chefs and wine experts. These are clearly a mix of generic and event-­
specific benefits.
Generic leisure motivators predominate, meaning that if events
want to attract special-interest foodies and wine lovers a more refined
examination of motives and desired benefits is required. For example,
Saayman, Saayman, and Joubert (2012) did an expenditure-based seg-
mentation at a wine festival in South Africa and identified important dif-
ferences in the attributes of high and low-spenders. High spenders were
found to place more emphasis on the intrinsic motives for attending the
festival, reflecting findings of (Brown & Getz, 2005) that more highly
involved wine and food lovers are especially attracted to events and
expect a different range of benefits. Hu (2010) studied visitor expend-
iture at a food festival, finding that main motivations were generic
(social and family related) rather than food-specific; visitors were, how-
ever, judged to be somewhat more highly involved with food than gen-
eral food consumers, with special interests in cooking and taste judging.
Yuan, Morrison, Cai, Dodd, and Linton (2008) segmented wine-­festival
visitors on the basis of wine involvement and correlated three levels of
148 D. GETZ

involvement with motivation and satisfaction. The lesser involved were

found to be less critical, putting enjoyment ahead of wine-specific
benefits.
A potentially fruitful avenue to further explore involvement is through
its importance in lifestyle. Getz, Andersson, Vujicic, and Robinson
(2015) examined the event preferences of foodie segments within the
context of lifestyle, observing that the most highly involved valued
events the most and they preferred specific types of hands-on, food-event
experiences. Horng, Su, and So (2013) classified food-festival partici-
pants according to lifestyle, determining that it affected behavioral pat-
terns and behavioral intention.

Consumption of Wine and Food

Consumption might be thought of as the core experience, and indeed for
many people attending wine and food events, it is all about the tasting
and buying. More refined examination of what is important is required,
however. For example, Smith and Costello (2009) used importance-­
performance measures to assess satisfaction at a culinary event. It was
revealed that food and beverage prices, accessibility, convenient parking
and food tasting had high importance scores, yet low-performance meas-
ures, suggesting quality gaps to be filled.
Jung, Ineson, Kim, and Yap (2015), through research on a slow food
festival, indicated that all three festival attribute qualities (programs, food
and other amenities and entertainment) have direct impacts on the vis-
itors’ overall experience and satisfaction; however, only the quality of
food and other amenities contributed directly to revisit intention. Crotts,
Pan, and Raschid (2008) noted that of the likes and dislikes driving “cus-
tomer delight,” number 1 is wine diversity/tasting and the second is
great food (sampling and variety).

Entertainment
Entertainment usually accompanies wine and food consumption, and the
event that combines the two expands its appeal. Entertainment can take
many forms, and if the cultural components described under “authentic-
ity” are not interpreted they might very well have only an entertainment
(as opposed to learning) value. Surprise gives added value, and facili-
tating social experiences among friends and family is highly desirable.
 11 WINE AND FOOD EVENTS: EXPERIENCES AND IMPACTS 149

Visitors often refer to “having fun” as a reflection of the hedonism,

and sometimes revelry, that accompanies festival and wine/food event
attendance.
Wan and Chan (2013) concluded that eight factors affected tourists’
satisfaction levels: location and accessibility; food; venue/facility; envi-
ronment/ambience; service; entertainment; timing; and festival size.
Creating a total tourism experience is therefor recommended. Charters
and Mitchell (2014) highlighted a strong association between wine,
music and the arts; wineries in particular have recognized its value in
promoting a sophisticated, luxury image through the hosting of music
concerts and art exhibits. A focus on the lifestyles of food and wine
lovers is therefore appropriate for purposes of target marketing and
­
understanding motivations.

Learning
Learning is often the most important element to the highly involved
wine or food consumer. This encompasses hands-on experiences lead-
ing to the mastery of techniques (e.g., viticulture, wine blending,
cooking, food and wine pairing). Instruction by experts has become pop-
ular (especially with celebrity chefs and winemakers), story-telling is an
option, and perhaps competitions fulfill learning needs. Picking grapes,
wild-food scavenging and other novel events are examples of combin-
ing activity, consumption and learning. Learning theory suggests several
modes available to wine and food events: visual, auditory, reading and
writing, and experiential or kinesthetic. Interpretation is generally essen-
tial, especially for conveying authentic cultural traditions such as recipes
and preferred foodstuffs, or telling educational stories about local grape
varieties and wine styles.
Dodd et al. (2006) emphasized the value of events in enabling young
people to learn about wine, as an antecedent to becoming wine con-
sumers. As identified in the literature, opportunities to learn more about
wines are created by personal contact with the winemakers themselves
(Roberts & Sparks, 2006). Kruger, Rootenberg, and Ellis (2013, p. 448)
advocated that “….winery managers should consider providing educa-
tion opportunities for smaller groups of wine tourists to learn about dif-
ferent wines, the culture and history of wine, the history of wine cellars
and how to use food and wine to complement each other.”
150 D. GETZ

Getz and Robinson (2014a) studied food lovers and concluded that
(p. 670), “…it would be wrong to think that food tourists are mostly
interested in the act of eating. For foodies, the eating experience is in
equal parts cognitive (learning about culture and cuisine, with authentic-
ity essential), affective (socializing with partners and friends; communitas
with like-minded foodies), and appropriate activity (especially fine din-
ing and eating, and learning at special events).” Getz, Andersson et al.
(2015, p. 417) conducted a large-scale, international survey of food
lovers and reported that the highly involved foodies have “A high pro-
pensity to attend food-related events and to travel for food-related event
experiences… The constant desire to learn is reflected in the events pre-
ferred by foodies, with the highly involved and well-traveled “Dynamic
Foodies” segment being much more interested in the category we called
Learning events.”

Authenticity
The final element in the model is authenticity. Robinson and Clifford
(2012) discussed the various interpretations of this concept, a discourse
beyond the scope of this article. However, there is no doubt from
numerous published sources that having an authentic experience is both
important to event attendees and tourists and to destinations and food/
wine events in their marketing. Anthropologist Lucy Long (2003) pos-
ited that authenticity is a central issue in culinary tourism. Mason and
Paggiaro (2009) argued that tourists are seeking authentic and unique
experiences and the consumption of local food and beverages brings
the tourist closer to the host culture. MacDonald and Deneault (2001,
p. 13) claimed that many tourists hope to “immerse themselves in the
culture they are visiting through authentic and engaging experiences
with people, cuisine, wine and other cultural activities.”
Research findings also suggest that food and wine festivals can pro-
mote the authenticity of destinations (Park et al., 2008). Robinson and
Clifford (2007) believed that food services can augment overall event
authenticity through differentiation, association and as a quality control
mechanism, while and Robinson and Clifford (2012) concluded that
servicescape is a better predictor of satisfaction than perceived authen-
ticity; perceived authenticity related to provenance, naming and status of
cook/cooking process.
 11 WINE AND FOOD EVENTS: EXPERIENCES AND IMPACTS 151

An Impact Model for Wine and Food Events

A great deal of attention has been given to the impacts of wine and
food tourism, but less so on wine and food events. As well, the litera-
ture is predominantly in the quantitative, positivistic paradigm and has
concentrated on imputed benefits—not costs or critical discourse. Often
ignored are environmental and health issues related to consumption of
food and alcohol, and safety issues that are in part common to all events
but with the added element of deliberate alcohol consumption. There is
no evidence of ecological footprint analysis applied specifically to food
and wine events, although Andersson, Jutbring, and Lundberg (2013)
calculated a substantial reduction in the footprint of a music festival
when it went vegetarian.
Events add to the overall pros and cons of developing wine and food
tourism, but they generate peak demand periods that can impose spe-
cial costs (e.g., policing, temporary infrastructure) and strain accommo-
dation and services in a community. Events can have the most positive
tourism impacts when held in low-demand periods, although for wineries
the animation role of event, directed at attracting new and repeat cus-
tom, can be beneficial all year round.
Early research on wine tourism was conducted in the 1990s. For
example, Dodd (1995) examined reasons for wineries to get involved
with tourism. Hall, Sharples, Mitchell, Macionis, and Cambourne
(2003) in Wine Tourism Around the World discussed a range of poten-
tial impacts. In the book Food and Wine Festivals Around the World
(Hall and Sharples, 2008), the chapters cover the full range of imputed
and desired outcomes, including Hede’s detailed examination of fes-
tival stakeholders. Getz (2000) in the book Explore Wine Tourism:
Management, Development and Destinations described the imputed
benefits of wine tourism to the wine industry, destinations and host
communities.
Carlsen and Charters, in the book Global Wine Tourism: Research,
Management and Marketing (2006, p. 11) commented “The substantial
social and economics benefits of wine festivals and events are not realized
incidentally, but need to be carefully planned, managed and monitored
to ensure that the visitors’ and stakeholders’ involvement is optimized.”
In that book, wine tourism is variously described as impacting on wine
sales at cellar doors and post-sampling, providing memorable visitor
152 D. GETZ

experiences, influencing winery and destination image and contributing

to sustainable development.
Outcomes are observable consequences of the event, while impacts
are perceived. That is why attendees are frequently asked about their
motivations, experiences, realized benefits, at-event activities, perceived
quality of program and service, satisfaction and future intentions. This
form of evaluation reveals much about impacts on the individual or
group (they are intrinsic, psychological, felt effects), but separate efforts
are required to determine what people think about social, cultural or
environmental effects. Research on perceived impacts, whether they are
believed to be good or bad, and from whose perspective, is a necessary
complement to market research.
The tourism/economic perspective is the most researched, and it cov-
ers impacts in a hierarchical manner for the events, venues (e.g., winer-
ies), destinations and countries. Most of the extant literature pertains to
the simple estimation of visitor impacts, the logic of which is backed by
numerous case studies and comparisons: Wine and food events attract
tourists and their spending constitutes “new money” for the destination.
The tourism perspective has also been extended to consider effects on
destination image and brand.
Although the potential positive effects of event tourism are well
understood, there is no theory that can accurately predict outcomes, as
too many variables have to be considered (e.g., what are the market areas
covered, the segments attracted, the length of stay, etc.) and furthermore
there can be no correlation made between estimated economic impacts
and the costs or benefits accruing to all stakeholders, as these require
quite different evaluation criteria. Residents, for example, might not be
happy about an influx of tourists, even though it is good for local busi-
ness. Environmental considerations also have to be part of impact evalua-
tion. Increasingly, green operations and a sustainability plan are essential
for all events, and numerous cities and destinations are pursuing more
comprehensive sustainable development plans.
The use of logic models is helpful in the absence of predictive the-
ory. The planner and evaluator must describe what they want to happen
(goals), or expect to happen, plus specify performance criteria (or key
performance indicators). Figure 11.2 is a simple logic model that sum-
marizes desired impacts from several points of view, but it is not intended
to be comprehensive of all possible perspectives on costs and benefits.
 11 WINE AND FOOD EVENTS: EXPERIENCES AND IMPACTS 153

PURPOSE: CO-CREATE A UNIQUE,

THE PROGRAMME; ON-SITE DESIRED OUTCOMES
MEMORABLE EXPERIENCE TO ATTRACT
EXPERIENCES
TARGET SEGMENTS

• Co-create • Sampling and • Loyalty to event (word

experiences to consumption of of mouth and repeat
satisfy generic and wine and food visits)
event-specific (increase • Brand recognition and
(targeted) benefits; expenditure) adoption
• Provide symbolic • Green operations • Continuing sales of
meaning for the implemented wine and food
highly involved • Positive image of
• Quality programme
(iconic status) venues and
and services to destination leads to
• Co-brand with satisfy all guests future visits
destinations • Guests a—ain their • Equitable distribution
(Hallmark status?) desired benefits: of costs and benefits
• Meet green memorable • Evaluation leads to
standards experiences and event improvements
• Confirm to personal • Stronger supply and
sustainable development value chains;
development • Positive images economic
policies formed of event, development
• Implement social venue & destination • Cultural and
responsibility • Perceived community
authenticity of development
• Foster business
networking, adding product, cultural • Quality of life
dimensions and area enhanced
value to the
economy

Fig. 11.2 Logic model for event goals and desired outcomes

Event venues (e.g., wineries), cities and destinations, industry and pro-
fessional groups (e.g., chefs, restaurateurs) will all have different aims.
Logic models are planning and evaluation tools, employing a goal-­
attainment approach. The inherent limitation is that the goals and
evaluation might be too narrow to measure externalities and unin-
tended outcomes. The model starts with the intent to co-create an
attractive event with appeal to a variety of audiences with generic and
targeted benefits. The more exclusive the event, the more it targets the
highly involved, but for most wine and food events there will inevitably
be a mix of benefit segments. The event experience itself must provide
high-quality food, wine and services, and engaging and/or novel atmos-
phere to encourage sampling and spending and to ensure a satisfying
experience for all guests/customers.
A useful technique is importance-performance measurement to
gauge both motivations (what did you expect, what attracted you?) and
154 D. GETZ

evaluation of experience (how do you rate performance?). Post-event,

various desired outcomes include loyalty as measured by future inten-
tions (recommendations and repeat visits), brand awareness and adop-
tion leading to ongoing sales and positive image. Additional elements
for this kind of planning/evaluation model could include perceptions
of authenticity (of importance to destinations and brands), social media
and mass-media impacts on reputation, or positioning considerations in a
competitive environment.
The model can be modified for sustainability, encompassing goals per-
taining to long-term viability, greening (e.g., reduce, re-use, recycle) and
social responsibility. Taking a triple-bottom-line approach, the planners/
producers of wine and food events will expand their scope to include a
wider range of external stakeholders, especially residents of the host com-
munity, and a wider range of externalities including potential social, eco-
nomic and ecological impacts. The more stakeholders that are involved,
the more that externalities will be included (such as traffic, noise, habitat
damage, pollution) and unintended outcomes revealed.
The model is based on available literature, both what has been found
to occur (these are claims to knowledge in an ontological sense) and the
desired outcomes of wine and food events. The difference is significant,
mainly because events are often used as instruments of public policy and
corporate/private-business strategy which gives rise to claims about ben-
efits and these need to be substantiated through research. The generic
outcomes are the same as for other tourist-oriented events: image
enhancement linked to place marketing, animation of places and institu-
tions, attracting tourists who otherwise would not visit, and—in certain
cases—acting as catalysts for other forms of development or infrastruc-
ture improvements. Of greater interest in this chapter are the unique
outcomes that can be associated with wine and food events.

Collaboration Among Stakeholders: The Business Perspective

Wine and food festivals are frequently collaborative efforts, with local
businesses playing key roles as suppliers and hosts, and a number of
authors have provided insights. Regarding trade shows, Hall and
Mitchell (2008, p. 210) stated that the industry wine event is “a form
of short-lived business cluster.” Alonso and Bressan (2013) identi-
fied potential opportunities for local food and wine sectors, particu-
larly through education and promotion (supply-side stakeholders), and
 11 WINE AND FOOD EVENTS: EXPERIENCES AND IMPACTS 155

positive word-of-mouth and future patronage (demand-side stakehold-

ers). Capitello, Agnoli, Galati, Begalli, and Crescimanno (2014) argued
that the changing role of the trade fair is well recognized and exhibitors
emphasize the fair’s importance in terms of establishing relationships,
strengthening business image and interacting with professional visitors.
Torquati et al. (2014) believed that the strength of the Eurochocolate
festival lies in the ability to draw together similar and different busi-
nesses, creating a network. Haven-Tang (2014) studied supply and value
chains, providing insights “…into the complexities of promoting the
local connection through sustainable local food and drink supply net-
works in relation to destination development.” Hede (2008) developed
a stakeholder map for wine and food festivals and discussed in detail the
sponsors of the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival. Sharples and Lyons
(2008) focused on success factors for the Ludlow Marches Food and
Drink Festival, with emphasis on local funding and partnerships, within
the frame of Slow Food.

Product Branding
Festivals and events present opportunities for visitors to sample wine and
food, but the sampling ideally should lead to brand recognition and adop-
tion, thereby stimulating future sales and word-of-mouth recommendations.
Axelsen and Swan (2010) concluded that perceptions of quality of wine in
a festival context were influenced by unique experiences, the atmosphere,
hype and glamor, thereby reinforcing the need for an integrated design
based on knowledge of the consumer’s motives and preferences. Kruger
et al. (2013) suggested that winemakers should be present, and learning
opportunities featured, to engage visitors and generate brand preferences.

Venue and Destination Branding

The venue can brand itself through events, and this is a particular oppor-
tunity for wineries. Hubbard, Mandabach, McDowall, and Vanleeuwen
(2012) linked perceptions of quality and overall satisfaction about a wine
festival to loyalty (i.e., future intention to return). Blichfeldt and Halkier
(2014) studied place branding through the stakeholder collaboration
involved in producing a food event. Houghton (2008a) determined that
a wine festival was an effective way to create winery loyalty among those
consumers with a high predilection to purchase wine.
156 D. GETZ

Lee and Arcodia (2011) argued that “…regional food festivals can play a
decisive role for destination branding. Activities using local food and activ-
ities promoting the regions’ attractions were suggested to be offered by
food festivals for enhancing the impact of festivals for destination branding
and improving the positive image of the destination and local food.” Yuan
et al. (2008) perceived quality and satisfaction at wine festivals generate
product and destination awareness and intentions to buy the wines and visit
the wineries exhibiting at the event.
It is generally believed that wine and food events help destina-
tion branding efforts and encourage new and repeat visits. Mykletun
(2014) reported on the Stavanger Gladmat Festival saying it “..is rooted
within and supports the strivings to make the region the Food County
of Norway, an ambitious undertaking with many strong players, but also
strong competitors in other regions.” Dimitrova and Yoviva (2014) from
a case study of “Zimnitza fest” revealed a twofold function of the event:
“it is a product (brand) offering by itself and could be included in tour-
ist packages, thus representing the concept of co-branding, i.e. multiple
sponsor co-branding strategies are suitable to be adopted; it is a compos-
ite element of the tourist destination itself and thus could serve as a stra-
tegic PR tool for building the destination brand of the Northeast tourist
region in Bulgaria and worldwide.”

Satisfaction; Loyalty to Event: Future Intentions, Recommendations

A considerable effort has been made by researchers to link antecedents
with on-site event behavior and experiences to satisfaction, then forward
to future intentions including loyalty. Whether the use of path analysis
and structural equation modeling generates theory is open to question,
but insights are certainly provided on the importance of event elements
to visitors. Kim, Kim, and Goh (2011) said of this approach “The current
study provides an integrated approach to understand the effect of food
tourists’ behavior based on perceived value and satisfaction as it relates to
their intention to revisit using the modified theory of reasoned action….”
Wan and Chan (2013) determined that eight factors influenced sat-
isfaction levels at a food festival and led to intention to revisit and rec-
ommend the event to others. Smith, Costello, and Muenchen (2010)
constructed a causal model to generate these propositions: (1) food,
event novelty and socialization were push motivations identified for
attending a culinary event; (2) food product, support services and essen-
tial services were pulled motivations and had a significant predictive
 11 WINE AND FOOD EVENTS: EXPERIENCES AND IMPACTS 157

affect on overall satisfaction; and (3) overall satisfaction had a significant

relationship with outcome variables: word-of-mouth behavior and repeat
patronage intentions. Rigatti-Luchini and Mason (2010) concluded: “In
addition, experiential quality and perceived value were found to have
direct and indirect impacts on visitors’ future behavioural intentions.”

Destination Impacts: Authenticity, Image, Reputation, Future Visits

Getz (2000), in his book Explore Wine Tourism, discussed the major
tourism-related roles of wine festivals, being that of tourist attraction
(especially to overcome low-demand periods), image maker for the desti-
nation and catalyst for infrastructure development.
Alonso (2016) found that a region’s food stakeholders were instru-
mental “…in contributing to adding value and improving the local food
culture… with potential benefits for local food growers, hospitality and
tourism sectors, and residents.” Telfer (2000) noted that wine festivals
provide additional sources of income for wine regions in North America.
From a tourism perspective, the food and wine event has to attract
visitors, with emphasis on overnight, high-yield foodies and wine lov-
ers who travel because of the event. This generates new revenue for the
area, with additional implications for image enhancement and branding.
Cela, Knowles-Lankford, and Lankford (2007, p. 171) looked specifi-
cally at adding value to rural areas: “A way to enhance the benefits of
tourism is to expand the economic linkages by increasing the amount
of local food used in the industry. In this respect, rural communities are
using food festivals to promote local commodities.” They also estimated
local economic value of food festivals: “The total economic impact of
visitors (n = 22,806) in local food festivals in terms of sales is almost
$2.6 million; in terms of personal income is $1.4 million; and in terms
of employment is 51 jobs.” Adeyinka-Ojo and Khoo-Lattimore (2013)
studied a slow food and cultural festival in Bario as a high-yield strategy
for rural tourism with regard to value adding.

Benefits to Residents
Economic and tourism development is based on the presumption that
benefits are created for residents, from jobs to new leisure opportunities.
Rusher (2003) viewed the Bluff Oyster and Southland Seafood Festival
(New Zealand) as an entertainment event linked to regional identity,
158 D. GETZ

cultural values and food. It also generated economic benefits that

­contributed to the region’s economic development strategy.
Kim (2015) commented that a festival serves as a platform for (re)
negotiating and retaining regional and cultural identities while “…show-
casing an enhanced sense of belonging and community pride.” The vol-
untary participation of youth provides an educational benefit.

Psycho-Social Benefits
The final consideration is the effect of event attendance on the individual
guest or consumer, often ignored in wine and food-tourism research, but
a primary consideration in generic event studies. Organ, Koenig-Lewis,
Palmer, and Probert (2015) considered food festivals as agents of change
for visitors, linking involvement with engagement, emotions evoked and
future purchasing intentions. Meretse, Mykletun, and Einarsen (2016),
from studying a food festival, concluded: “The event has gained a “folk
festival” ambience, overriding the initial intention of the event and con-
tributing to the well-being of the regional residents.”

Conclusions
Two aspects of wine and food events have been examined in this chapter.
First, an experience design model was illustrated, and through a review
of the literature a number of important conclusions have been drawn.
Generic benefits often dominate in these types of events (i.e., socializ-
ing, escapism, entertainment, hedonism, novelty seeking) and of course,
consumption of food and wine are at the core. However, more targeted
benefits are needed for wine and food lovers, taking design and mar-
keting into the realm of identity, involvement and social worlds. Events
designed for general audiences will focus on providing a fun atmos-
phere for consumption, socializing and entertainment, but to attract
highly involved wine lovers and foodies additional, focused benefits must
be provided: learning and mastery of techniques (the hands-on experi-
ences), aesthetic appreciation and creativity, and authenticity as mani-
fested through interpretation, celebration and expressions of heritage.
In the second part, a logic model was presented to reflect typical
goals and desired outcomes associated with wine and food events. The
desired impacts include benefits to individuals, residents, venues, agricul-
ture/viticulture and destinations. Many goals and impacts are common
 11 WINE AND FOOD EVENTS: EXPERIENCES AND IMPACTS 159

to festivals and events in general, with the unique ones related to food
and wine tasting, consumption and food and wine as influences on brand
preferences. By their nature, food and wine events are of particular value
in rural areas where the value chain can be directly enhanced.
Overall, predictive capabilities are weak owing to a lack of theory.
The literature certainly demonstrates the potential benefits, and ways
to enhance them, but it cannot be concluded that any given event will
achieve its goals. Market intelligence is necessary, innovative design and
attention by planners at all levels to ensuring that events do realize the
desired benefits. It has to be kept in mind that event experiences are
co-created, with events making value propositions that only apply when
guests or customers enjoy themselves.
Meta-analysis is needed, but the absence of similar methods and
measures makes this almost impossible. Until a standard evaluation and
impact assessment method is applied, regions and countries will be una-
ble to draw firm conclusions from many research efforts. In the absence
of predictive theory, logic modeling can be employed based on conclu-
sions drawn in many settings.
A number of research needs and fruitful lines of investigation have
been identified. The important place of events, food and wine in lifestyles
has been revealed but remains a largely unexplored area. Similarly, bene-
fits of wine and food events to residents and individuals have only been
touched upon in the literature. An abundance of path analyses and struc-
tural equation modeling has been published, and it remains to be clar-
ified if these cumulatively build theory or merely reflect the established
expectations of how motivation, experience, satisfaction and behavioral
intentions are linked.

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 CHAPTER 12

Pouring New Wines into Old Wineskins?

Sub-regional Identity and the Case
of the Basket Range Festival

Jonathan Staggs and Matthew Brenner

Introduction
One of the main challenges facing the management and marketing of
wine tourism, especially in relatively young wine regions, is the determi-
nation of what ultimately makes a region attractive to wine consumers
and/or wine tourists (Hall, Sharples, Cambourne, & Macionis, 2009).
Regional actors—such as individual wine producers, associated food and
beverage producers, and regional tourist boards—are often required to
work collectively to compete with other regions and attract wine con-
sumers and tourists. We argue that a regional approach requires a com-
mon perspective and understanding amongst producers within the
region of what the region stands for (and what it does not), and what

J. Staggs (*) · M. Brenner

University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, Australia
e-mail: j.staggs@uq.edu.au
M. Brenner
e-mail: m.brenner@uq.edu.au

© The Author(s) 2019 165

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_12
166 J. STAGGS AND M. BRENNER

their products represent (and do not). It is not until this understanding

is collectively solidified that a shared meaning and identity can be con-
structed as a basis to attract potential consumers through a coherent
regional brand (Johnson & Bruwer, 2007). A coherent collective identity
should be reflected in a common perception by the wine producers of
what the region intrinsically represents and this understanding should be
reflected in the finished product and/or wine experience of the region.
We argue that shared meaning and a coherent regional identity are par-
ticularly important for ‘New World’ wine producers where appellation
systems have not already forged identity through tradition.
This chapter draws upon social identity theory to explore identity in
an Australian wine region. We use a single case study of a sub-regional
artisan collective in their inaugural wine festival held in April 2017.
We argue that attracting social media interest and visitors to a region
through a festival is a tactical move to support the growth and pro-
motion of a sub-region within the Adelaide Hills in Australia. We also
argue that the festival provides an important opportunity for the produc-
ers to develop shared meanings and express their social identity about
their craft. Festivals are an important research opportunity to capture
consumer experience (Quadri-Felitti & Fiore, 2012) and regional iden-
tity within a single case study. This single case study of an artisan wine
festival answers the following research question, ‘To what extent does the
Basket Range Festival express a coherent and legitimate identity to wine
tourists and beyond?’

Theoretical Framework
Identity was originally theorised in regard to how individuals cognitively
define themselves in relation to both their own unique personal attrib-
utes (personal identity), as well as in relation to their perceived member-
ship or belonging in certain social groups (social identity) (Tajfel, 1972).
Early research in relation to identity focused on how social factors per-
petuated individuals’ cognitive and social beliefs about racism, prejudice,
and discrimination [Tajfel, 1959, 1969, 1974]). The utility of the iden-
tity construct was further demonstrated in later research which explored
the construct of identity in relation to the workplace (Albert & Whetten,
1985; Ashforth & Mael, 1989). More recently from a geographical per-
spective research has explored the construct of identity in relation to
 12 POURING NEW WINES INTO OLD WINESKINS? … 167

social entities such as industrial, clusters (Beebe, Haque, Jarvis, Kenney,

& Patton, 2012; Staber, 2010; Staber & Sautter, 2010).
Industrial clusters are traditionally thought to encompass a group
of related organisations which are within a particular geographic area
which share a common market and labour pool. These clusters encom-
pass numerous organisations that have similar access to supplies, main-
tain a common technological perspective, and frequently participate in
knowledge sharing (Staber, 2010). Research which has studied clus-
ters has primarily reported that a shared identity provides the beneficial
effects of reducing transactions costs, promoting collective learning,
encouraging accountability, and providing continuity (Staber, 2010).
Collective identification unifies members of the cluster by providing a
clear understanding of who they are collectively as a group (Romanelli &
Khessina, 2005). Beebe et al. (2012) provided several examples of such
clusters including Silicon Valley, Champagne, Bordeaux, and Wall Street.
Scholars have theorised geographic regions such as those described
above ‘acquire and maintain identities based on the degree to which both
internal and external audiences develop shared understandings about the
key features of life and work in the region’ (Romanelli & Khessina, 2005,
p. 346). The formation of identity encompasses complex social construc-
tions which evolve over time as the result of interactions between both
internal and external actors (Beebe et al., 2012; Romanelli & Khessina,
2005).
Beebe et al. (2012) propose that the identity formation encompasses
two observable processes. The first process encompasses a recognition
and awareness by internal actors of their shared interests, as well as an
ability to act on these interests through collective action. Beebe et al.
(2012) maintain that internal cohesion is a vital factor which enables
collective groups to heighten the awareness of their collective identity
amongst individuals outside of the collective group. The second process
of identity formation encompasses the recognition of an identity’s legit-
imacy. Legitimacy is attained by external actors affirming the social/and
or economic value of the collective groups’ identity (Beebe et al., 2012;
Brubaker & Cooper, 2000; Kennedy, 2008). As external actors interact
with members of the collective group or social entity, a shared under-
standing about the key features of this collective/entity are forged. This
shared understanding is impacted by such things as the perception of
168 J. STAGGS AND M. BRENNER

external actors, the sharing of information between internal and exter-

nal actors, and the continuity of experience by external actors (Romanelli
& Khessina, 2005). As a result of this common understanding between
internal and external actors, an identity emerges.
The proximal nature of industrial clusters, and in this study’ case
a wine sub-region, provides not only many benefits to the internal
actors within the cluster, it also may contribute to the development of
a collective cluster identity. The benefits of this proximal include both
the increased ability to not only share knowledge quickly (Storper &
Venables, 2004), but also this context provides more frequent interac-
tions in which new ideas can emerge and be developed (Cooke, 2001).
These interactions ultimately help to determine and maintain a coher-
ent social code or rules of conduct for the collective cluster (Gertler,
2003; Tallman, Jenkins, Henry, & Pinch, 2004). This determina-
tion or knowledge will then be reflected and expressed in the norms,
behaviours, and acceptable practices which reflect the social code,
that initially created and ultimately guides a clusters collective iden-
tity (Beebe et al., 2012; Cooke, Uranga, & Etxebarria, 1998; Gertler,
2003).
Scholars have argued persuasively for the positive commercial impact
that regional branding can play (Bruwer & House, 2003; Johnson &
Bruwer, 2007). For producers within a regional grouping, a collective
identity can support expertise, knowledge sharing, and an important
degree of like-mindedness that leads to a degree of regional coherence
(Keeble, Lawson, Moore, & Wilkinson, 1999). Yet with all the advan-
tages that a coherent identity might bring such as territorial reputation,
scholars have noted how this can impact on the producer’s capacity to
differentiate themselves in the market (Patchell, 2008). It is also diffi-
cult to develop a coherent identity while the pressures of running busi-
nesses in the competitive wine industry remain. These include domestic
and international competition, lack of coordination, fragmentation, and
a general lack of resources necessary for marketing or even to main-
tain a traditional cellar door. This is particular true in an emerging wine
region characterised by producers that might face a ‘liability of newness’
(Stinchcombe, 1965). For these economic reasons, a sub-regional wine
festival can serve to strengthen and express a sub-regional identity to
wine consumers and tourists. The next section explains the methodology
adopted and use of a case study of the Basket Range festival to explore
these theoretical processes.
 12 POURING NEW WINES INTO OLD WINESKINS? … 169

Methodology
We used a single case study to develop a preliminary set of insights into
the management and marketing of wine regions. The Basket Range is a
sub-region, within the broader Adelaide Hills wine region of Australia,
that is increasingly becoming an attractive wine producing region in both
domestic and international markets. This case study focuses on how the
Basket Range Wine Festival reflects and celebrates the sub-regional iden-
tity of this emerging wine producing area and influences a re-casting of
the Australian wine identity. From our theoretical introduction, we were
interested in collecting data that related to two important theoretical
components around identity formation. Firstly, we sought evidence of
shared interests and collective action in and around the Basket Range in
the Adelaide Hills wine region. Sources of data might include meetings,
regional websites or social media posts, locally developed wine trails, and
formal and informal wine networks. Through these sources, the research
team identified where different actors within the region had developed a
shared understanding about their wine, about their area, and how they
saw themselves in the broader Australian and international wine industry.
Secondly, we sought evidence that this region was becoming recog-
nised as ‘legitimate’ by external actors such as wine critics, tourism asso-
ciations, and local or state governments. The sources of data around
legitimacy might be wine reviews, government grants, and social media
posts during or after regional visits. Through these sources, the research
team developed a better idea of whether the wine, the wine producers,
and the areas in general was viewed positively or as ‘legitimate’ by exter-
nal actors. We wanted to determine therefore whether the regional iden-
tity of the Basket Range was both coherent and legitimate and thereby
had the capacity to attract wine tourism. We believe that this data around
the process of identity formation, along with our participation the Basket
Range festival would help answer our research question: ‘To what extent
does the Basket Range Festival express a coherent and legitimate identity
to wine tourists and beyond?’

Data Collection Methods

We firstly undertook desktop research on the Australian wine industry.
This sensitised the research team to the Australian wine industry land-
scape, including which regions and producers are at the centre of the
170 J. STAGGS AND M. BRENNER

industry (Hensmen, 2003). We then examined the development of the

Adelaide Hills wine region using backdated material up to ten years.
This examination included all industry publications in relation to both
the Adelaide Hills region, and the Basket Range sub-region. The publi-
cations gathered included various wine publications, including backdated
copies of the critically acclaimed ‘Gourmet Wine Traveller’ magazine, the
‘James Halliday Wine Companion’, and other authoritative works on the
Australian wine industry. We also collated wine tourist publications to
help identify leading wine producers of the region. In total, we collected
over 250 pages of data relating to the Adelaide Hills wine region.
Secondly, the research team travelled to the Adelaide Hills and par-
ticipated in the Basket Range festival. Two researchers participated in
the festival and took extensive field notes. Field observations enabled the
team to capture important insights about the Basket Range and to set
up interviews. Thirdly, the research team also tracked social media post
in relation to the festival—‘The Festival at Basket Range’. We exam-
ined 70 posts consisting of pictures and comments which provided
unique insights in the lead up to and after the festival. This additional
public data source helped triangulate a number of the observations that
we made and provided interesting insights on wine tourist experience.
Importantly, the social media platform we examined has over 700 fol-
lowers and our analysis revealed a number of industry ‘gatekeepers’ who
liked these 70 posts, helping to validate the external recognition of the
Basket Range. Lastly, we conducted six telephone interviews with par-
ticipating producers and organisers of the festival. The interviews were
semi-structured and lasted between 30 and 60 minutes. The interviews
allowed respondents to describe their thoughts on the festival itself,
as well as reflect on how they felt the festival did or did not reflect the
Basket Ranges regional identity.

Data Analysis
The research team independently undertook free coding to allow themes
to emerge. The aim of this approach was to identify any distinctive themes
within the data. This approach enabled a degree of sense-making around
the data and did not impose theory on reality, but instead to use the
data as a source of theory building (Eisenhardt & Grabner, 2007). The
research team wrote analytical memos to develop these emergent themes
around our experience at the festival. The research team met several times
 12 POURING NEW WINES INTO OLD WINESKINS? … 171

to discuss these memos in order to establish a set of overarching themes

that reflected the identity of the Basket Range. In this process, we identi-
fied how the identity of the Basket Range compared to other regions, or
indeed the national wine identity. This led us to consider the background
to the Australian wine industry to help situate the efforts of the Basket
Range to develop their own unique identity. This next section will describe
the Australian wine identity and explain how the identity of the Basket
Range has developed in the context of this national identity.

Australian Wine Identity

There is little argument that one of the great strengths of the Australian
wine industry is the modern scientific approach that has helped drive
Australia’s wine export success. This approach is underpinned by exper-
tise of the Australian Wine Research Institute which has led to the con-
siderable growth in the export market of Australian wine and has also
raised the profile of Australian wines internationally. However, this mod-
ern, scientific approach is not without consequences. A large proportion
of the $2.3 billion dollars generated from Australia wine exports comes
from wines which are in low price or bulk wine segment of the industry
(Wine Australia, 2018). These figures reflect a perception internationally
of the Australian wine industry ability to produce a large and consistent
product but not necessarily a premium product which is perceived to be
unique and linked to ‘terroir’ or ‘place’.
The modern and scientific, but sometimes counter-productive, image
of Australian wine is something that the Australian wine industry’s gov-
erning body, Wine Australia is tackling. Wine Australia has spearheaded
a several initiatives to improve the profile of Australia wines. These
initiatives have focused on promoting the distinct and unique wines
of Australia. These initiatives include the 2013 initiative of ‘Savour’
which was aimed at showcasing the quality, diversity, and regionality
of Australian wine. Other initiatives such as First Families of Wine ini-
tiative aims to promote the multi-generational quality wine produc-
ers in Australian, akin to a ‘First Growth’ status of Bordeaux wineries.
These initiatives have seen some success in fostering the growth of the
Australian premium wine category exports in recent years. This means
that the Australian wine identity is changing slowly, but arguably not
quickly and dramatically enough. The overarching challenge is whether
to pour new wine into these old wineskins.
172 J. STAGGS AND M. BRENNER

Shift to Natural Wine, Non-intervention

An arguably promising yet equally controversial direction for the
Australian wine industry is a shift from its modern industrial moor-
ings to a natural winemaking style which is marked by less interven-
tion in wine production process. These are not new techniques as the
natural wine movement hearkens back hundreds if not thousands of
years to the traditional Georgian style of wine production. Reflecting
this upswing in ancient production techniques, an increasing number
of Australian producers are now choosing to opt out of modern wine
production approaches for a more natural approach. This trend was
arguably catalysed by the establishment of the Natural Selection
Theory, an artisan wine collective consisting of the late Sam Hughes,
Tom Shobrook, Anton Von Klopper, and James Erskine. This inno-
vative collective as well as the annual Rootstock wine festival is recog-
nised for pioneering the natural wine movement in Australia. While this
­collective—Natural Selection Theory—has since disbanded, the growth
of artisan and natural wine in Australia continues to increase marked
by a shared philosophy around non-intervention in wine production.
Their impact on the Australian wine industry is reflected in the follow-
ing quote:

They put fun and creativity back into an industry that was a little stagnant
and lifeless. They certainly built a platform on which the rest of us can
build and jump upon. (Patrick Sullivan)1

For some wine critics, the trend is ‘intrinsic to setting the stage for
new, colorful and qualitative perceptions of Australia’.2 More recently,
Wine Australia has profiled the artisan wine movement through the
‘Artisans of Australia’ initiative, a set of high-profile events in one of the
Australia’s biggest export markets, the UK This movement and these
particular labels are becoming popular with their non-traditional back-
grounds and not-conformist approaches to winemaking and marketing,
which is reflected in not only in the consumable product, but also the
physical appearance of the bottle (i.e. non-traditional product markings,
titles, and the use of waxed closures).

1 In Alice Feiring’s ‘Real Wine in the Land of Vivid Sunshine’.

2 Personal correspondence with Master of Wine.
 12 POURING NEW WINES INTO OLD WINESKINS? … 173

Case Study—The Basket Range

As a sub-region within the Adelaide Hills, the Basket Range is arguably
leading the way in Australian natural wine movement. The sub-region
is led by well-regarded wine producers who include Anton Von Klopper
(Lucy Margaux), Taras Ochota (Ochota Barrels), and James Erskine
(Jauma). This network of natural winemakers has led to a broader collec-
tive of artisan wine makers who call the Basket Range and neighbouring
subplots such as Norton Summit, Lenswood, and Ashton. This artisan
collective is arguably helping to reshape Australian wine identity. We use
the Basket Range festival as a unique opportunity to observe the lived
experience of the producers and their sub-regional identity.

Basket Range Festival

The Basket Range community ran an inaugural festival on Saturday, 8th
April 2017 at the local Basket Range cricket oval. The event brought
wine and food producers of the region and hosted over 1500 festival
attendees. While this was the first time the festival had been run, another
similar festival called the ‘Picnic at Marble Hill’ festival had been run-
ning for 7 years prior in the Adelaide Hills. The focus of this festival in
contrast to ‘Picnic at Marble Hill’ festival was to support Adelaide Hill’s
boutique winemakers and gourmet food producers who have made the
region renowned for its world-class products. When the previous site of
the Marble Hill festival was commercially redeveloped, the festival com-
mittee chose to develop the Basket Range festival in a new location and
with a new philosophy. This intent is expressed in the following public
quote by Brendon Keys of BK Wines:

So many wine events are like hard work and its all about the wrong thing,
whereas this is just cool people, good day, awesome music.

Findings
This section reports on the findings of our data analysis with perspec-
tives offered on the regional identity of the Basket Range generated from
the experience of the research team at the region’s inaugural wine festival
and from interviews with both conducted with key stakeholders of the
region.
174 J. STAGGS AND M. BRENNER

Firstly, a major theme across our data was the creation of a sense of
place that was developed through interactions between producers and
festival participants. In one of our observations of an interaction between
a wine producer at the festival and a wine tourist, the producer pointed
to one hill and said ‘All of the wines that I produce come from between
that mountain there to that mountain there’. The producer pointed out
clear geographical indicators to the wine tourist that created a sense of
sub-regional place, as well as a clear idea of what this producer ‘stood
for’. This kind of experience and interaction might be a common expe-
rience for a wine tourist in France and Italy where clear appellation sys-
tems apply. However for the Australian wine consumer and tourist, these
experiences have the potential to create a sense of ‘place’ as well as signif-
icant marketing impact (Hosany, 2012; Famularo, Bruwer, & Li, 2010).
This producer-tourist interaction situated at the local wine festival cre-
ated a profound link with place of production. Experiences such as these
may be an important way to attract tourists in a culture where a wine’s
sense of place or terroir is a poor cousin to its price or medals on its label
(Lockshin, Jarvis, Hauteville, & Perrouty, 2006).
Secondly, we observed a sub-regional identity around creativity and a
non-institutional approach to wine production which afforded producers a
great deal of freedom to carve out their future. This sub-regional identity
provides the opportunity space for producers to create their own ­identities
and outwork their own family and community values. Their identity is
closely intertwined with wine but not necessarily bound to tradition nor
the industry. This identity is reflected in the following quote:

We are not all generational winemakers, we’ve carved our own way, and
ended up in the Basket Range.

The implications of this kind of identity for wine tourists are potentially
new kinds of experience that contrast significantly to the traditional (and
arguably stuffy) cellar door experiences. The producers in the Basket
Range represent an eclectic mix, including surfers, skateboarders, chefs,
and seaweed scientists. We observed an interaction between a producer
and a festival participant where rather than be invited by the winemaker
to the cellar door after the festival, the participant was invited to ‘come
and have a skate’. In contrast to the cellar door, wine producers such as
these can represent their identity through festivals and other wine events,
arguably creating positive emotions and greater satisfaction (Mason &
 12 POURING NEW WINES INTO OLD WINESKINS? … 175

Paggiaro, 2012). As one of the Basket Range wine producers Taras

Ochota publically commented:

(We’re) Trying to involve other people and cook beautiful food, and drink
lovely wines, and have some amazing entertainment, because there’s so
many creative souls in this little community, you know… all of those beau-
tiful creatures just all getting together and having a little creative outlet.

Thirdly, we observed a potential paradox in the sub-regional identity

between the creativity and non-conformity of the region, and the pres-
sure to conform to the ideals of the natural wine movement. Our obser-
vations revealed that not all of the producers who are associated with
the Basket Range subscribe to the natural wine movement. From our
interviews, it became apparent that producers in the Basket Range vary
in their perspective on natural winemaking and non-intervention. This
insight first emerged during the festival in an interaction with one pro-
ducer who expressed some hesitation (speaking in a hushed tone) to call
all winemakers at the Basket Range festival ‘natural winemakers’. This
producer went on to explain that natural winemaking includes a high
degree of risk as you ‘learn to let go’. In follow-up interviews, we subse-
quently learned that not all producers in the Basket Range are prepared
to go to the same lengths to conform to the natural wine identity.
While there are a potential paradox and balancing act around natu-
ral wine identity, the sub-regional identity we observed was shared was
a respect for the land and for the fruit it produced. We heard of the sim-
plicity of production and its alignment with the natural cycle of nature
and minimal intervention. Wine was referred to at the festival as ‘juice’
which showed the emphasis on freshness and belief in not ‘overworking
the wine’ through the use of oak, filtration, and or sulphites. While the
wine world is divided about the role that sulphites should play in pre-
serving and making good, sound wines (Legeron, 2014), there was a
sense of agreement amongst members of the Basket Range community
that their sub-region was not defined by the use of sulphites. For one
producer, native regeneration was a way of outworking a philosophy of
production. Allowing their farm to return to its original condition and
range of tree species demonstrated a deep respect for the natural envi-
ronment without necessarily fully subscribing to a natural winemaking
philosophy. Another farming principle was biodynamics which allowed
producers to connect with other like-minded producers outside of the
176 J. STAGGS AND M. BRENNER

wine industry such as local dairy producers. The success of biodynamic

farming in industries alongside wine was seen to contribute to a positive
image and identity of the region.
Where the paradox around identity might not actually be with the
producers themselves but with the wine tourist. During the festival, we
observed a Japanese festival participant questioning why one of the pro-
ducers, a well-known large wine producer, was at the festival. It should
be noted that Japan is the largest consumer of natural wine in the world
outside of France, and we confirmed that this participant was a tourist
with high wine involvement who understood the world of natural wine.
This participant argued that the producer in question was not a natural
winemaker and to this festival participant, this producer did not reflect
what she perceived the regions wine identity to represent. When the
research team followed up with a number of respondents, they unani-
mously argued for the inclusion of this producer, arguing that this
producer had pioneered a focus on single-site wine production in the
region, especially in Lenswood which neighbours the Basket Range. This
producer did not produce natural wines but a strong viticultural philos-
ophy inculcated a sense of producer membership in the festival. The risk
remains however—consumers who see the festival and the sub-region of
the Basket Range as a natural wine event can call into question the mem-
bership of particular producers.
We observed a general consensus that the Basket Range stood for
small-scale, hand-made production based on passion, a high value placed
on the environment (and therefore the produce that came from it), and
a sense of a fun community. So, despite their differences, producers were
comfortable nonetheless to be associated in the Basket Range collective.
While there may be contentions at the level of winemaking, the social
entity of the Basket Range collective and those assembled at the Basket
Range festival subscribed to a general philosophy about being creative
producers with a strong sense of community. Furthermore, a respond-
ent stressed that they did not want the festival, nor the Basket Range, to
only be seen as a natural wine. They believed the event should reflect the
values of the region minimalism and respect which could be represented
and expressed in a variety of ways, not just through the use of sulphur.
They felt that the Basket Range represented a minimalistic philosophy
that was actually a broad church and the festival was not just about the
wine. The festival and the Basket Range were to show ‘respect for the
body, the environment, the community, and the world’.
 12 POURING NEW WINES INTO OLD WINESKINS? … 177

Festival Design Supporting Sub-regional Identity

As described in our methodology section, the inaugural Basket Range
festival provided an relevant context to explore a relatively non-institu-
tional identity of the region with the ability of the research team to gain
in an in-the-field perspectives from both internal actors (i.e. regional
winemakers) and external actors (i.e. festival attendees). We observed
strong and positive support for the Basket Range festival and strong con-
sumer sentiment. The festival was advertised as ‘the way a wine festival
ought to be’ which we argue supports the authentic, non-institutional
identity of the Basket Range region. We observed in the marketing of
the festival and in comments during the festival an alignment and syn-
ergy between the perceived identity of the internal actors of the region
and how the festival was designed and delivered. Through our analysis
of the design and deliver of the festival, we seek to present and attrib-
ute several experiential factors which represent the authentic and
­non-institutional identity of the region.
Firstly, there was a lack of commercial branding which is a hallmark or
institutional form of wine events. Organisers of the Basket Range festi-
val wanted to create a stripped back feel with a large ‘teepee’ tent under
which the wine producers shared their wares. The ambience of the festi-
val was to be achieved by having a distinct non-commercial philosophy
where suppliers were not allowed to bring their branded marquees to the
festival. One respondent exclaimed ‘marqees are dead man!’ This choice
was part of a broader vision to create a festival that did not resemble
institutionalised forms.

We did not want plastic tables, no white tablecloths, no suggestion, no

advertising, all the signage. They are all small decisions but they were con-
sistent with the vision.

From a producer perspective, the lack of commercial branding could be a

risk that might prevent involvement. However, according to the produc-
ers, the event was ‘very successful’. As one producer explained:

For many festivals like that you go in there knowing you may not re-coup
costs because it is about branding. But this was financially viable because of
the pure numbers that came through the gates. At a guess, we can assume
that will grow again next year.
178 J. STAGGS AND M. BRENNER

Signage was another example of this non-institutional approach. A deci-

sion was made to not print festival signs but instead have festival organ-
isers and community members paint signs by hand. The shared meaning
these individuals sought to create was to reflect the artisanal underpin-
nings of the festival but also communicate that their creative outlet that
was not just limited to the wine. Similarly, in order to properly reflect the
regional identity of the region festival organisers felt it was very impor-
tant to create a festival which was not only unique in its non-traditional
nature, but also one which respected and honoured those who helped
create and shape the identity of the region.

We were big on this is a wine festival, the wine was a catalyst, but it’s more
than that. I don’t like the way wine festivals are. Even the winemakers get
bored talking about wine. Their minds are broader than wine, they are
artisans in themselves.

Decorations included ironwork sculptures and the stage was hand-built

by a local craftsman. On these hand-crafted platforms, the musical acts
that were chosen represented a broad church of performers—soul, folk,
and hip-hop. Organisers of the festival wanted the festival to be as much
about the music as it was about the wine and the food as a kind of ‘third
pillar’ in the festival.
The design of the Basket Range festival was deliberately rustic with
the main marketing strategy through interaction and service to the
customer. There was little in the way of service ‘infrastructure’ such as
tables, chairs, and ice buckets. Without the existence of ice buckets to
keep wine chilled, we observed one winemaker provide a half bag of ice
from their own ‘esky’ and put the participants’ bottle in the bag for them
to take away. The participant was observably pleased by the bricolage,
and also the generosity of the wine producer to go to this effort of com-
ing up with a makeshift solution. We also observed one winemaker, who
apparently had sold out of bottle stock, filling cups and bottles out of
a punch bowl with wine was being created for immediate consumption
and with little pretence. This confirmed the shared meaning that wine,
or ‘juice’ was meant to be enjoyed from a hedonic perspective.
Another experimental factor was a family-inclusive atmosphere that
expressed the importance of community in the identity of the region.
This community feel was also a major theme in the interviews we con-
ducted. The festival was designed to have a community feel and inclusive
 12 POURING NEW WINES INTO OLD WINESKINS? … 179

of children as well as dogs. This was also reflected in two festival arte-
facts—a set of cricket stumps and a castle made of 350 milk crates
donated by a local business. The research team observed and partici-
pated with families playing cricket together under the warm April sun.
Children constructed and climbed over and through the castle that was
assembled by a local artist on the morning of the festival. Follow-up
interviews with organisers revealed they were already devising ways of
making next year’s festival even more child-friendly. This inclusive feel
was not without boundaries however. Organisers sought a balance of
what was included and excluded and on many occasions saying no and
‘stepping on a few toes’ in the design of the festival. As one respondent
explained ‘We did not want for it to be country fair either’. This quote is
an important as the regional identity is not only about creating a mostly
inclusive, coherent, shared meaning about what the region stands for but
it is also about sending a signal to external audiences and what is consid-
ered to be ‘legitimate’ and consistent with the artisan identity.

Implications and Limitations
This chapter has explored the identity of the Basket Range sub-region
and used an inaugural festival to generate insights around internal mem-
bers and external actors. We have noted that there are aspects of the
Basket Range identity that has driven the region’s acclaim. We argue that
a dichotomy about how the members view themselves and how others
see the region needs to be managed carefully. A high-level and inclusive
regional identity around creativity and non-intervention is helpful in
providing a level of coherency, while allowing a ‘Mecca’ effect for the
region to those that seek out a unique and non-conformist approach to
wine production and life. The region, where possible, should avoid the
situation where natural winemaking philosophy becomes ‘orthodoxy’
and continue to include other producers that subscribe to the high-level
regional identity. The moderating influences of these other producers
can arguably offer important perspectives of identity as well as the devel-
opment of business models that can safeguard the region. Tourism can
be an important way to generate revenue for the region so defining the
region too narrowly around natural wine producers, who may not nec-
essarily have the appetite or resources to establish tourist infrastructure,
could be harmful in the long term.
180 J. STAGGS AND M. BRENNER

We recognise the limitations that a single case study and a small num-
ber of interviews pose for generalisability. Further and deeper investiga-
tion of the insights presented in this chapter is warranted. The case study
of the Basket Range and how the region has developed highlighted the
different roles that producers can play. Future research could use the lit-
erature on leadership in social identity to explore these various leadership
roles in identity more deeply. Research has demonstrated that individuals
particularly certain leaders, often have an unequalled ability to influence
a group’s shared identity (Hogg & van Knippenberg, 2003). Drawing
upon this literature, future researchers can attempt to identify certain
producers who are considered most ‘prototypical’ of the region’s iden-
tity. The individuals who represent the unique qualities which define
the region and best reflect what it means to be a wine producer in this
region.

Conclusion
This chapter was guided by the research question: ‘To what extent does
the Basket Range Festival express a coherent and legitimate iden-
tity to wine tourists and beyond?’ This chapter explored a region of
wine producers who adopt a similar ethos to winemaking and life and
their collective efforts to attract wine consumers and tourists. We had
the opportunity to observe their ethos and shared meaning through a
uniquely designed wine festival and this chapter has recorded a num-
ber of experiential insights that might encourage other wine regions to
firstly, creatively explore how best they might express their regional iden-
tity, and secondly seek to create emotional responses for tourists (Hosany
& Gilbert, 2010). We believe that these insights should encourage other
wine producers in other regions to develop new shared meanings and
regional identities about what they stand for and to deliver this identity
through carefully designed initiatives—this represents new wine in new
wineskins.
However, this approach is not without some risks. As noted, we
observed a tension between the sub-regional identity as an inclusive,
broad church and a natural wine niche with the potential to drive wine
tourism. There is little doubt that the reputation of some of the nat-
ural wine producers has put the Basket Range on the world stage and
respondents acknowledged that natural wine is the chief reason for the
‘world looking at us’. Natural wine will arguably be a significant driver
 12 POURING NEW WINES INTO OLD WINESKINS? … 181

for national and international recognition and no doubt will help drive
wine tourism to the region. Our chapter began with the challenge that
wine regions face when they lack a coherent identity to compete against
others. In this case, we observe a sub-region with growing international
legitimacy yet arguably lacks the same infrastructure and resources of
the ‘old wineskins’ to attract tourists in the same way more established
regions do. For those who are responsible for curating Australia’s wine
identity, the opportunities that arise from the ‘new wine’ scene need to
be carefully balanced with the promotion of the ‘old wineskins’. At the
producer level, these challenges may not necessarily exist and for the arti-
san winemaker the best business model may be ‘making wines with love,
not money’. For wine consumers and the wine tourist, the simplicity of
this approach may be sufficient.

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 CHAPTER 13

Wine Tourism: Balancing Core Product

and Service-Dominant Strategies

Bonnie Farber Canziani

Introduction
This chapter integrates theories of services marketing and wine t­ourist
consumer behavior. In the main, we argue that additional attention
should be placed on understanding the types of services that are present
in the winery product mix. There is an underlying strategic concern guid-
ing this paper given that many wineries are small- or medium-sized busi-
nesses with restricted access to capital and high dependence on revenue,
at least within the wine-producing regions of the USA. This is the issue
of the growing ‘fait accompli’ sense of urgency for supply-side innovation
in winery-based services beyond basic tasting activities—in the greater
business community, this is popularly termed service or scope ‘creep.’
The wine tourism literature has documented a plethora of supply-­
side winery-based service offerings and staged experiences; research
also shows positive consumer demand for expanded product mixes. We
approach the above-mentioned issue of service proliferation by looking at
how consumers’ motives in relationship to the pursuit of goods and/or

B. F. Canziani (*)
University of North Carolina Greensboro, Greensboro, NC, USA
e-mail: bmcanzia@uncg.edu

© The Author(s) 2019 185

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_13
186 B. F. CANZIANI

experiences at a winery subsequently impact their visit perceptions. We

anticipate, firstly, that some visitors will display dominant visit motives,
i.e., goods-dominant versus experience-dominant, and, secondly, that
the presence of a dominant motive will affect their perceptions of winery
benefits and the brand in general. We additionally explore the relation-
ships between dominant motives and consumer profile characteristics.

Services and Experiences Take the Lead

According to the services marketing field, the mix of elements that
­constitutes a business’ relationship with customers is complex and made
up of a combination of goods and services (Lovelock, 1996). Given
economic progression over time from commodities to goods to ser-
vices and finally to experiences (Pine & Gilmore, 1998), there has been
steady interest in understanding the roles that goods and services play
in many product sectors. More recently, work on service-dominant logic
has heightened researcher curiosity about services and related processes
in the marketplace. In a marked attempt to unseat the prevalent influ-
ence of goods/operations perspectives on services marketing, researchers
have inverted the goods-services relationship, by suggesting that (1) ser-
vices and processes lead to the majority of value creation in the market,
(2) goods are a special case of services, and (3) cooperation among actors
within a broad service ecosystem is warranted (Lusch & Vargo, 2014).
At the very least, these theoretical musings justify additional research on
the role of services in the winery sector.
On a practical level, researchers in services marketing have been
emphasizing the need for updated business strategy, largely centered on
the idea of the experience economy. In support of this argument, Tynan,
McKechnie, and Hartley (2014) find that consumers themselves are
reporting a desire for experiences rather than being focused on acquiring
goods. Concomitantly, work on innovation has articulated the need for
research that holistically examines consumer desire for both goods and
services (Visnjic, Wiengarten, & Neely, 2016). In this paper, we use the
term experiences to mean services that take the form of ‘staged’ activities
constructed by the winery, rather than treating the concept as some out-
come measure of customer satisfaction.
Research in wine tourism has provided evidence of multiple services
that complement the sale of wines at wineries (Alant & Bruwer, 2004;
Bruwer & Alant, 2009; Carmichael, 2005; Charters & Ali-Knight, 2002;
Galloway, Mitchell, Getz, Crouch, & Ong, 2008; Getz & Brown, 2006).
13 WINE TOURISM: BALANCING CORE PRODUCT AND SERVICE-DOMINANT … 187

Services include: tours of production facilities, advanced entertainment

and shopping experiences in the tasting rooms, wine clubs, dining, trans-
portation services, accommodations, concerts and special events, and
Web site/social media activities. Understanding consumers’ expecta-
tions for services beyond basic wine tasting and the advantages to wine
operators who address these service expectations are important areas of
focus for the wine industry. There has been, however, only limited inves-
tigation into the roles of goods and services on winery visitor value and
operational profit (Beames, 2003).
In this study of winery visitors in North Carolina, a dominant goods
motive refers to consumers being motivated to visit a winery primarily for
the stated purpose of buying wine, i.e., enacting the role of a buyer. A dom-
inant experience motive is articulated as visiting a winery primarily to have
an experience or to be entertained; we term this the role of holiday-maker.
We examine the presence and influence of these two goods and experi-
ence-dominant motives on winery visitors’ perceptions of visit benefits
and also compare ‘buyer’ versus ‘holiday-maker’ attitudes toward North
Carolina wineries and wine. In addition, the effects of visitors’ demograph-
ics, subjective wine knowledge, and wine club membership are explored.

Literature Review
The Goods/Services Relationship
First, we address the nature of the goods/services relationship, as well
as the concept of product mix. The definition of a product encompasses
‘an object, service, activity, person, place, organization, or idea’ (Imber &
Toffler, 2000, p. 447). Rather than limiting the notion of ‘product’ to a
single stimulus; however, the research community has embraced the idea
of arrays of elements that can be marketed, provided, or sold to consumers.
Most marketing professionals have adopted the concept of the prod-
uct mix, defined in turn as a composite of multiple elements that influ-
ence the consumer (McCarthy, 1964). Marketing literature also suggests
that the product mix is not merely a random array of elements, but that
elements can have a useful ordering that supports business strategy and
product planning. Product elements can be arranged along multiple
­levels from intrinsic core attributes to extrinsic value-added attributes,
modeling this with a series of concentric rings (Kotler, 1967).
For example, winery visits have been conceptualized as a prod-
uct mix that is composed of core wine attributes as well as a variety of
188 B. F. CANZIANI

other, including hospitality/tourism, services (O’Neill & Plamer, 2004;

Tommasetti & Festa, 2014). Similarly, Mitchell, Hall, and McIntosh
(2000) define wine tourism as ‘visitations to vineyards, wineries, wine
festivals and wine shows for which grape wine tasting and/or experienc-
ing the attributes of a grape wine region are the prime motivation factors
for visitors’ (p. 3). Findings from Byrd, Canziani, Hsieh, Debbage, and
Sönmez (2016) suggest that core product elements are more important
to winery visitors than are extrinsic hospitality or recreation activities.
Service marketers acknowledge that the assortment of goods and ser-
vices in a product mix can affect consumers’ perceptions of value and
willingness to pay (Beaven & Scotti, 1990; Collier, 1991). Lovelock
(1996) perceived the addition of service components to be a tactical
step in advancing brand appeal and intensifying core product value. In
his classification of services, facilitating services are those that are either
needed for service delivery or are tasks that help in the use of the core
product. ‘Enhancing’ services are those that add extra value for the cus-
tomer; they are services that often take the form of heightened experi-
ences: consultation (which permits more customization and matching to
customer needs), hospitality, safekeeping, and exceptions (such as letting
guests taste a wine not on the tasting list).

Service-Dominant Strategies
In this section, we acknowledge the increasing importance of services
(including staged experiences) in the general economy as well as in the
wine industry. Notably, there have been calls for increased development
of service-dominant business strategies to proactively engage consumers,
who are moving beyond the goods-dominant product as a primary con-
sumption object (Edvardsson & Tronvoll, 2013; Ng, Parry, Smith, Maull,
& Briscoe, 2012; Zomerdijk & Voss, 2010). In a service-dominant strat-
egy, the emphasis changes from focus on physical product attributes to
the value of experiences that customers have. In the US wine industry,
this has taken the form of increasing tourism activities at wineries.
These changes indicate that wineries need to expand beyond a lim-
ited focus on bottle sales and to better understand visitor motives, par-
ticularly in terms of desired experiences. Winery visits have been linked
to sensorial, hedonic, and experiential consumption including visi-
tor expectations for tasting the wine itself as well as for other activi-
ties enjoyed during the visit (Galloway et al., 2008; Roberts & Sparks,
2006). Research on the experience economy has introduced four realms
13 WINE TOURISM: BALANCING CORE PRODUCT AND SERVICE-DOMINANT … 189

of consumer experience: educational, escapist, esthetic, and entertain-

ment experiences (the ‘4Es’) and suggests that purposeful staging of
experiences can become an important tactic for winery operators (Pine &
Gilmore, 1999; Quadri-Felitti & Fiore, 2012). Such recommendations
presuppose winery time and investment in service design and delivery,
which for many small wineries is no small feat.
While such findings are a good wake-up call for businesses striving
to adapt to emerging trends, there is a definite need for studying win-
ery visitor motives more carefully to support product mix decisions and
planned investments in staged experiences. Findings from Ali-Knight and
Carlsen (2003) beg the question: Are staged experiences to be intro-
duced as discrete tourism activities (enhancing services) or are they meas-
ured in terms of effecting increased wine sales through value-creation
(facilitating services)? We posit that some visitors are indeed ‘experience-
seekers’ but others still may be focused on the wine. And from a revenue
management standpoint, this difference matters.

Goods-Motivated and Experience-Motivated Visitors

In this final section of the literature, we argue that each winery visitor
may possess multiple motives for visiting a winery, but for some visitors,
one or a few of these motives may dominate their decisions and, ulti-
mately, their evaluations. In the winery setting, a variety of visit motives
have been identified to explain visitor behavior and subsequent satisfac-
tion with a winery visit. Identified visitor goals have included: purchase
wine, view local landscapes, expand wine knowledge, socialize with others,
experience entertainment, and enjoy ancillary hospitality services such as
dining and accommodations (Alant & Bruwer, 2004; Bruwer & Alant,
2009; Carmichael, 2005; Charters & Ali-Knight, 2002; Getz & Brown,
2006; Galloway et al., 2008). Of these goals, some are clearly identifiable
as goods-dominant (to purchase wine) and others are clearly on the side
of experiences (to experience entertainment).
Although individuals can have multiple motives for visiting a
­winery, each visitor may be able to articulate which motives are dom-
inant when visiting on any particular occasion. And according to
Desmet (2003), consumers evaluate products in relation to their
goals, needs, or concerns. In addition, consumers’ level of involve-
ment with wine is believed to affect their motivation for both winery
visitation and wine consumption (Bruwer & Huang, 2012). Another
factor, wine knowledge, usually measured through either self-reports
190 B. F. CANZIANI

or objective tests, has been associated with wine purchases (Canziani,

Hwang, & Byrd, 2016; Charters & Ali-Knight, 2000; Forbes, Cohen,
& Dean, 2008; Mitchell & Hall, 2001). In this study, product involve-
ment and subjective wine knowledge have been incorporated into the
hypotheses that follow.
Motivation has been linked to visit outcomes, e.g., satisfaction
(Mitchell, Hall, & McIntosh, 2000). We examine the influence of goods
and experience-dominant motives on several evaluative factors relevant to
a winery visit, employing the following hypotheses.

H1a Visitors’ demographics will vary with type of dominant visitor motive.

H1b Level of wine knowledge will vary with type of dominant visitor
motive.

H1c Wine club membership status will vary with type of dominant visi-
tor motive.

H2 Type of dominant visit motive (goods versus experience) will affect

winery visitors’ perceptions of visit benefits.

H3 Type of dominant visit motive (goods versus experience) will affect

winery visitors’ attitudes toward North Carolina wineries and wine.

Methodology
The current paper utilized existing data from a statewide study, where
convenience sampling was employed to gather over 800 surveys from vis-
itors to 23 North Carolina wineries. Data were collected using an on-site
intercept technique with self-administered paper questionnaires. North
Carolina had close to 200 wineries in 2016, up from about 10 wineries
in 2000. Wineries were stratified to balance factors such as business age,
production levels, and location in the state.
Questionnaire items were modeled after the tourism literature cited in
this paper. Two Likert-type items were used to define goods and expe-
rience-motivated visitors using five-point scales: (a) I visited this winery
to buy wine and (b) I visited this winery to have an experience or be
entertained. Data were analyzed using SPSS Version 24. We transformed
(a) and (b) into a new dichotomous variable where 1 = response was high
13 WINE TOURISM: BALANCING CORE PRODUCT AND SERVICE-DOMINANT … 191

on (a) and low on (b) and 2 = high on (b) and low on (a). Respondents
answering H/H or L/L were excluded from analysis, resulting in 269
discrete records used in subsequent cross-tabulations and t-tests.

Results
Table 13.1 depicts the overall profile of the respondents in this study.
A majority of visitors were from North Carolina. Demographics were
similar to the larger sample and other extant studies, i.e., older, largely
female, having comparatively higher education and income levels.

Table 13.1 Demographic profile of respondents compared to larger collected

data sample

Study sample (N = 269) Collected sample (N = 833)

Demographic characteristics Percentage (%) Percentage (%)

Gender
Male 31.0 31
Female 69.0 69
Education
High school or below 7 7
Some college or 2-year college 29 29
degree
4-year college degree or higher 64 64
Annual household income (USD $)
Below $50,000 2.5 4.7
$50,000 to <$75,000 42.7 39.1
$75,000 to < $150,000 44.0 42.4
$150,000 plus 10.8 13.8
State of origin
In-state 79 74
Out-of-state 21 26
Mean age 45.9 45.6
Subjective wine knowledge
Novice 16.0 19.8
Intermediate 35.5 35.0
Advanced 32.4 32.2
Connoisseur 16.0 12.9
Wine club member
Yes 14 13
No 86 87
192 B. F. CANZIANI

Table 13.2 Cross-tabulations between winery visitor motives and profile

factors

Comparison of high buy/low experi-

ence motives to high experience/low
buy motives

Profile Buy motive Experience χ2 value df Sig (2-sided)

characteristics motive

Gender No difference 3.103a 1 0.078

Education level No difference 3.966 3 0.265
Household No difference 0.415 4 0.981
income
Wine Higher Lower 20.701a 3 0.000
knowledge
Wine drinking Higher Lower 12.674b 4 0.013
frequency
Wine buying No difference 2.803 3 0.423
frequency
Quantity No difference 3.531 2 0.171
purchased
Bottle price Lower Higher 7.706b 2 0.021
levels bought
Winery visit Higher Lower 12.443a 3 0.006
frequency
Wine club Higher Lower 6.207b 1 0.013
membership
aDifference is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed); bat the 0.05 level (2-tailed)

In examining Hypothesis 1(a–c), results in Table 13.2 suggest that

these two motive groups show no proportional differences in terms of
gender, education, income, wine buying frequency, or quantity of wine
bought at a time, thus finding no evidence to support H1a. However,
people who stated they were motivated to visit the winery to buy
wine, but not to have an experience showed higher self-reported wine
knowledge (supporting H1b), higher wine club membership (support-
ing H1c), higher wine drinking frequency, and higher frequency of vis-
iting NC wineries on an annual basis. People with ‘buy motives’ also
had a higher tendency to buy value wines (21% compared to 11.8%
of people with experience motives). People with ‘experience motives’
bought higher-priced wines (13.2% compared to 4.5% of people with
Table 13.3 Winery visit benefits buy-motivated and experience-motivated winery visitors
Response scales (5-point Likert-type) Buy motive Experience motive Mean diff. N t df p
mean mean
Core product
Tasting NC wine 4.93 4.16 0.771 268 7.489a 106 0.000
Facilitating services
Learning about wine and wine making 3.85 3.75 0.098 267 0.678 167 0.499
Touring the winery 3.59 3.77 −0.186 266 −1.391 208 0.166
Talking to the winemaker 3.46 3.47 −0.014 265 −0.092 183 0.928
Buying NC wine-related merchandise 3.08 3.09 −0.005 265 −0.030 204 0.976
Enhancing experiences
Having a day out 4.50 4.58 −0.081 267 −0.851 214 0.396
Resting and relaxing 4.43 4.69 −0.261 269 −2.837a 234 0.005
Enjoying the beauty of rural vineyards 4.34 4.39 −0.054 268 −0.500 184 0.618
Socializing with friends and family 4.24 4.69 −0.450 268 −4.723a 265 0.000
Eating and drinking at the winery 4.05 4.33 −0.281 266 −2.244b 160 0.026
Filling a free weekend or holiday 3.66 4.10 −0.439 265 −3.042a 197 0.003
Attending an NC wine event 3.60 3.97 −0.365 268 −2.671a 193 0.008
Experience NC agriculture or farms 3.37 3.40 −0.032 265 −0.210 186 0.834
Visiting a historical or cultural site 3.33 3.57 −0.238 265 −1.735 193 0.084
Visiting an NC wine trail 3.30 3.37 −0.074 261 −0.489 186 0.625
Participating in outdoor recreation 2.98 3.54 −0.566 267 −3.805a 196 0.000
aDifference is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed); bat the 0.05 level (2-tailed)
13 WINE TOURISM: BALANCING CORE PRODUCT AND SERVICE-DOMINANT …
193
 194
B. F. CANZIANI

Table 13.4 NC wine perceptions of buy-motivated and experience-motivated winery visitors

Response scales (5-point Likert-type) Buy motive Experience Mean diff. N t df p

mean motive mean

I enjoy the taste of North Carolina wines I 4.43 3.89 0.532 254 4.715a 252 0.000
have tried
I am loyal to one or more North Carolina 3.47 2.67 0.793 255 4.333a 253 0.000
wineries or wines
I believe North Carolina wines are priced to 4.04 3.53 0.507 255 3.913a 253 0.000
give me value for my money
I believe the North Carolina wines I have tried 4.14 3.68 0.466 254 3.825a 252 0.000
are mostly of high quality
I believe that North Carolina wines make good 4.28 3.91 0.372 255 3.095a 253 0.000
gifts to give to others
aDifference is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed); bat the 0.05 level (2-tailed)
13 WINE TOURISM: BALANCING CORE PRODUCT AND SERVICE-DOMINANT … 195

‘buy motives’). Three-quarters of both groups buy mid-range wines

($10–20 U.S.).
Looking at Hypothesis 2 (Table 13.3), mean differences also exist
with respect to selected benefits from visiting a NC winery. The core
product benefit of tasting wine was significantly higher for the visitors
motivated by buying wine. Conversely, a majority of the enhancing expe-
riences, e.g., hospitality-based activities such as dining or attending an
event, were significantly lower for the buy-motivated group compared
to the experience-motivated group. Notably, there were no differences
between the groups with respect to facilitating services.
Finally, regarding Hypothesis 3 (differences in visitor beliefs about
NC wine), Table 13.4 shows that ‘buy-motivated’ visitors had stronger
positive regional brand perceptions about NC wine and wineries, includ-
ing beliefs about taste, value, quality, and loyalty.

Conclusions, Practical Implications,

and Further Research

A visitor’s motive would generally be labeled ‘goods-dominant’ if the

primary purpose of visiting a winery is to buy wine. Conversely, there
may be ‘experience-dominant’ motives, such as seeking entertainment
to fill an empty weekend, that lead a consumer to a winery’s door. This
chapter addressed three questions about visitors’ perceptions of goods
and services in a wine business: (1) What consumer characteristics are
associated with goods-dominant versus experience-dominant motives?
(2) What are the effects of goods and experience motives on percep-
tions of winery visit benefits?; and (3) What are the effects of goods and
experience motives on perceptions of regional wine and wineries? The
immediate goal was to gain a fuller understanding of the expected mix
of goods and experiences from the perspectives of winery visitors and
to tease out any potential implications for winery business planners and
marketers.
Our underlying motivation in this study was to examine how con-
sumers are responding to the increasing proliferation of winery services
and whether any specific factors can be identified that help to distinguish
those who come more for core product elements in the mix from those
that care more about experiences during their winery visit. It appears
that the literature has advanced more slowly in terms of explaining this
196 B. F. CANZIANI

particular facet of heterogeneity among visitors, even though not all visi-
tors perceive themselves as tourists and thus, perhaps are not incentivized
by the same product mix elements as tourists might be. We argue that
the differences, as well as the interplay, between ‘buyers’ and ‘holiday-
makers’ may be a significant and understudied concern in winery rev-
enue management and in the development of winery marketing
strategy.
Drawing upon Lovelock’s (1996) framework on supplementary ser-
vices and Kotler’s (1967) notion of core and augmented products, this
chapter examined the perceptions of visitors related to the core offer of
wine tasting, as well as to a specific set of ‘facilitating’ winery services
that directly support product purchase decisions, e.g., learning about
wine, touring a winery, speaking with the winemaker, and shopping for
wine-related merchandise. In addition, hospitality and recreation ser-
vices are examined as part of the product mix to capture the degree to
which winery visitors are ‘drifting’ away from goods-dominant wine-fo-
cused visits, i.e., seeking ‘enhanced’ tourism services, and what the con-
sequences of the drift might be.
Results indicate that ‘buyers’ are focused on wine and less inter-
ested in the hospitality and recreational benefits of a winery visit, while
‘holiday-makers’ view ‘enhancing services’ more positively and attribute
higher value to hospitality and recreational elements. Evidence regard-
ing the importance of facilitating services was inconclusive; these com-
mon services of wine tours, winemaker talks, and wine paraphernalia
were rated as moderately important regardless of visit motive. Return
on investment in these types of service elements should be investigated
further. ‘Buyers’ reported higher subjective wine knowledge. Also,
wine club members seem to be more purchase-minded than experi-
ence-minded when visiting wineries.
Any effort at classifying the types of services that wineries add into the
product mix is an important one, since it helps to develop greater aware-
ness of how particular types of services can affect subsequent consumer
attitudes toward a product or brand. In addition, it raises the question
of whether all service additions are equally important or valuable to the
consumer, i.e., how much is too much when adding service elements to
the winery product mix. As noted previously, this is crucial in view of the
reality that many wineries are small businesses that must maintain tight
controls over costs of goods and services.
13 WINE TOURISM: BALANCING CORE PRODUCT AND SERVICE-DOMINANT … 197

Practical Implications
Study results corroborate prior findings of distinct visit motivations
among winery visitors; the main contribution of the chapter has been to
refine understanding of these motivations by sorting visitors in a mean-
ingful way using the goods/experience-dominant concept. At a min-
imum, wineries should differentiate between visitors expressing interest
primarily in wine ‘buying’ versus winery ‘holiday-making,’ in order to
better comprehend visitors’ distinctive needs and likely purchase behav-
iors, as well as the inherent business opportunities in each scenario. Such
a categorization can inform business strategy, i.e., by determining the
appropriate mix of core product, facilitating services, and enhancing ele-
ments to be offered to each winery visitor, and more importantly, with
respect to staged experiences, by identifying who among their visitor
base will pay premiums for added elements. Without attending to these
differences, wineries run the risk of pushing the experience side (touristic
activity) without adequate promise of returns.
The role of wine tasting as an important benefit of a winery visit is
beyond doubt. However, results also suggest wineries should design
a tasting process that provides potential buyers with clear information
and purchase opportunities, since ‘buyers’ are not opting into facilitat-
ing information services, e.g., tours or winemaker visits, as a support for
their decision making. For ‘holiday-makers,’ the tasting process is simply
one more aspect of a winery attraction, and may not carry the same level
of importance as an information source as it does for wine ‘buyers.’ All
of which suggests that the tasting process should be professional rather
than theatrical in nature. In addition, investment in food/dining offer-
ings and winery events should be scrutinized, since the ‘buyers’ were
clearly less interested in these than were ‘holiday-makers.’
The stark differences in attitudes between ‘buyers’ and ‘holiday-
makers’ toward the regional wine and wineries also matter. The wine ‘buy-
ers’ are clearly the important word-of-mouth (WOM) agents, reporting
markedly more positive ratings of NC wine and wineries, perhaps based
on their goods-dominant evaluations of the product or their status as wine
club members. Currently, there is a negative association between a ‘holi-
day-maker’ and rating regional wines and wineries positively. The industry
should work to sustain buyers’ positive perceptions of regional wine, while
seeking to improve the attitudes of experience-focused visitors toward NC
wine through strategic on-site marketing regarding awards and quality.
198 B. F. CANZIANI

Future Research
This chapter raises the issue of how best to bundle or price hospitality
services, both to maximize revenue from the groups of ‘holiday-­makers’
who genuinely want them and to motivate ‘buyers’ to use them; this
question warrants further investigation. It is also important to capture
additional insights as to how transitory these motives are. Is it possible
that for some people, motives vary across visit instances, while for other
individuals, motives are relatively stable across visits? At some point, it
may be fruitful to formulate two winery business models with different
market propositions: one with the core product of wine, where selected
facilitating services are offered and another with the core product of
entertainment, where wine is a supporting element via the tasting oppor-
tunity, as depicted in Fig. 13.1.
Also, future research can inspect the retail behaviors of the
goods-dominant ‘buyer.’ That is, how do the ‘buyers’ respond to val-
ue-added marketing/discount tactics/store layouts, etc.? Do ‘­buyers’
spend less time on average at the winery? To what extent does the
­quality of tangible product attributes govern the ‘buyers’ evaluations of
the winery visit? Conversely, research can investigate if the experience-
motivated guests (with a penchant for holiday-making) are willing to pay
a premium for the opportunity for social encounters and dining, festival

BUYER HOLIDAY-MAKER

Retailing
Dining

Tasting
Wine Clubs

Wine Events Entertainment Tours

Tasting

Dining
Retailing

Learning Activities Recreation

Fig. 13.1 Alternative winery visit propositions

13 WINE TOURISM: BALANCING CORE PRODUCT AND SERVICE-DOMINANT … 199

events, and touristic activities in rural and natural settings. Are they the
ones more interested in overnight stays and making a day out of the win-
ery visit?
Future studies might narrow in on wine club members, given that
they are more likely to express a ‘buyer’ visit motive. They also exhibit a
tendency to be discount-minded and less entranced by additional winery
services (unless free) which implies the need for goods-dominant retailer
tactics to guarantee revenue through bottle sales.

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 CHAPTER 14

Wine Tourism Experiences and Marketing:

The Case of the Douro Valley in Portugal

Alexandra I. Correia, Raquel Cunha,

Olga Matos and Carlos Fernandes

Introduction
Wine-producing regions increasingly seek ways of providing value-added
experiences to tourists in order to develop the destination and possi-
bly gain a competitive advantage over its competitors. Wine tourism
experiences are critical for wine tourism development (Hall, Sharples,
Cambourne, & Macionis, 2000), alongside the increasing importance
and use of social media as information sources for travellers (Xiang &
Gretzel, 2010). As wine tourism continues to develop, the need for a
better understanding of consumer behaviours regarding wine regions

A. I. Correia (*) · R. Cunha · O. Matos · C. Fernandes

Polytechnic Institute of Viana do Castelo, Viana do Castelo, Portugal
e-mail: acorreia@estg.ipvc.pt
O. Matos
e-mail: omatos@estg.ipvc.pt
C. Fernandes
e-mail: cfernandes@estg.ipvc.pt

© The Author(s) 2019 203

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_14
204 A. I. CORREIA ET AL.

visits is paramount (Sparks, 2007) as well as the factors that enhance

their overall experiences (Roberts & Sparks, 2006).
As the evolvement of the experiential approach in the wine tourism
field is still in its infancy stage (Bruwer & Alant, 2009), the objective
of this exploratory study is threefold. First, to evaluate the overall wine
tourism experience in the Douro Valley of Portugal, a wine-producing
region where wine tourism has achieved an important status and role in
regional development. Secondly, to evaluate the wine tourism experience
to a renowned winery in the region (Quinta da Avessada). Quintas are
wine-producing estates that characterise the cultural landscape of the
Douro Valley, designated by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. Thirdly,
to identify initiatives by Quinta da Avessada for improving its wine tour-
ism business. The findings can be useful for addressing strategies for
attaining the interest of tourists and impact positively the development
and management of the destination.
To achieve these objectives, data were collected through a survey
questionnaire, an interview with the proprietor of the winery and a con-
tent analysis of visitors’ comments about their wine tourism experiences
in the region that were posted on social media.
This chapter is divided into four main sections. The first section is
an introduction to the main topic of this study, describing the theoret-
ical background, the research aims and objectives and the steps of the
research process. Section two presents a literature review on wine tour-
ism with a particular emphasis on wine tourism experiences and market-
ing. The third section explains the methodology employed to collect and
analyse the data for this study. Finally, the fourth part presents and dis-
cusses the research findings, while the chapter finishes by presenting the
conclusions and the limitations of the study.

Theoretical Background
Wine tourism has been gaining increasing attention as an important
form of tourism since the mid-1990s (Getz & Brown, 2006), with a
wide range of studies focusing on wine-producing regions of the ‘Old
World’ (Costa & Kastenholz, 2010; Medina & Tresserras, 2008) and of
the ‘New World’ (Hashimoto & Telfer, 2003; Wargenau & Che, 2006).
The vast number of studies shows the interest in and the emergence of
wine tourism practices (Croce & Perri, 2017), increasingly important for
wine-producing regions (Hojman & Hunter-Jones, 2012).
 14 WINE TOURISM EXPERIENCES AND MARKETING: THE CASE … 205

Wine tourism is considered a crucial element for the tourism indus-

try and for the sector of viniculture and wine industry (Koch, Martin, &
Nash, 2013). Its potential benefits are diverse, particularly the opportunity
for businesses to sell and market their products and to educate consumers
(Getz, 2000), the contribution to destinations’ image (Alonso, Bressan,
O´Shea, & Krajsic, 2015), increased tourists flows and expenditure,
income, employment in rural areas (Boatto, Galletto, Barisan, & Bianchin,
2013) and the development of rural areas (Costa & Kastenholz, 2012).
Four main topics of interest and research on wine tourism can be iden-
tified in the literature, namely: supply, demand, marketing and devel-
opment. Wine tourism supply-related studies focus on wine tourism
as a strategic product (Torre, Ferreira, & Guzmán, 2008) and on the
development of wine tours and trails and routes (Hashimoto & Telfer,
2003). In turn, wine tourism demand-related studies focus on wine
tourists’ motivations, behaviours and resulting segments (Charters &
Ali-Knight, 2002) and on the nature of wine tourism experiences (Ali-
Knight & Carlsen, 2003; Carmichael, 2005). Regarding wine tourism
marketing-related studies, the focus is on regions’ image and positioning
(Wargenau & Che, 2006), along with the identification of marketing-re-
lated opportunities, strategies and the provision of wine tourism experi-
ences and the creation of emotional connection between consumers, the
wineries and regions (Faugère, Bouzdine-Chameeva, & Durrieu, 2013).
Finally, there are also studies that approach wine tourism as tool for
development (Sigala, 2014; Hall et al., 2000), with a specific emphasis on
benefits of wine tourism for regional development (Boatto et al., 2013)
and rural areas (Costa & Kastenholz, 2012; Getz & Brown, 2006).
Regardless of the focus of the different studies, wine is nowadays seen
as one of the main reasons to visit a certain [wine producing] area and
a critical element to visitors’ experiences (Hall et al., 2000; Sánchez,
Rama, & García, 2016). In fact, experiences are a critical element in
the wine tourism definition itself, as the definition encompasses differ-
ent activities, such as participation in tours to the vineyards and winer-
ies, wine festivals and wine shows, wine tasting, and even meetings with
the winemaker (Fraser & Alonso, 2006; Hall et al., 2000). This expe-
riential perspective and its importance to wine tourism development
have also been recognised in the literature (Dodd & Bigotte, 1997),
with studies using the experiential view of consumption to better under-
stand the nature of the motivations of wine tourists (Bruwer & Alant,
2009), and the creation of diverse wine tourism experiences (Brochado,
206 A. I. CORREIA ET AL.

Silva, & Paulino, 2014; Pikkemaat, Peters, Boksberger, & Secco, 2009).
Experiences in wine tourism can also be created through the involve-
ment of the senses in the wine product itself and its immediate aesthetic
surroundings (Bruwer & Alant, 2009) and by linking wine with food,
the landscape and various other cultural activities (Carlsen & Charters,
2006).
Table 14.1 summarises major studies that identify different aspects
that are relevant for wine tourism experiences from the consumers’ point
of view.
The provision of diverse experiences that go beyond tasting and buy-
ing wine is becoming increasingly important for wine tourism destina-
tions (Brochado et al., 2014), since when travelling and visiting wine
destinations (Ritchie, Tung, & Ritchie, 2011) visitors have become bet-
ter informed and active (Neuhofer, Buhalis, & Ladkin, 2015), econom-
ically independent and more price sensitive (Pikkemaat et al., 2009),

Table 14.1 Aspects related to/influencing wine tourism experiences

Aspects related to/influencing wine tourism experiences Source

Wine quality Ali-Knight and Carlsen (2003),

Regional gastronomy Asero and Patti (2009), and
Service provided to tourists Brochado et al. (2014)
Variety of events and activities
Accommodation with regional character
Architecture and heritage
Friendly staff and good service
Marketing of the wine region
Authenticity Carlsen and Charters (2006),
Value for money Roberts and Sparks (2006), and
Service interactions Inácio (2008)
Setting/surroundings
Product offerings
Information dissemination
Personal growth
Indulgence/lifestyle
Winery attributes Griffin and Loersch (2006),
Exterior attributes Pikkemaat et al. (2009), and
Interior attributes Saayman and Merwe (2015)
Service attributes
Staff attributes
Wine attributes
Convenience attributes
 14 WINE TOURISM EXPERIENCES AND MARKETING: THE CASE … 207

while striving for individuality and expecting to receive added value.

Memorable wine tourism experiences are also becoming increasingly
important (Ali-Knight & Carlsen, 2003), not only in terms of positioning
(Getz & Brown, 2006), differentiation of wine-producing regions/wine
tourism destinations at the current highly competitive environment
(Croce & Perri, 2017), but also due to its economic importance for
businesses and regions (Brochado et al., 2014), and because wine tour-
ism experiences can contribute to the increasing number of visitors and
expenditure (Saayman & Merwe, 2015).

The Douro Valley

The Douro Valley is a rural and wine-producing region located in the
North of Portugal, mainly known as the place of origin of the port wine
and as the first demarcated and regulated wine-producing region in the
world (1756) (Andresen, Aguiar, & José, 2004; Sousa & Pereira 1988),
extending from the city of Peso da Régua to the boundary with Spain.
The region’s soil has been greatly affected by the action of man (Ribeiro,
2000) as it has been broken up to build the terraces prior to planting the
vines, namely by digging down deeply and forcing the vertically layered
rock to break up and wine farms are fragmented into plots of variable
size, slope, shape, orientation and grape varieties (ADVID, 2017). The
region presents a favourable climate for the development of viticulture
and the soil in which the vines are planted is made up of schist with a few
outcrops of granites (Barreto, 1993).
Wine is deeply rooted in the cultural, social, economic and envi-
ronmental history of the Douro Valley and its residents. The vineyards
occupy about 18.3% of the total area of a region that is characterised
mainly by holdings of small parcels, small producers with a large weight
in the production of port wine (IVDP, 2017). The Douro Valley is one
the most important wine-producing regions in Portugal due to the pro-
duction of port wine, accounting for about 1/3 of the total Portuguese
wine exports (Fazenda, Silva, & Costa, 2010).
The natural and heritage resources of the Douro Valley give it a
unique character with an enormous potential for tourism development
(Fazenda et al., 2010). Its uniqueness was a deciding factor in its desig-
nation by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. The tourism offer of the
Douro Valley has been mainly associated with rural cultural landscapes
(the inclined terraces on steep hillsides), gastronomy, vineyards and
208 A. I. CORREIA ET AL.

wine-producing Quintas, villages based on traditional family ties, inher-

itance and dependence on natural resources, rich natural and archaeo-
logical heritage, and upriver and downriver cruises. In addition, the wine
theme has also been used in the promotion and hosting of events and
festivals which have contributed to the raising of market awareness about
port wine as well as other regional wines (Hall & Mitchell, 2000) that
are gaining award-winning international recognition such as, Decanter
World Wine Awards (Wines of Portugal, 2012).
The designation of this region as a cultural landscape by UNESCO
has increased its appeal amongst investors and local entrepreneurs, evi-
denced by the range of activities that have surged in the last few years,
such as river cruises, the scenic historic train ride, diverse types of
accommodation units, port wine route, wine-related events and tast-
ing. However, although the number of tourists has increased, there is
still difficulty in retaining the tourist in the region, with the average stay
being 1.5 nights. New business opportunities are seen as the catalyst for
improving the performance of tourism indicators leading to improved
regional development.

Methodology

Data Collection and Analysis

The research took place at Quinta da Avessada, a family-owned and
operated business located in the heart of the Douro Valley (Alijó)
because of its distinction by international awards, for example, the Great
Wine Capitals with the Best of Wine Tourism award in 2011 in the cat-
egory ‘Innovative Wine Tourism Experiences’. But also because of its
proven capacity to attract significant and increasing numbers of tourists
along the years.
To carry out this study, data were collected through a survey ques-
tionnaire to visitors, an interview to a wine tourism business owner, and
a content analysis of visitors’ comments about their experiences during
the visit to the region that were posted on social media.
The aim of the questionnaire was to understand respondents’ opin-
ions, perceptions, behaviours and attitudes (Neuman, 2006). The ques-
tionnaire encompassed open and closed-ended questions to measure
the tourists´ behaviour and establish their profile. The questionnaire
was administered in the Portuguese and English languages to tourists
 14 WINE TOURISM EXPERIENCES AND MARKETING: THE CASE … 209

ending their visit to Quinta da Avessada. The survey was carried out in
September 2015 during the grape harvest. Respondents were selected
based on a convenience sampling, a non-probability sampling method
by which respondents are selected because they are easy to access to and
available to answer (Bryman, 2001). A total of 139 usable questionnaires
were collected and data were analysed using the Statistical Package for
the Social Sciences (SPSS), version 23.
A short semi-structured interview was conducted to the owner of
Quinta da Avessada, in June 2015, to clarify certain results of the sur-
vey. Additional information was obtained regarding customers, products,
marketing and the offered tourist activities.
Finally, a content analysis was conducted of visitors’ comments posted
on social media for the purpose of examining and understanding the vis-
itors’ wine tourism experiences. Content analysis is an ‘unobtrusive way
to examine what is said (or communicated in some way) in some source
and how it is said’ (Smith, 2017: 197). This technique can be used to
analyse content of texts or images (Bardin, 1979; Finn, Elliot-White, &
Walton, 2000; Neuman, 2006) allowing to identify some information
and analyse data (Smith, 2017). It is considered word-of-mouth com-
munication, which might include recommendation, being of particular
importance in the context of wine tourism as it is one the main sources
of information for wine tourists (Bruwer & Alant, 2009). A content
analysis can be conducted in a systematic, objective and quantitative
approach and/or in a more interpretative and qualitative (Neuendorf,
2002).
Facebook and TripAdvisor were selected as they represent two of
the most established online social networks and where travellers tend to
share their reviews that help other travellers in their decision making and
holiday planning. The importance and the influence of the posted com-
ments and reviews to other travellers’ decisions are clearly recognised,
not only by academics, but also by practitioners.
An initial analysis was conducted to each of the 54 wine-producing
businesses that integrate the Port Wine Route to determine whether they
had a Facebook page and comments on TripAdvisor. Regarding Facebook,
the purpose was to identify the overall rating and to count the number of
reviews. For TripAdvisor, the first three comments were selected for each
business, regardless of the language used. There were only 2 situations
with less than three comments. Those comments in other languages
other than Portuguese were translated by the authors. In order to ensure
210 A. I. CORREIA ET AL.

accuracy, comments were reviewed by other academics with national and

international research experience in those specific countries.
Specific objectives were defined, more specifically: to identify and
count reviews with the overall rating in both social networks and to
identify and count the main themes resulting from the thematic con-
tent analysis. The coding scheme was developed manually. An open
coding style was used to identify themes resulting from the description
and classification of visitors’ experiences in the region: To enhance the
internal validity of the content analysis, authors coded the same content
independently before comparing and assessing the separate results. This
method aims to achieve acceptable reliability between different coders
(Çakmak & Isaac, 2012; Neuendorf, 2002). Situations in which there
were comments coded differently, the respective coding was discussed
by the authors in order to identify a common idea and coding theme
(grouping). An agreement above 70% was achieved, which is considered
reliable as a rule of thumb (Çakmak & Isaac, 2012).

Presentation and Discussion of the Findings

Findings from the questionnaire survey classify respondents as independ-
ent travellers—individuals and small groups. Management of Quinta da
Avessada were not open to having the survey carried out to tour groups,
their principal customer base. Table 14.2 shows respondents were mainly
Portuguese, female (60.3%), married (58.3%) with ages under 60 years
and with a degree (67.7%) and come essentially from the North of
Portugal (regional market).
Most respondents use Facebook (N = 78) for communicating on social
media and declare having average knowledge of wines (N = 60). The
respondents also tend to consume wine very frequently on special occa-
sions, frequently with friends, and sometimes with meals (Table 14.3).
For a great majority of the respondents (60.7%) visiting a wine busi-
ness was their first time, while only 23.2% of them had previously visited
a cellar door at least once. Also, 49.4% of the respondents indicated that
they are likely to visit another wine tourism business in the future and
22.5% are very likely to do so.
An overwhelming majority of respondents were first-time visitors to
Quinta da Avessada (80.1%) and 45.6% were also first-time visitors to
the Douro Valley. The major motivations for visiting Quinta da Avessada
included (Table 14.4): visiting the region (n = 71), being with friends
 14 WINE TOURISM EXPERIENCES AND MARKETING: THE CASE … 211

Table 14.2 Socio-

Gender N %
demographic
characteristics of Female 79 60.3
respondents Male 53 39.7
Total 131 100.0
Age
<= 30 26 22.8
31–45 29 25.4
46–60 24 21.1
61–75 20 17.5
76+ 15 13.2
Total 114 100.0
Marital status
Single 27 28.1
Married 56 58.3
Divorced 4 4.2
Widowed 9 9.4
Total 96 100.0
Educational background
Primary school 4 3.2
Technical course 2 1.6
Secondary school 34 27.4
Higher education 84 67.7
Total 124 100.0
Country of origin
Portugal 101 78.2
Brazil 11 8.5
Poland 10 7.9
Angola 1 0.8
Albania 1 0.8
Italy 2 1.5
Czech Republic 2 1.5
Romania 1 0.8
Total 129 100.0
Region of residence
Porto and North 57 56.4
Centre 13 12.9
Lisbon 30 29.7
Algarve 1 1.0
Total 101 100.0

and family (n = 44), wine tasting (n = 31), participating in the harvest

(n = 27) and enjoying the rural environment (n = 25).
When asked what visitors of Quinta da Avessada liked the most and
the least, different aspects were identified, as presented in Table 14.5.
212 A. I. CORREIA ET AL.

Table 14.3 Wine consumption

Very rarely Rarely Sometimes Frequently Very frequently

N % N % N % N % N %

With 26 21.1 16 13 33 26.8 24 19.5 24 19.5

meals
In special 13 10.7 11 9.1 27 22.3 25 20.7 45 37.2
moments
With 14 12.3 13 11.4 22 19.3 36 31.6 29 25.2
friends

Table 14.4 Motiva-

Main reason N
tions for visiting Quinta
da Avessada Visiting the region 71
Being with friends and family 44
Wine tasting 31
Participating in harvest 27
Enjoying a rural environment 25
Increasing knowledge about wines 19
Visiting wine landscapes 17
Part of the trip 14
Friend and family recommendation 7
Buying wine 4
Meeting wine producers 1

The most favourable aspects were: landscape, welcoming and friendly

service, harvest, and atmosphere.
Regarding the aspects that the visitors liked the least, ‘nothing’ was
the most indicated (n = 23). Nevertheless, others referred aspects such as
the food (n = 7), wine (n = 5) and the time for the visit (n = 4). Visitors
were also asked to refer their level of satisfaction in relation to specific
aspects (identified in the literature) based on a Likert scale-type ques-
tion. Overall, respondents were satisfied and very satisfied with the visit
(Table 14.6) with all the aspects related to the physical space, service and
activities. Likewise, most of the respondents indicated that they were
likely (30.7%) and very likely (55.5%) to return, as well as to recommend
Quinta da Avessada.
The next phase of the research included the analysis of the comments
posted on social media, and more specifically on Facebook and TripAdvisor.
 14 WINE TOURISM EXPERIENCES AND MARKETING: THE CASE … 213

Table 14.5 Aspects

Aspects that enjoyed the most N %
that visitors enjoyed the
most and the least at Landscape 17 15.9
Quinta da Avessada Welcoming and friendly service 15 14.0
Harvest 15 14.0
Atmosphere 15 14
Wine 6 5.6
Learning 6 5.6
Visit 4 3.7
Weather 2 1.9
Food 2 1.9
Entertainment 2 1.9
Business history 1 0.9
Wine tasting 1 0.9
Aspects that enjoyed the least
Nothing 23 46.0
Food 7 14.0
Wine 5 10.0
Time for the visit 4 8.0
Parking 2 4.0
Accessibilities 1 2.0
Dogs in the farm 1 2.0
Weather 1 2.0
Waiting time 1 2.0
Wine tasting 1 2.0
Insufficient information 1 2.0

A total of 50 businesses were considered. An initial analysis revealed that

26 wine businesses did not have a Facebook page. Of those, 8 did not
have any evaluation on their page. Consequently, the overall rating classifi-
cation was examined for 16 wine tourism businesses based on the Facebook
rating scale, which ranges from 1* to 5*. Users rated wine businesses very
positively. In Facebook, 848 reviews resulted in an overall rating of 4.7 and
in TripAdvisor 2497 reviews resulted in an overall rating of 4.25.
From all the reviews, 73 visitor comments were considered and ana-
lysed. First, all comments were divided into three groups, whether they
were positive, neutral or negative. Secondly, all comments were analysed
in order to identify specific aspects related to experiences that were iden-
tified in the literature review. Overall, 16 respondents recommended the
visit and 8 indicated intention of returning. Regarding the service inter-
action, three comments are considered negative indicating low value for
Table 14.6 Level of satisfaction of the visit to Quinta da Avessada
214

Aspects Very Dissatisfied Not dissatisfied Satisfied Very satisfied Not applicable Total
dissatisfied or satisfied

N % N % N % N % N % N % N

Physical Location 7 5.4 4 3.1 8 6.2 35 26.9 76 58.5 0 0 130

space Landscape 9 6.6 1 0.7 1 0.7 13 9.6 111 81.6 1 0.7 136
Decoration 7 5.2 3 2.2 6 4.5 39 29.1 79 59 0 0 134
A. I. CORREIA ET AL.

Cleanliness 8 5.9 2 1.5 4 3 26 19.3 94 69.6 1 0.7 135

Service Reception 6 4.5 0 0 4 3 11 8.3 111 84.1 0 0 132
Friendliness 8 6 1 0.7 2 1.5 18 13.4 105 78.4 0 0 134
language skills 7 5.6 0 0 11 8.9 28 22.6 52 41.9 26 21 124
Knowledge of 5 3.9 3 2.4 9 7.1 23 18.1 76 59.8 11 8.7 127
wines
Activities Wine tasting 3 2.4 2 1.6 13 10.6 33 26.8 63 51.2 9 7.3 123
Guided tour 7 5.3 2 1.5 6 4.5 39 29.5 73 55.3 5 3.8 132
Entertainment 7 5.3 3 2.3 7 5.3 29 21.8 86 64.7 1 0.8 133
Thematic meals 6 4.8 5 4 4 3.2 41 32.5 67 53.2 3 2.4 126
Harvest 9 7 1 0.8 3 2.3 30 23.3 72 55.8 14 10.9 129
Grade treading 5 4.1 3 2.5 5 4.1 32 26.2 59 48.4 18 14.8 122
Video viewing 5 4 3 2.5 6 4.8 35 28.2 59 47.6 16 12.9 124
Exhibition 5 4.1 2 1.6 5 4.1 40 32.8 62 50.8 8 6.6 122
Other Signaling 0 0 1 100 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
Atmosphere 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 100 0 0 1
Mr. Bean 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 100 0 0 1
Meal explanation 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 100 0 0 1
Group 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 100 0 0 1
 14 WINE TOURISM EXPERIENCES AND MARKETING: THE CASE … 215

money/high prices. Two main types of activities are mentioned—guided

tours/visits to wineries and wine tasting.
Table 14.7 shows the most referred aspects related to the visit. The
most referred words were listed and grouped, starting with the visitors’
overall impression. Generally, the most popular words are directly related
to the cultural landscape. The service interaction also received very posi-
tive reviews with the most referred words being ‘friendly’ and ‘kind’, fol-
lowed by ‘excellent’, ‘great’ and ‘professional’.
Respondents were more likely to mention aspects related to the
accommodation, including the facilities (e.g. reference to manor house,
rooms, pool), followed by the wine and winemaking, the ‘Quintas’

Table 14.7 Most referred aspects related to the visit

Frequency in comments
Overall impression
Accommodation + Facilities 85
Wine + ‘Quintas’ + Wineries 61
Service interaction 51
Location + Douro Valley 49
Landscape 47
Food 43
Activities 41
Behavioural intention 28
Atmosphere 18
History + Heritage 14
Family owned business 12
Value for money 11
Accessibility 9
Cleanliness 8
Most mentioned words about the location
Amazing + Great + Fantastic 64
Best + Excellent + Very good + Good 62
Lovely + Beautiful 32
Authentic + Unique + Real 18
peaceful + Calm 18
Friendly 7
Most referred words of the service interaction
Friendly + Kind 38
Excellent + Great + Professional 19
Attentive 8
Helpful 7
216 A. I. CORREIA ET AL.

and the wineries. Finally, service interaction being mostly classified as

‘friendly’, location, landscape and food and activities participated in, par-
ticularly with reference to wine tasting and the harvest. The most fre-
quently mentioned words describing the location included: amazing,
great, fantastic and memorable. Generally, the experience is perceived
positively.
Such insights into the visitors’ behaviour and evaluation about their
wine-related experiences are becoming increasingly important for wine
tourism destinations to identify new ways to innovate and to enhance
the visitors’ experience. The provision and marketing of wine tourism
experiences are needed to differentiate the businesses’ product and to
position them into the consumers’ minds (Ali-Knight & Carlsen, 2003),
as well as for enhancing the competitive advantage of the regions and
their businesses (Brochado et al., 2014). This involves developing market
opportunities by matching consumers’ preferences and expectations with
current or new products, which is also usually associated with attempts
to attract high value-added and growing markets (Moital, Dias, &
Machado, 2013). Understanding the visitors’ expectation is a key deter-
minant for keeping the positive evaluation over time (Brochado et al.,
2014) and for providing the best experience according to their increas-
ingly demanding expectations (Pine & Gilmore, 1998).
As such, results of the interview with the owner of the Quinta da
Avessada enabled a more in-depth understanding of the behaviour of its
customers, particularly their adherence to light active-based experiences.
Using local agro-resources and inheritance of local history and customs
in creative ways to deliver cultural rich experiences to tourists. Food
products paired with local wine represent the most popular activity, add-
ing value and interest amongst tourists. Food products from local ingre-
dients, grown locally and transformed according to traditional cultural
practices passed down from generation to generation. Although food is
not a primary tourism activity at regional level, the Quinta da Avessada
showcases how food as an element of culture can provide highly pursued
experiences by tourists when the former is linked to the rural landscape.
In developing wine tourism, wine producers need to successfully com-
bine synergies between viniculture, food and tourism, while destination
managers need to stimulate wine producers/businesses to grasp this
approach in order to develop and market the wine tourism product more
convincingly to the ever-demanding tourist market.
 14 WINE TOURISM EXPERIENCES AND MARKETING: THE CASE … 217

Limitations and Future Research

This study has limitations mainly related to its research sample. Being of
an exploratory nature, the questionnaire represents a small sample that
is satisfactory for a pilot study. The sample is not representative and so,
the survey results and findings cannot be generalised. Furthermore, the
survey was conducted in September, which represents the high season for
wine tourism in the region. The timing could also influence the charac-
teristics of the sample, as well as the respondents’ experience perceptions
and evaluations. Thus, it is recommended that the results be used to
prepare further research to be applied throughout the year, particularly
to obtain comparable data on consumption and behavioural patterns of
tourists. The content analysis of the reviews posted on social networks is
also limited by a small sample, as only the three first comments were con-
sidered and analysed for each wine business. Thus, a larger scale analysis
is required to explore in greater detail the visitors’ perceptions and eval-
uation of the destination as well as to better profile the visitors based on
what they share online regarding their wine-related experiences.

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 CHAPTER 15

Managing and Marketing Wine Destinations

with and Through Art: A Framework
for Designing Wine Experiences

Marianna Sigala

Introduction
There are many commonalities, interrelations and reciprocals links
between art and wine. Wine is art in itself. Winemaking and wine appre-
ciation is as complex and subjective as is art making and appreciation.
Wine drinking (alone, with others, in celebrations, in events, festivals) is
an art of living. Wine is also deployed an investment object, as is art.
Overall, one can easily find connotations of art in all aspects of wine
(tourism) businesses: when people make, consume/experience and/
or buy and trade wine, wine-related experiences and settings. But it is
not only the world of wine moving into the world of art and becoming
an artwork; the world of art is also moving into wine. Artists have used
wine (tourism) businesses as: a setting to exhibit their artistic creations;
a context to get inspired; a setting to create and sell wine-related artistic

M. Sigala (*)
University of South Australia, Adelaide, SA, Australia
e-mail: marianna.sigala@unisa.edu.au

© The Author(s) 2019 221

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_15
222 M. SIGALA

objects (e.g. wine glassware, wine painting, wine books and movies);
and/or a place to perform (e.g. music festivals).
The use of art in business is not new. What is currently new is the
approach, the ways and the goals to be achieved for embedding art into
business. During the last years, there has been a shift from the artefica-
tion of goods (e.g. art design and decoration of wine cellars) and the
commodification of art (e.g. wine-related souvenirs and objects such as,
glassware and paintings) to the use of art as a tool to develop new ways
to: perceive and manage a business; tackle organizational problems from
new angles; and humanize business management (Schiuma, 2011). Thus,
from an object to be embedded into business products and processes in
order to increase business value, art is increasingly also seen as a means
to support and transform business processes that in turn can generate
and inspire (new forms of) business value. The latter is represented by
a burgeoning field of literature around art-based initiatives, ABI (Antal,
2014; Barry & Meisiek, 2010; Dunphy, 2016; Meisiek & Barry, 2007)
advocating how various forms of arts (e.g. music, photography, visuali-
zations, painting, poetry, cartooning) can be deployed to build, develop
and nurture the human and social capital of firms (e.g. by inspiring
employees’ creative thinking, perceiving, communications and emotional
experiences).
This shift of understanding the value of art is compatible with the ten-
ets of the new service management thinking (Service Dominant Logic)
advocating that value cannot be created and embedded in products/
services, but it is always co-created by actors exchanging resources
(Chen, Ou Yang, & Leo, 2017). Similarly, the value of art should not be
perceived as being embedded into artistic creations; rather the value of
art is co-created when actors interact with and through artistic artworks
and settings in order to engage (cognitively, emotionally, socially and
spiritually) with themselves and/or with others and exchange resources
(e.g. knowledge, ideas, physical work). In other words, artworks do not
embed pre-produced value that one can extract and appropriate by sim-
ply buying the art. Instead, to appropriate the value of art, actors need
to view and use artworks as an engagement object and platform for
exchanging resources and co-creating value.
However, research in ABI has solely focused on showing how
­businesses can use art in order to develop and broaden the skills, capa-
bilities, emotional and social capacity of their employees. There is a
lack of research investigating how business can use ABI for building
 15 MANAGING AND MARKETING WINE DESTINATIONS … 223

and enriching customer engagement by designing art-based interfaces

and customer-touchpoints that can inspire customers’ way of thinking,
perceiving and feeling, change their behaviour and social practices, and
ultimately, enable them to co-create (new forms of) value. Studies have
already examined how art can be used to create and embed artistic
dimensions into servicescapes and services for enhancing the customer
aesthetic and experiential value. But research examining the role of art
as a means (and not an object) for inspiring and supporting customers
to develop their cognitive, social, and spiritual capabilities is lacking.
The latter is critically important because: in services, customers have
always been considered as partial employees and currently as co-­creators
of value; and as customers/tourists convert from passive consumers
and spectators to active value co-creators, their appreciation and quest
of value shifts from aesthetic/visual appeal, entertainment, enjoyment
and escapism value attributes to the co-creation of spiritual and transfor-
mational value (Sigala, 2019a). Wine tourists are not an exception from
such market trends, and Sigala (2019b) described an example whereby a
winery used art to bring together visitors, artists and local communities
to co-create transformational value. Hence, there is an urgent need to
investigate how ABI can be used by (wine tourism) businesses to design
new business value propositions and processes that would empower and
inspire customers to engage with and through the art for co-creating
(new forms) of value.
To address this gap, this chapter aims to develop a framework that
wine destinations and businesses can use for designing ABI aiming
to enable and foster customer engagement for co-creating (new forms
of) value and wine experiences. The framework also identifies the value
propositions in terms of the different types of values that such ABI can
generate as well as it explains the processes and the factors that can lead
to these value co-creation outcomes. To achieve that, the literature on
ABI is first reviewed for identifying and understanding the ways in which
art can be used for generating business value. This literature is heavily
dominated by studies showing how employees interact and engage with
art for developing their human capital. By building and expanding on
this literature, the chapter then develops a framework that wine desti-
nations and business can use for designing ABI that enable and enrich
customer engagement with and through art for co-creating value. The
applicability and the practical value of this customer-oriented ABI frame-
work are shown by providing several examples illustrating how (wine)
224 M. SIGALA

tourism destinations and businesses have used art as a way to develop

a new business value propositions and wine experiences for their
customers.

Art in Business

Art Interventions: Definition and Aims

During the last decades, there has been a major shift in the way art is
being perceived and used in business. From being an object to be
embedded into business processes (e.g. advertising, brand image prac-
tices), products/services (e.g. packaging, labelling) and business settings
(e.g. decorating workplaces and servicescapes), art is increasingly being
used as a tool and a means to enable employees and managers to rethink,
re-imagine, redesign and renew (Schiuma & Carlucci, 2015): organiza-
tional processes, routines, values, cultures, operations, identity, image
brand. Interactions and engagement with art can stimulate new ways
of thinking, challenge established mindsets, develop new skills, compe-
tencies and behaviours. Several studies (e.g. Dunphy, 2016; Simeone,
Secundo, & Schiuma, 2018) provide evidence on how various forms of
art (e.g. comic art, video, photography, data visualization, poetry) are
used as an aesthetic technology to support, facilitate and develop peo-
ples’ capabilities to connect, communicate and interact to better under-
stand their inner and outer world. ABI use art for depicting, illustrating,
skewering or even satirizing various social practices, business operations
and management mindsets. By developing employees’ capabilities to
interact, engage (emotionally and cognitively) to ‘see’ things from differ-
ent viewpoints, art can increase their inspiration and creativity in gener-
ating new viewpoints, business solutions and knowledge. Consequently,
from a commoditized object embedded in business elements to increase
their business value, art becomes an educational, transformational, inno-
vative and developmental tool that helps businesses to develop the two
major factors that can increase their competitiveness, performance and
innovativeness, namely their human capital (i.e. the employees’ capa-
bilities, skills and thinking by influencing their mindsets, social behav-
iours and work practices); and their business infrastructure within which
employees work and create.
In short, art is used to ignite, catalyse, drive, harness and govern emo-
tions and energies within organizations and to foster new viewpoints and
 15 MANAGING AND MARKETING WINE DESTINATIONS … 225

ways of thinking and acting. In this way, ABI develop new drivers for
creating business value such as passion, emotions, hope, moral, imagina-
tion, aspirations and creativity, relations first at individual level (engaging
a person emotionally and intellectually) and then at group and organiza-
tional levels. By activating and seeing emotions, ethics and energy as key
factors to generate business value, ABI help firms to sustain their human
nature. Firms are techno-human systems and art can help humanize them
by enriching and building their human and social capital (Antal, 2014).
Artistic interventions have been defined as processes that bring ‘peo-
ple, products, and practices from the world of the arts into organizations’
(Antal, 2014, p. 177) with the aim to challenge (and change) the ration-
alistic and linear management thinking and functioning by developing
and embedding artistic thinking (reductionist and creativity) into man-
agers’ and employees’ mindsets and business practices. Several keywords
are used to describe such artistic interventions: (1) work arts including
art collection, artist-led intervention, and artistic experimentation (Barry
& Meisiek, 2010, p. 1507); and (2) art-based initiatives (ABI) includ-
ing arts-based interventions, arts-based projects, arts-based programmes
(Schiuma, 2011, pp. 48–49). ABI can be of different durations (from
few hours and days to months and years) and can take various formats,
such as training, coaching, residencies, art collections and sponsorship
(Schiuma, 2011).
In summary, the following key points characterize ABI:

– ABI aim to help organizations develop and improve their value

creation capabilities.
– ABI focus not on the work of art itself, but on the experiences
­triggered by arts that can in turn influence the employees’ (actors)
abilities and willingness to co-create value.
– By impacting on employees, ABI can also impact organizations,
other stakeholders and societies as a whole; thus, ABI can generate
personal, interpersonal, organizational and societal value.

Art Interventions: Typologies and Approaches

Two major studies have attempted to categorize the ways in which firms
design ABI to develop processes and experiences that can develop value
creation capabilities and generate business value. Atulkar and Kesari
(2018) identified the following ways that art can create value in retailing:
226 M. SIGALA

– Art as decoration: artistic designs and elements in servicescapes

create a positive visual appeal and aesthetic to customers and
­
employees, help remove the strain and negative emotions from
people’s mind, and build an affective and emotional connection
between customers, the brand, the store and the employees.
– Art as entertainment: art (e.g. music, sense, paintings, colours)
can be used to generate enjoyment, pleasure, fun and/or ­escapism.
These positive emotions can in turn increase the customers’
spending, loyalty, image, perceptions and attitudes towards the
­
store and the brand.
– Art as an instrument to facilitate learning: art can be a tool for
developing staff’s skills and mindsets, by embedding art in team-
building, communication training, leadership development, prob-
lem-solving and innovation processes.
– Art of appealing the sense: art (e.g. in packaging, labelling, tasting
of products) can stimulate senses (vision, touch, hear, smell, and
sometimes taste) in order to: draw the customers’ attention; gen-
erate their interest about the firm and its products; influence cus-
tomers’ comprehension and valuation of the brand/product; create
and form customers’ brand image and impressions; build emotional
brand/store attachment.

Although the Atulkar and Kesari’s (2018) typology identifies the differ-
ent roles and ways in which art can generate various types of value (e.g.
aesthetic, emotional, escapism), it has some critical limitations: it views
art as an object to be embedded within business processes and services in
order to enrich their business value; it overlooks the ability of art to be
the mean for enabling new business processes, new value-enabling capa-
bilities and new business value propositions; for example, it ignores the
transformational and inspiration value that people can generate by inter-
acting with art. There is also no evidence or research to support that this
typology can offer a non-exhaustive and all-inclusive list of the various
ways that art can generate business value, while the roles of art (i.e. as
decoration and appealing to senses) do not seem to be mutually exclusive
and different.
Instead of creating another typology of ABI, Schiuma (2011) and
Carlucci and Schiuma (2018) advocated a general framework for under-
standing and implementing ABI in businesses. This framework includes
two broader views for exploiting art in business, each one identifying a
 15 MANAGING AND MARKETING WINE DESTINATIONS … 227

different role and/or approach of deploying art that is able to g ­ enerate

different types of business values. Thus, these two views recognize the
dual capability of art: to be transformed into business value; and to act
as a transforming agent, a tool and a catalyzer for generating (new)
­business value.
Analytically the first view deploys the art as a management device to
embed aesthetic properties into organizational infrastructure, prod-
ucts/services and processes, so that the latter ‘… are able to stimulate
people’s aesthetic sensibilities affecting emotional and energetic dynam-
ics’ (Schiuma, 2011, p. 40). Hence, the art is used as an object to be
inserted into organizational components (workplaces, equipment, tools,
products/services, processes, infrastructure, servicescapes) in order to
create aesthetic experiences that appeal to and influence the behaviour of
end users, which in turn increases the value of an organization and of its
components in the market. For example, artistic dimensions embedded
in packaging, labelling, servicescape and working facilities can enhance
the firms’ organizational identity, improve the brand reputation and
image, create symbols reflecting and creating specific organizational
­values and culture. From a business perspective, the goal of such ABI is
not to create artworks but to instil the artful energy into organizational
components. Consequently, this view focuses on what value ABI delivers
(measured as managers’ innovativeness, employees’ creativity, enhanced
brand image) and it is called as the static view.
On the other hand, the second view is referred to as the dynamic view,
because it addresses the issue of how ABI can generate business value. In
this vein, the dynamic view focuses on the organizational factors through
which organizational value is created, and it uses art in order to develop
the dynamic capabilities of the firm. The ABI are viewed as a learning
platform that can spark and sustain learning dynamics that develop and
transform the human and organizational capital that can in turn generate
business value. For example, through art metaphors and analogues, man-
agers can be inspired to think outside the box, generate new business
solutions. Art forms can also be used to shape aesthetic contexts that
can collapse social and functional boundaries, make staff feels more con-
nected, involved and co-inspired, and so, build and boost team working
and performance.
Overall, the static and the dynamic view of ABI recognize the
dual role of art in business value generation: (1) the ability of the art
to form business value at a static snapshot (by being embedded into
228 M. SIGALA

organizational components) (Antal et al., 2013); and (2) the ability of

the art to nurture and develop the human and organizational capital
that can form and shape business value in the long term. From a SDL
approach (Chen et al., 2017), the transformed and the transforming
roles of the art in business value co-creation would be perceived as art
being an operant and an operand resource (i.e. a resource to generate
business value by being transformed or by supporting the transformation
of other resources). It is also important to highlight that these two views
are also distinguished in terms of the following features (Antal, 2014):
the degree of participation of the employees; the employees’ engagement
with the art; and the inclusion of reflection on experience.

Art Interventions and Business Value

It is evident from the above analysis that using art in business can gener-
ate various types of value (aesthetic, spiritual, social, symbolic, emotional
and educational). The business values of art are compatible with research
discussing the value of culture (Guest, 2002; O’Brien, 2010; Throsby,
2001) and with values identified by previous research on art and science
collaborations (Gerber, 2006; Scott, 2006; Stettler, 2006). In this line,
Schiuma (2011) developed the Arts Value Matrix framework that maps
and summarizes the organizational value drivers that can be activated and
affected by and intentional and instrumental use of arts’ forms as means
to support value creation mechanisms. The framework recognizes that
ABI generate business value by impacting on two organizational dimen-
sions: the human resources and the infrastructure (tangible and intangi-
ble assets enabling staff to create value). Schiuma (2011) also recognized
that it is difficult to measure as well as quantify the value generated by
ABI. This is because: economic values and traditional business perfor-
mance methodologies are not sufficient to capture all the features of the
business value generated by art which are soft, subjective, idiosyncratic,
context-, time-related (Schiuma, 2011). Straub (2009) also advocated
that the business value of art can be stakeholder-related, because the
potential of ABI is also social and public. By using a campus residency
as a case study, Lee, Fillis, and Lehman (2018) confirmed that ABI can
provide all types of business value (i.e. entertainment, galvanizing, inspi-
ration, reputation, environment, learning and development, investment,
 15 MANAGING AND MARKETING WINE DESTINATIONS … 229

networking and transformation) and at different levels—stakeholders

(i.e. personal-intrinsic, instrumental, institutional). The more the busi-
ness value of ABI goes beyond organizational borders and in long-
term time periods, the more difficult it becomes for managers to justify
investments on ABI.
There is an increasing amount of research providing evidence of the
various forms of business value of art. Studies also explain how the busi-
ness value of art is materialized by showing ABI can develop the human
and infrastructural capital of the firms by influencing the emotional,
cognitive and social capital of people. For example, Estes, Brotto, and
Busacca (2018) showed how artworks embedded into advertisements
can increase the value of a product (measured as product evaluation, will-
ingness to buy, and willingness to pay) by boosting the customers’ brand
effect. Estes et al. (2018) called this the art infusion effect whereby ABI
use emotions as a mechanism to affect product and price valuations. Lee
et al. (2018) and An and Youn (2018) investigated the ability of ABI to
boost employees’ creativity and innovative thinking by enabling them to
see more and see differently. Art was found to stimulate creative business
thinking, mindsets and problem-solving by supporting judgement, curi-
osity, opportunity recognition, risk-taking and challenging conventional
thinking. Meisiek and Barry (2018) provided evidence of the ability of
ABI to boost collective sense-making and team building. In summary,
Antal, Taylor, and Ladkin (2014) summarized the role of arts in boost-
ing managerial development within organizations into the following four
ways: (1) the transfer of art skills (e.g. unbiased perception) to manage-
ment activities; (2) projecting managers’ subconscious thoughts into
their managerial strategies; (3) discovering the true essence of one’s
product, service, or situation; and (4) increasing managers’ experience
of personal presence, which can positively impact their business decisions
and actions.
However, despite the numerous studies providing evidence and
explanatory power about the impact of ABI on employees’ capabilities
to generate personal and organizational value, there is a lack of research
investigating whether ABI could have similar developmental effects on
customers’ value generation capabilities. The latter is critically important,
as the customers are increasingly recognized and embedded into organi-
zational processes and infrastructures as value co-creators.
230 M. SIGALA

Wine Tourism Experiences and Art

The Evolution of Wine Tourism Experiences: The Role of Art

in Transformational Wine Tourism Experiences
Wine tourism has evolved far away from simply tasting wine.
Increasingly, wine tourists do not anymore seek experiences that are
solely aesthetically and emotionally appealing. Wine experiences that ena-
ble tourists to learn, develop their skills and/or even ‘transform’ them-
selves by interacting through wine-related elements have become more
important (Sigala, 2019b). Thus, from commoditized wine tourism
experiences requiring tourists to passively experience the aesthetic bene-
fits of wine, we moved to: (1) co-created wine experiences that empower
tourists to develop their self-actualization and self-development skills
by actively participating in wine-related learning experiences (i.e. make
your own blend, winemaking, viticulture); and (2) transformational wine
experiences that help tourists to rethink and redefine themselves, their
lifestyles and social values by participating in life-changing wine-related
experiences. The provision of meaningful, personalized, co-created and
transformational wine tourism experiences has become the new bench-
mark to achieve competitiveness and differentiation in the wine tourism
industry. Consequently, businesses should strive to design wine tour-
ism experiences that can enhance the tourists’ spiritual and transform-
ative value by stimulating their attention, interest, engagement and
self-reflection. But the important questions are: what is transformational
value; and what are the processes that wine tourism firms need to sup-
port to enabling the materialization of transformational value.
The generation of transformative value goes beyond the provision of
habitual value, which reflects the everyday value that organizations offer
to satisfy situational and domain-specific needs in a marketspace. This
is because transformative value is conceptualized (Blocker & Barrios,
2015) as a social dimension of value creation which illuminates uplifting
changes among individuals and collectives in the marketplace. Hence,
transformative value does not equate to well-being but serves as an
intervening construct for advancing greater well-being. In other words,
transformational experiences do not aim to satisfy and meet the needs
of the current state and level of customers’ well-being. Instead, trans-
formational service experiences should: trigger and challenge people’s
perceptions of well-being; make people rethink and reset the values
 15 MANAGING AND MARKETING WINE DESTINATIONS … 231

and the ways to achieve well-being. Transformational value is always

co-created and its generation is dependent on the actor’s abilities to
co-create value as well as the degrees of freedom to deploy the former
for generating transformational value (e.g. the actor’s openness and
willingness to change). The latter highlights the critical role of s­ervice
providers to trigger, nurture and facilitate the actors’ resources,
capabilities and freedoms to co-create transformative value.
A recent study conducted by Skift (2018) identified people, food/
wine, culture and art among the most important factors that have ena-
bled tourists to experience transformational tourism. Recently, the role of
culture and art to activate transformational wine tourism experiences has
discussed through two case studies by Sigala (2019a, 2019b). In their
study, Antal, Debucquet, and Frémeaux (2018) have also shown how
ABI can enable employees to experience meaningful work measured in
terms of the work being able to inspire employees to: self-develop their
capabilities and thinking; connect with others; and contribute to society.
The definition of meaningful work is similar to the aims of transformative
value seeking to achieve uplifting in people’s and society’s well-being.
However, apart from these descriptive case studies of transformational
wine experiences and the evidence of the role of art to instil and support
the generation of transformative value in the workplace, there is a lack
of knowledge on how to design ABI that can trigger and facilitate the
­customers’ abilities and freedoms to co-create transformative value.
The importance of using art and culture as the facilitator to
co-create transformative value within the wine tourism context is also
highlighted by the following arguments. Cultural tourism has recently
been reaffirmed by the UNWTO as a major element of international
tourism consumption (Richards, 2018); culture is a major driver gen-
erating flows and spending from international tourists worldwide. This
is also corroborated by findings from a recent report by the Australia
Council for the Arts (2018) showing that international art tourists
in Australia spend the more and they are more likely to visit regional
Australia than international tourists overall. Thus, art-based transform-
ative wine tourism experiences can be a major generator of tourism
demand (specifically in regional places) and of tourism spending. Art-
based wine tourism experiences is also a good way to familiarize, show-
case and engage international visitors with the uniqueness, depth and
diversity of the local culture, support local economies and share local sto-
ries and cultural resources with the rest of the world. Art also speaks an
232 M. SIGALA

international language, which in the context of tourism in very crucial.

Tourists usually come from various cultural, religion and national back-
grounds, and so, the art can be: the language to attract their attention
and communicate with them; the tool to relate with others; and the glue
to connect with local and others’ cultural resources.

A Framework for Using Art to Design Wine Tourism Experiences

A 4C framework has been developed showing how art can be used for
designing and enriching wine tourism experiences. The 4C framework
builds upon but it also expands previous research categorizing ABI in
business (Atulkar & Kesari, 2018; Schiuma, 2011) by transferring and
adapting the ways in which art can generate business value from the
employees’ context (workplace) to the customer context and company
interfaces with customers. In this vein, the 4C framework adopts a SDL
that views the customers as co-creators of business value (Tommasetti,
Troisi, & Vesci, 2017) and it aims to show how art interventions can
trigger, inspire and develop the customers’ abilities and freedoms to
co-create various types of values. Similar to previous literature in ABI,
the 4C framework recognizes: the dual role of art in value creation
(being transformed but also facilitating the transformation of other
resources); the ability of different approaches to ABI to generate differ-
ent types of business values; and the different types of customers’ (vs.
employee’s in ABI past research) engagement, participation and reflec-
tion with art. The following sections present each C of this framework
by providing practical examples showing the different ways in which art
supports different types of customer engagement and participation in
value co-creation processes and the delivery of different types of business
values.

Art to Be Consumed
This view of using art to design wine tourism experiences is similar to
previous views deploying art as an object to be embedded into organi-
zational components (i.e. products/services, workplaces, processes) with
the purpose to increase their business value. Similarly, wine destinations
and business can insert art into the design and decoration of wine expe-
riences, wine products, winery servicescapes and even winescapes. In this
case, the wine tourists engage with art passively; the wine tourists are
simply required to ‘consume’, experience and/or being absorbed by the
 15 MANAGING AND MARKETING WINE DESTINATIONS … 233

artistic elements embedded into wine tourism experiences and settings.

By developing ABI based on the ‘art to be consumed’ view, the purpose
is to use art for developing rich, multi-sensorial and experiential wine
tourism experiences that can attract the attention, boost the appeal and
enhance the brand image perceptions of wine tourists. Thus, the core
focus and aim of this view is to embed art into the design of wine tour-
ism experiences and settings in order to generate aesthetic and hedonic
values.
There are several examples within the (wine) tourism context further
illustrating this approach. Wang, Tang, and Cheng (2018) provided a
review of literature showing how art is used by various hotels for devel-
oping an artistic, sensory stimulation and mentally enriching experi-
ence, a pleasant and aesthetically appealing service ambience that boost
customers’ emotions, attentions, brand loyalty, attachment and image.
Similarly, artworks (e.g. music, sense, paintings, sculpture) are increas-
ingly being embedded into wineries and wineries’ components (e.g. wine
labelling, wine bottling) in order to enrich and make the servicescape
more sensorial and aesthetically appealing.
At a destination macro-level, destinations embed art into their land-
scape not only to make it more aesthetically appealing but also to
immerse visitors into the local culture. For example, the city of Perth
(Australia) has recently developed an EyeJack mobile app that allows its
users to navigate, explore and experience the city by identifying and fol-
lowing cultural trails (ArtWalks) that include spots whereby artworks are
exposed in the city. By combining art, animation, geographical informa-
tion systems, storytelling techniques and augmented reality, this mobile
app provides an interesting, multi-sensorial and experiential way to expe-
rience, learn and understand the destination and its cultural resources.
Similarly, art is also used in Dubai for enriching and making destina-
tions more aesthetically appealing and stimulating. The ‘Jumeirah pro-
ject’ aims to convert Jumeirah into a cultural hub by bringing together
local and international artists to create 30 artistic projects in 30 locations
along the Jumeirah Road (https://www.msn.com/en-ae/news/uae/
sheikh-mohammed-launches-project-to-make-jumeirah-a-cultural-hub/
ar-BBQ7N2F?ocid=spartandhp).
It is not only wine going into the art world, but the art world is also
coming to the wine world. Wine settings (at both micro-firm and macro-
destination level) are also used as places for consuming art and for
artists to perform their art (e.g. a film director presenting his work at a
234 M. SIGALA

winery https://www.gerovassiliou.gr/en/news/costas-gavras-gerovassil-
iou-wine-museum). Art has become a major resource for developing
wine art-related events to drive visitors and boost spending in wineries
(e.g. music concerts and painting exhibitions https://www.adelaidere-
view.com.au/arts/music/classical-music-amid-vines/). Destinations also
use art as a theme for developing wine tourism events; for example, In
Penola-Coonawarra wine region, the destination organizes an annual
art festival (https://artsfestival.com.au/) which brings various forms
of art (e.g. photography, painting, music, theatre) to be performed and
consumed within wine settings, such as vineyards and cellar doors. The
Art Festival in Penola-Coonawarra is a major event attracting ­numerous
visitors, spending and publicity for the destination. Hence, art to be
consumed is a significant demand-pull and generator factor that can
­
drive visitation and spending in wine settings.

Art to Be Commoditized
According to this view, art is used for developing memorabilia that wine
tourists can buy and own in order to: reflect and remember their wine
tourism experiences; embed them into their lifestyles and daily life for
aesthetically enriching their experiences and/or boosting their image,
ego and identity with a wine context.
There are also examples whereby art has been commoditized and
inserted into advertisement material and campaigns for boosting and
building brand image. For example, a recent campaign of Greece
(https://ideasinspiringinnovation.wordpress.com/2009/12/14/des-
tination-marketing-image-building-country-branding-greeces-%E2%
80%9Cmasterpiece%E2%80%9D-campaign-2-of-4/) has used various
artworks (photographs and videos showcasing various cultural resources
and landmarks of Greece) in order to build the country branding and
identity. The name of the advertising campaign itself (A Masterpiece that
you can afford) also aims to push the target audience to make the conno-
tations between the value/image of art and of the country for influenc-
ing their destination valuations and perceptions.
There are also many examples whereby wine-related artefacts and
infrastructure become and are turned into art and cultural heritage in
their own right that in turn are commodified and exploited for con-
sumption and/or sales. For example, wineries with an artistic or herit-
age architectural design become contemporary or cultural monuments
(e.g. the museum of wine in Bordeaux, the old wineries in Armenia
 15 MANAGING AND MARKETING WINE DESTINATIONS … 235

and Turkey, the underground wine cellars in Moldavia) represent a

wine destination in their own right, become part of the cultural her-
itage of the place and a must-see attraction for people to travel and
experience. Wineries also convert wine-related artefacts (e.g. wine pro-
duction equipment, viticulture and wine trade items or even personal
items of winemakers) into heritage objects that are commodified and
exposed in private and/or public wine museums. For example, Garibaldi
and Pozzi (2018) argued how private wine museums enable winer-
ies to enrich their wine tourism experiences, while the State Library of
South Australia has the largest collection of wine-related materials in
the Southern Hemisphere (http://www.winelit.slsa.sa.gov.au/) that
have been turned into cultural heritage objects (e.g. old wine bot-
tle labels, documents of wine lists, restaurant menus, press releases of
famous people visiting wineries). Other examples of wine museums that
have converted wine-related objects into art and heritage include: the
Gerovassiliou Wine Museum (featuring the world’s largest collection
of corkscrew and rare/unique tools of viticulture, winemaking, bot-
tling and cooperage dating back to the eigteenthth century. https://
www.gerovassiliou.gr/en/museum) and the Koutsoyannopoulos Wine
Museum (http://www.santoriniwinemuseum.com/en/home). Wine
museums usually aim to explain the art and the history of winemak-
ing and viticulture and how this relates to the socio-economic and cul-
tural development of their destination. Various educational events may
also be organized in wine museums (e.g. https://www.gerovassiliou.
gr/sites/default/files/documents/educational-programs/%CE%95%
CE%BA%CF%80%CE%B1%CE%B9%CE%B4%CE%B5%CF%85%CF%8
4%CE%B9%CE%BA%CE%BF%CC%81-%CE%B1%CE%BD%CE%BF%
CE%B9%CF%87%CF%84%CE%B7%CC%81%CF%81%CE%B9%
CE%B1.pdf). Thus, wine museums can assume all the roles of traditional
museums and deliver aesthetic, economic, educational, sociocultural (e.g.
preservation of history and create a social identity) value.
Based on Chaney, Pulh, and Mencarelli (2018), wineries employ
two major heritage mechanisms for converting wine objects (i.e. extra-­
ordinary heritage objects) into cultural heritage and art: relating wine
objects with generations that provide them the features of history, age
and timelessness of heritage artefacts; and relating wine objects with the
local community that provides them the affordance of heritage items
to create a social identity uniting the winery with its environment. The
artefication and heritagization of wine-related objects and infrastructure
236 M. SIGALA

converts wineries and wine destinations into art entrepreneurs and

­cultural agents that commodify wine-related artworks and objects for cre-
ating an ‘attraction’, having the tools and the platform for delivering wine
tourism experiences, boosting brand image and attachment and translat-
ing all the latter to economic value. Some authors name this phenomenon
as ‘heritage crusade’ or ‘heritage inflation’ (Chaney et al., 2018).
Based on the ‘wine to be commoditized’ approach, wine-related
objects are arteficated and heritagized as well as artworks are developed
purposefully and exclusively for the service of business. Art is being cre-
ated, commoditized and consumed for business and market purposes.

Art to Be Co-created
This is the approach whereby customers can use elements from the wine
and art sector for actively participating and co-creating their wine tour-
ism experience. In this vein, the customers are empowered to experi-
ence and practice themselves the art of winemaking and viticulture. For
example, the Pasadena Winery enable customers to create and bottle
their own wine (http://www.dvinewineusa.com/locations/california/
pasadena/makeyourown/index.php), other wineries enable visitors to
create their own blend. The Columbia Crest Winery adopted an even
more open source innovation approach allowing the crowd to decide and
co-create their own wine (http://crowdsourcedcabernet.com/Default.
aspx?ReturnUrl=%2f). Customers were allowed to use the social media
for voting and taking winemaking decisions at all production stages: vari-
etal, appellation, vineyard, barrel, bottling (https://www.columbiacrest.
com/our-winery/news/first-wine-crowdsourced-from-vine-to-table-
releases-to-the-public).
It is also the world of art being used by customers to co-create their
own wine tourism experience. For example, Mariani, Annunziata, Nacchia,
and Vastola (2016) identified several crowdfunded projects online whereby
customers sought to source funds for creating a film, a photoalbum, a
book, a wine event/festival about wine, wine regions, wine culture and/or
winemaking. Thus, technological advances have further empowered con-
sumers by enabling them to become wine art entrepreneurs for co-creating
and maybe commoditizing their own wine experiences.
Overall, based on the ‘art to be co-created’, the wine c­onsumers
assume a more active and participatory role in wine (art) processes,
and their engagement goes beyond solely creating emotional, hedonic
and social value by also generating for them self-developmental and
self-actualization values.
 15 MANAGING AND MARKETING WINE DESTINATIONS … 237

Art as a Catalyst of Transformative Value

The purpose and focus of this approach is to use art as the means for
triggering and developing the capabilities of wine tourists to generate
transformative value. Thus, the value that wine tourists should experi-
ence and co-create should not satisfy the needs of existing well-being but
challenge and make them rethink and reset new lifestyles, and values for
achieving well-being.
In this vein, the wineries and wine destinations should become spaces
within which tourists should be able to experience new ways of seeing,
thinking and doing things that add value for them personally. Wine in
Moderation—Art de Vivre (https://www.wineinmoderation.eu/en/
content/Missions.90/), is an interesting example moving the wine cul-
ture and responsible wine drinking into the artspace (i.e. an art of living)
and using this ‘art of living’ as a way to make consumers rethink and
reset their drinking patterns and habits in line with a better well-being
for them and their social environment. Wine in Moderation is a social
responsibility movement and action brought together by a group of win-
eries and wine destinations in Europe aiming to use the wine culture and
the art of responsible wine drinking as a way to achieve well-being and
a healthy life. The initiative includes ‘Art de Vivre Campaigns’ that are
inspired by the culinary and cultural heritage of wine, in order to pro-
mote moderation and responsibility in wine drinking as a cultural and
social norm. Overall, by combining art, wine cultural heritage and­
evidence-based scientific information, this social movement aims to
facilitate dialogues on wine, health and social aspects, encourage and
inspire consumers to make responsible choices and drinking patterns that
enhance their well-being.
As a liberator and catalyst of mind, art has the ability not only to
­stimulate the human senses but also to energize the humans’ thinking
and cognitive abilities. Thus, it is also possible to use the artistic elements
of art itself in order to inspire and trigger consumers to rethink and reset
their well-being values and actions. In this vein, the art moves into the
winespace to facilitate the generation of transformative value. To that
end, art can be embedded and/or designed within winescapes in order
to energize and inspire customers to question their habitual ways of
­seeing, knowing and acting. Overall, art enabled and empowered trans-
formational wine experiences should aim to inspire and provide the wine
consumers with opportunities for:
238 M. SIGALA

• self-exploration and re-examination of one’s holistic understanding

of self,
• personal transformations (understanding one’s self),
• intra-personal changes (belief–value system),
• interpersonal connections, and
• life-changing decisions (e.g. behaviour, lifestyles).

An example of a wine transformational experience that used art as

a catalyser to empower customers to co-create transformative value
is the artistic event called ‘Sculpture in the valley’. This was an ABI
developed by the city council of Swan Valley (wine region in Western
Australia) that involved a non-conventional artist (https://martinjaine.
com.au/) to exhibit his artwork along various locations within the wine
region for inspiring visitors to rethink their understanding and val-
ues of recycling and reset their sustainable actions. The artist (Martin
Jaine) is a former farmer, antiques dealer and builder that has changed
career when he become famous for his artistic works converting scrap
metal and tools into artworks. So, the use of a non-conventional type
of artist and artwork was also an element attracting people’s attention
as well as triggering their thinking and modifying their mindsets about
art and the purpose of art. Across the Swan Valley, a variety of Jaine’s
artwork was installed including kangaroos, giant nests and eggs, a bal-
lerina and boab trees. The artworks did not only aesthetically enriched
the wine experience of the visitors, but they also aimed to challenge
their conventional thinking about recycling and activate renewed recy-
cling values and behaviours. Jaine’s artworks were designed to ena-
ble the audience to experience, explore and get to know the concept
of recycling differently. With his artworks, Jaine’s was ambitious to be
inspirational and behaviour transformational specifically for children.
Jaine hoped that the children would explore the art visually as well as
through touch and be inspired. As he mentioned (https://www.commu-
nitynews.com.au/eastern-reporter/news/entwined-in-the-valley-2018-
promises-to-be-huge/):

Kids are really clever, they see things totally different to us, “Especially the
recycled part of it … I think that just clicks in their brain because they are
getting taught a lot about recycling.
I think seeing the art and the recycling together is a real plus. They are
our future.
 15 MANAGING AND MARKETING WINE DESTINATIONS … 239

Conclusion and Future Research

Despite the many commonalities and interrelations between wine and
art, there has been none research so far investigating the business impli-
cations and value that art can have in the wine tourism sector. During
the last years, there has been an increasing literature on ABI advocating
the affordances of art to generate business value. However, this research
has solely focused on the use of art for enhancing business value from a
company and employee perspective. As customers are increasingly per-
ceived and integrated within organizational processes as co-creators of
value, there is an urgent gap and need to investigate whether ABI can
also be used for instilling and developing the value generation capabili-
ties of customers as well. This chapter filled in this gap by building and
expanding on existing literature about ABI by developing a 4C frame-
work showing how art can be used for designing wine tourism experi-
ences and generate business value. In line with previous literature, the
framework recognizes: the dual role of art as both an operant and oper-
and resource (i.e. the transformed and transforming ability of art) for
supporting customer value (co-)creation processes; and the different
types of values that art can instil and generate for customers. The 4C
framework identifies four ways for designing ABI (art to be Consumed,
Commoditized, Co-created and as a Catalyst) that each one of them
entails a different way in which customers engage with art in order to
support and motivate their participation in value (co-)creation as well as
develop their capabilities and freedoms to implement (transformative)
value (co-)creation. The applicability of the 4C framework is shown by
analysing various examples from wine destinations and firms using art
to enable and empower wine tourism experiences. The examples rep-
resent cases that also demonstrate the interrelations and commonalities
between wine and art. Thus, ABI wine tourism experiences represent
examples whereby (Table 15.1): the wine moves into the space of art; the
art moves into the space of wine; and/or there is mutual collaboration
between wine and art elements.
Although there is some research about the business value that organ-
izations can generate through the commoditization and consumption
of art in general (and not in wine tourism contexts), there is a lack of
research in the new paradigms whereby art is used for support value
co-creation and transformational processes. Future research should aim
to explore the mechanisms and the processes in which ABI can support
Table 15.1 Commonalities and interrelations between wine and art
240

Winespace Artspace
Wine moving into the space of art to generate value:
– wine viewed as an art of living
– the artefication and/or heritagization of wine culture, objects and
M. SIGALA

infrastructure
– wine-related artistic events
– winescapes as a platform to exhibit art
Art moving into the space of wine to generate value:
– commoditization of art
– consumption of art
– art being performed in winescapes
– art being inspired by wine culture, objects and
infrastructure
Co-creation of value by mutual
exchanges of resources from the
winespace and artspace
– crowdfunding of artistic wine-related
projects
– transformative value co-creation
enabled and empowered through art
and wine
 15 MANAGING AND MARKETING WINE DESTINATIONS … 241

value co-creation and act as a catalyst for transformative value. Research

should also aim to investigate how wine tourists experience, understand
and perceive value co-creation and transformative value, as well as the
factors and the contexts that enable or inhibit them to materialize the
former.

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 CHAPTER 16

Developing a Destination
Within a Destination: The d’Arenberg Cube,
the Iconic Monument of Experiences
That Synergise Wine, Tourism and Art

Marianna Sigala and Ruth Rentschler

Introduction
As competition in wine tourism intensifies and becomes more globalised,
wine destinations need to fight hard to get the attention of wine tour-
ists and establish their brand name and image in the crowded wine tour-
ism map. The role of architecture in enhancing the physical assets of
destinations and making buildings an attraction on their own that can
drive tourism flows is well established in the literature (Cambie, 2009).
Iconic buildings and monuments play a leading role in drawing tourists
who associate destinations with these architectural landmarks (Scerri,
Edwards, & Foley, 2018). Known as The Bilbao effect, iconic buildings

M. Sigala (*) · R. Rentschler

University of South Australia, Adelaide, SA, Australia
e-mail: marianna.sigala@unisa.edu.au
R. Rentschler
e-mail: Ruth.Rentschler@unisa.edu.au

© The Author(s) 2019 245

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_16
246 M. SIGALA AND R. RENTSCHLER

(e.g. Sydney Opera House, MONA in Hobart, Tasmania, Guggenheim

Museum in Bilbao, Spain) have been used to support urban renewal,
revitalise struggling post-industrial cities, rebrand cities and help put
their name on the global tourism map, provide a visual identity and
foster civic pride (Lindsay, 2018). By becoming a visitor attraction on
their own, iconic buildings are externalities that require valuing to their
stakeholders.
However, the value assigned to iconic buildings is often restricted to
the cost of construction and economic benefits reflected in the num-
bers and spending power of visitors. Although their economic valuation
should not be considered as unimportant, the soft and non-monetary
benefits to various stakeholders have been so far neglected. Buildings
can physically make a destination, but culture brings that destination
into life. Buildings alone cannot sustain a destination’s competitiveness.
This is why the Bilbao effect cannot be replicated everywhere and why
many similar architectural projects have failed. By investigating the role
of iconic buildings on location-based learning, a research study (Budach,
2018) emphasised the equally important role of iconic buildings to build
links with the social fabric of the society and contribute to the citizens’
well-being and quality of life.
To fill in this gap, this chapter aims to highlight the importance of
iconic buildings to support culture, life and value creation into their
spaces, and the ways this can be implemented. This chapter uses the case
study of the d’Arenberg Cube, an exemplar cellar door (https://www.
darenberg.com.au/darenberg-cube/) that has placed McLaren Vale on
the international wine map. It has achieved this not only through its
bizarre architectural design, but primarily because of its ability to deliver
various multidimensional, multi-sensorial, creative and highly interactive
wine tourism experiences within its artistic building. The success of the
d’Arenberg Cube is based on its ability to convert an iconic building into
a live, social and co-creative experiential space with meaning and cultural
significance. This is achieved by synergising the powers of wine, tourism
and art in order to provide wine tourism experiences that trigger the vis-
itors’ emotional, cognitive, physical and spiritual engagement and con-
tribute to their well-being. The chapter builds on the literature about
servicescape design and art-based-initiatives (ABI) in order to provide a
theoretical understanding on how the mix of wine, tourism and art can
enable wine firms to design meaningful, memorable and transformational
wine tourism experiences. Examples from the d’Arenberg Cube are also
 16 DEVELOPING A DESTINATION WITHIN A DESTINATION … 247

used to show the applicability and implications of theory to practice.

The chapter contributes to the field by investigating the unexplored link
between wine, tourism and art and it concludes by identifying directions
for future research.

The Case Study Context: An Introduction

to the d’Arenberg Cube

The d’Arenberg Cube is located in McLaren Vale, a wine region of

South Australia, about fifty kilometres south of the capital city of
Adelaide. McLaren Vale features numerous small and large family owned
and international wine producers and cellar doors. It is a well-known
wine destination for Australia, and specifically for South Australia, but it
does not stand out as well in the global wine map as other more famous
wine destinations in Australia like Barossa Valley (South Australia) and
Hunter Valley (New South Wales). The d’Arenberg Cube is an iconic
wine monument that has significantly helped McLaren Vale to become
better positioned on the international wine destination map. Thus,
the d’Arenberg Cube represents South Australia’s answer to Hobart’s
MONA (Rentschler, Lehman, & Fillis, 2018). The d’Arenberg Cube
has a modern architectural external and internal design offering a multi-­
purpose creative space. The d’Arenberg Cube is a museum, function
facility, restaurant and cellar door, all framed within the shape of a
Rubik’s Cube.
The d’Arenberg Cube was established by wine entrepreneur Chester
Osborn, Chief Winemaker and Viticulturalist, d’Arenberg. Inspired by
the complexities and puzzles of winemaking, Chester created the idea
of a cube-shaped building. The project spanned fourteen years, from
the time when Chester Osborn presented his initial concept to Sarah
Constructions. The architect for the project was Nic Salvati at ADS
Architects and included other key partners such as Sarah Construction
and CPR Engineers. The building is unique and its implementa-
tion had to overcome many economic and construction challenges
(Osborn, 2018). The d’Arenberg Cube is an AUD$16 million glass-
encased steel and concrete structure that sits five storeys high in
the middle of a vineyard. d’Arenberg received a $2 million State
Government Regional Development Fund grant, which supported the
core structure building construction, internal fit out, equipment and
car park development.
248 M. SIGALA AND R. RENTSCHLER

The d’Arenberg Cube has supported job creation, with 153 jobs
c­ reated during the build (95% of which were local) as well as the creation
of thirty-two new ongoing FTE positions; in total, The Cube has created
58 FTE employees. Currently, d’Arenberg employs over 180 staff across
its production, marketing and retail operations, making it one of the
largest employers in the region. The d’Arenberg Cube has significantly
contributed to driving visitation and economic activity in the region.
Opening in December 2017, it has made a significant mark on the
wine, art and tourism landscape since, with visitors climbing to more
than 1000 people a day, and with 1500 current daily visitors, as of
December 2018. The d’Arenberg Cube has activated the wine region by
also providing economic activity to many other surrounding businesses.
While the winery owned by the Osborns has been operating as a fam-
ily business for four generations, the d’Arenberg Cube is a $16 million
investment in the future. Osborn asked rhetorically in a presentation,
‘Why spend $16m on a cellar door? One thousand people per day have
visited the d’Arenberg Cube since it was opened: that’s why’ (Osborn,
2018). The d’Arenberg Cube is a visionary project where Osborn him-
self is part of the brand statement, presenting himself as an eccentric art
and wine lover. However, underneath the surface, he is a canny business-
man. Osborn (2018) stated further, ‘Get your senses alive on your jour-
ney: smell, sight, taste. Everything tastes better than it really is. People
get that feeling of authenticity’. He understands that wine, art and tour-
ism combined present the visitor with a sensory cornucopia that height-
ens the experience.
In 2018, the d’Arenberg Cube received a Good Design Award in the
Architectural Design category in recognition of outstanding design and
innovation. The annual Good Design Awards are Australia’s most pres-
tigious design awards with a proud history dating back to 1958.
The d’Arenberg Cube has become renowned for its gastronomy, its
public art on the grounds and interior of the building, presenting the
company’s history. Founded by the family of Chester Osborn four gen-
erations ago, the d’Arenberg wine company has built its own myths
around its history, with the superb climate and rolling hills of the coun-
tryside giving tourists more than cellar door wine tastings. Visitors of
The Cube have a total experience, which is immersive, aesthetic and
experiential, and includes a mix of wine, cuisine, art, scenery and out-
door activities with public art, vineyards and walks. The physical, cul-
tural and natural environments give the attraction appeal to a new group
 16 DEVELOPING A DESTINATION WITHIN A DESTINATION … 249

of tourists who may not otherwise come to a winery. The d’Arenberg

Cube offers a variety of multi-sensorial and multidimensional wine expe-
riences that elicit the visitors’ emotions in order not only to appreciate
the aesthetic and hedonic values of wine, but also to get inspired and
re-imagine how wine influences their own well-being and the well-being
of others. To that end, wine, tourism and art are brought together in a
creative mix in order to provide a variety of experiential wine experiences
ranging from commercialised mass production experiences (e.g. wine
tastings, wine and food pairing masterclasses), to co-creation experiences
(e.g. make your own wine blend) and transformational experiences (e.g.
the d’Arenberg Cube Surrealist Ball).

Servicescape and Human Behaviour:

Learnings from The Cube

Theoretical Background
The place where people experience services influences how they perform
and behave in that service context, and ultimately, in their evaluation of
it. The impact of the service environment on people’s emotions physi-
cal and cognitive activity is well documented in the literature with plenty
of research evidence (see literature review by Mari & Poggesi, 2013).
Initially referred to as atmospheric factors (Kotler, 1973), and later as
servicescape (Bitner, 1992) or social servicescape (Rosenbaum, Otalora,
& Ramírez, 2016), it is defined as ‘the dimensions of physical surroundings
[of a service business] …that can be controlled by the firm to enhance (or
constrain) employee and customer actions’ Bitner (1992, 59). Servicescape
includes three environment dimensions:

– ambient conditions (e.g. temperature, music, odour/scent, colours)

– spatial layout and functionality (e.g. equipment, furnishing and the
way these objects are arranged within the space)
– signs, symbols and artefacts (e.g. style of décor, signs to direct flow
or behaviour of customers).

Numerous studies analyse how these three dimensions can influence

the affective, cognitive and behavioural responses of both consum-
ers and employees, as well as their interactions (Park, Back, Bufquin,
250 M. SIGALA AND R. RENTSCHLER

& Shapoval, 2019). Servicescape elements stimulate people’s emotions,

feelings and minds, which in turn critically influence what they see, how
they see and interpret it. This leads to how people respond to such envi-
ronmental stimuli, how they interact with others within this environment,
how they evaluate the service experiences and how the environment
affects their immediate behaviour, and their long-term well-being and
quality of life. People also see the servicescape itself as a physical expres-
sion of the brand; the impact of servicescape on the formation of brand
personality, identity and image is also widely researched (Mari & Poggesi,
2013). Thus, servicescape effects have been associated with numerous
consumer behaviour and decision-making processes and variables such as
brand image, attachment and loyalty; service quality evaluations and satis-
faction; time and money spent on services; (re)purchase intentions; will-
ingness to buy (product-price valuations); and consumer (mis)behaviour
and interactions. To achieve such servicescape effects, the literature also
highlights the need to achieve a fit (congruity or consistency) between
the environmental cues, the service encounter and context, and the brand
personality (Mari & Poggesi, 2013).
During the last years, the literature has also started looking at the
restorative effects of servicescape on people’s mind and body within vari-
ous contexts such as retailing, casinos, shopping malls and senior centres.
Rosenbaum (2009) introduced and defined the concept of restora-
tive servicescapes as any stimuli present in a service firm that allows the
customers to undergo an internal restorative process. Restorative ser-
vicescape in service environments has become critically important, as
nowadays consumers frequently come to with depleted mood states.
Current stressors (such as work pressure and other external factors) sig-
nificantly induce customers’ mental fatigue and attention failure that in
turn inhibits them to effectively participate and appreciate service expe-
riences. Thus, servicescape should increasingly include restorative stim-
uli in order to address the adverse effects of customers’ stressors on
their behaviour and satisfaction levels in service consumption contexts.
Recently, Purani and Kumar (2018) examined the restorative effects
of biophilic servicescapes on customers’ psychological states (i.e. cog-
nitive restoration and affective appraisal of services). Studies in envi-
ronmental psychology have long suggested the concept of biophilic
designs which refers to the usage of natural elements and processes
in design of built environments. Such environments can have a pos-
itive impact on restoring moods and stress relief and recovery. Natural
 16 DEVELOPING A DESTINATION WITHIN A DESTINATION … 251

elements can include natural light, air, water, plants, natural materials,
colours, geometry and biomimicry. Based on the concept of biophilia,
for human beings there is a fundamental, genetically driven propensity
to affiliate towards life and lifelike processes. Thus, the use of natural ele-
ments in servicescape can significantly stimulate and elicit positive effects
on people’s mind, emotions and body. Interestingly, Purani and Kumar
(2018) also proved that consumers are more responsive with regard to
such restorative effects of biophilic elements in contexts where they seek
emotional, experiential value, compared to rational, functional value.
Consequently, biophilic servicescape design is critically more important
for (wine) tourism service experiences. Biophilic servicescape also influ-
ences customers’ service preferences and brand associations and thus,
many companies nowadays adopt biophilic design or other green ser-
vicescape interventions as part of their sustainable or social corporate
responsibility strategy.
Despite the theoretical explanations and research evidence, it is also
true that practitioners are always constrained in the design and develop-
ment of their servicescapes by numerous factors such as space; building
and environmental regulations; ethics, morals, religion and other cultural
factors; availability of funds; capabilities and availability of construction
technologies, tools, materials and equipment; physical and natural envi-
ronment factors (i.e. weather conditions, earthquake activity); regula-
tions and risks but also people’s perceptions about security, safety and
hygiene issues.

The d’Arenberg Cube Servicescape

Chester was incredibly passionate about the sensory experiences inside…
he wanted the d’Arenberg Cube to be a feast for all the senses, not just the
eyes. (Sarah Construction, 2018)

The d’Arenberg Cube’s servicescape represents a well-executed ­project

designed to serve its functionalistic, affective, emotional/experiential
and symbolic effects. It offers avant-garde architecture and stunning
interiors filled with art on the walls, countertops and ceilings, public art
pieces in the outdoors as well as indoors, and floor-to-ceiling windows
that bring the outside inside, revealing the vineyards, the hills behind,
and beyond to the ocean. The visitor is encouraged to interact with the
exhibits rather than reverentially view them from afar as in the museum
252 M. SIGALA AND R. RENTSCHLER

as temple. Visitors climb on the public art; take photos of themselves

engaging with it; and see themselves in the space as part of the exhibits.
It is interactive rather than contemplative. There are discernible differ-
ences between art and commerce, but the d’Arenberg Cube straddles the
divide, providing a spectacular backdrop in which visitors position them-
selves as actors.

External Design and Surrounding Areas

The d’Arenberg Cube is a unique five-storey Rubik’s cube shape
(https://www.dropbox.com/sh/ooh8fi35dszw3sa/AAD2C8LRDBZ
GkxRNSy6vzGzGa/d’Arenberg%20Cube%20External%20Images?
dl=0&subfolder_nav_tracking=1). The architectural design of the
d’Arenberg Cube was inspired to symbolise the complexity of wine and
winemaking. According to Osborn (2018):

I’ve always considered winemaking to be a puzzle that needs to be put

together, a complex combination of geographical elements like soil and
geology, viticulture, blending and balance. This building is yet another
puzzle to solve, the external patterns join together for a seamless solution,
and ideally, all elements of wine should do the same. The names of our
wines are also a puzzle to work out. (Fig. 16.1)

According to shape symbolism literature (which combines aesthetics,

psychology and marketing), people often associate shapes with meanings.
For example, studies have shown that circular shapes convey friendli-
ness, softness and harmony (i.e. warmth characteristics), whereas angular
shapes signal strength, hardness and individuality (i.e. competences fea-
tures) (Liu, Bogicevic, & Mattila, 2018). In this vein, the straight and
sharp lines of the d’Arenberg Cube’s design can significantly activate and
shape consumers’ associations of the d’Arenberg brand and personality
with values such as authority, strength, unique personality and leading
performance.
The d’Arenberg Cube’s inspired architectural puzzle is four modules
wide, four high and four deep, with a base that creates an optical illusion
that makes the building appear as if it is floating above the vineyard it
resides in. The exterior of the d’Arenberg Cube is covered with white
and bottle green glass, which reflects the blues and greens of the sur-
rounding countryside filled with blue sky and lush vineyard. The top two
floors, housing a restaurant and the winery’s tasting room, are turned
 16 DEVELOPING A DESTINATION WITHIN A DESTINATION … 253

Fig. 16.1 The Rubik’s Cube shape of the d’Arenberg Cube

254 M. SIGALA AND R. RENTSCHLER

askew from the rest of the building and in opposite orientation, rotated
on their axis, with each floor offering 360° views of the region. As the
only high-storey building in the region, the d’Arenberg Cube provides
spectacular views of rolling hills and surrounding vineyards that can be
seen at a distance through balconies situated on the top levels.
The d’Arenberg Cube has a glass rooftop, which then required the
design of sixteen umbrellas to provide the clear glass roof with shade
during the hot season. ‘Due to building regulations, no more that 5% sky-
light is permitted, and so, the umbrellas were needed to meet regulations,
while also having a bit of fun, in true d’Arenberg style’ (http://www.
glamadelaide.com.au/darenberg-cube-unveils-latest-rooftop-feature/).
The umbrellas open when the solar heat gain puts pressure on the inter-
nal air conditioning. They are manually operated to expand and retract
and can also withstand winds of up to 130 kms per hour. This is the
first time in the world a building has umbrellas on the roof to shade the
building itself, and not a deck or grassed area.
Within the d’Arenberg Cube’s surroundings, there is ample parking
space within close proximity to the building, which facilitates the access
and convenience to visit the building. The car parking area is well elabo-
rated allowing immerse greenspace to the premises, with well-maintained
grounds and attractive line of vines.
Close to the d’Arenberg Cube one can find the original stables built
circa 1880. The Stables were faithfully restored by the Osborn family in
2008 to be used as an interpretive centre. However, with masterclasses
and other experiences now moving inside the d’Arenberg Cube, the
Stables have been converted into an antique wine store and wine collec-
tion point. The latter allows the visitors to buy wine at the cellar door
and conveniently pick up at the Stables.
Overall, the unique architecture combined with other exterior ele-
ments has facilitated the harmony with the local landscape, yet comple-
ments the brand’s image as being ‘different’ and ‘premium’.

Interior Design, Functionality, Décor and Ambience

The emblematic nature of the building does not only symbolise and
communicate the d’Arenberg brand, but it also encapsulates the essence
of d’Arenberg by creating a unique structure and functionality of space
whereby visitors can be stimulated into various experiences to learn
about the art of winemaking and the families wine practice.
 16 DEVELOPING A DESTINATION WITHIN A DESTINATION … 255

As a multi-function centre, each floor was purposefully designed to

perform different functions, connected to another by stairs and an eleva-
tor. The entrance to the d’Arenberg Cube is quite visible with a vine-line
pathway leading to a minimal reception area with no waiting area. The
ground floor features the Alternate Realities Museum that was carefully
designed to entice and excite visitor’s senses prior to the wine tasting
or dining experience. The first floor is dedicated to the restrooms and
in-house kitchen with small conference space. The second floor caters
private wine experience for groups, while the third and fourth levels fea-
ture a fine-dining restaurant and a cellar door respectively.
Entry into the d’Arenberg Cube costs $10 per person, which includes
a self-guided tour of the Alternate Realities Museum and a complimen-
tary wine tasting at the cellar door located on the top floor. There are
restrictions to winery visitors who do not have dining reservations, lim-
ited to public areas including the museum, restrooms and the cellar door.
As a result, the passenger elevator becomes the focal point of the build-
ing. Due to space constraint, the functionality has been traded off for
aesthetic of the building, which sometimes creates some visitor manage-
ment issues such as limited capacity, long waiting time and inconvenient
flow of access. For example, cellar door visitors (top floor) must wait to
take the lift to access the restroom (first floor).
The Alternate Realities Museum (https://www.darenberg.com.au/
alternate-realities-museum/) is a contemporary art museum (the first of
its kind in McLaren Vale region) that also offers a self-guided tour via
a smartphone application. The museums artworks and activities aim to
immerse the visitor into the art of winemaking and the family history of
the winemakers; by firstly ‘educating’ the visitors into the wine culture,
making and production, the museum significantly prepares the mind and
palate of the visitors to better appreciate the value of the wine that they
are going to experience upstairs. Museum visitors can experience:

– the ‘Flowers and Fruit’ room that is covered floor-to-ceiling with

artificial fruits and flowers where visitors can smell different wine
flavour notes from glass vessels to develop their palate
– a 360-degree cinema room surrounded by a curved screen. In this
room, visitors are transported to a place one can only imagine as
Chester’s mind. The displays are crazy, designed to not only attract
attention but also stimulate the mind, such as visions of the world
256 M. SIGALA AND R. RENTSCHLER

filled with cubes (to showcase the experience of being inside the
winemaking process); or even see Chester as the man on the moon
– four virtual submerge cap fermenters showcasing how wine is
fermented
– a black room with thousands of VHS videotapes and many other
personal items pertaining to the winemaking family
– a painting gallery.

The interior design of the fine-dining restaurant (https://www.darenberg.

com.au/darenberg-cube-restaurant/) has incorporated elements such as
an eclectic mix of décor and pieces of art, high ceilings, white walls and
large windows. The spatial layout encourages customers to move around
and interact among themselves and with employees, while still providing
the element of privacy. The restaurant consists of brightly coloured furni-
ture, tables crafted from old oak barrels, whimsical touches, paintings and
artefacts, and tribal pieces collected during travels in Africa, New Guinea
and the South Pacific (d’Arenberg, 2018) (https://www.dropbox.com/
sh/ooh8fi35dszw3sa/AAA5xeCX166IRI8MSbfsxBS2a/d’Arenberg%20
Cube%20Restaurant?dl=0&subfolder_nav_tracking=1). The restaurant
ceiling also features a bicycle turned upside down triggering people’s
curiosity, making them rethink about the utility of objects and spaces
(Fig. 16.2).
Located on the top floor, the cellar door has a capacity of 300 people
(https://www.darenberg.com.au/tasting-room/) and shares a similar
design as the restaurant in terms of high ceiling, white walls, large glass
windows, brightly coloured furniture and spatial layout (https://www.
dropbox.com/sh/ooh8fi35dszw3sa/AAAZ5ASl1YFjMss8NZvKNnO6a/
d’Arenberg%20Cellar%20Door?dl=0&subfolder_nav_tracking=1). There
are two bars and tasting areas offering sensational views to host a large
number of guests. Hundreds of TV screens embedded around the bar
counters feature an interactive visual of a naked woman swimming through
a misty fog. The circular bar setting enhances the operational performance
by allowing service staff to cover each other in busy times, thereby increas-
ing customer service, satisfaction and performance (Fig. 16.3).

Special Ambient Conditions

Scents
The ground floor of the building has a fruit and flower wall with glass
vessels that enables guests to develop their palates after smelling the
 16 DEVELOPING A DESTINATION WITHIN A DESTINATION … 257

Fig. 16.2 Internal decoration and design of the d’Arenberg Cube’s restaurant

different wine flavour notes. This activity engages the sense of smell
and achieves sensory arousal that contributes further to the overall wine
experience.

The Vine’s Music

The walkway leading into the d’Arenberg Cube is lined with speak-
ers that feed music from sensors among the vines (Fig. 16.4). The sen-
sors read the weather and produce noises depending on the weather
conditions (e.g. when the sun is shining, the speakers produce sounds
representing sunniness, and there are also sounds for cloudy and rainy
weather). The customers are met with these unique noises as they walk
up the entrance of the d’Arenberg Cube, immediately providing a plat-
form that engages the senses and prepares them for a fully immersive
and multi-sensorial . Ironically, Chester claims that the music is not
for the visitors, ‘… but for the vines so that when they hear the sunny
music, they know to be happy’ (https://www.glamadelaide.com.au/
first-look-inside-the-darenberg-cube/).
258 M. SIGALA AND R. RENTSCHLER

Fig. 16.3 The servicescape of the cellar door at the d’Arenberg Cube

Fig. 16.4 The walkway to the d’Arenberg Cube

 16 DEVELOPING A DESTINATION WITHIN A DESTINATION … 259

Lighting
The interior of the d’Arenberg Cube has white walls, high ceilings and
large windows which allow natural light to stream into the building. This
helps to not only create the illusion of space, the natural illumination
shows colours off better, especially the contrasts of the brightly coloured
furniture. Sufficient and appropriate lighting is also important for The
Cube-shaped building, as the levels of lighting in a building influence the
customers’ judgements and perceptions regarding their safety and enclo-
sure effect. Lighting type and composition also adds onto the visual rich-
ness of the servicescape.

Music
The concept of the musicscape (Oakes, 2000) highlights the impact of
musical variables on customers’ mind, feelings and behaviour. The soft
slow-tempo background music—that is played in the restaurant and the
cellar door—significantly helps to create a relaxing and pleasant ambience.

Cartoons
Cartoons and caricatures are displayed everywhere within the d’Arenberg
Cube, including the staircases, the museum and even the toilets (which
are actually the most-visited area of the building, also attracting inter-
est online via social media). Humour stimulates and inspires the mind.
Comic art is used for depicting, illustrating, skewering or even satirising
various social practices and business operations, which in turn triggers
people to rethink their values, perceptions, mindsets and behaviours.
Cartooning is a useful educational and business tool (Dunphy, 2016).
The use of cartoons within the d’Arenberg Cube gets attention and
adds to the fun element of the experience (https://www.dropbox.com/
sh/ooh8fi35dszw3sa/AAAUd9oW1nkRCSJ44tIyieipa/Pixies%2C%20
Cartoons%20and%20Caricatures?dl=0&subfolder_nav_tracking=1).
Cartoons in the d’Arenberg Cube showcase good and bad human
behaviours, frequently related to wine and even the winemakers, in a
humouristic and satirising way. The cartoons then can be innovative and
transformational, as they trigger visitors to re-examine their values and
behaviours related to winemaking, culture and drinking (Fig. 16.5).
Overall, the d’Arenberg Cube servicescape includes a complex-
ity of elements elegantly brought together to create a multi-sensorial
and immersion experience into the wine culture. The colours, noises,
biophilic elements (natural light, glass windows connecting the interior
260 M. SIGALA AND R. RENTSCHLER

Fig. 16.5 Cartoon displayed at the d’Arenberg Cube

of the d’Arenberg Cube with the vineyards and the landscape, green
­decorations—Fig. 16.6), the artworks, décor, cartoons and the lighting
are some of the most distinguished features of The Cube that stimulate
the senses, inspire the mind and gladden the heart of its visitors.
 16 DEVELOPING A DESTINATION WITHIN A DESTINATION … 261

Fig. 16.6 Biophilic servicescape design of the d’Arenberg Cube

262 M. SIGALA AND R. RENTSCHLER

The Cube: Synergising Wine and Art to Design Wine

Tourism Experiences
Chester was clear from the start about how the d’Arenberg Cube should
make visitors feel. ‘Life is lived at the edges…. art is the sugar and spice
and all the things that make life really interesting’ (Sarah Construction,
2018). Both creative and experiential, the d’Arenberg Cube is therefore
a functioning centre of McLaren Vale hospitality, and importantly a work
of art. This is exactly how Chester envisaged it: ‘If you’re not involved
in artistic expression, then you’re really just coasting along in life’ (Sarah
Construction, 2018).
In this vein, art is at the heart of the d’Arenberg Cube conceptual-
isation. Art is embedded and used in designing and shaping any of the
wine experiences provided at The Cube, while the design of the wine
experiences is a piece of artwork in its own right (pictures of wine
experiences at the d’Arenberg Cube https://www.dropbox.com/sh/
ooh8fi35dszw3sa/AABLJPO2kD885JEjvFsdev9wa/d’Arenberg%20
Experiences?dl=0&subfolder_nav_tracking=1) (Fig. 16.7).

Fig. 16.7 Use of art for food presentation at the d’Arenberg Cube’s restaurant
 16 DEVELOPING A DESTINATION WITHIN A DESTINATION … 263

The d’Arenberg Cube is a physical space with material objects inside

and outside it. But it is also a symbolic space that contains art and art-
works introduced to the marketplace through the ‘museum’. As is the
case with the avant-garde white cube museum space, with its pristine
spaces and symbolic architecture, the d’Arenberg Cube generates a trans-
formative space where art is showcased with a commercial aim. Thus,
the d’Arenberg Cube forms an intrinsic part of a commodity ritual.
However, artworks are framed along with a mix of referents that are aes-
thetic, economic and social. Visitors interpret meanings of the artworks,
their history, provenance, style and technique.
Consequently, the d’Arenberg Cube experience does not only trans-
form art into a commodity, but it also transforms a commodity into art.
It is very easy to understand how The Cube enables the artification, and
sometimes the heritagisation of the wine drinking, winemaking, wine
objects or wine culture in general. Equally, it is also obvious how art is
inserted into the wine space as a commodity to be consumed in order
to delight and stimulate human senses, perceptions and behaviours.
Eventually, wine experiences at the d’Arenberg Cube also provide evi-
dence of a mutual use of wine and art elements in order to enable co-­
creation and transformative wine experiences. Overall, it is this reciprocal
synergy between art and wine that makes the wine experiences provided
at the d’Arenberg Cube so unique, but also meaningful, memorable and
impactful to their visitors.
Art-empowered wine experiences can also attract to the cellar door
wine lovers and art lovers in equal proportions; both of these are
attracted by luxury, hedonic but also stimulating experiences and they
tend to have a quite high spending power and intention. The cross-
over is that both wine lovers and art lovers are highly educated, high-­
earning individuals who are attracted to magical places that they deem
special and where they can learn. Winery visitors have high incomes and
high education (Getz & Brown, 2006), while art lovers are consistently
defined by their high levels of education (Rentschler, Bridson, & Evans,
2014). Both types of visitors enjoy learning: wine lovers enjoy learning
about wine; art lovers enjoy learning about art. In this vein, the artifica-
tion of wine and vinification of art (insert of art in every wine element)
can be used to appeal to both segments.
Numerous examples of wine experiences offered at the d’Arenberg
Cube illustrate how art and wine are infused and synergised together
for delivering business value and customer benefits. The following
264 M. SIGALA AND R. RENTSCHLER

section categorises and analyses several of such wine experiences based on

Sigala’s (2019a) framework, showing how to design art-based-initiatives
in the wine (tourism) sector.

Art to Be Consumed
There are several examples whereby art is inserted and injected into
components of the wine experiences (e.g. for decoration, glassware and
tableware, paintings, cartooning, wine labelling, Fig. 16.8) enriching
the experiential and aesthetic value. Wine experiences may even become
an art to be consumed (e.g. artistic presentation of food accompanying
wine, wine objects and tools exhibited at the museum). Customers pas-
sively ‘consume’ these artworks, or they may be triggered to challenge
their mind: even ‘cheap’ food materials cooked in a traditional way but
presented differently as a piece of art, to the consumers’ mind they will
taste better and will be valued more. Visitors may simply enjoy the food
or they may be triggered to question their food value and perceptions, as
well as eating and cooking patterns.

Fig. 16.8 Art to be consumed at the restaurant of the d’Arenberg Cube

 16 DEVELOPING A DESTINATION WITHIN A DESTINATION … 265

Art elements may also move to the wine space in order to create a
more aesthetic and appealing servicescape of the wine experience. For
example, in conjunction with ARTPark, Australia, the d’Arenberg Cube
hosted an art exhibition featuring thirty outdoor sculptures, sprawled
across the grounds of The Cube property. ARTPark Australia facilitates
sculpture exhibitions in capital cities across Australia, bringing elegant,
highly finished, large-scale sculptures directly to the people. Several
sculptural artworks by famous sculptors like Greg Johns and Andrew
Rogers were exhibited around the d’Arenberg Cube landscape.
The iconic cooking TV series MasterChef has also used the space of
the d’Arenberg Cube Restaurant in order to host an episode, whereby
the contestants undertook a pressure test challenge to recreate a dish
designed by Head Chef Brendan Wessels. The MasterChef was a one-
off cooking art-themed event hosted at the d’Arenberg Cube that has
helped the company promote and enhance its brand image by stim-
ulating associations of the high-quality cooking and food levels of
MasterChef with the d’Arenberg company. However, the film-making
art and concept of MasterChef has also inspired the design of a unique
experience at the d’Arenberg Cube. Following a successful appearance
on MasterChef Australia, the d’Arenberg Cube Restaurant announced
the launch of the Chef’s Table, an exclusive dining opportunity offering
360 views into the dynamic, state-of-the-art kitchen, where contestants
competed in a Pressure Test Challenge (https://www.dropbox.com/
sh/ooh8fi35dszw3sa/AADi7IBZvRfiShK5xKIv7Cdxa/d’Arenberg%20
Cube%20Restaurant/Chef ’s%20Table?dl=0&subfolder_nav_track-
ing=1) (Fig. 16.9).
The Chef’s Table includes access to a private lounge for a pre-lunch
aperitif and canapes, an extended degustation menu, and a dedicated
sommelier to guide diners through the wine pairing. According to the
Head Chef, Brendan Wessels: ‘Unlike MasterChef, we don’t expect guests
to compete against each other and cook their own meals. But they will get to
taste some of our experimental dishes, and enjoy a front row seat watching
their meals be prepared’. Guests can observe and interact with the chefs
working in the state-of-the-art kitchen. In this vein, guests are the direc-
tors of their own MasterChef episode, empowered to control their own
eyes and attention (instead of manipulating the TV camera) for viewing
the culinary art, while experiencing and narrating food tasting through
their own scripts, shaped by talking to the protagonists and the cast
266 M. SIGALA AND R. RENTSCHLER

Fig. 16.9 The chef’s table at the d’Arenberg Cube

members (i.e. the chef and the other staff). The Chef’s Table is a highly
unique dining adventure that engages the imagination of the guests and
can demystify and reshape their perceptions and understanding about the
art of cooking.
 16 DEVELOPING A DESTINATION WITHIN A DESTINATION … 267

Art to Be Commoditised
There are several examples whereby wine-related artefacts and infra-
structure become art and cultural heritage in their own right, which in
turn are commodified and exploited for consumption at the d’Arenberg
Cube. The building of the d’Arenberg Cube itself is an iconic artis-
tic building that visitors can admire and consume even without visiting
its interior. The d’Arenberg Cube has attracted numerous sightseers
and photographers as well as online buzz and content sharing on social
media.
In the Alternate Realities Museum, several wine objects and posses-
sions of the winemaking family have been converted into heritage arte-
facts. These objects are narrated with numerous stories about the life of
the winemaking family (i.e. Chester talking about the story of the objects
and how they relate to the family’s life in the mobile app), which in
turn contributes in building the timeliness as a heritage object. By dat-
ing the objects, relating them to family and inter-generation milestone
achievements and events, this helps the brand meet the history require-
ments of the concept of heritage. Stories and events or dates can help
build relations with the brand’s history, as the former may evoke visitors’
memories and associations with events, generate nostalgic feelings and/
or associate themselves with the brand as well. By creating this commu-
nity role and capacity to build identity between the brand and its visitors
or local community, the d’Arenberg Cube wine objects assume another
feature characterising heritage objects. Overall, the museum does not
only present the history of brand, but also its past, in conjunction with
its present and future (Chester talking about his dreams and visions).
By presenting the past, opening the present and even the future of the
brand, the brand is no longer treated as an ordinary object to the deteri-
oration of time; it becomes timeless and is heritagised.
Wine experiences also reflect the artification of cooking, winemaking,
tasting and appreciation that is packaged, presented and commoditised
for consumption. The d’Arenberg Cube offers numerous experiential,
educational, social and interactive masterclasses whereby visitors can
learn how to smell, taste and identify classic grape varieties; discover
the difference between aromatic and textural white wine; build their
wine vocabulary (e.g. by learning how to describe reds using words like
mouthfeel, body and tannin).
268 M. SIGALA AND R. RENTSCHLER

The luxury dining experience at the restaurant exemplifies the c­ ulinary

art to its highest degree that challenges convention. The restaurant
offers a la carte dining option as well as an eight-course degustation with
optional wine pairing. Guests are encouraged to come with an open
mind and leave all preconceived expectations at the door. The menu is
not based on any particular cuisine, but draws upon eclectic experiences
from different regions of the world. There is no particular food style;
instead, the cooking style for a particular product is based purely upon
how best to extract and represent the flavour of that product.

Art to Be Co-created
The art of winemaking becomes available to be experienced. Visitors are
invited to play the winemaker role by blending and bottling their own
wine that they can take home to show off to others or to enjoy their
‘creation’ themselves. The Blending Bench experience is where the craft
of winemaking becomes an art form. A palette of wine parcels, each with
distinctive flavours and textures, are melded in search of balance, full-
ness, complexity, interest and finesse. The Blending Bench is a hands-on,
interactive and social experience that empowers visitors to co-create their
own wine with the guidance of the experts and/or the company of their
peers and friends.

Art as a Catalyst of Transformative Value

The purpose of transformative wine experiences is not to simply satisfy
the existing status quo and situational aesthetic and cognitive needs of
visitors. Instead of meeting existing levels of well-being, transformative
experiences aim to challenge people to rethink, challenge and ­re-evaluate
their current state and mindset, re-imagine their well-being, values, life-
style and philosophy. To achieve that, art can be the trigger to inspire
and elicit the mind as well as facilitate people to see more things and
see them differently to express their thoughts and formulate their think-
ing into a visible artefact. Two interesting examples of art-based-initia-
tives inspiring wine experiences at the d’Arenberg Cube explain how
such wine experiences have been designed, how the visitors participated
with the experience and the type of the transformational benefits that the
experiences afforded visitors to achieve.
 16 DEVELOPING A DESTINATION WITHIN A DESTINATION … 269

The Cubist Ball

Cubism is the first twentieth-century art movement in abstract art,
started in Paris, France around the time of the First World War. In
Cubist artwork, objects are broken up, reassembled and redesigned
by the artist in semi-abstract forms. Cubism flattens the canvas, using
geometric planes and flat surfaces, arguably depicting space, volume and
mass in sharp, angular forms that challenge the eye about what is human
and what is not, as cubists seek to represent both visible and invisible
processes, forces and structures. Widely believed to have been launched
by Pablo Picasso, the cubist art movement in Paris was supported by a
wide group of artists who have subsequently become famous and wealthy
from their art. Picasso was one; Salvador Dali another who made his
money not only from his art but also from fashion, film and design.
While Cubism in the early twentieth century was avant-garde,
extreme and on the edge of the art world, in the twenty-first century it
has become widely accepted as an art form. This is largely through the
success of blockbuster exhibitions held throughout the Western world.
In Australia alone, in the last ten years, there have been ten Picasso
exhibitions.
Punning on the word ‘cube’, Osborne holds festivals at The Cube. The
most recent one was the Cubist Ball where guests dressed up as paint-
ers and/or paintings (e.g. Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dali, Georges Braque,
Marc Duchamp) in cubist dresses with faces painted in cubist designs,
of cross-hatching, offbeat squares and triangles, and curly-cues. This art-
based experience triggered imagination, creativity and thinking. Guests
represented an artist’s work themselves and interpreted what the art-
ist wanted to symbolise in the artwork and led to the re-creation of it in
an appropriate way or different format. Guests selected artwork that best
expressed their personality and values they felt were important to external-
ise and then used them as a theme of discussion with other participants.

The d’Arenberg Cube Surrealist Ball

This is an art-based and themed fête, based on the legendary Surrealist
Ball organised by Marie-Hélène de Rothschild outside Paris on 12
December 1972. Marie-Hélène’s Surrealist Ball is a testament to the
power of a detail-oriented hostess, a game crowd of attendees, and a
fabulous and fantastical theme.
The major purpose of the ball is to recreate this wealthy party. The
event will be a night of extravagant decadence, a gala event reminiscent
270 M. SIGALA AND R. RENTSCHLER

of the Rothschild Surrealist Ball, where distinguished guests such as

Salvador Dali and Audrey Hepburn explored the boundaries of their
imagination. The selected location of the party is the d’Arenberg Cube
itself, which will assume the role of the castle of the Rothschild family
where the original ball was hosted.
Marie-Hélène de Rothschild’s event was inspired by the surrealist
works of artists Salvador Dalí (who was also in attendance) and René
Magritte. The fortunate invitees were directed to wear ‘black tie, long
dresses, and Surrealist heads’. For example, Audrey Hepburn arrived
with her head inside a supersized birdcage. Giant ‘cats’ (butlers in cos-
tume) lined the entrance staircase and appeared to be sleeping until the
guests arrived. A disorienting labyrinth of black ribbons forced guests to
find their way to the festivities, and those who were lost were rescued
by the lurking cats. Dinner, complete with blue dinner rolls and plates
covered in fur, was served on the body of a giant mannequin resting on a
bed of fresh roses.
The legendary Surrealist Ball begs the question: Can a party ever be
too good? One socialite threatened suicide if she was not invited to the
next Rothschild party, or so legend goes. Overly dramatic perhaps, but
also a testament to the power of a fantastical fête and the perfectionism
of a host.
So, is the d’Arenberg Cube capable to replicate the success of Marie-
Hélène de Rothschild? The Cube challenges itself but also challenges
its invited guests. The event is going to be five hours long, by invita-
tion only and costing around 300 AUD; filters that will select who can
participate.
If the d’Arenberg Cube succeeds, then it proves associating its
brand with the perfectionist host and event organiser Marie-Hélène de
Rothschild. If the participants succeed, then they reveal their own capa-
bility and creativity to associate with the calibre of the guests in 1972.
But what is a too good event and what made this event perfect? And
who determines how and when guests can be happy and feel entertained?
And what contributes to one’s entertainment? These are critical ques-
tions that participants would need to consider before, during and after
the re-enacted event in order to prepare and perform at the event, and
also to evaluate both their own performance and the event performance
afterwards. Perfectionism is a subjective, idiosyncratic, situation and
context-dependent concept that is also defined and redefined by every
generation.
 16 DEVELOPING A DESTINATION WITHIN A DESTINATION … 271

Based on its existing performance, the d’Arenberg Cube has proved

that it can compile a thoroughly curated VIP list of calibre guests, sim-
ilar to the attendees (or what they symbolised) in 1972 to regenerate
the visual elements, dinner table conversations and networking oppor-
tunities. The Cube and its culinary art capabilities can also recreate the
curious, such as the table settings made of taxidermied tortoises and the
food served upon a mannequin corpse laying on a bed of roses, as was
the case in 1972. Based on Chester’s personality, it is certain that the
bizarre would be in abundance to inspire and fuel conversations and
make a memorable experience.
Similarly to the participants in 1972, the guests of the d’Arenberg
Cube Surrealist Ball are also requested to make an impressive and extrav-
agance appearance. In this night of decadence, the d’Arenberg Cube’s
guests are encouraged to explore the boundaries of their imagination.
They are told that the d’Arenberg Surrealist Ball will be a mecca whereby
they will need to combine the traditional black tie with the weird and
wonderful. Guests will need to take inspiration from the 1972 guests’
attire, and clothe themselves in an exotic blend of fashion and fantasy.
Guest will then have to use their imagination to select a fancy dress or
costumes to create a terrifyingly glamorous outfit but also weird and
beautiful. Guests may use face paintings, masks and bizarre hats as the
guests did in 1972. The key is not in the expense of a luxury outfit but
rather the ingenuity expended both in consideration and in construction.

Conclusions and Directions for Future Research

As yet we do not understand a great deal about the dynamics between
wine, art and tourism (Sigala, 2019b). It is a research domain in its
infancy. The case study undertaken makes it clear that the dynamics
can lead to aesthetic and tourism success at a winery, not dissimilar in
focus to the links between wine, art and tourism at MONA in Hobart,
Tasmania, although at that destination art is the central attraction with
wine and tourism-related features. At the d’Arenberg Cube, the central
attraction is mainly the wine, with art and tourism-related features.
Apart from analysing an under-explored topic, the case study of the
d’Arenberg Cube also demonstrates how the highly creative wine entre-
preneur has excelled and set new standards in the industry. The d’Aren-
berg Cube is a great case study providing evidence that the construction
of iconic buildings is not enough to create and/or position a destination.
272 M. SIGALA AND R. RENTSCHLER

Buildings can physically make a destination, but culture brings a

­destination into life. The Cube synergises wine, tourism and art to cre-
ate a culture, bring The Cube into life and make it the destination on
its own right as well. The d’Arenberg Cube represents a creative space
of multi-sensorial and multidimensional experiences allowing the genera-
tion of numerous experiential benefits ranging from simple aesthetic and
hedonic values, educational and social activities to highly creative and
transformational experiences. It is possible that the d’Arenberg Cube can
be copied and replicated. However, one may be able to construct the
second Cube, but recreating its culture and life would be a difficult, if
not impossible, task. The d’Arenberg Cube has elevated wine experiences
to a transformational level satisfying the highest human need in Maslow’s
hierarchy (i.e. existential need, purpose and meaning of living). So, what
is next? Is it possible that the d’Arenberg Cube would reformat and
reshape our needs? We just need to wait…or participate in the d’Aren-
berg Cube’s co-creation community and social practices that it enacts.

Acknowledgements I would like to cordially thank Chester Osborn for sharing

with me valuable and insightful information about the conceptualisation and
implementation of his precious dream.
Chester is a charismatically creative and beautiful mind, a free and innovative
spirit that is not afraid to think outside and beyond the box, an eye that sees
differently and a man that makes a difference.
It was my pleasure meeting, interviewing and learning from you, Chester.
Thank you for your time and all your contributions to the Centre for Tourism
& Leisure Management (University of South Australia), your inspirational talk
and excellent performance.
Looking forward to your future endeavours. I have already scheduled a
publication on ‘The Cube re-visited’.
Marianna Sigala

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Sigala, M. (2019a). Managing and marketing wine destinations with and

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 CHAPTER 17

Georgian Wine Museum

Is Making a Strategic Decision

Natalia Velikova and Tatiana Bouzdine-Chameeva

The Republic of Georgia, a small country located at the crossroads of

East and West, is a land famed for its natural beauty. But ask ­anyone
who has been to Georgia, and landscape will only get a brief ­mention.
Instead, you will hear stories about exceptional hospitality, the
­omnipresence of wine, and lavish feasts (known as ‘supra’). For every
supra, a ‘tamada’ (toastmaster) is invited. While the food is constantly
replenished by the hosts, the drinking is skilfully controlled by the tam-
ada. No one touches a wine bowl (traditionally made from a bull horn)
until the tamada makes a toast, which is often witty, sometimes philo-
sophical, occasionally poetic, but always eloquent and long. To the
Georgians, wine is not just a drink to accompany food; it is more like
religion there. Wine is synonymous with Georgia. Wine is entwined with
Georgia’s national identity. Wine is also a national asset with enormous

N. Velikova (*)
Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX, USA
e-mail: natalia.velikova@ttu.edu
T. Bouzdine-Chameeva
KEDGE Business School, Talence, France
e-mail: tatiana.chameeva@kedgebs.com

© The Author(s) 2019 275

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_17
276 N. VELIKOVA AND T. BOUZDINE-CHAMEEVA

potential, capable of advancing the country’s economy and attracting

tourists from all over the world.
Georgians have long been proud to be the oldest winemaking nation
in the world. Indeed, many foremost archaeologists believe that the
modern-day Republic of Georgia was the original home of wine, and
from there wine spread towards other civilizations (McGovern, 2003).
Hence, Georgia has a rich unbroken 8000-year history of wine produc-
tion and is home to over 500 unique indigenous grape varieties.
Despite the deep-rooted history and the widespread of wine in local
communities, the Georgian wine history has not yet been showcased at
the level it deserves. Not every visitor to Georgia is lucky enough to join
the family table and experience the supra. Where else can one immerse
oneself into the unique Georgian wine culture?
The idea of the National Wine Museum has been discussed for over
a decade now, but the strategic decision to establish a stationary wine
museum in the country’s capital, the city of Tbilisi, has not been made
yet. Instead, numerous Georgian artefacts are spread out in differ-
ent local museums throughout the country under the umbrella of the
Georgian National Museum. Periodically, these ethnographic, historic
and cultural wine relics are assembled into travelling exhibitions and dis-
played in different European cities. These travelling exhibitions widen
the reach of the Georgian wine brand as the ‘cradle of wine’, as well
as assist in sharing the Georgian wine culture and history with interna-
tional audiences that would not otherwise have access to these collec-
tions. From the host country standpoint, such travelling exhibitions help
increase visitation levels, attract new audiences, foster new partnerships
and provide opportunities for diverse cultural activities, which contrib-
utes to the promotion of their own establishments.
Although popular, such travelling exhibitions are costly and time-
consuming. The host country typically provides the venue, security,
museum curators, as well as advertising for the exposition, including
printed posters, press books, other visual materials, coverage via social
media and the accompanying cultural programme. The Georgian gov-
ernment covers the cost of the artefacts transportation, insurance,
additional cultural and educational programmes, such as concerts,
­educational programmes, scientific conferences, lectures, as well as the
cost of wine for tastings during the exhibitions. The average cost of
travelling exhibitions approaches €100–150,000.
 17 GEORGIAN WINE MUSEUM IS MAKING A STRATEGIC DECISION 277

On the other hand, the establishment of a stationary wine museum

in Georgia requires significantly higher financial commitments. Such a
large-scale project will include hefty initial capital investment, adminis-
trative overhead, operating costs, as well as outreach, marketing, visitor
services and security expenses. For example, the Whiskey Museum in
Dublin was established at a cost of €1.9 million (Hancock, 2014), and
the recently opened La Cite du Vin in Bordeaux was reportedly an €81
million project (Ellwood, 2016). While the financial investments are per-
ceptibly colossal, having a stationary wine museum in Georgia will add
value to the many visitors’ experiences. Tourism to Georgia is booming.
According to the Georgian National Tourism Administration (GNTA),
in the first nine months of 2017, the number of international arrivals
in Georgia amounted to 5,822,835 visitors, which is a 19.2% increase
­compared to the same period last year.
So, the question remains—should Georgia develop a stationary wine
museum in its capital Tbilisi or should the ‘cradle of wine’ continue
showcasing its wine collection as interpretive travelling exhibitions in
different parts of the world?

Discussion Questions
• Which model would work best to share the Georgian wine culture
with domestic and international tourists?
• Which strategy would be more beneficial short- and long-term?
• Are there any innovative solutions which could attract more visitors
interested in wine in the museum?
• What is the best way to pass down the strong Georgian wine culture
to future generations?

References
Georgian National Tourism Administration. (2017, September). International
visitor arrivals to Georgia. Available at https://gnta.ge/international-visitor-
arrivals-to-georgia-september-2017/.
Ellwood, M. (2016). Bordeaux’s $81 Million Cité Du Vin Aims to be the
Guggenheim of Wine. Available at https://www.bloomberg.com/news/pho-
to-essays/2016-02-25/bordeaux-s-81-million-cite-du-vin-aims-to-be-the-
guggenheim-of-wine.
278 N. VELIKOVA AND T. BOUZDINE-CHAMEEVA

Hancock, C. (2014, March). Whiskey museum to open in Dublin. The Irish

Times. Available at https://www.irishtimes.com/business/agribusiness-and-
food/whiskey-museum-to-open-in-dublin-1.1735502.
McGovern, P. E. (2003). Ancient wine: The search for the origins of viniculture.
Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
 CHAPTER 18

How to Design a Wine Museum: Insights

from La Cité du Vin in Bordeaux

Tatiana Bouzdine-Chameeva, Frédéric Ponsignon, François

Durrieu and Jacques-Olivier Pesme

Case Summary
Listed among the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 2007, Bordeaux
city welcomes more than five million visitors annually and attracts an
increasing number of investors, tourists, and new residents. Since 2017,
the LGV high-speed rail line, new flight connections, the development

T. Bouzdine-Chameeva (*) · F. Ponsignon · F. Durrieu

KEDGE Business School, Talence, France
e-mail: tatiana.chameeva@kedgebs.com
F. Ponsignon
e-mail: frederic.ponsignon@kedgebs.com
F. Durrieu
e-mail: francois.durrieu@kedgebs.com
J.-O. Pesme
University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
e-mail: jo.pesme@ubc.ca
University of Adelaide, Adelaide, Australia

© The Author(s) 2019 279

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_18
280 T. BOUZDINE-CHAMEEVA ET AL.

of river and sea cruises calling at the Port de la Lune have enabled easy
access to Bordeaux and the development of its tourism, leisure, and busi-
ness activities. Sharing its age-old wine culture, demystifying its meaning,
protecting and passing on this intangible universal heritage has become
the mission of the important cultural wine centre “La Cité de Vin”.
This mission led the French government to designate La Cité du
Vin a public-interest project. Initially named the Centre Culturel et
Touristique du Vin, the project was born in 2009. Patrons, benefac-
tors, and private sponsors, the French State, the Gironde county, the
Bordeaux Chamber of Commerce and Industry via the European
Regional Development Fund became stakeholders in the new museum.
An endowment fund was created in 2011 for private donations. In
January 2015, the Foundation for Wine Culture and Civilizations took
charge of operating La Cité du Vin to ensure its development and pro-
motion. According to General Director Philipp Massol, the Foundation’s
principle mission is “to value and transfer the cultural dimension of
wine”.
It is against this background that La Cité du Vin (henceforth LCV)
opened its doors in June 2016. An 81 million euro project with a total
staff of about 200, this unique cultural recreation site hosts a state-
of-the-art experiential museum, temporary exhibitions, cultural and
wine-tasting workshops, movie projections, restaurants, boutiques, a
wine cellar, a library as well as professional and academic seminars. It has
successfully attained the target of receiving 450,000 paying customers
per annum in its first year of operation.
LCV’s value is anchored in two great concepts: a remarkable archi-
tectural project with a belvedere sited to take advantage of the scenic
view of nearly 55 metres in height and a riverside structure decorated
with 3000 iridescent aluminium panels that catch and reflect the adjacent
river to which Bordeaux and its wines owe their prominence, as well as
an experiential museum, referred to as the “permanent tour” that invites
visitors to take a journey through time (from 6500 BC to the modern
era), history, and the cultures of the world to learn about wine. This is
considered the heart of the LCV with the objective of showing wine in
its universal, heritage, civilization, and cultural dimensions. Unlike tra-
ditional museums, there is no collection of exhibits or objects. Instead,
it proposes a unique, immersive, and multi-sensory adventure to dis-
cover the cultures and civilizations of wine using the latest technological
innovations in scenography, including 3D images, digital displays, holo-
grams, smell diffusers, music, and other interactive tools. The spectacular
 18 HOW TO DESIGN A WINE MUSEUM: INSIGHTS FROM LA CITÉ DU VIN … 281

experiential design of the permanent tour is the result of strong collabo-

ration between the LCV team and a scenography agency.
This case study analyses the challenging issues of experience design
and technological innovations in the cultural context of the world of
wine, focusing on different aspects of museum design and original sce-
nography solutions to meet visitor expectations. The case also offers val-
uable insights into the effectiveness of design choices in the wine tourism
sector.

Introduction
The view from the sixth floor over the Garonne River and the old city
roofs is splendid (Fig. 18.1). The glorious weather ensured high spir-
its, and Philippe Massol, General Director of La Cité du Vin (LCV) in
Bordeaux, was quite satisfied with the operating year figures published
that day: 445,000 visitors in 2017, very close to the target of 450,000
per annum (Hourquebie, 2017). The visitor satisfaction figures were
even more pleasing: 96.5% were satisfied and enchanted with their visit.
National Geographic ranked LCV 11th amongst the best museums in
the world in 2017. Yet, Philippe was aware that these figures had to be
maintained and potentially increased in the future. The current year was
crucial in understanding visitor profiles and their expectations, deepening
the analysis of the areas of the permanent tour, improving logistics, and
adapting the communication and price policies.
The LCV’s intensive pace has gradually transformed into a joyful rou-
tine. The strategic concerns of establishing the priorities, resolving the
design dilemmas, managing the budget and deadlines, resolving the
issues related to adapting the work organization, team cohesion, and so
forth were almost all been behind them. Nevertheless, this unique cul-
tural recreation site dedicated to wine culture, wine history, and wine
civilizations covering more than 14,000 m2 with a total staff of about
200 requires constant questioning.
The strategic decisions made in 2011 have proven an overwhelming
success, attaining and often surpassing the goals set at the start. The
experiential design ideas were very new at that time, and the way of
piloting such a huge project was not obvious. Philippe’s mind wondered
back to that period.
282 T. BOUZDINE-CHAMEEVA ET AL.

Fig. 18.1 The view of the LCV in Bordeaux

 18 HOW TO DESIGN A WINE MUSEUM: INSIGHTS FROM LA CITÉ DU VIN … 283

The Idea of a Wine Civilizations

Museum in Bordeaux
Bordeaux is a unique French city that gave its name to the colour
of its wines and to a special type of wine known all over the world.
Throughout its history, Bordeaux has helped spread wine culture
globally thanks to its port and its development strongly linked to
wine.
Despite an international reputation in wine and the exceptional image
of Bordeaux wines, no special place dedicated to wine existed in the city.
In the 1980s, because it is so beautiful, the city was often referred to
as the Sleeping Beauty, but did not enjoy the same popularity as Paris or
other French cities. The first attempt to develop Bordeaux as a wine des-
tination was in 1991 when La Cité Mondiale du Vin et des Spiritueux de
Bordeaux opened in the city centre on the Garonne River, in the famous
Chartrons district, with the objective of creating a permanent wine mar-
ket in 8000 m2 of office space, 75 boutiques, and a tasting room. The
project was heavily criticized, viewed with scepticism, and created hos-
tility among many in the powerful Bordeaux wine community. The
eight-storey building was a complete fiasco.1 Today the name remains
only in the parking lot and the building no longer has any relation to
wine.
Another much more successful attempt to create a special place for
wine in Bordeaux was made in 1996, when wine merchant Patrice Calvin
decided to open the doors of his wonderful wine merchant mansion to
the public. Located in the historic district of the Chartrons city cen-
tre, this private museum existed until June 2008 when on the initiative
of the Bordeaux Historia Vini association it was transformed into the
Bordeaux Wine and Trade Museum.2 In three semi-underground cellars,
this museum presents a collection of unique historical objects, numer-
ous past and present testimonies, including documents that explain the
Bordeaux wine trade from the evolution of wine merchants dating back
to the Middle Ages to the present day. The focus of this museum is to

1 Bernard Broustet, “Bordeaux: la Cité mondiale du vin est achevée”, 19 December 1991,

Les Echos. Available at (French only) http://www.lesechos.fr/19/12/1991/LesEchos/16039-

070-ECH_bordeaux--la-cite-mondiale-du-vin-est-achevee.htm#c5C76ytf4bQV2bzW.99.
2 http://www.museeduvinbordeaux.com/who-are-we-2/.
284 T. BOUZDINE-CHAMEEVA ET AL.

explain the Bordeaux wine trade system through its properties, broker-
age, and trading, present the history of the great merchant families of the
eighteenth and nineteenth centuries to describe the various wine classifi-
cations in Bordeaux: from the prestigious classification of Napoleon III
in 1855 (the classified Medoc and Sauternes growths), the Graves wines
classifications in 1953/1959, and Saint-Emilion in 1959. The association
exhibits objects and visual aids in the cellars of the museum, offers wine
tastings and a small shop situated in the old cooperage. There are various
temporary exhibitions of paintings, sculptures, and so forth in the muse-
um’s final cellar. The museum is supported by local and dynamic wine
businesses and is dedicated to local wine trade facets and artefacts, even
if it has no ambition to present all the aspects of the sophisticated and
complex world of wine.
However, Bordeaux’s rapid development under the governance of
a very active major, Alain Juppe, the former French Prime Minister,
had drastically changed the city. It was time to change the scale and
find another conception. By the time of the public opening of the
Bordeaux Wine and Trade Museum in 2008, Bordeaux’s regional and
city authorities and the powerful Bordeaux wine lobby were ready
to go far beyond the limits of this small museum and develop a new
project.
The idea was born to create an impressively modern showcase
of the radical transformation of Bordeaux as a city progressively
acclaimed among major European tourist destinations. Such scale
required solid investments and significant sponsorship. In spite of
the internal politics arguing the opportunities of such a project, the
Cultural and Tourist Wine Centre Association was established in
2009. Following the 1991 Cité Mondiale fiasco and considering the
powerful influences of the Bordeaux wine establishment, a strong per-
sonality was required to carry out the task. Sylvie Cazes, a dynamic
wine owner and Alain Juppé’s elected staff member in charge of the
wine industry, took the lead in the project with enthusiasm and con-
viction; she later became Chairwoman of the Foundation for Wine
Culture and Civilizations. In September 2010, the city of Bordeaux
launched the architectural design and scenography competition (see
Fig. 18.2). A total of 114 submissions were received and five projects
were shortlisted.
 18 HOW TO DESIGN A WINE MUSEUM: INSIGHTS FROM LA CITÉ DU VIN … 285

(a) 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

oct 2013 – march 2016: Construction & Decoration Work

mai –dec 2012 2015
Planning permission granted End of june 2014
Core structural work Roofing and outer
completed, external work surfaces, Interior
mai 2011 layout
begins on the body of
Contract awarded to mai 2013 the structure.
XTU/Casson Mann Vinci wins the
Construction begins on march 2016
Limited construction contract Delivery of the completed
the tower
building
june 2013
Foundation stone
laid june 2016
dec 2014 Official public
Construction completed on the tower opening

(b) The total cost of La Cite du Vin is €81 million before tax, including €55
million on consrucon and museum design

Endowment
fund/patronage
19%

City of Bordeaux
38%

Europe (ERDF)
15%

Department of Gironde
1%

Bordeaux Chamber of Bordeaux Metropole

Commerce and 10%
Industry State Aquitaine Region Bordeaux Wine Council
1% 2% 7% 7%

Fig. 18.2 La Cite du Vin construction phases, fundings and total cost (Source
F. Maffrand “How to associate culture and wine regions of the world in an
iconic place”. La Cite de Vin official presentation in the International Wine
Conference, Armenia, 2017)
286 T. BOUZDINE-CHAMEEVA ET AL.

Cutting Edge Science and Top-Flight

Technology for a Wine Museum?
On 30 May 2011, the Parisian XTU Architects’ project and the Casson
Mann scenography proposal associated with the Canadian engineering
office SNC LAVALIN were selected as the winners of the competition
for the future Wine Civilizations Museum. The winners of the project
were chosen for their “architectural audacity”3 and an iconic building
shaped by symbols of identity: gnarled vine stocks, wine swirling in a
glass, and eddies on the Garonne River. Every detail of the architectural
project was intended to evoke the liquid nature of wine: seamless round-
ness, intangible, and sensual (XTU Architects). “This building does not
resemble any recognisable shape because it is an evocation of the soul of wine
between the river and the city” explained architects Anouk Legendre and
Nicolas Desmazières.
The building that XTU proposed was to host the museum and a living
space with numerous experiences to discover (Voss & Hsuan, 2009). Casson
Mann, a scenography agency from the UK, would further develop their ini-
tial proposal and collaborate with Philippe Massol’s team. Many great hopes
and expectations were pinned on the conclusion of this joint work.
Philippe Massol’s team was composed of a scientific consultant, a
marketing and promotions director, an administrative services ­director,
an IT director, and a cultural affairs director. Laurence, the cultural
affairs director, and Veronique, the scientific manager of the future Wine
Civilizations Museum, were both highly involved in the project. Several
years of Veronique’s intensive work was aggregated in a heavy volume of
almost four hundred pages, based on thousands of carefully studied and
reviewed documents, on interviews with hundreds of academics and wine
practitioners. Veronique was very passionate about wine; she had chosen
a career in agronomy, became an agro-economist, and received a degree
in wine tasting. The invitation to join the team working on the French
Wine Civilizations Museum project as a scientific consultant was a great
and merited opportunity.
In the last three years, Veronique met countless academics in different
fields of science including history, chemistry, literature, and biology; she
consulted hundreds of books on arts where wine was present—paintings,
music, folklore dancing, and songs—she interviewed specialists in plant

3 http://www.arch2o.com/french-wine-civilizations-museum-xtu-architects/.
 18 HOW TO DESIGN A WINE MUSEUM: INSIGHTS FROM LA CITÉ DU VIN … 287

diseases, in cooperage, in medieval history and in olfaction… Every such

encounter confirmed the complex, multifaceted, and mysterious nature
of wine.
Laurence had extensive experience as a museum curator—she
­envisaged and created the Musée des Arts du Cognac (MACO) in 2004.
However, the scale of the new LCV project was completely different.
Not many museum curators would get a chance in their professional lives
to be involved in such a huge and unique project.
Since 2009, Laurence and Veronique visited more than twenty
­different museums in France and all over the world (e.g. the Corning
Museum of Glass north of New York, the Science Museum in London,
the Caen Mémorial in France, the Guggenheim in Bilbao, the Heineken
Experience in Amsterdam, the Olympic Museum in Lausanne, the
Guinness Storehouse in Dublin, etc.). These visits allowed discovering
various museum designs, understanding the state-of-the-art of modern
museums, and how these met different visitor expectations. They wanted
to create their own conception of the new French Wine Civilizations
Museum in Bordeaux. Should it be a classic museum that enables “people
to explore collections for inspiration, learning and enjoyment”?4 Another
institution that collects, safeguards and makes accessible artefacts and
specimens, which they hold in trust for society? At the end of 2010, the
scientific and cultural project was written as well as the programme for
the scenography and architecture tender which was launched.
Philippe Massol was formerly the marketing director of the
Futuroscope theme park, the first amusement park created in France in
1987. He believed that fun, festivities, and a family-friendly atmosphere
were essential to attracting visitors, and that there was much to tell about
wine in the same entertaining way. With the support of Sylvie Cazes,
he advocated from the beginning that the Wine Civilizations Museum
should not be a classic museum, focused on objects and stories about the
scientific, technical or artistic aspects of wine, it should instead be created
more as an amusement park.
The major question debated in the meetings with the scenography
agency was how to harmonize a classic scientific museum approach with
top-flight technologies and the amusement park concept, and bring these
two different visions together in the project (Ponsignon et al., 2017).

4 The definition of a museum according to the Museums Association (MA) given in 1998:

https://www.museumsassociation.org/.
288 T. BOUZDINE-CHAMEEVA ET AL.

Immersion and Entertainment—The Scenography

Solutions of Casson Mann
The Casson Mann agency was created in 1984, renowned as museum,
exhibition, and interior designers offering design solution across the
arts, museum, hospitality, and retail sectors. The services they provide to
many of the world’s leading cultural organizations include museum and
permanent gallery design, temporary and touring exhibitions, interior
design and architecture. The competencies of Casson Mann also include
interpretive strategies and production, conceptual art solutions for all
multimedia installations, and master planning.
Each project on which the agency has worked is different; they
do not offer off-the-shelf solutions, as their designs take root from
the specific content and the particular collections. Understanding the
stories, attentively listening to their clients’ wishes, capturing their
needs, priorities, and ambitions, the scenography consultants then
develop the physical journey for visitors, thinking about the pace, the
need for moments of intensity or relaxation and rest within the expe-
rience (e.g. Kwortnik & Thompson, 2009).
The agency is notorious for creating thrilling interactive experi-
ences through physical, sensory, and digital media, innovating, adapt-
ing, and applying new technologies in scenography productions. The
Stanislavski Museolobby in Moscow is one of the many successful pro-
jects they accomplished in 2008. A group of redundant factory build-
ings in Moscow that had once belonged to Konstantin Stanislavski—well
known for his contributions to the theatre—was converted into a busi-
ness centre, with a lobby dedicated to Stanislavski’s story and used as a
café and meeting place. The challenge for Casson Mann was to find a
way to share with visiting business people—and office workers—with lit-
tle knowledge or interest in the theatre, the importance of Stanislavski’s
work and the complexity of his character. There were no objects, so
everything was to be virtual.
The Science Museum of London is one of their loyal clients. In 2010,
they created the immersive Atmosphere Gallery, the new gallery focused
on climate science, a beautiful but simplified representation of the planet
through which visitors can walk and within which, through interactiv-
ity and interpreted objects, they can explore the topic at their own pace.
 18 HOW TO DESIGN A WINE MUSEUM: INSIGHTS FROM LA CITÉ DU VIN … 289

In 2010, Casson Mann was invited to revisit and update “Who Am

I?”—a gallery it had completed for the Science Museum 10 years pre-
viously. The exploration of the fields of brain science, genetics, and
identity was presented through an expressive combination of interac-
tive multimedia tools, exhibits and games, historic objects, and specially
ordered artworks.

Casson Mann refuse to be defined by exhibition type. They operate con-

fidently across the whole spectrum of exhibition making…. from for-
mal, object-rich galleries to immersive interactive environments and
everything in between. They consistently create intelligent, sociable,
eloquent and beautiful, powerfully memorable environments – always
well-crafted and recognizable but never repetitive, each responding
directly to the content and message-making briefs established by their cli-
ents. (Professor Tim Molloy, Head of Creative Direction at the Science
Museum5)

By 2011, Gary, one of the Directors at Casson Mann and responsible

for the LCV scenography, had worked at the agency for five years and
became an Associate in 2009. The projects to which he contributed
included exhibitions and galleries for numerous British institutions,
such as the Victoria and Albert Museum, Natural History Museum,
Museum of London, the Imperial War Museum, as well as abroad with
the Bacardi Visitors Centre in Puerto Rico and various other feasibility
studies for Bacardi properties across the globe.
When Casson Mann decided to participate in the competition for
the LCV scenography, they received “the road map” and a description
of twelve themes explaining the general ideas (e.g. Johnston & Kong,
2011). Numerous email exchanges and discussions took place prior to
Gary and his team’s arrival in Bordeaux. Finally, six themes remained
in the final version represented in 19 modules (see Table 18.1 and
Fig. 18.3) for an average visit of two hours with the possible duration of
up to 10 hours if the visitor activates all the tour contents.

5 https://www.dbadirectory.org.uk/dba/directory/21419/case-studies.
290 T. BOUZDINE-CHAMEEVA ET AL.

Table 18.1 The list of the exhibition modules of the permanent tour of LCV

# Module title Solution

1 World wine tour 3 large screens

2 Worlds of wine 5 globes
3 The terroir table: one year in vineyard 10 terroirs—tactile tables
4 E-vine 3 electronic trees; 18 Ipads
5 The metamorphoses of wine 3 giant yeast molecules
6 Wine portrays 6 bottles with tactile screens
7 Wine over water 6 animated paintings
8 All aboard Animated film
9 The gallery of civilizations 10 cases
10 The trend wall Bottles and screens
11 The buffet of the five senses Aromes’ trials
12 The banquet of legends A pre-recorded theatre-like performance
13 Bacchus and Venus Sky dome
14 Divine wine Amphithéâtre
15 Drinking and the dark side Tactile place
16 The art of living 3 tables
17 Meet the experts Tactile tables
18 Bordeaux: the city and it swine Tactile table with a game
19 The epic tale of Bordeaux Film

Strategic Decision to Implement Experiential Design

The discussions between Casson Mann and the future Wine Civilizations
Museum team were fruitful and intense.

Laurence “I would say that we need to offer a discovery experience around

wine culture and civilizations for all the public. As the Lace museum in
Calais, for example, I am not especially fond of lace but if one day I go to
Calais, and Calais is famous for lace, I would go there - famous architec-
ture and a beautiful place. It should be the same in Bordeaux – even if you
are not a wine consumer, this place will be an occasion to visit, have a good
time, an interesting place to go. And it should be a must-see for tourists in
Bordeaux”.

Veronique “For several years my goal was to define together with a

scientific committee of about thirty different experts the framework of the
permanent museum tour and then find together with Laurence the best way
 18 HOW TO DESIGN A WINE MUSEUM: INSIGHTS FROM LA CITÉ DU VIN … 291

Fig. 18.3 The themed areas of the LCV: World Vineyards tour, the Duo-
Buffet of five senses, wine metamorphoses
292 T. BOUZDINE-CHAMEEVA ET AL.

to present and transfer this knowledge to the public. There have been various
internal and external validation stages… so many themes appeared to be
interesting and it was necessary to classify, arrange, and reorganise them,
then submit the core thematic areas to the scientific multidisciplinary com-
mittee composed of oenologists, ergonomists, historians, etc.”

Gary “Starting from the client brief on the competition, which was about
365 pages long, and scientific documents, it was incredibly dense and
incredibly detailed, and what we tried to do was to simplify it down to head-
line messages, and then from those headline messages establish particular
themes, and then in those themes build up a story. So from their 365 page
brief, we sort of synthesised it down to about 24 different experiences maybe,
and each one of those experiences we imagined as sort of telling a particular
aspect of the story of wine, and each one would tell it in a different way”.

Laurence “We do not want to numb the brains of visitors; this is not the
idea and people do not want that, as they are better off with a good large
book in their living room at home if they want to discover deeper knowledge
on a certain subject or on the Internet from behind their desks in the office.
Then it should be a pleasurable experience, a performance where you don’t
see all the preliminary efforts, and you just get pleasure and admire. That is
what we would like to offer”.

Gary “… this particular project was unusual in that it didn’t have any
objects… so we were trying to tell a story with almost only digital technol-
ogy and space design… we were looking at each one of the stories (the 24
modules) and at different ways to tell that story and involve the public so
that it’s not just a show, it’s not just a passive experience and they thus feel
physically and mentally engaged. Gradually we ended up with immersive
and interactive spaces, and spaces that are just like a show, spaces where peo-
ple investigate and they smell or touch things… and it’s really about variety
and creating a good balance of things that people do”.

Veronique “My role was to offer scientific content in an accessible enter-

tainment way, to offer some inspiration in spectacular discoveries of wine,
separate them into fine meaningful pieces, execute text and image control,
etc. Yet, Laurence is extremely competent in the “how” – how to design a
museum, how to pass it along, and that is a mediation quality. It is she who
has carried the responsibility of discussing the realisation of the scenography
 18 HOW TO DESIGN A WINE MUSEUM: INSIGHTS FROM LA CITÉ DU VIN … 293

solutions (small or big space, with or without prototypes, interviews, or tac-

tile tables, etc.). I could not advice on or suggest these things, my “big deal”
is the content and not the issues, devices, and practices of cultural media-
tion. Both types of competences were needed in this collaboration with Casson
Mann”.

Conclusions
Philippe’s memories of the turbulent times of the LCV’s creation were
interrupted by a meeting concerning the organization of an upcoming
exhibition “Wine and Music: Harmony and Dissonance”.
Yes, they had made an excellent choice for the experiential design in
the permanent tour and for the global vision of La Cité du Vin as an
immersive and sensory adventure world. This world offers temporary
exhibitions, daily wine culture workshops for all ages with multisensory
experiences, a cycle of open lectures, “A Harvest of Knowledge” on wine
research together with the Institute of Vine and Wine Science (ISVV),
conferences, “Wines of the World” tastings, regular monthly debates
around wine culture led by the KEDGE Business School Wine and
Spirits Academy, a reading room with hundreds of books on wine, the
original wine store concept run by a private operator “Latitude20” fea-
turing around 800 different wines (the only such store in France).
Since January 2015, the Foundation for Wine Culture and Civili­
zations has been in charge of operating La Cité du Vin to ensure its
development and promotion. Patrons, benefactors, private sponsors, the
French State, the Gironde county, the Bordeaux Chamber of Commerce
and Industry via the European Regional Development Fund became
stakeholders in the museum. An endowment fund was created in 2011
for private donations. From a financial point of view, this model is
unique in France: 80 patrons and benefactors funded almost 20% of the
initial construction costs (Fig. 18.2). These stakeholders are essential to
LCV’s financial equilibrium, and the ambitious cultural programme is a
result of partnerships with numerous institutions and companies. They
have even created a special Marketing and Partnership Manager position
for this activity, and Florence Maffrand has already signed contracts with
more than 80 partners. Developing partnerships with wine producers all
over the world to give them the opportunity to present their wines in
this magical place has also become a winning idea resulting in over 3000
wine listings since the opening and 55,000 bottles donated per year!
294 T. BOUZDINE-CHAMEEVA ET AL.

La Cité du Vin now has a strong reputation for its unique environ-
ment linking science and art, it has entered into the everyday life of the
city, becoming emblematic in Bordeaux (Béziat, 2016) and well-known
abroad (176 nationalities are listed among the 2017 visitors). It is impor-
tant, Philippe thinks, to preserve this attractive image for the future to be
able to welcome more visitors in the coming years.

Discussion Questions
1. How can museums be designed to simultaneously provide both an
educative and a fun experience?
2. What dimensions should a museum visitor’s journey include? What
is the role of scenography in museum creation and the impact of
service design choices?
3. How can museums create a compelling experience that positively
influences visitor loyalty and word of mouth?
4. Are there new solutions and activities that could be added to main-
tain and even increase the number of visitors?
5. To what extent does La Cité du Vin contribute to the wine indus-
try, locally, nationally, and internationally?
6. How can culture and wine regions of the world be linked in an
iconic place?
7. What are the implications from this case for cultural organizations?
8. What lessons can we learn from this case and apply to other con-
texts outside the cultural sector?

References
Béziat, B. (2016). Premier été réussi pour la Cité du vin de Bordeaux. Sud-Ouest.
http://www.sudouest.fr/2016/09/06/premier-ete-reussi-pour-la-cite-du-
vin-2489687-2780.php.
Hourquebie, D. (2017). La Cite Mondiale du Vin à Bordeaux: la belle
affluence. La Depeche, 18 January 2018. https://www.ladepeche.fr/
article/2018/01/18/2724147-cite-mondiale-du-vin-a-bordeaux-la-belle-­
affluence-populaire.html.
Johnston, R., & Kong, X. (2011). The customer experience: A road-map for
improvement. Managing Service Quality, 21(1), 5–24.
 18 HOW TO DESIGN A WINE MUSEUM: INSIGHTS FROM LA CITÉ DU VIN … 295

Kwortnik, R. J., & Thompson, G. M. (2009). Unifying service marketing and

service operations with service experience management. Journal of Service
Research, 4(11), 389–406.
Ponsignon, F., Durrieu, F., & Bouzdine-Chameeva, T. (2017). Customer
experience design: A case study in the cultural sector. Journal of Service
Management, 28(4), 763–787.
Voss, C., & Hsuan, J. (2009). Service architecture and modularity. Decision
Sciences, 40(3), 541–569.

Websites
http://www.laciteduvin.com/en/experience-la-cite-du-vin/the-permanent-tour.
https://www.dbadirectory.org.uk/dba/directory/21419.
http://www.arch2o.com/french-wine-civilizations-museum-xtu-architects/.
https://vimeo.com/190579397?from=outro-embed.

Videos of Philippe Massol

https://www.visitfrenchwine.com/por trait/philippe-massol-directeur-
general-de-la-cite-du-vin-bordeaux.
https://www.lesechos.fr/31/05/2016/lesechos.fr/021982036419_interview-
de-philippe-massol–directeur-general-de-la-cite-du-vin.htm.
 CHAPTER 19

OINOXENEIA: A Wine Tourism Event

in Aigialeia, Peloponnese

Athanasia Charitonidou, Maria Tsoukala

and Sotirios Bolis

Oinoxeneia: Conceptual Threads and the Festival

Oinoxeneia is a multidimensional and interdisciplinary wine e­xperiential
event1, organized since 2013 every August in Aigio (Greece). The
meaning and the purpose of the event stem from the analysis of the
­
portmanteau word Oinoxeneia: a linguistic blending of the words
­
oinos (wine) and the suffix -xeneia, which refers to the Greek concept
of filoxeneia (hospitality). Oinoxeneia is organized by the Municipality
of Aigialeia and the Municipal Welfare Business of Aigialeia - DIKEPA
(Peloponnese, Greece). It includes activities involving all senses such as
food/wine tasting, food markets, hiking, visits to monasteries, music
concerts and other cultural activities such as theatrical plays, book dis-
cussions, photographic exhibitions and art installations. Oinoxeneia
represents a celebration of the unique regional wines and vineyards com-
bined with the local gastronomy, the geomorphology and the cultural

1 The official website of Oinoxeneia: https://oinoxeneia.gr.

A. Charitonidou (*) · M. Tsoukala · S. Bolis

Municipal Welfare Business of Aigialeia, Aigialeia, Greece

© The Author(s) 2019 297

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_19
298 A. CHARITONIDOU ET AL.

resources and identity of Aigialeia. The event seeks to establish and

promote Aigialeia as an innovative touristic destination, fostering the
­
extroversion of the area.

Aigialeia: A Wine and Gastronomic Blending

Aigialeia is declared as a band of land whose virtues are mentioned
by Pausanias in his Achaean, in which the famous Greek geographer
and traveler of the second century AD writes about the excellence of
Aigialeian territory in vine cultivation, known since antiquity (Pausanias,
1933, VII 26, 10). The particularity of the vineyards growing in this
area is due to the specific microclimate, the ideal altitude, the gra-
dient of the slopes, the north orientation that delivers cool winds and
the protection offered against the warm African south winds (Liopa-
Tsakalidi et al., 2011, p. 7). The vineyards in the area are situated
at an estimated altitude ranging from 600 to 900 meters (Lazarakis,
2005, p. 288). One of the most dominant varieties that are culti-
vated in this region is mountainous Roditis, the variety that produces
the wine with the Protected Designation of Origin “PDO Patras”.
Gastronomically speaking, Aigialeia has been characterized by specific
local tastes that are based on the most significant agricultural prod-
ucts of this region: the olive oil, the famous “PDO Vostizza” currants
and the citrus fruits (lemons, oranges) among others form one of the
main suppliers in Greek culinary markets (also Locricchio, 2005,
p. 15). Local tastes and fresh products create a palette of flavors includ-
ing unique recipes, such as “asprogiahni” (cooked lamb), “kagianas”
(eggs with tomatoes), cod fish with currants, stuffed vegetables and vine
leaves with rice and currants, “vergadi” (cooked meat) with green beans,
“bourgeto” (special fish soup), ice cream with rose petals desert.

Oinoxeneia Network:
Qualitative Contribution to the Region’s Profile
The implementation of Oinoxeneia is mainly supported by a group of
businesses representing various sectors—which is called the Oinoxeneia
Network (O.N.). O.N. constitutes an informal network of businesses,
selected and agreed to participate and contribute to this community.
In particular, the network includes:
 19 OINOXENEIA: A WINE TOURISM EVENT IN AIGIALEIA, PELOPONNESE 299

The Wineries of O.N. which are open to visits during the­

Oinoxeneia celebrative period. The wineries guide visitors into the art
of winemaking, offering free tasting events as well as being part of the
design of the local wine routes and many other wine tourism activities.
The Restaurants of the network create special “Oinoxeneia menus”
including local dishes using homegrown products, accompanying and
pairing them with local wines; making them available in special prices.
The hospitality of Oinoxeneia is also apparent through selected Hotels
which offer opportunities to explore Aigialeia through gustatory and cul-
tural ways, as well as a special Greek breakfast that is based on fresh local
ingredients.

Aigialeia as an Emerging Destination:

Tourism Implications
The intention of Oinoxeneia is to develop and provide opportunities
whereby visitors can interact with, learn and appreciate the local culture.
The local community offers extraordinary experiences of authentic des-
tinations, attractions, unique vistas, aromas, tastes as well as aspects and
everyday practices of the society and the countryside. The major goal of
Oinoxeneia is to establish Aigialeia as a strong touristic destination by
following a multisensory experiential strategy which brings together the
gustatory (wines, local tastes) with the visual (landscapes), the tactile
(winery walking tours) and the sonic (music concerts, cultural events,
exhibitions) experiences. To ensure and improve service quality of the
experiences offered in the region, Oinoxeneia organizes training sem-
inars on gastronomy and wine for local businesses and entrepreneurs
such as for the members of the network, food professionals, wine busi-
nesses and restaurant owners. Moreover, Oinoxeneia does not stand only
as a two week festival during August. Such event intends to be active
and communicated at an annual basis, in order to act as a platform and
a tool that builds synergies between the local public authority and the
agricultural and business sector. As a sign of recognition, Oinoxeneia
has already received several awards: the European Year of Cultural
Heritage 2018 label, Tourism Awards 2018—Silver award, Peloponissos
“Outstanding people of the Year” awards 2017—1st Prize, Best City
awards 2017—Bronze award. Thus, Oinoxeneia appears as an ambassa-
dor of Aigialeia throughout the whole year by participating in different
300 A. CHARITONIDOU ET AL.

festivals, expositions, conventions of gastronomic, touristic and scientific

interest in order to communicate and represent the region and its finest
qualities around the world.

References
Lazarakis, K. (2018). The wines of Greece. Oxford: Infinite Ideas Limited.
Liopa-Tsakalidi, A., Barouchas, P., Malamos, N., Koulopoulos, A., Tzimas, I.,
Poulas, K., … Politis, E. (2011). Improvement of viniculture using expertise
knowledge (Report). Department of Mechanical Engineering and Watery
Pores, Technological Educational Institution of Mesolongi.
Locricchio, M. (2005). The cooking of Greece. New York: Benchmark Books.
Pausanias. (1933). Description of Greece: Volume III: Elis 2, Achaia, Arcadia
(W. H. S. Jones, Trans.). Cambridge, MA: Loeb Classical Library, Harvard
University Press.
 PART IV

Designing and Managing Wine Routes:

Packaging and Partnerships

Richard N. S. Robinson

Introduction
Destinations have long sought to activate some of the key emerging
marketing tenets of packaging and partnerships by creating trails and
routes. Among the benefits are encouraging longer tourist visitation,
spreading expenditure across regions, communities, sectors and busi-
nesses and enriching the risk otherwise of otherwise mono-dimensional
tourist experiences. Wine destinations are a prime context for the devel-
opment of routes and trails, and collectively wineries can still narrate a
distinctive product and experience story due to the legacy of a shared
terroir, even if differentiated by micro-climes in destinations. Part IV
of this book again draws together empirical and conceptual studies
that detail the development of, or potential for, wine routes within or
across destinations. Contributions highlight studies from established and
emerging European destinations, Asia Minor, and in the southern hemi-
sphere, Australia and New Zealand.
In the first chapter Dimitrovski, Rachão and Joukes activate the clas-
sic life product life cycle theory, and its tourism spin-off the tourism
destination life cycle and apply them to the Portuguese context. They
empirically establish that three of North Portugal’s wine routes repre-
sent differing stages according to the product life cycle, and conclude,
pivotally that stakeholder roles in partnerships are key for products,
indeed destinations, to advance in the life cycle. Next, Oncel and Yolal
present a fascinating treatment of how ancient wineries in Turkey lever-
age from their historical and cultural journeys to create wine routes for
302 Part IV: DESIGNING AND MANAGING WINE ROUTES: PACKAGING …

contemporary tourists to journey. They suggest that this combination, in

the development of routes and trails, is key to the development of wine
tourism in Turkey, which has lagged behind the more mature European
wine tourism destinations. Prokes, in his chapter, looks not at cycles,
as did Dimitrovski et al earlier but a combination of wine and bicycles.
Using survey data, the author establishes key indicators for the wine des-
tination success of various bicycle routes in the Moravia region of the
Czech Republic. The last chapter of this part is written by Sigala, who
uses the example of the hop-on hop-off bus implemented in Swan Valley
(Western Australia) in order to explain how mobility services influence
the mobility patterns and behaviour of wine tourists within wine destina-
tions. The hop-on hop-off bus enables the visitors to experience the wine
destination in a convenient, cost-effective but also personalised way by
developing their own customised itineraries. This can critically increase
visitation and visitor spend in the wine destination, but it can also cre-
ate crowding and demand displacement effects. Sigala debates the pros
and the cons of this mobility service and identifies areas that would need
to be continuously monitored by the wine destination in order to better
manage and refine the operations of the bus service.
Part IV concludes with a case study contributed by Robinson who
describes how an emerging wine region in the northern Australian state
of Queensland, innovatively developed a wine trail, to differentiate its
destination’s wine offering from other more established southern desti-
nations. The Granite Belt region accomplishes this by inviting wineries
on its Strangebird wine trail, to showcase unusual varietals, and as such
avoid competition with the major wine regions who can produce them at
a more economic price point.
This collection of studies and cases from across the globe highlights
the benefits but also dynamics of packaging and partnerships in the
development of wine routes and trails. These strategies are important for
the competitive development of wine destinations, regardless of maturity
or location.
 CHAPTER 20

Life Cycle of Wine Routes:

Northern Portugal’s Perspective

Darko Dimitrovski, Susana Rachão and Veronika Joukes

Introduction
Wine routes as a distinctive tourism product have the capacity to gener-
ate numerous benefits for wine tourism destinations. They function as
dynamic systems, dependable on the role and attitude of the coordinat-
ing body and members. The use of the ‘product life cycle’ (PLC) model
of Levitt (1965) and Butler’s (1980) ‘tourism destination life cycle’
provide further understanding of the life cycle stage into which each
wine route fits. The focus of this chapter is on Portuguese wine route

D. Dimitrovski (*)
Faculty of Hotel Management and Tourism, University of Kragujevac,
Vrnjačka Banja, Serbia
e-mail: darko.dimitrovski@kg.ac.rs
D. Dimitrovski · V. Joukes
University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro (UTAD),
Vila Real, Portugal
S. Rachão
INNOVINE & WINE Project,
University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro, Vila Real, Portugal
e-mail: susanarachao@ua.pt; susanr@utad.pt

© The Author(s) 2019 303

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_20
304 D. DIMITROVSKI ET AL.

dynamics, with special reference to the North Portugal wine routes. The
research aim was to pinpoint the place of each wine route on the life
cycle. The model of the wine route life cycle appears to provide a suit-
able framework to interpret this dynamic process and to raise questions
regarding the appropriate management of wine routes.
Wine routes can be an important tourism product in a wine desti-
nation, enabling the promotion of its distinctive characteristics, as they
have the strength to boost tourism, increase competitiveness, secure sus-
tainability and profile the destination as unique (Bregoli, Hingley, Del
Chiappa, & Sodano, 2016; Bruwer, 2003). As wine routes are dynamic
systems, their success is closely related to the roles and attitudes of both
their coordinating body and members (Brás, Costa, & Buhalis, 2010;
Brunori & Rossi, 2000; Hashimoto & Telfer, 2003).
The ‘product life cycle’ (PLC) model of Levitt (1965) helps us to
understand the unique characteristics of each life cycle stage. Using this
model in analysing wine routes helps us to gain a better understanding
of the ongoing process of change. Wine routes are tourism products and
thus they pass through a life cycle (da Conceição Gonçalves & Águas,
1997; Dodd & Beverland, 2001). This study analyses the dynamics of
Portuguese wine routes with a special focus on Northern Portugal.

The History of Portuguese Wine Routes

In the European Union, Portugal is ranked fourth in terms of the larg-
est percentage (6%) of its territory planted with vines after Spain (30%),
France (25%) and Italy (19%) (Eurostat, 2017). This is the result of his-
toric practices.
Nowadays, Portuguese wines are the centre of attention, among
other reasons, because they are prize winners in international contests
and increasingly wine tourists want to try out these wines in their own
terroir. Wine tourism is becoming an interesting niche market, with one
of its potential top products being 16 regional wine routes. This hasn’t
always been the case, as Portugal only became democratic after a peaceful
revolution against the dictatorship in 1974 and gained European mem-
bership in 1986. Although Portugal has always been a country blessed
with thousands of very small to extensive vineyards, with the exception
of Port wine, it has only been since the 1990s that the quality of the
wines produced all over the country has improved considerably and that
ever more attention has been paid to wine tourism in Portugal.
 20 LIFE CYCLE OF WINE ROUTES: NORTHERN PORTUGAL’S PERSPECTIVE 305

After the entrance of Portugal to the European Union, two impor-

tant orientating documents, the Resolução do Conselho de Ministros n.°
17-B/86, which in 1986 approved the first strategic plan for tourism after
the revolution, and the Livro Branco do Turismo (DGT, 1991), published
by the Ministry of Commerce and Tourism in 1991, did not even men-
tion the term ‘wine tourism’. One of the elements that inspired Portugal
to invest more in wine tourism was its participation in the European
Union’s Dyonisos programme, launched in 1993 to encourage coopera-
tion between different European wine-producing regions. Over two mil-
lion euros were distributed among the partners, which included Alentejo,
Andalusia, Catalonia, Sicily, Lombardy, Burgundy, Poitou-Charentes, Corse
and Languedoc-Roussillon. There were several objectives: the promotion of
poor wine-producing regions through the stimulation of their viticulture,
the exploitation of expert knowledge, the promotion of wine tourism, the
development of wine routes, the creation of quality services and the promo-
tion of marketing activities (Simões, 2008; Zsuzsanna, 2012).
This Inter-regional Cooperation Programme provoked the publication
of the Despacho Normativo n.° 669/94, a national government regulation
that provided financial support for those willing to invest in wine tour-
ism. It successfully prompted a number of wine regions in Portugal to
create wine routes (Correia, Ascenção, & Charters, 2004) as can be seen
in Table 20.3 at the end of the chapter in which the Portuguese wine
routes are listed in chronological order.
It took until the Plano Estratégico Nacional de Turismo (Turismo de
Portugal, 2007) to witness a formal change in paradigm. Among the ten
strategic products, Portugal has to invest in over the next five years, the
category ‘gastronomy and wines’ appears.
Table 20.1 clearly shows that the product ‘gastronomy and wines’ is
present in the typical wine-producing regions on the continent, although
in general terms it is of less importance (Turismo de Portugal, 2007,
p. 73). In the accompanying detailed guide Gastronomia e vinhos on
how to implement this new product, priority is given to the development
of wine tourism in the north of Portugal (THR, 2006, p. 54) and the
Port Wine Route is mentioned in particular: it should function better
to enhance the quality and the quantity of the (wine) tourism services
offered by local companies.
In 2015, the prevailing national strategic plan for tourism was pre-
sented with a new approach to the strategic products: they should no
longer be an orientating element, nor should all decisions be centralised
 306

Table 20.1 Contribution of the strategic products for each region

Sun and sea Touring City Business Nature Golf Nautical Residential Health and Gastronomy
breaks tourism tourism tourism tourism wellness and wines
(cruises inc.)

Algarve * ** *** **** **** ****

Lisbon *** * * ** **** *** *** **** ****
D. DIMITROVSKI ET AL.

(Cross (Cruises)
selling)
Madeira ** * *** * **** *** **** ***
(Porto (Cruises) (Porto
Santo) Santo)
Porto and * * *** ** **** ***
North (Porto) (Porto)
Centre * ** *** *** **** ****
(West) (West)
Azores ** * **** *** ***
(Cruises)
Alentejo ** * *** **** *** **** ***
(Alentejo (Alentejo (Alentejo (Alentejo
Coast) Coast) Coast) Coast)

*1st level; **2nd level; ***3rd level; ****4th level

Source Adapted from Turismo de Portugal (2007, p. 73)
Table 20.2 Matrix of motivations versus attractions

Tourism products
Sun and beach
Cultural touring
City breaks
Business tourism
Golf
Nature
Sea tourism
Residential tourism
Health and wellness
Gastronomy and
wines

Motivations
Culture
Culture and religion X X X
Knowledge X X X X
Local traditions X X X X
Pleasure
Socialising X X X X X X X
Adventure X X X
Entertainment X X X X
Breaking routine X X X X X X X X X X
Relaxation
Wellness X X X X X
Family X X X X X X X
Repose X X X X
Enjoying the weather X X X X
Physical
20 LIFE CYCLE OF WINE ROUTES: NORTHERN PORTUGAL’S PERSPECTIVE

Contact with nature X X X X X X

Sports X X X X X
Active life X X X X X
307

Source Turismo de Portugal (2015, p. 59)

Table 20.3 Main characteristics of the wine routes in Portugal (in chronological order)
308

Routes Inception Members in Members Members Headquarters Coordinating Website

1st year* in 2008 in 2016 institution

1. Rota do Vinho do 1996 49 51 67 Peso da Instituto dos Vinhos https://www.

Porto Régua e do Douro e do Porto ivdp.pt/pagina.
Porto asp?codPag=167
2. Rota dos Vinhos 1997 30 67 62 Porto Comissão de http://rota.vin-
Verdes Viticultura da hoverde.pt/pt/rota-
Região dos Vinhos dos-vinhos-verdes
D. DIMITROVSKI ET AL.

Verdes
3. Rotas dos Vinhos 1997 0 0 343* LIsboa Associação das Rotas http://www.rotas-
de Lisboa dos Vinhos de Lisboa dosvinhosdelisboa.
pt/ (this site cannot
be accessed)
4. Rota da Vinha e do 1997 15 20 02* Óbidos Região de Turismo
Vinho do Oeste do Oeste
5. Rota do Vinho do 1997 24 48 76 Évora Comissão Vitivinícola http://www.vinhos-
Alentejo Regional Alentejana doalentejo.pt/pt/
rota-dos-vinhos/
sobre-a-rota-dos-
vinhos/
6. Rota do Vinho do 1998 17 35 49 Viseu Comissão Vitivinícola http://rotavinhos-
Dão Regional do Dão dao.pt/
(continued)
Table 20.3 (continued)
Routes Inception Members in Members Members Headquarters Coordinating Website
1st year* in 2008 in 2016 institution
7. Rota da Vinha 1998 24 24 26 Santarém Associação da Rota http://www.cvrtejo.
e do Vinho do dos Vinhos do Tejo pt/rota-dos-vinhos-
Ribatejo = Rota dos do-tejo
Vinhos do Tejo
8. Rota das Vinhas de 1999 6 13 9 Moimenta da Comissão Vitivinícola http://www.cvrta-
Cister Beira Regional vora-varosa.pt/rota.
Távora-Varosa asp
9. Rota da Vinha da 1999 11 20 21 Guarda Comissão Vitivinícola http://www.cvrbi.
Beira Interior da Beira Interior pt/index.php/
rota-turistica
10. Rota do Vinho da 1999 23 30 17 Tamengos Associação da Rota http://www.cvrbi.
Bairrada 2006 da Bairrada pt/index.php/
Associação da Rota rota-turistica
da Bairrada
11. Rota do Vinho da 2000 9 9 25 Palmela Associação da Rota http://www.rotavin-
Costa Azul = dos Vinhos da hospsetubal.com
Rota dos Vinhos Península de Setúbal
da Península de
Setúbal

(continued)
20 LIFE CYCLE OF WINE ROUTES: NORTHERN PORTUGAL’S PERSPECTIVE
309
Table 20.3 (continued)
310

Routes Inception Members in Members Members Headquarters Coordinating Website

1st year* in 2008 in 2016 institution
12. Rota dos Vinhos de 2003 4 4 2 Oeiras Municípios de http://www.cm-oe-
Bucelas, Carcavelos Loures, Cascais, iras.pt
e Colares Oeiras e Sintra
13. Rota do Vinho 2007 0 0 Melgaço Câmara Municipal de http://www.cm-mel-
Verde do Alvarinho Melgaço gaco.pt
14. Rota dos Vinhos 2014 0 0 21 Lagoa Associação da Rota http://www.rotados-
D. DIMITROVSKI ET AL.

do Algarve dos Vinhos do vinhosdoalgarve.pt

Algarve (blog)
15. Rota dos Vinhos da 2016 0 0 5 Horta Associação para o http://www.adelia-
Ilha do Pico Desenvolvimento cor.org/
Local da Ilha dos
Açores (Adeliaçor)
16. Rota do Vinho da 2017 0 0 54* Funchal Not yet defined http://www.agrone-
Madeira gocios.eu/noticias/
rota-do-vinho-da-ma-
deira-em-marcha/
17. Rota dos vinhos de 2017 0 0 04* Not yet Comissão Vitivinícola http://cvrtm.pt/?
Trás-os-Montes defined Regional de
Trás-os-Montes?
Total 212 321 419

Notes 1*(for routes created until 2003); 2*does not exist in 2017; 3*new launch in 2014; 4*in 2017, yet to be created formally
Sources Simões (2008), Novais and Antunes (2009), and IDTOUR (2016)
 20 LIFE CYCLE OF WINE ROUTES: NORTHERN PORTUGAL’S PERSPECTIVE 311

in Lisbon. Full attention should be paid to the motivations and experi-

ences of the tourists and to please them, the so-called strategic tourism
products could henceforward be complemented or even substituted by
other (new) products (Turismo de Portugal, 2015, p. 59).
What is of immediate note in Table 20.2 is the fact that ‘gastronomy
and wines’ have been upgraded to a position in which they are seen as a
possible extra for whichever type of tourist enters the country. Although
‘gastronomy and wines’ are not a primary motivation for travel, this item
is assumed to be an essential complement to all tourism products. The
text continues as follows: ‘In fact, gastronomy, as well as Portuguese
wines, has demonstrated an enormous capacity to please and surprise
those who visit us. The numerous international awards and, above all,
the opinion expressed by the tourists in successive surveys of satisfaction,
confirm that the combination of gastronomy and wines is one of the
strongest factors of the valorisation of Portugal as an attractive tourism
destination’ (Turismo de Portugal, 2015, p. 105).
In short, today’s national tourism plan foresees wine tourism as an
interesting complement for other types of tourism and considers routes
in general to be interesting tools for attracting visitors. However, ‘wine
routes’ are not mentioned specifically in this document.
Table 20.3 shows, inter alia, that the Port Wine Route was the first to
be created in 1996 and that the most recent wine route was created in the
Azores two decades later. The dates in Table 20.3 demonstrate that wine
tourism in Portugal is in its infancy; nevertheless, recent years have seen
significant developments, such as constant investment of more money and
energy in the creation and maintenance of wine routes. At the national
level, the wine routes are now organised in the Association of Wine
Routes in Portugal (ARVP), which recently ordered a strategic plan for
the consultancy unit IDTOUR (2016). They concentrate on 14 routes
and we have added two more routes, Madeira and Trás-os-Montes, as we
discovered that there are stakeholders interested in their creation. The
wine regions of Northern Portugal are highlighted in Table 20.3.

The Product Life Cycle

The product life cycle (PLC) has had a central place in marketing theory
and practice for decades (Gardner, 1987). This marketing concept arose
as a result of supply and demand forces (Golder and Tellis, 2004), sug-
gesting differences in sales and growth over a product’s life (Levitt, 1965).
312 D. DIMITROVSKI ET AL.

Thus, Levitt (1965) introduced the concept of the PLC as an instrument

of competitive power. This concept has gained huge interest due to the
relevance of the biological analogy of birth, growth, maturity and decline
(Day, 1981) and its evident simplicity and reality (Gardner, 1987). The
identification of the stage in the life cycle is useful as it enhances strategic
thinking related to a product policy (Polli & Cook, 1969).
Over time, numerous authors have confirmed the significance of
the PLC. Hofer and Schendel (1978), Rink and Swan (1979) and Day
(1981) identified it as an important variable in determining an appropri-
ate business strategy, while Biggadike (1981) emphasised the contribu-
tion of the concept in strategic management. However, the PLC has also
raised many concerns. The general argument is that the PLC has descrip-
tive value, with rather limited prescriptive importance (Gardner, 1987).
Its simplicity makes it vulnerable to criticism, especially its capacity as
a predictive model for anticipating a stage change within the life cycle
(Gardner, 1987) or as a normative model proposing alternative strategies
for each life cycle stage (Day, 1981).
The main characteristic of the PLC is that products move through dif-
ferent life phases (introduction, growth, maturity and decline) at vary-
ing speeds, with profit increasing in the growth phase and declining in
the maturity phase due to strong competitiveness. Thus, appropriate
product exploitation is needed to drive the product through the process
(Gardner, 1987; Patton, 1959). Hofer (1975) established that significant
changes in business strategy occur during the three major stages of the
life cycle (introduction, maturity and decline).
In the tourism literature, the PLC is mostly associated with the Tourism
Area Life Cycle (TALC), as it was introduced almost 40 years ago by
Butler (1980) or the tourism destination life cycle (Komppula, Hakulinen,
& Saraniemi, 2010). However, we propose to discuss the life cycle of a
specific tourism product. Tourism products have already been examined
at the level of hotels, resorts and niche tourism products, including wine
regions, but not at the level of wine routes. A wine route as a tourism
product is not just the itinerary itself, interlinking all the wineries, hotels
and attractions, but also includes tourists and their experiences as a part of
the product production process. Increasing value is added to the tourism
product at each stage of the production, with the consumers as an integral
part of this tourism production process (Smith, 1994).
Taking into account that the PLC has only limited strength when it is
used as a planning tool and little predictive power, our main effort is to
determine the current reality of wine routes in Northern Portugal and
 20 LIFE CYCLE OF WINE ROUTES: NORTHERN PORTUGAL’S PERSPECTIVE 313

position them on the PLC curve, mainly to gain valuable insight into
the current wine route dynamics as perceived by the main actors and as
a useful tool to benchmark their development with other wine routes in
Portugal in order to measure their competitive power (Levitt, 1965).

Methodology and Research Context

The wine routes of Vinho Verde (in the Minho region), Port wine (in
the Douro region) and Trás-os-Montes were selected because they are
located in the three wine regions of Northern Portugal, each being
characterised by a different set of attributes and level of development.
Indeed, the Douro region, which stretches out east/west along the
river with the same name, has a very strong and established wine iden-
tity, while Trás-os-Montes, a mountainous interior region in the north-
east, is better established as an agriculture/farming region and has been
trying more recently to develop a wine identity. Finally, Vinho Verde is
a progressive and still developing wine region in which a new sub-area,
Alvarinho, has arisen where two municipalities, Melgaço and Monção,
in the extreme north-west of the country, promote the same sparkling
white wine. The differences between the three wine regions are a good
starting point for a better understanding of similarities and differences
among wine routes and their development. This approach might be
repeated for the examination of wine routes in other regions.
Based on their performance in the tourism market, the wine routes of
Northern Portugal have been positioned as products on the PLC based
on the results of in-depth interviews with the most prominent actors,
mostly with leading positions within the leading wine route bodies. This
approach was adopted in view of the criticism of Papatheodorou (2004)
that more attention should be paid to the key individuals in the shap-
ing of the tourism development process in relation to the PLC concept,
thus contributing to earlier findings (Russell, 2005; Russell & Faulkner,
1999). The data obtained were then compared and contrasted with the
literature on the PLC in tourism and wine tourism more specifically
(Dodd & Beverland, 2001).
This is a rather innovative approach as products are usually assessed
through sales. Such a unique approach allows insight into the product
reality as it includes analysis of both the internal (within the control of
the wine route and its leading body) and external (outside of their con-
trol) factors that are of importance for product evolution as different
threats are encountered. Although increased sales should lead directly to
314 D. DIMITROVSKI ET AL.

Table 20.4 Outline of participants for qualitative research

Wine region Wine route Type of respondent Workplace Sector Sample

(n = 9)

Policymaker (1) Regional level Public 1

Trás-os-Montes Trás-os-Montes Association (2) Local level Non-profit 1
Wine producer (3) Local level Private 1
Route’s former Local level Non-profit 1
president (4)
Douro and Port Route’s former Local level Non-profit 1
Porto director (5)
Policymaker (6) Regional level Public 1
Policymaker (7) Regional level Public 1
Vinho Verde Vinho Verde & Policymaker (8) Regional level Public 1
Alvarinho
Hospitality Local level Private 1
­services (9)

Source Authors’ own elaboration

the growth stage, due to organisational malfunctioning, poor collabora-

tion and ignoring the need for innovation, a product can just as readily
dive into the decline phase and simply get out-marketed.
In this research, convenience sampling was used as it conveniently uses
persons from organisations (Veal, 2006) related to the wine routes. The
participants were selected based on their involvement in the wine route,
from former presidents to individual members. The interviews were booked
by telephone and/or email and done at the office of each interviewee.
An interview protocol was used in order to follow standard proce-
dures in all interviews. All the interviews were tape-recorded and sup-
ported, whenever necessary, with handwritten notes. The interviews had
an average duration of 90 minutes. Once the interviews were transcribed,
the analysis of the textual data was performed in a systematic process
through a relational analysis since it allows the identification of mean-
ingful relationships between concepts (Altinay & Paraskevas, 2008). The
sample consisted of nine participants equally divided for each wine route.
The interviewees had different roles and coverage (national or local) in
the wine region. Actors from the public and private sectors and non-
profit associations were included in the sample, as shown in Table 20.4.
NVivo 11 Pro software package was used to perform the relational analy-
sis of the interviews’ content as well as to code the themes.
 20 LIFE CYCLE OF WINE ROUTES: NORTHERN PORTUGAL’S PERSPECTIVE 315

Discussion
Combining in-depth interviews with a thorough literature review, a
number of theoretical and practical implications arose. We first comment
on the main outcomes per wine route and conclude with two graphs of
the PLC curve: one showing the distribution along the curve of the wine
routes of Northern Portugal and another showing all Portuguese wine
routes. These graphs illustrate in the blink of an eye the different stages
of development of all the routes.
Trás-os-Montes is still a non-functional wine route, but with a strong
desire among some of its main actors, as expressed during the interviews,
to introduce and establish a wine route in that territory. To position this
non-functional wine route in the PLC, we have used Golder and Tellis’
(2004) argument that the introduction stage of the PLC considers the
period from the very first commercialisation of a new product until its
take-off. Therefore, despite the fact that the Trás-os-Montes wine route
has not yet been officially created and is not yet offered directly to tour-
ists, a few steps have already been implemented to prepare for its com-
mercialisation and therefore we affirm that this wine route is in the
introduction stage of the PLC.
The three interviewees showed interest in joining a wine route being
of the view that the remaining players in the territory would find an
opportunity to expand their brands. When respondents were asked
which institution or firm should be leading the wine route, the answers
were disparate. The policymaker, for example, was the only one who
believed in combined leadership to manage the route: business actors,
city councils and even the local/regional universities should collaborate
(Table 20.5).
Considering the potential activities that the route could offer, gas-
tronomy was seen as an important factor in spreading the local culture,
as well as ‘touring’ activities, thanks to the diversity of the natural land-
scape. However, one of the respondents commented that there were
already too many events and that the potential route should be linked to
existing routes to improve them both in terms of quality and in terms of
reputation and image (Table 20.5).
With regard to the Port Wine Route, the researchers have witnessed
its failure. By constraining the wine route strictly to Port wine, numer-
ous wine companies that have increasingly being investing in technol-
ogies to produce quality still wines were excluded. Although product
 316

Table 20.5 Summary of the themes addressed by the interviewees for the potential Trás-os-Montes wine route

Type of Workplace Sector Themes

respondent
Interested in Different sectors’ Entity assuming a coor- Potential activities within the route
D. DIMITROVSKI ET AL.

integrating interest in creat- dinating role

a wine route ing the route

Policymaker Regional Public Yes Yes Product representatives, Castles; wineries excavated in the
level municipalities and rock; gastronomy; diversity of the
universities landscape; mix with olive and chest-
nut trees; vineyards
Association Local level Non-profit Yes Yes Cultural agent To associate with existing events and
improve them
Wine Local level Private Yes Yes Tourism board Tasting; participation at every
producer moment in which operations are
performed in the vine and wine;
gastronomy

Source Authors’ own elaboration

 20 LIFE CYCLE OF WINE ROUTES: NORTHERN PORTUGAL’S PERSPECTIVE 317

concentration can encourage the destination’s competitiveness, there

are inevitable and obvious risks in focusing only on one or a few prod-
ucts (Benur & Bramwell, 2015). Tooman (1997) sees decline as a result
of excessive external stress on the physical or social dimensions of the
region, such as business fluctuations, fads, prices of substitute locations
or pastimes. The rupture of the Port Wine Route coincided with the
worldwide financial crisis and suffered its consequences:

At some point between the members begins that point of envy […]. If
there had been unity and strong common interests, because – if you look
at the facts with some distance – some members did not want to subordi-
nate, but to dominate […], and then the crisis appears. (Interviewee 4)
The Port Wine Route comprised important but limited activity. It
had its own space, open to the public, welcoming and guiding 10,000 to
11,000 visitors a year to different activities and making hotel, restaurant
and cruise bookings. At the same time, it served as a platform for selling
the products of its adherents. (Interviewee 5)

When the route had to redefine its management, the new leading team
understood that the route should be more active, engaging in high-value
community projects:

They allowed the growth of the media visibility of the route. Nevertheless,
this promotion was more focused on the region as a tourism destination
and less on the promotion of its adherents. (Interviewee 5)

In this particular case, it was primarily internal factors that determined

the end of the Port Wine Route, chiefly a lack of funding, debt (overly
ambitious reconstruction works for the headquarters) and a new, more
expensive management team, as well as a lack of engagement of public
and private partners (Dimitrovski & Rachão, 2017). Figure 20.1 sche-
matises the leadership constructions used since the creation of the Porto
Wine Route until its decline. Another essential internal pillar of a route
is collaboration between the members and the Port Wine Route soon
showed little ability for this:

Of the big producing companies we only had one and of wineries we had
two or three. The private ones with some capacity initially showed no
interest. The route and the adherents were micro and small firms with-
out critical mass and without the capacity to welcome or accommodate
318 D. DIMITROVSKI ET AL.

1996 1999/2000–2006/2007 2007/2008 2010/2011

Redefining of
Creation stage Development stage Decline stage
leadership

Disaggregation of
Public institutions Private firms Mixed leadership
leadership

IVDP IVDP
IVDP

Casa do Association of Association of Association of

Douro Adherents Adherents Adherents

Douro Sul
Tourism Douro Sul Douro Sul
Board Tourism Tourism
Board Board

1 1
Representative Representative
of the of the
municipalities municipalities

Fig. 20.1 The Port Wine Route development process (Source Authors’ own
elaboration)

large groups. Then, at this stage, there is always the hard core (five to six
adherents) that participates and accompanies and some collaboration was
achieved, but only on the basis of personal relationships. (Interviewee 5)

At this point, despite the remaining physical evidence (in particular signage
is still posted all over the region and the website can still be consulted), the
Port Wine Route is no longer functioning, being practically extinct.
Finally, it is of note that despite the growing interest in wine tour-
ism in the Douro region, an increasing number of tourists visiting on
 20 LIFE CYCLE OF WINE ROUTES: NORTHERN PORTUGAL’S PERSPECTIVE 319

an annual basis and a significant presence of Portuguese wine and wine

tourism within the global tourism market, the decline—and eventually
the failure—of the Port Wine Route was provoked by mainly internal
factors. These negative results, however, are in line with earlier findings
affirming that different classes of a product reflect different life cycle
curves (Polli & Cook, 1969). In this specific case, while wine tourism is
booming in the Douro region, the Port Wine Route has ended.
The Vinho Verde route is positioned somewhere between the growth
and maturity stage allowing its management to think strategically about
its future. The Vinhos Verdes Wine Route was created in 1996 and later,
between 2008 and 2009, the sub-route of Vinho Verde Alvarinho was
generated.

‘The managing entity of the route is still the city hall of Melgaço, which
also created this project, and later included the Monção. So now, the route
covers the two municipalities […]’. The interpretive centres of the Alvarinho
wine were divided over the two counties: ‘We have created here in Melgaço
the mother house of the route – the Solar of Alvarinho, because of its cen-
tral location, and the palace and museum of Alvarinho […] in Monção.
The tourists can go there and obtain all the information they need to
travel around the territory and visit several enogastronomic points […]’.
(Interviewee 8)

More results of the interviews are bundled in Table 20.6. When the
interviewees were asked about their contributions to the improvement
of the wine routes, two issues were commented on by all respondents:
the sense of vocational training for the territorial players and the lack of
critical mass. With respect to further improvements, both stakeholders of
the Vinhos Verdes Wine Route agreed that wine tourism must be more
developed, certainly now, as they have recently gained decent infrastruc-
tural conditions as well as international recognition:

‘Of course we cannot focus on tourism until we have a consolidated prod-

uct. Only after we have consolidated the product and have spread its name
worldwide, will larger groups of tourists want to visit the region. We are
an ever more fashionable product worldwide’ (Interviewee 9); ‘I think we
should go deeper into the concept of wine tourism […].’ (Interviewee 7)

With the exception of the Alvarinho sub-route, in which partnerships are

already a reality in the format of a business network, the members of the
Table 20.6 The perspectives of the actors of the Vinhos Verdes Route and Alvarinho sub-route
320

Type of Workplace Actors’ perspectives

respondent
Leadership in route development Collaboration between different sectors Contributions to route’s
(wineries, restaurants, etc.) improvement

Policymaker Regional The wine commission, Alto-Minho ‘I’m very critical about routes. I think ‘First, more training for
level Tourism Board, the CCRD North and wine tourism is very important, but I producers; second, more
(public ADTURN. ‘[…] with the evolution think that the concept of a route is an dissemination of successful
sector) of time only the commission remained. ineffective concept […]’ projects; and three, more
D. DIMITROVSKI ET AL.

[…] the route was created more by the selectivity’

institutions than by the companies and
the adherents’
Policymaker Regional ‘[…] we are considered within the ‘And it is very important to create ‘Always be innovating,
level route of Vinhos Verdes as a sub-route, partnerships […]. These partnerships without losing the territo-
(public although we have autonomy in terms of already exist. There are already compa- rial identity […]’
sector) decision making, […] the managing nies for example, restaurants that make ‘Many adherents are not
entity of the route is the city hall of agreements with wine producers and very receptive to vocational
Melgaço, […]’ create the brand of the restaurant but training’
the wine is made by the producer […]’
Hospitality Local ‘[…] recently, changes were made […] ‘I think the route does not yet have ‘Maybe working on the part
services level new adherents were added and some membership and sufficient critical of tourism. We are very
(private were excluded, probably because of the mass to sense whether or not cooperation focused on Vinho Verde.
sector) lack of necessary conditions to guaran- is necessary. There is natural coopera- […] we are still very focused
tee a good and quality operation. The tion, […] we have restaurants […] we on the product and perhaps
route went through ups and downs and advise tourists when they ask us for a not so much on tourism […]
is now in a phase of restructuring’ place […]. Now, within the members of we do not yet have critical
the route, there is no critical mass. […] mass, either of producers or
But there is no cooperation’ of spaces to receive tourists’

Source Authors’ own elaboration

 20 LIFE CYCLE OF WINE ROUTES: NORTHERN PORTUGAL’S PERSPECTIVE 321

Rota do Vinho Verde

do Alvarinho

Rota dos
Vinhos Verdes
INSIDE KNOWLEDGE

Rota dos Vinhos de

Trás-os-Montes Rota do Vinho
do Porto

INTRODUCTION GROWT MATURITY DECLINE

Fig. 20.2 The wine routes of Northern Portugal on the PLC curve (Source
PLC developed by the authors)

Vinhos Verdes Wine Route only collaborate in an informal way, namely

through personal relationships.
Last, but not least, it should also be noted that one of the actors con-
sidered the importance of wine routes to be overestimated.
To resume our discussion of the results of our in-depth interviews and
the literature review, we have placed the four wine routes of Northern
Portugal on a graph representing the life cycle of a product (Fig. 20.2).
At present, according to our data, the Trás-os-Montes Wine Route
is in the ‘embryonic’ phase that precedes the introduction of the prod-
uct to the market, the Vinho Verde Wine Route and the Alvarinho Wine
Route are clearly in a growth phase, while the Port Wine Route is in the
phase of decline.
To close the discussion, we put all the wine routes in Portugal on
another chart. Their place on the chart is mainly based on the figure
elaborated in the ARVP—Strategic Plan, which presents a development
matrix of the wine routes of the Association based on 11 strategic and
communication indicators (IDTOUR, 2016, p. 96). We combined this
perspective with the data we obtained through our in-depth interviews,
322 D. DIMITROVSKI ET AL.

Rota do Vinho Verde

do Alvarinho

Rota dos Vinhos Rota dos Rota do

do Algarve Vinhos Verdes Vinho do
Alentejo
INSIDE KNOWLEDGE

Rota do Vinho Rota das

da Madeira Vinhas de
Rota do Vinho
Cister
da Bairrada
Rota dos Vinhos
da Ilha do Pico Rota do Vinho do Dão
Rota dos Vinhos da
Península de Setúbal
Rota dos Vinhos de Rota dos Vinhos de Bucelas,
Trás-os-Montes Carcavelos e Colares Rota do Vinho
do Porto
Rota dos Vinhos de Lisboa

Rota dos Vinhos do Tejo

Rota da Vinha da Beira

Interior

INTRODUCTION GROWTH MATURITY DECLINE

Fig. 20.3 The Portuguese wine routes on the PLC curve (Source PLC devel-
oped by the authors)

our desk research and our growing knowledge of the sector. We also sent
our proposal to all those responsible for the wine routes and those who
answered all approved the configuration of Fig. 20.3.
What counts is the placement of a wine route in the correct phase.
Within each phase, the routes are placed arbitrarily.
The Trás-os-Montes Wine Route, the Pico Island Wine Route, the
Madeira Island Wine Route and the Algarve Wine Route are in the
introduction stage (thus far, the first two exist only on paper); the Beira
Interior Wine Route and the Tejo Wine Route are at the beginning of
the growth phase, while the Dão Wine Route, the Cister Vineyard
Route, the Bucelas, Carcavelos and Colares Wine Route, the routes of
the wines of Lisbon, the Alvarinho Wine Route and the Vinho Verde
Wine Route are already more strongly developed; the Bairrada Route,
the Setúbal Peninsula Wine Route and the Alentejo Wine Route are
comparatively highly ranked in the maturity stage; only the Port Wine
Route is in the phase of decline.
 20 LIFE CYCLE OF WINE ROUTES: NORTHERN PORTUGAL’S PERSPECTIVE 323

Concluding Remarks
The wine routes of Northern Portugal represent three of the possi-
ble PLC stages: together with the Pico Island Wine Route, the Trás-os-
Montes Wine Route is at the very beginning of its life cycle. The growth
stage in Portugal is the best represented with eight routes, among which
are the Vinho Verde Wine Route and Alvarinho Wine Route. While
Northern Portugal is not represented in the maturity phase, the Port
Wine Route stands alone in the decline stage. In other words, there
is considerable potential for the growth of the wine routes in Northern
Portugal.
The findings from the literature suggest that the potential for wine
tourism is recognised by the main figures responsible for organising and
steering tourism and economic development. However, in the north of
Portugal, the wine routes as an important niche tourism product are not
following the growth pattern of wine tourism in general. This confirms
earlier findings that wine routes are fashionable among owners and offi-
cials, but not necessarily among wine tourists (López-Guzmán, Sanchez
Canizares, & García, 2010). In other words, implementing a wine route
does not at all guarantee that the tourists will find their way to it in large
numbers.
Based on the results of our in-depth interviews, our research team
supports the advice of Papatheodorou (2004) to pay full attention to the
key stakeholders in order to decide the place of ‘their’ tourism product in
the PLC.
This chapter depicts the status quo of the wine routes in Portugal. The
stakeholders, however, expect more from a research team than mere descrip-
tive conclusions. Thus, in the near future our sources will be screened from
the perspective of what can be done in each stage to improve the perfor-
mance of each wine route. Some benchmarking exercises will also contribute
to the formulation of solutions that can be applied in the territory.

Acknowledgements This research is part of the wider project, INNOVINE

& WINE—Vineyard and Wine Innovation Platform—Operation NORTE -01-
0145-FEDER-000038, co-funded by European and Structural Investment
Funds (FEDER) and by Norte 2020 (Programa Operacional Regional do Norte
2014/2020—Funding Reference: POCI-01-0145-FEDER-006971), as well as
by national funds through the FCT—Portuguese Foundation for Science and
Technology—under project UID/SOC/04011/2013.
324 D. DIMITROVSKI ET AL.

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 CHAPTER 21

Wine Routes and Tourism Potential

in Turkey

Sibel Oncel and Medet Yolal

Introduction
In recent decades, a rapid development has been observed in wine
tourism. Therefore, destinations have striven for the reputation of their
wine and attracting tourists (Xu, Barbieri, Anderson, Leung, & Rozier-
Rich, 2016). Turkey, having been home to a number of diverse civili-
zations, is known to be one of the first lands where wine is produced
and consumed. Fertile lands and the attached importance to wine by
numerous civilizations make the country an important place for wine
growing. Archaeological findings such as earthenware pots and cruses,
amphorae from the Ionian period, Phrygian embossments depicting wine
feasts, ceramics displaying Dionysus, coins engraved with grapes, wine
and vineyards, reliefs showing Hittite kings offering wine to their gods,
inscriptions and legends testify to the importance of wine and vineyards

S. Oncel (*) · M. Yolal

Anadolu University, Eskişehir, Turkey
e-mail: sguler@anadolu.edu.tr
M. Yolal
e-mail: myolal@anadolu.edu.tr

© The Author(s) 2019 327

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_21
328 S. ONCEL AND M. YOLAL

in the land. Moreover, findings also show that vine growing and wine
production are important economic activities in almost all civilizations in
the region. Due to its ecological structure and moderate climate, Turkey
has great potential for wine production. Accordingly, renowned grape
types (Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah and Grenache) are cultivated
along with numerous local grape varieties (Calkarasi, Vasilaki, Yapincak,
Adakarasi, Narince, Okuzgozu, Bogazkere and Kalecik Karasi). Further,
an increase in the interest in vine growing is observed all around the
country. Moreover, the importance of wine production is bolstered by
the added value and export potential. Consequently, Turkey has become
an important destination for people seeking alternative forms of tourism,
and wine tourism offers a potential of economic development, especially
in rural areas (Erguven, 2015; Turkben, Gul, & Uzar, 2012).
Increasing the importance of wine tourism in well-developed destina-
tions has also contributed to tourism development in these destinations
(Hashimoto & Telfer, 2003). Wine is offered with regional cultural val-
ues and natural beauties. In sum, wine tourism includes culture, arts,
education and travel. Wine tourism also facilitates interaction between
the winemakers and consumers and involves education about and experi-
ence of wine products and wine regions including local cultures and cui-
sine (Fraser & Alonso, 2006). Wine tourism also bolsters the promotion
of destinations’ local values. Therefore, well-known wine destinations
establish wine routes to attract wine enthusiasts. These routes contain
wine and travel. Wine tourists may have the opportunity to learn wine-
making, vinery, wine tasting and local arts, history and culture (Charters
& Ali-Knight, 2002). In this vein, important wine routes were organized
to benefit from growing wine tourism in Turkey. These routes are scat-
tered around the country from east to west, north to south. Tekirdag
in the Trachea region, Bozcaada in the Aegean Sea, Izmir, Denizli and
Cappadocia in the central part and Elazig in the eastern region are all
well-organized wine routes. Besides offering good wine, these areas are
also competitive tourist destinations with their well-protected natural and
historical assets.
Wine routes in Turkey are a relatively new field of study; therefore,
little research has been conducted in the country. This chapter has two
main objectives: first to evaluate the prominent wine routes in the coun-
try and to discuss the strengths of these routes while underlying the
weaknesses and second to identify perspectives on its future potential in
order to increase marketing effectiveness.
 21 WINE ROUTES AND TOURISM POTENTIAL IN TURKEY 329

Wine Tourism and Wine Routes in Turkey

Vine growing in Asia Minor is known to be as old as humanity in the
region and also known to be a mature agricultural production. Vintage
was first recorded in cuneiform writing which was brought to Asia
Minor from Northern Mesopotamia by the merchants, which was dated
back to the second century BC (Doger, 2004, p. 158). Vine growing
was an important agricultural activity for the Hittites who emigrated
from Caucasia and settled in Anatolia around 2000 BC. They founded
a great civilization that lasted 600 years. Rock art and sculptures of the
period depict figures of grapes and wine. Moreover, inscriptions found in
Bogazkoy, Corum tell us about grapes and regulations made by Hittites
for preserving vineries and grapes. Further, ancient Greeks also attached
importance to winemaking, so that the word ‘wiyanna’ of Hittite lan-
guage was borrowed by Greeks as ‘oinos’ and also transformed to ‘wine’
in English. Hittites attached such importance to wine that the landlords
of vineries were titled as ‘gal gastin’, meaning the ‘head of grapes’ or
‘head of wine’ (Yalcin, 2006, p. 9). Hittites had great influence in the
spread of vinery to the western part of the land. This spread was initiated
by the Minoan Civilization who settled in Crete and the other Aegean
islands (2200–1400 BC). Vinery, which was developed in Crete by the
Minoan civilization who were advanced in vinery and olive cultivation,
moved to the Mora Peninsula and further to Trachea.
Wine was also important in the ancient religions of Anatolia. It
is known that religious rituals of the Hittites contain wine. Further,
the Cult of Dionysus (the Olympian god of wine and festivity) was
developed on the basis of wine and influenced Romans and the first
Christians. It is believed that wine mostly influenced the ancient Greek
civilization and the Roman people. Mythology suggests that vine was
brought to the Greek peninsula by Dionysus, the son of Zeus. The story
of Dionysus reveals an analogy with Christ’s life. As Christ introducing
himself as vine and his blood as wine, in ancient times it was believed
that Dionysus was the vine and his blood was wine (www.bagvesarap.
org). In the Old Testament, it is noted that Noah cultivated grapes and
made wine after his ark landed on Mount Ararat. However, Islam does
not hold wine sacred as in other religions (Beser, 2014, p. 17). Ever
since Turks have settled in Asia Minor and accepted Islam, winegrowing
and winemaking were left to non-Muslim minorities. In Turkey, grapes
were consumed at tables or set aside as raisin for future consumption in
330 S. ONCEL AND M. YOLAL

the course of this period. However, the drinking culture of Ottomans

should not be underestimated. Although restrictions were issued by sev-
eral sultans like Suleiman the Magnificent, Ahmed I, Murad IV, Selim III
and others, there were, for example, 160 public houses and 6000 shops
that sold spirits in Istanbul in 1637. A revitalization was experienced in
winemaking which was marked by the westernization movements start-
ing with the 1900s. While wineries in Europe were suffering from grape
phylloxera, 300 million litres of wine were produced in the Ottoman
Lands and were mostly exported (www.goodgrapeco.wordpress.com).
This trend of development in winemaking was also maintained during
the Turkish Republic period (1923 to present).
In the light of climate and geographical conditions, Turkey has an
important potential for grape and wine production. As such, a recent
report by the International Organization of Vine and Wine (2017) sug-
gests that Turkey is in the fifth rank with its 497,000 hectares grape pro-
duction area and in the sixth rank in grape production. However, merely
11% of production is allocated to winemaking (Arpa & Cabaroglu,
2017). This accounts for 3% of vinery in the country being used in grape
production for winemaking.
The interest in wine has bolstered travels to different destinations
in search of various tastes, and these travels are coined as wine tourism.
Wine tourism is defined as ‘the visitation to vineyards, wineries, wine
festivals and wine shows, for which wine tasting and/or experiencing
the attributes of a wine region are the prime motivating factors for vis-
itors’ (Hall, Sharples, Cambourne, & Macionis, 2000, p. 37). In this
regard, wine tourism is the development and marketing of wine regions
as the prominent attractions for wine enthusiasts’ visits. Similarly, wine
tourists are defined as individuals in search for an experience specific to
wine, who actively participate in value creation related to wine. Wine
tourists often explore wines via tasting and also through food and wine
paring, prefer to buy wines directly from wineries and participate in var-
ious activities related to wine (Yuan, Morrison, Cai, & Linton, 2008).
As such, motivations, involvement and perceptions vary among individ-
uals. For example, Charters and Ali-Knight (2002) identify three cate-
gories of wine tourists: wine lovers, wine interested and wine novices.
Moreover, the authors conclude that there are obvious variations in
demography and psychographics among wine tourists visiting different
regions (Charters & Ali-Knight, 2002). A similar variation also exists
between different cultures and nationalities. In this vein, a change over
time in wine consumption has been observed in Turkey as a result of
 21 WINE ROUTES AND TOURISM POTENTIAL IN TURKEY 331

developments in tourism, increase in education, rise in income and shift-

ing tastes. These trends have also changed the attitudes and behaviours
of individuals towards wine and wine consumption.
The value and importance of wine tourism have been justified for sev-
eral destinations. There are also cases where wine is a driving force for
tourism development. In line with this, tour operators and travel agents
have launched gastronomy tours most of which include wine for inter-
ested tourists of Europe and Northern America (Uyar & Zengin, 2015).
This results in the emergence of destinations that are solely preferred for
wine tourism. Wine as an important attraction also helps destinations
to develop a reasonable image by presenting and preserving the unique
authentic social, cultural, historical and natural characteristics of wine
destinations (Morgan & Tresidder, 2016). Moreover, wine tourism is an
important revenue generator for destinations, so much so that research
shows that wine tourists spend an average of US$937, and one-fourth of
this figure is allocated just to wine (Uyar & Zengin, 2015).
Since wine tourism is mostly developed in rural areas, its impacts in
the area are more prominent. Wine tourism development in rural areas
also has the potential to alter the region. In this regard, Corigliano
(2016) suggests that wine and food tourism can play a significant role
in enhancing the rural identity, while promoting economic, social and
environmentally sustainable development of rural regions (Alonso & Liu,
2012). On the other hand, wine tourism may also result in deterioration
of both tangible and intangible characteristics of the area. Therefore,
a well-established, competitive wine industry in rural areas requires
a sound development plan that considers sustainability of the natural
resources (Yildiz, 2009, p. 59).
In many countries, wine tourism has largely been developed in the
form of ‘wine routes’. According to Brás, Costa, and Buhalis (2010,
p. 1621), a wine route is ‘a network of agents in a wine region, whose
purpose is to promote regional development by employing strategies that
lead to the development of an inclusive regional network which encom-
passes public and private agents from both sectors of activity (wine and
tourism)’. A similar trend in wine tourism is also observed in Turkey.
Although several regions produce grapes and wines, in this section we
will discuss well-known, leading wine routes and try to reveal their
strengths and weaknesses. Further, we will discuss how to diminish the
weaknesses and overcome the challenges that these routes face in the
conclusion section.
332 S. ONCEL AND M. YOLAL

Trachea Wine Route

Trachea wine route covers four regions, namely Tekirdag, Sarkoy,
Kirklareli and Gallipoli, and lays in the European part of the country.
The route accounts for 60% of the wine production in Turkey and offers
abundant opportunities for wine lovers. Trachea wine route consists of
two separate routes. The first one is from Sarkoy to Gallipoli, and the lat-
ter is in Kirklareli on the Black Sea shore. The routes present alternatives
for individuals in search of new destinations, while providing participa-
tion opportunities in vine growing (Akdag, 2015). Wine lovers can enjoy
a pleasant time while walking in the vineyards, cultivating grapes, visiting
the winery and tasting wines. Further, a variety of activities are organ-
ized in order to support the boutique wineries in the route. Tours are
not only organized for wine tasting but also for promoting other gastro-
nomic values and thereby maximize the economic impacts (Cakir, 2015).
Trachea is a well-developed winemaking region in Turkey due to its
sunny, quite humid and often breezy climate. Moreover, this region also
hosts historical and cultural attractions, especially Edirne, being the cap-
ital of Ottoman Empire prior to the conquest of Istanbul. Therefore,
the route and its surroundings have unique characteristics which may
attract domestic and international tourists. In this vein, the first wine
museum of Turkey has been opened in Murefte, a prominent grape and
wine producing town on the way to Sarkoy and Gallipoli from Istanbul.
However, the route also has the potential to attract more visitors when it
is promoted and supported by alternative tourism.

Bozcaada (Tenedos) Route

Despite being a small island in the Aegean Sea, Bozcaada is known for
quality wine production and wine tours. The history of winemaking in
Bozcaada goes back to antiquity. However, little is known except for in
the Republic period. Wine production in Bozcaada was dominated by
Greek people under the administration of Ottoman Empire. For ages,
Turkish residents of the island cultivated grape mostly for the table.
After the population exchange during the Republic period, Turks also
increased their wine production. Karasakiz (Kuntra), Altinbas (Vasilaki)
and Karalahna grapes are cultivated for winemaking. Recently, Cabernet
Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Merlot and Gamay grapes are raised for qual-
ity wine production to increase the economic impacts (Turkben, Gul, &
Uzar, 2012).
 21 WINE ROUTES AND TOURISM POTENTIAL IN TURKEY 333

The island offers a quiet, idyllic holiday opportunity for visitors

in search of alternative destinations with its wineries, clean shores and
beaches, sea, small coves and thyme-scented hills. Besides cycling tours
and boat tours, vintage tours and wine tasting events are organized in
June by the collaboration of local administration and wine producers
(Mercan & Ozkok, 2013). The events give the residents and the visi-
tors an opportunity to experience tasty wines, local food, concerts and
a variety of recreational activities. Similar events are also organized by
the wineries, initiated in August and September, to celebrate vintage and
offered to visitors in the form of two-day packages. The packages start
with the delivery of lunch packs to the visitors in small baskets. Visitors
walk around the vineyards, taste wines, have lunch, observe winemak-
ing in wineries and have dinner enjoying the local cuisine. In their visit
to wineries, people have the opportunity to see all the phases of wine
production. Along with information on wine, visitors have the chance to
taste seven different types of wine with cheese and tiny breads.

Denizli Route
Ancient Phrygia, which also includes Denizli, was an important cross-
road that connected the inland to the ancient ports of Aegean and
Mediterranean. As it was recorded in the Travels of Ibn Battuta, Denizli
was a significant winery growing area both in the ancient times and in
the middle ages. As such, Denizli is one of the most important wine
routes in Asia Minor thanks to its fertile soil, historical heritage and
emerging wineries. Accommodation businesses constructed in or near
the vineyards are also important in attracting wine lovers.
Denizli is the homeland to one of the oldest grapes of Anatolia, the
Calkarasi. A grape type called Karci can be found in Denizli even in
heavy winters. Small wineries operated by families in the neighbourhoods
of Denizli, like Bekilli, Guney and Cal, have flourished over time, and
winemaking has become an important sector in the region (www.pamuk-
kale.gov.tr). Increasing awareness and demand for Pamukkale wines
resulted in a rise in wine production in the region. Consequently, Denizli
has become an important route for wine lovers. This is also reinforced by
the quality accommodation near the vineyards. These hotels are managed
in the form of ‘wine hotels’ just like similar hotels in France and Italy.
Guney neighbourhood of Denizli has a noteworthy place in winemak-
ing. The geographical location of Guney with an altitude of 850 metres
334 S. ONCEL AND M. YOLAL

above sea level and its argillaceous soil provide good conditions for
raising grapes for winemaking (Tokmakoglu, 2016). Grape types like
Kalecik Karasi, Okuzgozu, Bogazkere, Narince, Cabernet Sauvignon,
Shiraz, Merlot, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc are cultivated in vine-
yards around Guney and its surroundings, and this has also increased the
number of wineries and the wine lovers visiting the region. Fresh grapes
brought to wineries are taken immediately to winemaking process to cre-
ate fabulous tastes. Similarly, Cal, another neighbourhood of Denizli,
has also been an important wine centre since the Phrygian and Roman
periods. Farmers and wine producers of the region attribute the quality
of wines produced in Cal to the aroma of thyme, apple and other local
herbs diffusing in the wineries. This neighbourhood is also known as one
of the major wine routes in Turkey with an annual wine production of
5 million litres (Boyaci, 2010).
Denizli route, being closer to Hierapolis and Pamukkale known for
the mineral-rich thermal waters flowing down white travertine terraces
on a nearby hillside, has the potential to attract visitors from all around
the world in search for history, natural beauty and different tastes.
However, the route and its potential are disdained in the marketing of
the destination. Therefore, comprehensive marketing efforts have the
potential to support the route and the winemaking in the region.

Cappadocia Route
Cappadocia, a historical region in Central Anatolia, Turkey, owes its
uniqueness to fairy chimneys, and tall columns topped with rocks formed
as a result of erosion by wind and water. The historical and natural
attractions of the region offer authentic experiences in attracting and sat-
isfying individuals. Additionally, wine tourism has become an important
product for Cappadocia in recent years. Consequently, cultural heritage,
natural attractions, fairy chimneys and wine tourism have greatly contrib-
uted to economic and social development of the region (Samiloglu &
Karacaer, 2011, p. 144).
Cappadocia currently holds a reputable place in winemaking. This is
justified by more than 23,000 hectares of vineyards. These vineyards are
spread around the neighbourhoods such as Urgup, Goreme, Avanos and
Gulsehir (Iscen, 2011, p. 95). Vineyards, wineries and mostly natural cel-
lars carved in caves trigger a strong wine industry in the region. As such,
Genc and Sengul (2016) underline the importance of physical, cultural
 21 WINE ROUTES AND TOURISM POTENTIAL IN TURKEY 335

and natural environment together with wine production in maintaining a

competitive edge for Cappadocia.
Vintage and winemaking tours, local wines offered to visitors in
exclusive restaurants, food festivals, cooking classes and wine festivals
also reinforce the emergence of wine tourism in the region (Yilmaz &
Ozdemir, 2017). In line with this, a wine route has been created that
covers Ankara, Corum, Alacahoyuk and Cappadocia. Vintage tours come
forth in the route, accompanied by local food, local cuisine and prod-
ucts. Local wines are offered in the historical and natural attractions,
with the wineries of larger companies such as Turasan, Kocabag and
Kavaklidere also attracting visitors. Apart from wine, Cappadocia offers
distinctive experiences to its visitors which represent the main strength of
the route. Since the main motivation of the international tourist flow has
been these experiences, winemaking and the route are underestimated.
Therefore, promotion of wine tourism as an alternative to other attrac-
tions may contribute to the region.

Izmir-Sirince Route
The Aegean region has a moderate climate which is favourable for grow-
ing a variety of grapes. The grape variety in the region can be listed
as, but not limited to, Alicante Bouchet, Bogazkere, Cabernet Franc,
Cabernet Sauvignon, Carignan, Chardonnay, Calkarasi, Grenache,
Malbec, Mourvedre, Shiraz and Petit Verdot. In the region, several
neighbourhoods and villages rely on winemaking for their economic
well-being. For example, Sirince is a village on the hills of the Selcuk
neighbourhood. The history of the village goes back to fifth century BC.
Constructed along the lines of traditional Aegean rural architecture, the
village is a well-preserved touristic destination in the region for rural and
cultural tourism enthusiasts (Kaya, 2012, p. 119). Increased demand for
the village in recent years has diversified the sources of income for the
villagers. Tourism development also resulted in search for product diver-
sification, and wine has become a popular product. Presently, wines pro-
duced in Sirince are popular in Turkey. Moreover, the festival organized
to celebrate vintage attracts a large number of visitors to the region.
Various kinds of wines are produced in the region in order to improve
the attractiveness of the village. Varying from tangerine to strawberry
(about 20 different fruit wines), fruit wines also increase the number of
visitors to the village. Several wineries, historical houses used as wineries
336 S. ONCEL AND M. YOLAL

or lodgings and the hospitable local people all offer distinct experiences
for the visitors. Wine festivals, art galleries and workshops also raise the
number of offerings of the village. As such, Yildiz (2009) suggests that
Sirince is the unique example of a place that deserves the title of ‘wine
village’. Unfortunately, this route is not popular in international markets.
Moreover, although the quality of wine is high, the route has not created
a wine brand that can be marketed in international markets. Therefore,
the route and the wineries should be encouraged and promoted to create
their own brands.

Elazig Route
Elazig and the vicinity are also one of the significant vineyard regions,
where quality grapes for winemaking like Okuzgozu and Bogazkere are
cultivated. Elazig is also a convenient place for viticulture thanks to its
climate and fertile soil. Wine was produced in the region as early as the
Hittite and Urartu state (Kingdom of Van) of the Iron Age (Arpa &
Cabaroglu, 2017, p. 236).
One-fourth of the grapes raised in Elazig is used for winemaking, and
25% of wine production is made in Elazig (www.wowturkey.com). The
abundance of cultural heritage, local tastes and the wine produced from
local grapes are among many attractions of the region. As such, Elazig
route offers wine lovers tasty wines, a variety of local food and culture.
However, the main weakness of the route is its remoteness to metro-
politan areas and well-developed tourist destinations. Therefore, local
authorities, tourist businesses and wineries should find creative ways to
promote the route and its quality wine. Organizing events, attending to
international fairs and well-designed promotional efforts may help the
region overcome this problem.

Conclusions
Although vine growing is an important agricultural activity, Turkey falls
behind in winemaking and wine tourism (Sevil & Yuncu, 2009). In fact,
Turkey is a convenient place for the cultivation of grapes for winemak-
ing thanks to its ecological characteristics. In recent decades, world-
famous grape types such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Grenache
are being cultivated among others (Senuyar, Demirbas, & Saygin, 2014).
As such, a total of 64 million litres of wine was produced in 2015
 21 WINE ROUTES AND TOURISM POTENTIAL IN TURKEY 337

(Buzrul, 2016). This increase in the wine production has resulted in the
formation of wine routes that economically rely on vineyards and wine-
making. Therefore, this chapter has examined prominent wine routes in
Asia Minor.
The development of wine routes suggests that Turkey has abundant
resources regarding grape cultivation and consequently winemaking.
However, these resources are underutilized due to several structural
problems. Initially, the grapes are mostly consumed at the table, and
the economic benefits of winemaking and wine tourism are underesti-
mated. This is also hindered by the religion that forbids the drinking of
alcohol. But it is encouraging to see that this trend is changing recently,
and wineries are increasing all around the country. Further, the taxa-
tion of beverages in Turkey is relatively high compared to other coun-
tries which limits the consumption of alcohol (Buzrul, 2013). However,
the negative impacts of over-taxation can be surmounted by improv-
ing the opportunities for exportation. Although an increase in interest
to Turkish wines is observed recently, the achievements of the wineries
are still in infancy. Therefore, incentives to promote quality grapes and
wine production have the potential to boost the economic value of win-
emaking. Moreover, promotion of available wine types and wine routes
can contribute to maintain a sustainable wine tourism in the country.
One of the most important weaknesses of the wine routes in Turkey is
the problem of accessibility of the wine routes. Therefore, the infrastruc-
ture in the wine routes should be improved. Besides, accommodation
establishments to cater for the needs of international wine tourists should
be encouraged, and their quality should be increased. As such, guid-
ance and training services are needed to help the entrepreneurs in the
wine routes. Moreover, overcoming the problems faced by wine tour-
ism requires collaboration among the stakeholders in the wine routes.
Although the definition implies a network of agents, different percep-
tions of different stakeholders result in poor levels of collaboration in
wine routes as suggested by Bregoli, Hingley, Del Chiappa, and Sodano
(2016). Therefore, a common understanding among different stakehold-
ers should be created to unify the efforts, and public and local authori-
ties, non-governmental organizations, the private sector, universities and
professional organizations should all cooperate to achieve desired out-
comes. This may also result in the development of new wine trails and
wine routes in emerging winegrowing areas.
338 S. ONCEL AND M. YOLAL

Special tours that combine wine with other cultural and historical
attractions (Correia & Ascencao, 2006) may increase the attractiveness
and competitiveness of wine routes. Likewise, organization of special
events such as wine festivals, competitions and wine tasting events may
improve the tourist flow to the wine routes. Moreover, a careful segmen-
tation of the wine tourists helps wineries to better respond to visitors’
needs, since different marketing strategies are needed for specific con-
sumer preferences. In this way, a targeted product marketing focusing on
creating valuable experiences, entertainment and education may also help
overcome marketing problems.
Although Turkey is a latecomer in wine tourism, the country has
achieved a significant development in forming wine routes with its nat-
ural beauties, pristine cultural and historical attractions. In this regard,
the chapter made an effort to make an account of prominent wine routes
in Turkey, mainly in Asia Minor. However, there is a need for future
studies to further develop the existing wine routes, while considering
development of new wine routes in order to better benefit from current
resources.

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 CHAPTER 22

Wine Trails in the Czech Republic

Martin Prokeš

Introduction
The Velvet Revolution marks the period of political change in
Czechoslovakia in November and December 1989, which led to the fall
of the communist regime and the transformation of the political estab-
lishment into a pluralist democracy. Wine production before the Velvet
Revolution (before the 1990s) in Czechoslovakia was focused on quan-
tity and not to allow the development of related industries such as wine
tourism. The whole wine sector subsequently recorded very slow devel-
opment of a quantitative orientation toward production quality and
focusing on originality associated with varietal uniqueness. Projects to
promote wine tourism and the systematic development of large wine
trails were yet to follow—at the beginning of the new millennium.
The permanent trend of development and market growth was the
starting point for the creation of a completely new system of wine trails
in Moravia region. The wine production area is mainly located in this
southeast part of the Czech Republic, with 96% of Czech wineries (wine-
ofczechrepublic, 2018). South Moravia is a traditional wine-growing
region. Wine production and the associated culture, next to the natural

M. Prokeš (*)
Mendel University, Brno, Czechia
e-mail: martin.prokes.umo@mendelu.cz

© The Author(s) 2019 341

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_22
342 M. PROKEŠ

and historical attractions, are one of the main attractions for visiting
this region. Tourism and the service sector in general have progressively
grown in recent years. Winery, wine, and wine tourism are the flagships
of South Moravia.
The research project follows the development of the regional associations
of small- and medium-sized wineries cooperating in the system for appella-
tions Vína Originální Certifikace (VOC)—in English translated as Wine of
Original Certification. There are successful forms of wine tourism coopera-
tion in wine clusters throughout the world, which can serve as a source of
inspiration for the growing cluster initiatives in the Czech Republic.
The Moravian Wine Trails project started with the activities of a
Partnership Foundation which for the first time clearly determined the
concept of wine tourism and specifically identified the need for infra-
structure. When we analyzed the starting process of the management of
the project, we could find distinct “modules” that could be implemented
gradually and separately, without losing functionality and threatened the
possibility of other implemented modules.
There were four main modules at the beginning of the project:
MODULE A—the network of cycle paths (Fig. 22.1):

– a total plan of 11 routes connected in a network of 10 regional trails,

– one main backbone trail with a total length 1200 km;

MODULE A
the network of cycle paths

MODULE B
MODULE C
the development
the product
of services
Wine Tourism

MODULE C
marketing mix
PR & CRM

Fig. 22.1 Flowchart of the Moravian Wine Route project (Prokeš, 2018)
 22 WINE TRAILS IN THE CZECH REPUBLIC 343

MODULE B—the development of services for cycling;

MODULE C—creating a product complex wine tourism with vari-
ous packages and components of wine tourism; and
MODULE D—marketing promotion, public relations, and cus-
tomer relationship management (CRM).
There was in terms of methodology procedures that were surprising,
such as the first of the modules implemented was the marketing pro-
motion of trails. So the Moravian Wine Trails map was published in
the year 2000, or a year before showing the first tracks in the field, and
three years before the completion of the entire network of trails in the
country.
The author’s team of project’s services and marketing tools for its
development, with great vision and ambition, proposed the creation of a
network of cycle paths, linking all major wine-growing villages. The area
of the project was covering a location of vineyards and monuments in
the South Moravian region and extending to the most eastern part of
the Czech Republic on border with Slovakia’s neighboring wine regions.
Even the creation of regional tourist products was ahead of their time
in 1998, when there were previously regional associations of municipal-
ities. The creation of regional associations of all wine producing villages,
totally 310, responded to the demand for cooperation on the very first
foundations of wine tourism in villages with farmers, at that time mostly
hidden behind the curtain of the gray economy.
This segment of the regional economy—wine tourism—is now in
dynamic development and it is certainly not true that tourists come for
winemakers only on so-called wine cellar evenings. Tourists as wine lov-
ers are also interested in the possibility of vineyards tours, to work in the
vineyards, and gain training in the production of wine in the cellar.
The research project follows the development of the regional associ-
ations of small- and medium-sized wineries cooperating in the system
for appellations VOC. There are successful global forms of wine t­ourism
cooperation in wine clusters, which serve as sources of inspiration
for the growing cluster initiatives in the Czech Republic (Tomšík &
Prokeš, 2011).
Cooperation in regional associations, which leads to the creation
of new offer of services, includes wine tourism. It is strategic business
decision-making, leading to a strengthening effect on the ­negotiating
dynamics in the industry (Malmberg, Sölvell, & Zander, 1996). As stated
344 M. PROKEŠ

by Porter (2007), the reason why companies are successful or are failing
is the question centred on strategy. Porter (1994) used the concept of
cluster in the context of wine production, namely on the basis of research
work related to wine producers in California, specifically in the Napa and
Sonoma Valley. Until the 1960s of the twentieth century, wine produc-
ers in California were focused on the production of brandy and dessert
wines. Big changes were subsequently conducted with transformation,
regarding how the relationship between vine growers and wine produc-
ers, as well as relations between the wine producers themselves, mani-
fest in order to improve production quality. Regional research activities
began to study winemaking. Since wine from California in the 1980s
broke onto the export market all over the world, wine production had
undergone great development in quality and quantity. This development
has attracted some new producers to enter into this industry and also
caused the development of other related industries such as wine tourism.
Furthermore, research on clusters uniting producers of vine and wine
was published by Müller and Summer (2005). Formation of wine clus-
ters in New Zealand is researched by Dana and Winstone (2008), in
the South Africa by Davidson (2009) and in Chile by Visser (2006).
Australian wine is now at the forefront of a changing global wine mar-
ket with a tradition dedicated to intensive research and innovation. The
success of the organization and development of the Australian viticul-
ture and winemaking, as the literary sources suggest, is currently asso-
ciated with that cluster. Development of the Australian wine industry is
described by Beeston (1994). Ditter (2005) even uses the entire walk-
through of the rapid development of the Australian winery concept of
meta-cluster or super-cluster. Australia is so large, so there cannot be
only one cluster of wine producers, but the wine industry as a whole has
successfully cooperated with a common strategy for the sole purpose of
export-quality wines. Aylward (2008) described the differences in the
two types of Australian wine cluster. The South Australian cluster, which
can be described as innovative, and the organizational type cluster found
in Victoria and New South Wales.
Ditter (2005) indicates that the impact of globalization on the wine
category in the 1990s meant a major crisis for the traditional model
of production and labeling wines based on the guarantee of origin
(AOC). These wines have a high added value in a typical product in lim-
ited quantities through a combination of a defined area of origin, the
 22 WINE TRAILS IN THE CZECH REPUBLIC 345

so-called terroir and yield, which is due to restrictive requirements and

regulations. On the other hand, French winegrowers face competition
from New World wines, the model simply being making the most pre-
ferred varieties, nominating only the zone or country of origin. Their
model of production and trade is based on a combination of industri-
alised mass production and intensive marketing of relatively standard-
ized products that are very identifiable. Bélis-Bergouignan, Corade, and
Pesme (2010) indicate that wine cluster initiatives in France revived in
2009, with the main focus of cooperation toward the cluster’s potential
research and development based on the experience and inspiration taken
from the countries of the new wine world.
There are also researchers in the Czech Republic, who engaged in the ini-
tiatives of local and regional farmers which joined together to market (e.g.,
Loŝťák, Kučerová, & Zagata, 2006; Gurská, Chládková, & Tomšík, 2009;
Janda, Mikolášek, & Netuka, 2010). Place-based marketing and cooperation
winemakers appear frequently in publications from Mitchell and Hall (2006,
2012). The institutional theory and resource based-theory of clusters in the
wine tourism industry was also unpacked by Grimstad (2011).

Materials and Methods

To achieve the objectives of the study and an overview of the target mar-
ket segments requires analysis of the behavior of consumers and pro-
viders of wine tourism, which was done by the method of marketing
research. For primary data collection, a system was used from the RELA
(Research Laboratory), which was created in collaboration with the
Institute of Trade and Marketing, Faculty of Business and Economics,
and Mendel University in Brno. Primary data was collected on the basis
of marketing research through a questionnaire survey and were then pro-
cessed by MS Excel and Statistica. Results are presented in the form of
tables and graphs.
Service providers in wine tourism were mailed questionnaires elec-
tronically. The source directory of certified equipment was provided by
the National Wine Centre. Of the 701 facilities for providers of wine
tourism in the wine region of Moravia 674 providers responded. Of the
2400 approached tourists—wine tourism consumers—873 responded to
the questionnaires. Questionnaires were distributed to consumer in the
form of an interviewer-administered survey and electronically by e-mail.
346 M. PROKEŠ

Visitors to the Wine Salon Collection of the Czech Republic were moti-
vated by receiving a voucher for their next entrance to the exhibition free
of charge. Research on consumers focused on finding the perceptions of
consumers regarding the concept of wine tourism.
In order to identify multiplying effects of wine tourism clusters,
we used the following macro-analytical tool that recommends Porter
(1998):
x/X
Localisation quotient (LQ) =
y/Y
LQ—location quotient of employment in the region
x—the number of employees working in the sector in the region
X—total number of employees in the region
y—the number of employees working in the sector in the state
Y—total number of employees in the state.
Potential for regional clusters is where there are groups of related
industries with LQ greater than 1.
To achieve the goals of this research, a concentration quotient was
designed, which indicates the proportion of vineyards in the region and
the total area of vineyards. This concentration factor is calculated for the
association of VOCs in the Czech Republic.
a/A
Concentration quotient (CQ) =
b/B
CQ—concentration factor area of vineyards in the region/in a certain
area for the establishment of an association of winegrowers or cluster
a—the number of vineyards in the region certified by the association
rules (ha)
A—total number of vineyards across the region (ha)
b—the number of vineyards of the all associations (ha)
B—the total area of vineyards in the country (ha).
Sources of secondary data were obtained from the National Wine
Centre, Valtice; Wine Fund of the Czech Republic; Confederation
of Commerce and Tourism; Association of hotels and restaurants;
CzechTourism; Tourist information centers in the South Moravia region;
and Destination Agencies of the tourist areas.
 22 WINE TRAILS IN THE CZECH REPUBLIC 347

Results and Discussion
For further research, it was important to make a categorization of events
and services. Based on a Wine Tourism definition (Hall & Mitchell,
2012) individual criteria were created and event design categorizations—
the type of markets, festivals, wine tasting with typical local products and
special oenogastronomy menus. Selection of current events is conducted
with the aim to create an overall picture of “gastronomic and viticultural
peculiarity” of the region of South Moravia.
Selected events meet the priority criteria (Table 22.1):

• The thematic event focuses on wine and regional products, gastro-

nomic specialty products.
• Regional growers, breeders, farmers.
• Gastronomic specialties with traditional recipes.
• Regional character, to products originating in the region South
Moravia, with an overlap in neighboring regions while respecting
the wine region of Moravia.

An evaluation of the satisfaction of wine tourism providers, with the

support and promotion of wine tourism, suggests a prevailing view on
the adequacy of support to providers of wine tourism. A majority of the
respondents, namely 55%, considered the promotion of wine tourism in
the Czech Republic as sufficient, or rather sufficient. On the contrary,

Table 22.1 Category of events (Prokeš, 2017)

Category of events in terms of the objectives of the study

No. Name Includes database of

1 Festival, celebration wine festival, traditional fest, folklore feast

2 Tasting, competition wine tasting competition, contest, exhibition
3 Fair markets markets, sales presentations, and contracts
4 Courses, seminars courses, workshops, lectures
5 Gastrofestival gastronomic festival, special menu
6 Adventure tour tour packages
7 Other events other events, sports and wine, art and wine, etc.
348 M. PROKEŠ

it was evaluated as totally inadequate by 10% of respondents. 35% of

respondents believe that wine tourism has rather insufficient support. We
can say that the prevailing rating of support for wine tourism is positive.
The proposals to improve support to providers primarily suggested more
advertising on the Internet and on television and the staging of more
wine events. Many providers would welcome further tax cuts and the
cutting of red tape. In the field, wine tourism providers suggest more
support from the various regions and cities. They would welcome the
issuing of maps, information brochures, information centers and improve
the functionality of wine labels with relevant information, which pro-
vides information about the possibilities—and especially of the specific
wine tourism providers in the area. Importance for the development
of wine tourism, according to providers, also required improved trans-
port infrastructure in the regions, particularly road repairs to lower class
roads, and also a greater number of car parks and rest areas in the region.
Other proposals concerned the involvement of travel agencies and tourist
authorities, like Czech Tourism, which should further promote the wine
tourism drive market.
Wine tourism in the region of South Moravia includes a variety of ser-
vices. The main identified the following forms:

• Wineries—offers sales of their own production of wine directly from

the cellar or store and also provides insight into the production of
wine or a vineyard, or offering tastings of the wines, winery owners
are provider,
• Wine Cellars—provide seating in a basement room and offers sales
and tasting of their own and foreign production, tasting, cold food
service, and supporting services (music, etc.),
• Wine Shop—offering cask and bottled wine mostly from Czech
manufacturers and also providing information about wines, wineries
and wine tourism, and allowing tasting of wines offered,
• Wine Restaurant—concept offers a range of prepared dishes
in addition to a wide selection of wines in the wine list, offering
both domestic production and both by the bottle or by the glass—
offering recommendations of suitable wines with delicate dishes,
• Wine Bar—in their offer you can find a wide range of wines
in bottles home-produced, as well as by the glass, with light
refreshments,
 22 WINE TRAILS IN THE CZECH REPUBLIC 349

• Accommodation with Wine Theme—accommodation in the city or

countryside, which is related to any of the previous categories—the
operator also offers information on wine tourism and attractions,
• Wine Trails—both serve to connect major wine regions and individ-
ual wine tourism facilities, are interested in active sports and wine,
also play a role in nature trails, because they provide information
about the area or the wineries and vineyards,
• Wine Harvest Feast—are held in cities, which is located in the
wine-growing regions and at the same time are somehow associated
with wine (Znojmo, Mikulov, Velké Pavlovice, etc.),
• Wine Exhibitions—exhibitions wines are usually associated with the
best tasting and evaluated samples,
• Exposure Wineries and Museums—inform about the history of wine-
making and viticulture, as well as the processing of grapes and wine
production,
• Training, Seminars, Courses—they are intended for both the general
public and professionals—example are different tastings and som-
melier courses,
• Wine Wellness—are relatively new and progressive; include not only
accommodation and relaxing wine tasting procedures associated
with wine, or its intermediates (e.g., regenerating guilty massage,
champagne bath, peeling of the pellet grape and others).

The above services will be followed by others which are not directly
service designed exclusively for wine tourism but can also serve its con-
sumers. For example, it is possible to rent bicycles or their storage and
transportation. It is not only tourists who want to go on a tour of the
wine trails, but others who have different objectives. There are also the
possibilities to visit historical and cultural sites in the area and related
information services. These are the main destination for tourists, but
wine tourism may serve as an accompanying program. Likewise, national
parks, protected landscape areas, and natural attractions are indeed
independent tourist destinations, but wine tourism can serve as an aug-
mented services. Another group of supplementary services are the activ-
ities in the area—golf, tennis, windsurfing, fishing, water sports, and
more.
Evaluation of the satisfaction of wine tourism providers with the sup-
port and promotion of wine tourism implies a prevailing view on the
adequacy of support service providers for wine tourism. A majority of
350 M. PROKEŠ

the respondents, namely 55%, regarded the promotion of the wine tour-
ism in the Czech Republic as sufficient, or rather sufficient. On the con-
trary, as totally inadequate by 10% of respondents assessed and 35% of
respondent stated that wine tourism had rather insufficient support. We
can say that the prevailing positive rating support wine tourism.
The proposals to improve support providers primarily suggested more
advertising on the Internet and on television. They also suggested hold-
ing more wine events. They would welcome further tax cuts and cut
red tape. In the field of wine tourism, providers suggest more support
from the various regions and cities. They would welcome the issuing of
maps, information brochures, information centers and improving signage
to wine products, which informed visitors about their possibilities—and
especially the specific wine tourism providers in the area. The importance
for the development of wine tourism, according to providers, was also
to improve transport infrastructure in the regions, particularly repairing
“lower class roads,” and also provide a greater number of car parks and
rest areas in the region. Other proposals concerned the involvement of
travel agencies and tourist authorities, like CzechTourism, who should
further promote self-drive wine tourism routes.
Figure 22.2 documents which form of promotion of wine tour-
ism providers welcome. The most preferred form of advertising on

Fig. 22.2 Preferred forms of Wine Tourism Promotion (Prokeš, 2017)

 22 WINE TRAILS IN THE CZECH REPUBLIC 351

television and Internet advertising. You would like to see almost 72%
of respondents. Second most preferred form of promotion wine tour-
ism for winemakers is to use advertising in the press, preferred by 54% of
respondents, followed by outdoor advertising, which would be welcomed
by almost 35%. Promotion by radio is preferred by 30% of winemakers
respondents. Alternative media, such as city light displays, benches and
public transport stops, was nominated by 28% of respondents.
Providers often suggested cooperation between the National Wine
Centre, Wine Marketing Fund, and with travel agents. They would
welcome the creation of packages consisting of offering more certified
equipment. They welcome also offer of travel agencies more focused on
mediating domestic and wine tourism driveway and not on the exit wine
tourism. With this and other proposals related to tourism focused more
on the region of South Moravia and wine tourism. Another common
theme was greater collaboration among the various actors in the region.
And while uniform treatment of wine tourism in the regions. Not only
within the region but generally the entire southern Moravia provid-
ers should welcome greater mutual awareness of the organized events.
It seems reason to avoid collision terms and consumers can visit more
actions.
In addition, providers would welcome more wine fairs and exhibi-
tions in the Czech Republic also more options for the presentation of
Moravian and Czech wines abroad. Providers also mentioned the pos-
sibility of using “smart phones” via mobile applications related to wine
tourism.
Research regarding consumers focused on finding out the perceptions
of consumers on the concept of wine tourism. Responses are divided into
14 categories (Table 22.2).
As shown in Table 22.2, for most respondents, 16.39%, wine tourism
means wine tasting combined with a stroll through the vineyards—in
South Moravia. For the fewest respondents that concept was associated
with specific wine events. In addition, respondents often associate this
term with a “trip or traveling for wine” or have it linked to a journey
by bike or on foot along the southern Moravia. Combining cycling and
wine tourism yielded 9.84% of responses. Hiking through the vineyards
and the cellars elicits 9.02% of the responses. Hiking in the wine-­growing
regions and exploring new places (without wine consumption) gains
6.56% of the respondents. Similarly, 6.56% of respondents did not know
what to imagine under this term. Less frequent responses were vintage
352 M. PROKEŠ

Table 22.2 Category of wine tourism, an idea on what wine tourism (Prokeš,
2017)

Categorical responses Share answers (%)

Tasting together with trip in the vineyards in South Moravia 16.39

Walk or cycle along South Moravia 13.11
Trip or traveling for wine 13.11
Cycling 9.84
Walking through the vineyards and the cellars 9.02
Program for overnight in wine cellar 9.02
Hiking through wine regions and exploring new places 6.56
I do not know 6.56
Grape harvest feast 4.10
Wine tasting 3.28
Training and tasting of wine production 3.28
Wine Events, visit wineries, cycling 2.46
Wine routes trails and wine cellars 2.46
Wine event 0.82

Table 22.3 The

Categorized share answers Rate (%)
source of information
for orientation in wine On the Internet 69.67
tourism (Prokeš, 2017) In wine villages and wine town 8.20
For relatives 6.56
Tourist information center 4.10
At winemakers 3.28
Wine trail around 2.46
In newspapers and magazines 1.64
Official Web sites 1.64
I do not know 2.46

tasting and demonstrations of production, and wine trails and wine cel-
lars. Overall, the most comprehensive list comprising wine events, visit-
ing wineries and cycling, attracts just 2.46% of the respondents.
Sources of information on wine tourism is mapped according to
research carried out in Table 22.3. For most, nearly 70% of respondents,
wine tourism knowledge was accessed from the Internet. Another major
source of respondents was directly in wine villages and the respondents’
family.
 22 WINE TRAILS IN THE CZECH REPUBLIC 353

Table 22.4 Localisation (LQ) and Concentrations Quotients (CQ) VOC

(Prokeš, 2017)

Wine Region LQ CQ

VOC Znojmo 1.02 1.51

VOC Modré Hory 1.30 2.46
South Moravia 2.26 2.81

Based on the results of the calculation of the coefficients for the deter-
mination of the potential for establishing a cluster and the objective
situation in the European market in wine was established design of the
cluster, which will be based on the principle of integrated VOC three
regions (Pavlovice, Mikulov, Znojmo) with brand name South Moravia.
The proposed cluster has high coefficients of LQ and CQ. Due to the
relatively high concentration of production resources has potential for
competitiveness and clear identification of consumers in the domestic
market, and also by Slovak wine market in Central Europe. The scope of
activities in the first phase, coordination of services recommended wine
tourism in Southern Moravia (Table 22.4).

Conclusion
Based on the results, it can be concluded that the interprofessional VOC
associations in the Czech Republic meet the conditions for a cluster. The
localization quotient was calculated and was well above the minimum
value. A new alliance of wine producers of VOCs in the Czech Republic
also has a concentration quotient larger than a minimum value, and thus
fulfills the criteria for the formation of the cluster. The plan to create a
wine cluster was proposed to establish cooperation between the newly
emerging associations of VOC at three sub-regions of South Moravia, in
order to achieve competitive advantage in wine tourism.
This chapter analyzes the potential for wine tourism development
and creating a plan for newly formed strategic alliances coordinating
services offerings across all wineries in the region. This study describes
the potential to offer services and products of the wine-growing areas in
the South Moravia region in the southeast part of the Czech Republic,
suitable for promotional offers of wine tourism destinations and services.
354 M. PROKEŠ

To achieve the objective of the study, a marketing research data collection

and mapping exercise of current events and activities were conducted,
in the wine-growing region of Moravia, focused on evaluating the pro-
moting or offering of specific local products and services associated with
gastronomy and wine. Based on the results, it can be concluded that the
interprofessional association VOC Czech Republic meets the conditions
for a cluster. The plan to create a wine tourism cluster was proposed to
establish cooperation between the newly emerging associations of VOC
appellation at three sub-regions of South Moravia, in order to achieve
competitive advantage.

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 CHAPTER 23

Supporting Tourists’ Mobility in Wine

Destinations: The Hop-On Hop-Off Bus
in Swan Valley, Western Australia

Marianna Sigala

Introduction
Tourism is highly dependent on transportation and mobility s­ervices.
Tourists need to travel to the destination, but they also need to be
mobile and visit places within a destination. Transportation is even
more important for wine tourism, as wineries and wine attractions are
located and usually dispersed within a geographical wide rural region
that frequently lacks mobility services and infrastructure. Thus, trans-
portation affects the way tourists experience and see a wine destination.
Transportation also significantly impacts wine destination performance
and competitiveness, as it affects key metrics such as visitation and tour-
ism flows, tourists’ mobility patterns (the sequence and duration of what
they visit and do), and so, tourists’ dispersion amongst various busi-
nesses and localities, and ultimately, visitor spend and satisfaction at wine
destinations.

M. Sigala (*)
University of South Australia, Adelaide, SA, Australia
e-mail: marianna.sigala@unisa.edu.au

© The Author(s) 2019 357

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_23
358 M. SIGALA

Although studies have investigated the patterns of tourists’ mobil-

ity and the factors affecting them in urban and rural destinations (e.g.
Gunn, 1993; Lue, Crompton, & Fesenmaier, 1993; Mckercher & Lau,
2008), there is a lack of research examining the mobility patterns within
wine destinations and their impact on wine tourists’ behaviour. There are
several specific factors in wine tourism and destinations that make wine
tourists’ mobility quite different in relation to that in other tourism con-
texts. Mobility of wine tourists can be influenced by factors related to the
unique characteristics of: the wine destination; the wine tourism activity;
the wine tourists; and the wine attractions. Thus, a sole replication of
existing generic knowledge about tourists’ mobility within a wine desti-
nation context cannot only be myopic, but also fault and unreliable.
To fill in this gap, this chapter first examines the factors affecting
mobility patterns within wine destinations and then, it discusses how a
specific intervention (i.e. a hop-on hop-off bus service) can influence
mobility patterns and tourists’ behaviour at a specific wine destination.
The chapter provides a theoretical underpinning and practical evidence
of the topical but under-examined issue of tourists’ mobility in wine des-
tinations. To achieve that, the chapter first reviews the literature related
to tourism mobility and then, it discusses it within the context of wine
destinations. The practical implications of tourists’ mobility in wine des-
tinations are examined by analysing the case study of the hop-on hop-
off bus service that was launched in Swan Valley (Western Australia) in
November 2018. The chapter discusses the rational and the aims of this
bus service, its potential impacts on tourists’ mobility and behaviour as
well as on wine destination performance. The chapter concludes by pro-
viding theoretical implications for future research and practical guidelines
for wine destinations.

Tourists’ Mobility Within Destinations

Factors Influencing Tourism Flows and Travel Patterns

Attractions are demand magnets, as they do not only attract and drive
tourists to a destination, but they also influence tourists’ movements
within destinations. Indeed, tourism research has highlighted the cen-
trality and strong importance of attractions on influencing tourists’
mobility patterns within destinations whether urban or rural (Chhetri &
Arrowsmith, 2008; Gunn, 1993; Lew & McKercher, 2006; Lue et al.,
 23 SUPPORTING TOURISTS’ MOBILITY IN WINE DESTINATIONS … 359

1993; Mckercher & Lau, 2008). The characteristics of attractions also

influence the way tourists experience a place, i.e. whether tourists move
widely or narrowly within a destination, what they visit, how long they
stay and what they do. The following characteristics of attractions are
found to influence the tourists’ mobility patterns within destinations
as well as the distances that tourists wish to travel (usually from their
accommodation location) to reach the attraction:

– the quantity, quality and variety of tourist facilities (specifically

accommodation) at a destination: the availability and quality of
tourism facilities at a destination critically influence not only desti-
nation visitation but also the way the destination is consumed, i.e.
length of stays, tourists’ movement, activities and spending within
the destination (Chhetri & Arrowsmith, 2008; Dredge, 1999;
Shoval, McKercher, Ng, & Birenboim, 2011),
– the spatial distribution of attractions and tourism facilities, as well
as the inter-attraction distances: for example, compact destinations
with fewer attractions and accommodation hubs tend to induce a
wider variety of movements in relation to rural destinations with
dispersal of attractions and lack of accommodation hubs (Lew &
McKercher, 2006),
– the intensity/density of attractions and tourism facilities within a
region. For example, based on the theory of market access affirms
that proximate attractions with similar characteristics and attractive-
ness levels to less proximate ones have a competitive advantage as
they are more convenient (Pearce, 1989),
– the attraction’s features (e.g. attractiveness, uniqueness,
Instagramability and social media popularity, historical value). For
example, iconic buildings and attractions generating and driv-
ing tourists to (wine) destinations (e.g. Lew & McKercher, 2006;
Shoval et al., 2011; Sigala & Rentschler, 2019),
– the tourists’ characteristics in relation to the attraction (e.g. emo-
tional attachment with the attraction, cultural/religion signifi-
cance), and
– the characteristics of transportation infrastructure and mobility
options/services (e.g. quality, safety, convenience, costs, image,
availability).
360 M. SIGALA

However, it should be stressed that it is the combined rather than the

sole effect of single factors that determine and influence the tourists’
mobility patterns within destinations. For example, based on the con-
cept of distance decay, demand for attractions generally declines with the
distance travelled from the accommodation and from one attraction to
another (Mckercher & Lew, 2003, 2004; Nyaupane & Graefe, 2008).
However, the tourists’ characteristics can critically influence their con-
ceptualisation of distance and in turn, its moderation on their mobil-
ity patterns. In addition, tourists do not always act and think rationally
(Mckercher & Lew, 2004). Emotional attachment and/or high involve-
ment of the tourist with a place/attraction may drive him/her to travel
long distances and hours to visit a specific place and/or do a specific
activity (e.g. attend a wedding, religious event, etc.). This means that
tourists do not perceive distance to an attraction and between attractions
solely from a geographical, cost and/or duration perspective. From a
tourists’ perspective, the distance and proximity to an attraction are also
understood in relation to the attractions’ proximity to their cultural and
personal beliefs, preferences, interests and hobbies.
The distance that tourists are willing to travel to reach an attraction
from their accommodation is also affected by the topography and road
infrastructure and quality (Lew & McKercher, 2006). For example, steep
and narrow roads, congestion and road traffic conditions significantly
influence tourists’ willingness to drive and/or travel within a destination.
Finally, numerous other factors influence the distances that tour-
ists can afford and are willing to travel within destinations that in turn
determine their mobility patterns: length of stay, trip purpose, familiar-
ity with the destination, distance travelled from home, personal choices,
travel group composition, travel budget, tourists’ sociocultural and psy-
chological profile, cultural distance, mobility and transportation services,
and availability of tourists’ tours (Barros & Machado, 2010; Lew &
McKercher, 2006).

Mobility Patterns in Destinations

The concept of mobility patterns is used and examined in tour-
ism research for displaying and understanding tourist flows within
and/or between geographical areas. In general, leisure travellers’ mobil-
ity patterns are categorised into five linear itinerary patterns (Lue et al.,
1993): (1) the single destination pattern, when an attraction is the only
 23 SUPPORTING TOURISTS’ MOBILITY IN WINE DESTINATIONS … 361

destination; (2) the en-route pattern, when a secondary destination is

visited on the way to a primary destination; (3) the base-camp or hub-
and-spoke pattern, which uses a base-camp to do side trips to attrac-
tions in the area; (4) the regional tour pattern, when several destinations
within a region are visited; and (5) the trip chaining pattern, which
involves touring along a route which links several destinations.
Research findings highlight and confirm the centrality and the critical
determinant factor of accommodation location on tourists’ mobility pat-
terns. For example, most of the trips represent hub-and-spoke patterns in
order to maximise visitation to surrounding attractions and this is appli-
cable to both rural and urban destinations (Lue et al., 1993; Mckercher
& Lau, 2008; Shoval et al., 2011; Smallwood, Beckley, & Moore, 2012)
as visitation of attractions is found to heavily relate to their distance from
accommodation. The importance of accommodation in visitation patter
is also confirmed in the popularity and territoriality of day trips whereby
tourists are not willing to travel long distances from their accommoda-
tion point (Lew & McKercher, 2006). Accommodation is even impor-
tant in multi-destination trips, since ‘when a new accommodation point
appears, a new destination is invoked’ (Dredge, 1999, p. 781).
Because of the distances between attractions in rural areas, multi-­
destination trips are more popular than single destination trips
(Chancellor & Cole, 2008). Spatially dispersed attractions and ­limited
mobility options in rural places also make tourists prefer the use of
­private or rented cars, and so, personalised itineraries are also more com-
mon (Connell & Page, 2008; Page, 2004; Shih, 2006).

Mobility in Wine Destinations

There is a lack of research investigating mobility of wine tourists within
wine destinations. However, based on the previous literature, it becomes
evident that the specific characteristics of the wine destinations, the wine
tourists and the wine tourism activity itself can critically affect the mobil-
ity decision-making and behaviour of wine tourists making their mobility
patterns different from other destinations and tourism activity contexts.
The availability of mobility services in wine destinations can also criti-
cally influence wine tourists’ visitation patterns and behaviour at Wine
destinations. For example, Sigala (2019) demonstrated how UberVINO
(a car sharing mobility service) has significantly influenced the demo-
graphic profile and type of visitors and their behaviour (frequency and
362 M. SIGALA

purpose of visitation, time and money spent) at cellar doors in Adelaide

Hills. The existence of iconic wine attractions is also found to generate
and drive demand to a wine destination by building a strong destina-
tion brand name and positioning it in the (world) tourist map (Sigala &
Rentschler, 2019).
Wine destinations have distinct characteristics (i.e. location, topogra-
phy, type, inter-distance and number of attractions and tourism facilities)
in relation to urban and rural destinations. Wineries and cellar doors are
usually located in vineyards, which are usually located far away from city
centres and other tourism facilities and amenities, and in remote and not
easily accessible rural areas. Usually, the road infrastructure and mobil-
ity services at wine destinations are limited and of low quality. Distances
between wineries and tourism facilities are usually long or difficult to
reach. Wine tours are not always available and very frequent expensive
and/or not convenient to follow. Hence, the use of private or rented
cars is preferred as a more flexible, convenient and economical option.
However, the use of car in wine destinations is heavily constrained by
the nature of the wine tourism activity per se as well as the type of wine
tourists.
Wine tourists are demotivated to drive to wine destinations and/or
engage in wine experiences, as the latter frequently relate to wine drink-
ing, which in turn inhibits people from driving. International wine tour-
ists may also not wish to drive on the ‘wrong side of the road’ or in areas
in which they are not familiar with.

The Wine Destination:

Swan Valley, Western Australia
Swan Valley is a wine region located about 50 km east of Perth (https://
www.swanvalley.com.au). Swan Valley is not only the place of world-
wide known winemakers and cellar doors such as Sandalford wines and
Mandoon Estate. Swan Valley is a relatively small geographical area,
but it features more than 150 attractions within a loop of 32 km. Thus,
the region offers a high density of a great variety of attractions, tourism
facilities and accommodation options ranging from world-class wineries,
breweries, distilleries, countless gourmet artisan goods to handcrafted
wares, bustling markets, vibrant studios and top-notch eateries. Swan
Valley is in someway a wine tourism ‘playground’ offering a great variety
of experiences that can satisfy any type and profile of visitor. Experiences
 23 SUPPORTING TOURISTS’ MOBILITY IN WINE DESTINATIONS … 363

vary from wine and food experiences, wildlife encounters, parks and
­picnics to historic attractions, events, art, craft and antiques, family activi-
ties, cycle and walking trails.
Accessibility to Swan Valley is relatively easy from Perth city cen-
tre. People can take a 25 minutes train ride from Perth city centre to
Guildford Station in Swan Valley. The valley’s proximity to Perth makes
the area very attractive to both the local urban population as well as the
(business and leisure) tourist market visiting the city. However, trans-
portation and people’s mobility from the train station within the valley
and its attractions are problematic with limited and not convenient local
public transportation. People can drive, cycle or walk to attractions, but
of course this is not: always possible (e.g. due to weather conditions);
convenient to visit many or various attractions that may be far away from
each other; and/or desirable from all types of tourists (e.g. not sportive
people, visitors attending a celebration, willingness to do wine tasting
and drinking). Private tour companies operate wine tours in the region,
but this means that visitors have to follow the schedule and the crowd
of the wine tour, which might not be appropriate to their personal taste
and time schedules. Wine tours are also not cheap and frequently not
affordable by many types of tourists.

The Hop-On Hop-Off Bus Service

The Development and Rational of the Concept
The City of Swan Council voted to commit 50,000 AUD to support a
private tourism transport company (Adams Group) to operate a Swan
Valley hop-on hop-off bus services called the Swan Valley Explorer. This
decision is in line with the City Council’s Tourism Development Strategy
(2015–2020) aiming to support the local tourism economy by attracting
more visitors and increasing visitor spend.
Launched in November 2018, the bus starts and finishes at Guildford
train station and it loops around the Valley making regular stops at tour-
ist hotspots around the region (https://www.adamspinnacletours.com.
au/full-day-tours/swan-valley-explorer-bus-service/). The viability and
the attractiveness of the idea to design the bus service were based on
the following factors: the high density of the (wine) tourism attractions
and facilities within the relatively small wine region; the region’s prox-
imity to a city centre (i.e. ability to tap into the critical mass of the urban
364 M. SIGALA

population and city tourists); the proliferation and increasing demand for
wine tourism (e.g. day trips, leisure activities [family] celebrations, quick
get-aways, etc.).
Adams Group (www.ADAMSpinnacletours.com.au) is the largest
privately owned tourism transport company in Western Australia. It has
been serving and supporting the tourism industry in Western Australia
for several years by operating numerous bus, boat and train tours and
trips. The international recognition and connections of the company
with the travel trade but also with the tourism demand direct signifi-
cantly ensure the wide and international promotion and distribution of
this bus service. In addition, the company can easily cross-sell and pro-
mote the bus service to tourists travelling in Western Australia through
its numerous tours and distribution channels operated across the state.
Overall, the Swan Valley Explorer is envisioned to change the way
international, interstate, local visitors and residents travel within and
experience the wine region. The bus service makes the valley more
accessible to reach but also to explore by enabling the visitors to spend
more time to visit and engage with local attractions and experiences. It
is expected that the bus service will significantly boost visitor satisfaction,
but also visitor spend and visitor spread amongst many tourism operators
and localities. The bus service is also envisioned to address seasonality by
enabling visitors to travel to and within the destination during mid-week.

Design of the Hop-On Hop-Off Bus Services

Bus Route and Stops

The bus provides a transport link between Guildford train station and
the Swan Valley’s many outstanding tourist attractions including famous
eateries, wineries, breweries and distilleries. The route travels along the
main access corridors of West Swan Road and Great Northern Highway
(bus route information and map available at https://www.swanvalley.
com.au/See-and-Do/Hop-on-and-off-the-Swan-Valley-Explorer). Bus
services are operated by low floor, air conditioned, wheelchair accessible
vehicles with free on-board Wi-Fi available to all users. Adams Group
worked with local businesses to develop a front door drop off/pick-up
service to negate the need for bus stops.
The bus service operates daily (from 10:00 to 17:00) in good fre-
quencies with the purpose to open up the potential for increased
 23 SUPPORTING TOURISTS’ MOBILITY IN WINE DESTINATIONS … 365

mid-week visitation to the Swan Valley and balance out traffic and
crowding effects currently experienced during the weekends. There
is high bus service frequency (30 minute) from Wednesday to Sunday,
but a reduced frequency on Monday and Tuesday. The bus operator has
committed three buses to operate the service, which means that with a
30 minutes frequency they make 15 trips around the Swan Valley each
day. The bus service mainly caters to international and interstate tourists
without a transportation, but also to local residents who may not wish or
are able to drive to the wine region.
Adams Group had been discussing with various tour operators to
examine the potential stop nearby their locations. Both small and
large, famous and less known business operators agreed to participate
in this venture by paying a fee to create a bus stop to their location.
Internal local competition (i.e. a firm paying a fee to have a bus stop
to its location, which will also serve and drive business to their neigh-
bourhood business) was one of the most important issues affecting the
operators’ decision to join the bus service scheme. In addition, crowd-
ing, ability to drive demand and/or substitute existing demand with
new clients were also some other issues affecting the tourism opera-
tors’ decision and attitudes towards the bus service. At its launch, the
bus route featured 24 stops serving 45 business operators that have
agreed to participate in the bus scheme (i.e. 3–4 businesses within
walking distance from each bus stop). However, Adams Groups is still
discussing with tourism operators in relation to the future expansion
and/or deviation of the bus route to include new stops and make
more businesses accessible. Deviation requests and route changes are
reviewed and negotiated on an individual basis between the bus oper-
ator and the business owner, as they can significantly affect the bus
operational costs and the expenses for any additional roadside infra-
structure. Moreover, the result of these discussions and the future
design of the bus route will be also heavily determined by the pre-
liminary results and outcomes of the bus service that started operated
recently (November 2018).

Ticketing
The Swan Valley Explorer offers a varied ticketing service structure to
cater for the needs of various users. It provides:
366 M. SIGALA

– an all-day pass at a reasonable price of 20 AUD per adult and with

reductions for concession, children and families in order to encour-
age family boardings,
– annual pass only to local Swan Valley residents, and
– annual pass to businesses that make an annual contribution, for the
purpose of assisting their younger employees travelling to and from
work.

Tickets are easily purchased either online or on-board.

Marketing and Distribution

In conjunction with the Swan Valley Explorer, Adams Group also
started a seven day a week morning tour from Perth to Caversham
Wildlife Park; this service is linked with the shuttle bus going around
the Swan Valley. By structuring and linking tours, this way pro-
vides people who otherwise may not have planned it an opportunity
to spend the day Swan Valley exploring the wine region’s attractions
for the day before returning to Perth from Guildford. Adams Group
is committed to identify, develop and implement similar tour/business
synergies with the local tourism industry in order to further develop
the Swan Valley’s tourism visitation (specifically by focusing on mid-
week International tourists). Adams Group possess a long-­ standing
tourism know-how, industry connections and market insight and acces-
sibility, which make its ability to develop such synergies easier and
quicker.
The buses serving the Swan Valley route are equipped with the
Eyevert Passenger Information and Engagement system, which pro-
vides a wide variety of important information to inform passengers
about attractions, tickets and events happening within the valley. There
is a possibility to customise and personalise the information based on
the stop, the timing and the passengers, which in turn also provides
numerous advertising opportunities to local businesses and revenue
streams to Adams Group. Route commentaries and information can
significantly enhance the experience of the visitors, but it can also influ-
ence their visitation patterns and spending. The system aims to also
boost passenger loyalty, since better informed and engaged passengers
are likely to return more often and refer the service to many others
more frequently.
 23 SUPPORTING TOURISTS’ MOBILITY IN WINE DESTINATIONS … 367

Impacts of the Hop-On Hop-Off Bus

The bus service does not only represent an appealing and profitable busi-
ness venture for its operator. The bus service was also supported by the
City Council of the region, as it is designed to provide numerous bene-
fits to the (tourism) economic development of the region as well as its
business operators and residents. The major benefits of the bus service
for the wine destination are summarised as follows:

• Make the destination more accessible particularly to tourists not

comfortable to drive in a foreign country and/or not interested in
an escorted/mass tour type of experience,
• Increase mid-week visitation from interstate and international visitors,
• Increase economic return to local businesses,
• Introduce customers to new places and attractions, i.e. spread tour-
ism flows and spending in various locations and businesses,
• Give to locals a transport option not able to be provided by state
government, and
• Enhance mobility within the destination by providing a safe and
inexpensive transport option (instead of people walking from
Guildford train station into the Valley which is way too far).

Thus, the economic and less the social benefits of the bus service dom-
inated the rational of its implementation and support. However, the
bus service is expected to have multi-dimensional (i.e. economic, soci-
ocultural and environmental) as well as positive and negative impacts for
both the destination and the local businesses (Table 23.1).
Until now, the bus service has been operating for two months, and
so, it is still too early to derive any conclusions about its outcomes.
However, preliminary results as well as continuous monitoring of its
impacts and performance are required in order to: fine tune the bus
operations; improve the bus services; build win-win partnerships and syn-
ergies within and beyond the destination to further enhance the appeal
and impact of the bus; identify and address any pitfalls and negative
impacts; and align and use the bus service as a vehicle to support the sus-
tainable tourism development of the region. It is suggested that research
should be conducted in order to examine and manage the following
impacts of the bus service.
368 M. SIGALA

Table 23.1 Expected impacts of the bus service on the wine destination and its
business operators

Type of impact Positive Negative (potential risks)

Economic For the wine destination For the wine destination

• More and (new) visitors at the •A
 ttract visitors without spend-
destination ing power (e.g. attraction of
• Increase visitor spend at young people)
destination Risk of becoming a mass (and
• Increase duration and length of thus not appealing) destination
stay at destination •O
 ver-tourism during busy
• Enhance visitor experience and periods
loyalty at destination
For business operators For business operators
• Increase visitor spend at business • I ncreased internal competition
• Increase duration of visit at the with local businesses
business •D  isplacement of current
• Drive and generate new demand demand with new visitors that
• Drive demand during low season are less profitable
Sociocultural For the wine destination For the wine destination
• Less car accidents—drink and •M
 ore competition with other
drive local companies
• Locals have access to an afforda- •V
 isitors that do not have spend-
ble and convenient mobility ing power (e.g. young people)
service that local government
cannot provide
• Enable locals to access employ-
ment location—boost employa-
bility within the region
• Support local entrepreneurs and
businesses
• Spread tourism flows and spend-
ing to many local businesses
For business operators For business operators
• Partner and create synergies with • Crowding effects
other local businesses •A new mixology of visitors that
• Have access to a wider (local) do not match with each other
labour market
Environmental For the wine destination For the wine destination
• Less need for car parking space •T oo busy/no capacity to
• Less traffic, pollution and con- accommodate visitors
gestion within the destination • Crowding effects

(continued)
 23 SUPPORTING TOURISTS’ MOBILITY IN WINE DESTINATIONS … 369

Table 23.1 (continued)

Type of impact Positive Negative (potential risks)

• Spread tourism demand and • Increased tourism demand
flows both in terms of time might change land use, increase
(seasonality) and geography land prices and create pressures
to address issues of carrying and conflicts about land use
capacity • Crowds and increase business
• Better and easier control of activity deteriorating the aes-
tourism flows thetic beauty of the landscape
For business operators For business operators
• Less (noise and emission) pollu- • Increased prices of land inflating
tion to their area operating costs and prices
• Less cars in their rural
surroundings

From a demand perspective:

– Demand generation effects: ability to increase demand (e.g. more

visitors, increased frequency of existing visitors, and/or both)?
– Demand substitution/displacement effects: Do new market segments
displace and discourage existing market segments to visit?
– Demand creation effects: drive and attraction of new market seg-
ments (specifically international and interstate visitors but also in
relation to the psychographic and socio-demographic profile of
visitors).
– Change of demand behaviour: whether and how the mobility ser-
vice influence visitors’ mobility patterns (where and what they
visit), duration of stay, spending, experience and attachment of the
place, visitor spend, visitor satisfaction, loyalty, repeat visitation and
referrals.

From a destination perspective:

• Impacts on destination attractiveness, appeal, competitiveness and

image,
• Impacts on key destination performance metrics such as: visitor
numbers, seasonality, visitor spend,
• Boost and number of partnerships within and beyond the
destination,
370 M. SIGALA

• Management of carrying capacity and of sociocultural and environ-

mental impacts,
• Employability of locals, and
• Support and number of local entrepreneurs and businesses.

From a tourism operator perspective:

• Ability to attract new market segments,

• Increase number of visitors and visitor spend,
• Drive business during low seasons,
• Enhanced visitor satisfaction and experience engagement, and
• Development of local partnerships for providing a whole experience
(tourism packages).

Conclusions
Mobility critically affects visitor numbers and behaviour within wine
destinations, which in turn can critically influence the performance of
business operators (micro-level) and of the destination (at macro-level).
Visitors’ mobility in wine destinations is usually problematic due to the
specific characteristics of the wine destinations, the wine tourists and the
wine activity itself. This chapter examined the mobility issues and the fac-
tors influencing the mobility patterns of visitors within wine destinations.
The chapter provided theoretical underpinning and practical evidence
of the mobility issues within destinations by discussing the case study
of the hop-on hop-off bus operating within the Swan Valley (Western
Australia). The case study explained the rational and the aims of this
bus venture, its impacts on visitor demand and behaviour as well as its
potential positive and negative impacts on the destinations and its local
businesses.
However, as wine destinations evolve over the time as well as the fac-
tors affecting tourists’ mobility patterns and market changes, wine desti-
nations need to continuously refine, update and modernise their mobility
services in order to activate or deactivate winespaces in line with these
developments. The mobility patterns and behaviour of wine visitors as
well as the impacts of mobility services on local businesses and destina-
tions need to be monitored continuously and over time to inform and
guide strategic actions and plans in response to changes in the market-
place. Mobility strategic actions would need to be based not only on
 23 SUPPORTING TOURISTS’ MOBILITY IN WINE DESTINATIONS … 371

market insights and research data, but also on the co-ordinated and
aligned engagement and commitment of various stakeholders including:
destination planners, marketers and managers, as well as local businesses,
communities and residents.

Acknowledgements I would like to thank Sascha Stone (Coordinator Events,

Marketing and Public Relations, City of Swan) for sharing with me valuable
information and insights about the bus service and the wine destination of
Swan Valley. It has been a pleasure meeting and working with you as well as
experiencing with you some of the most unique experiences in this beautiful
wine region. Thank you for introducing me to many local businesses and highly
innovative and passionate entrepreneurs; it was the best way to learn more
and better appreciate the product, the place and the people behind the lovely
products and experiences offered in Swan Valley. People make the difference and
I was very lucky to experience this.

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 CHAPTER 24

Seeking Differentiation: Queensland

Australia’s ‘Strangebird Wine Trail’

Richard N. S. Robinson

Case Study
Despite its perceived image as a tropical destination, with attractions like
the Great Barrier Reef, Australia’s north-eastern state of Queensland
is home to emerging wine regions that are embracing wine tourism
development. Situated on the Great Dividing Range, which separates the
fertile and more densely populated coastal plains from the more barren
‘Outback’, Queensland’s Granite Belt is one such emerging wine region.
While it has all the assets to make excellent wine, including a unique
terroir and several micro-climates, it struggles to compete, in terms of
both wine reputation and perceived value for money, with Australia’s
more renowned wine regions, such as the Barossa, Hunter, Yarra and
Tamar valleys, to name but a small selection.
Briefly, amongst the Granite Belt’s first settlers in the late 1800s were
Italian and Greek-heritage farmers who established the agrarian industry
for which the region is locally recognised, cultivating apples, pears, myr-
iad stone fruits and winter vegetables. However, as an artefact of their

R. N. S. Robinson (*)
The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, Australia
e-mail: richard.robinson@business.uq.edu.au

© The Author(s) 2019 373

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_24
374 R. N. S. ROBINSON

cultural identity and practices they cultivated grapes to produce wines,

often of dubious quality, which they traded amongst their diaspora
communities in eastern Australia. Over time, they realised the greater
potential of their winemaking, and from the 1970s, several pioneer family-
based businesses set about commercialising their wine operations. Now,
over 70 wineries comprise the Granite Belt wine industry, and many
have, to some degree or another, developed tourism products. More
significantly, however, many of the wineries have recognised the benefits
of adopting a destination-based approach (Sparks & Malady, 2006) to
marketing their wine and wine tourism products and services.
Although the names and forms of the local/regional/destina-
tion management organisations (LTO, RTO or DMO) have changed
over the years, a constant has emerged that wine tourism has become
front and centre of the DMO’s promotional and branding strategy (see
https://www.southernqueenslandcountry.com.au/). Bespoke peak asso-
ciations have formed to collaborate directly to promote wine tourism in
the region, for instance the Granite Belt Wine and Tourism Inc. (http://
granitebeltwine.info/). This association has membership and support
from the Australian Government, the Australian Wine Institute and local
secondary and tertiary educators including the Queensland College of
Wine Tourism, founded in 2007 within the Granite Belt. These stake-
holders, though diverse, are indicative of a collaborative and destination,
rather than individual business, approach.
A key destination-based collaborative initiative was the establishment
of the Strangebird Wine Trail, in the late 2000s. Strangebird plays on
the common usage of the word as something, usually a person, that is
idiosyncratic and peculiar. Accordingly, Strangebird wines are those that
deviate from Australia’s palates and purchasing preferences which are
dominated by the big two reds, Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon, and
the whites, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc, with other usual suspects
Merlot and Pinot Noir, and Riesling, Pinot Gris/Grigio and Semillon;
the dominant table varieties. Varieties that feature on the Strangebird
Wine Trail must represent not more than 1% of the total bearing vines
in Australia as defined by Wine Australia (https://www.wineaustralia.
com/). These varietals, in the Granite Belt, include Tannat, Nebbiolo,
Sangiovese, Albarino, Viognier, Marsanne, Mourvedre, Barbera and
Tempranillo. As such, the Strangebird Wine Trail represents a differenti-
ation strategy, which has been recognised as a key issue for wine tourism
destinations (Williams, 2001).
 24 SEEKING DIFFERENTIATION: QUEENSLAND AUSTRALIA’S … 375

A collective of wineries with cellar doors, many family-owned, feature

a range of wines but most include a Strangebird wine on their list to be
featured on the trail. Tourists are likely to encounter the vignerons and
winemakers at the cellar door, enhancing their experience. Some w ­ ineries
have developed food offerings, from fully operational restaurants to
­delicatessen products to complement their wines, both to add value to
the tourist experience but also to lengthen visitor stay and hence increase
their share of the tourist expenditure. In summary, the Strangebird Wine
Trail is a collective of wineries that produce alternative varietals and allow
tourists to sample these alongside more familiar wines.
While Strangebird was originally conceptualised as a self-drive trail,
a number of tour operators have opened business in the region, some
running multiple tours daily. Even the hardened wine tourist can strug-
gle to consume repeated wine flights at 6–8 wineries between 10 a.m.
and 4 p.m., the regular tour format (notwithstanding further likely
consumption through the evening), and so, a range of other businesses
and tourism products and services have benefitted and feature on the
tour operator schedules but are also promoted in conjunction with the
Strangebird Wine Trail. The most obvious are food products, for exam-
ple a local fromagerie and olive farm feature. Interestingly, a couple of
micro-breweries have been established giving the palate respite from tan-
nin and oak, as well as a local winery that almost entirely specialises in
liqueurs (and set in a replica medieval castle) has become a regular aug-
mented experience. Other tourism attractions that have developed and/
or profited from the wine trail include a lavender farm, which p ­ roduces
floral honeys and conserves, and a jam factory—thus a strong food
­narrative prevails, as is common in wine destinations (Robinson & Getz,
2014). Finally, the Granite Belt features genuine bush camping and
walking experiences, and these are often promoted in conjunction with
the Strangebird Wine Trail.

Discussion Questions
1. What are some of the challenges that emerging wine regions expe-
rience? Consider both the product and service dimensions and the
tourism perspective. How can a differentiation strategy be enacted?
2. In what ways is the Strangebird Wine Trail an evolving tourism
product. Are there business-to-business or business-to-destination
challenges involved and how can these be overcome?
376 R. N. S. ROBINSON

3. Discuss the benefits of a collaborative destination-based approach.

4. The Strangebird Wine Trail has leveraged from, and benefited,
other destination tourism products and services. Summarise these
and then compare with another wine destination/wine trail, in
your region perhaps.

References
Robinson, R. N. S., & Getz, D. (2014). Profiling potential food tourists: An
Australian study. British Food Journal, 116(4), 690–706.
Sparks, B., & Malady, J. (2006). Emerging wine tourism regions: Lessons for
development. In J. Carlsen & S. Charters (Eds.), Global wine tourism:
Research, management and marketing (pp. 67–79). Sydney: CABI.
Williams, P. (2001). Positioning wine tourism destinations: An image analysis.
International Journal of Wine Marketing, 13(3), 42–58.
 PART V

Destination Planning and Development:

Collaboration and Horizons

Marianna Sigala

Introduction
Developing a wine destination has never been easy. Apart from the high
external competition and highly sophisticated wine tourism demand,
wine destinations also need to address many internal issues related to
the structure and the nature of their industries. Wine destinations are
comprised of a great variety of (public and private) stakeholders repre-
senting many sectors and who usually have different (and sometimes
conflicting) interests, perspectives and understandings of the current
situation, developmental needs and trends. However, these stakehold-
ers are also interdependent as their services and offerings are comple-
mentary and only part of the whole wine tourism product. To that
end, developing, nurturing and maintaining stakeholder collaboration,
engagement, commitment and alignment of interests and actions are a
major challenge.
The last part of the book brings together a great number of research
contributions and case studies to discuss the critical success factors con-
tributing to the development of a wine destination. Evidence comes
from wine destinations all over the globe, from famous and less known,
from the New World and the Old World, as well as from very new as
well as emerging wine destinations, i.e. China. The overarching argu-
ment is that wine destination development needs to address two major
factors:
378 Part V: DESTINATION PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT: COLLABORATION …

- The internal stakeholder perceptions, interests and interrelations by

developing networks, alliances, partnerships and other collaborations
in order to create the complex wine tourism product of the region and
-The external factors of the environment (economic, political,
environmental, sociocultural) but primarily the needs and prefer-
ences of the dynamic and continuous changing wine tourism market.
Several chapters proposed and used various methods to understand
and address such factors including Delphi method and netnography.

In their chapter, Arwen and Robinson examine industry collabo-

rations and formation within and amongst the wine and wine tourism
sector. Wine operators’ perceptions of their relation to tourism, their
experience and expertise were found to be critical positive drivers for
establishing collaborative projects.
Dreyer examined wine operators’ involvement in the tourism indus-
try in all the 13 wine regions in Germany. The findings reveal a high
involvement of the wine operators in tourism (e.g. winegrowers invest-
ing in tasting rooms and vinotheques) as well as establishment of tour-
ism partnerships (for developing tourism packages such as hiking in the
vineyards, cycling along the river valleys or visiting the numerous cultural
sights in Germany).
Conlin and Rice provide wine tourism industry insights from
Okanagan Valley, the second largest wine producing region in Canada.
A Delphi method was used asking wineries to prioritise industry trends
based on their likelihood and significance of potential impact. The find-
ings revealed eight strategic priorities for the wine industry including Tax
Policy, Buy Local, Millennials, Labour Supply, E-Commerce, Climate
Change, Operator Licensing and Social Media opportunities.
Harrington, Ottenbacher, Marlowe and Siguda highlighted the need
to look at wine tourism demand perceptions and preferences for devel-
oping the wine destination product. In their chapter, they report on the
findings of a demand study assessing the value visitors place on wine and
gastronomic attributes of the wine tourism product of South Africa and
the findings provide critical implications on what wine tourism experi-
ence elements can contribute to memorable experiences enticing visitors
to return.
Alebaki and Koutsouris investigate issues related to the saturation
and evolution of the product of wine tourism destinations. To achieve
that, they apply the concept of tourism destination life cycle in order to
 Part V: DESTINATION PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT: COLLABORATION … 379

study the evolution of three selected wine tourism destinations in Greece

(namely Northern Greece, Peloponnese and Crete). Their findings pro-
vide useful guidelines on how wine destination need to monitor the
development for continuously evolving their wine tourism product in
relation to market and competitive changes.
In their chapter, Fountain and Cogan-Marie look at the factors con-
tributing to the development of the wine tourism product of unknown
wine regions. By collecting data from the Côte Chalonnaise (a wine
sub-region in Burgundy, France), they stress once more the importance
of establishing partnerships and synergies between the wine and the
tourism sectors for developing and promoting a wine destination.
Blanck, Cogan-Marie and Agnoli discuss the importance of the
human factor in the provision of wine tourism experiences. Their study
investigated the perceptions of winery owners and operators regarding
training for tasting room staff in the emerging wine region of Northern
Virginia (USA). Wine knowledge, sales and customer service skills were
found as very critical, however, research findings revealed that reliance
on part-timers and lack of time and funds heavily constrained the provi-
sion of training.
Sears and Weatherbee examined the factors influencing the develop-
ment of wine tourism in rural regions. By collecting data from Nova
Scotia (Canada), they revealed that the development models of wine
tourism cannot be easily copied pasted and transferred from one region
to another, specifically from province to rural areas. The development
of a wine destination needs to address and consider the ways in which
local factors constraint and support local stakeholders to enact and per-
ceive wine tourism. To that end, wine destination development needs to
be managed from an actor-network comprised of persons, place(s) and
things.
Duan, Arcodia and Ma provide insights into the development of wine
tourism and destinations in a relatively very young market, i.e. China.
Given the lack of knowledge about the Chinese wine tourism market,
the study proposed and used netnography as a useful methodology for
investigating an unknown wine tourism market and developing a wine
tourism industry to address the former’s needs.
Kyriakaki, Trihas and Sarantakou examine the role of wine networks
in developing and promoting a wine destination. To achieve that, they
use the case study of ‘Wines of Crete’ (in Greece) in order to understand
380 Part V: DESTINATION PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT: COLLABORATION …

how a wine network is established, operates, evolves and impacts on its

member firms.
Hafermann and Lankford examine the process and the developmental
benefits of converting a rural area to a wine destination. Findings from
Iowa (USA) are collected for showing the conversion of a traditional
agriculture region to a diversified wine tourism destination offering agri-,
wine and food tourism opportunities. Critical factors contributing to the
development of the wine tourism destination are found to be the estab-
lishment of synergies and integration between government, private busi-
nesses, wineries and the tourism industry, as well as understanding of the
wine tourism market.
This part concludes with two case studies providing further insights
and practical guidelines on critical factors contributing to the develop-
ment of wine destinations. The first case study contributed by Sears, and
Weatherbee discusses the important role of mobility services and trans-
portation in wine destinations. Their practical evidence comes from
Nova Scotia (Canada) whereby a double-decker hop-on hop-off bus has
managed to attract and dispersed within the wine region a huge crowd
of visitors. The case study identifies the elements that have led to the
success of this bus as well as debates whether and how the latter can be
replicated in other wine destinations. The second case study comes from
Greece and is written by Dimou. The case study discusses the devel-
opment of the wine destination in Metsovo (north Greece). Many pri-
vate initiatives but primarily to the efforts of a visionary entrepreneur
(Evangelos Averoff) have contributed to the transformation of Metsovo
into a pioneer destination in wine tourism in Greece. The case study
stresses the role of leadership and entrepreneurship in wine destination
development.
Overall, all chapters provide theoretical underpinnings and industry
evidence to support their claims, and they conclude by providing several
valuable practical guidelines to practitioners. This part represents a great
selection of highly elaborated and interesting studies valuable to both
wine tourism researchers and practitioners.
 CHAPTER 25

Wine Industry and Wine Tourism Industry

Collaboration: A Typology and Analysis

Arwen McGregor and Richard N. S. Robinson

Introduction
While the global wine industry is made up of a large number of
stakeholders, inter alia vignerons/grape growers, oenologists, wine
­
producers, cellar doors (of various scales), specialist tour operators,
festival/event organisers, educators/trainers, wine merchants and
­
other liquor outlets as well as the buyers (Charters & Menival, 2011),
­businesses that provide wine tourism services are predominantly small
operations. They may not have a complete understanding of tourism or
may not see the need to collaborate with others in order to promote a
region (Alonso, 2011; Cox & Wray, 2011). To brand a destination
­effectively requires many businesses and stakeholders to work together
collaboratively to achieve a consistent marketing message, one that is also
realised during the visitor experience (Sparks & Malady, 2006). There is
much literature concerning wine tourism, collaboration and destination

A. McGregor (*)
Queensland Wine Industry Association, Ballandean, QLD, Australia
R. N. S. Robinson
The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, Australia
e-mail: richard.robinson@business.uq.edu.au

© The Author(s) 2019 381

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_25
382 A. McGREGOR AND R. N. S. ROBINSON

marketing (Alonso, 2011; Carlsen, 2004; Wang, 2008). However, the

majority of this research focuses on the marketing aspect or examines the
problem from an external perspective. There is limited research consider-
ing the internal dynamics of stakeholders’ perspectives regarding collabo-
ration (Alonso & Liu, 2012).
Consequently, the main purpose of this study is to theory test the
process dimension of Wang and Xiang’s (2007) proposed destination
­
alliance framework in a significant tourism sector that pulls together
many non-tourism sector stakeholders, in the context of an emerging
tourism region. However, in an emerging wine region, it is first necessary
to establish who the stakeholders are and what roles they play. To this
effect, a study determining a typology of stakeholders was conducted.
This also served as a sampling frame for the subsequent destination
alliance framework testing. The framework has four stages, and this study
was concerned only with the third stage, ‘the process’, as the first two
conditions have been realised to a great extent. This chapter is ­structured
as follows; following this introduction, three areas of literature are briefly
reviewed. These concern destination stakeholder collaboration, further
critical examination of Wang and Xiang’s (2007) destination alliance
framework, and a section briefly describing the research context: Eastern
Australia’s emergent Granite Belt wine region. The qualitative ­methods
are presented and findings are discussed in relation to the literature
before the chapter concludes by furnishing theoretical and practical
implications.

Destination Stakeholders in Wine and Wine Tourism

Industry Development
Collaboration, cooperation and coopetition are critically important in
relation to how destination success factors have been examined over the
past two decades (e.g. Baggio, 2011; Cox & Wray, 2011; Damayanti,
Scott, & Ruhanen, 2017; Fyall, Callod, & Edwards, 2003; Jamal &
Getz, 1995; Naipaul, Wang, & Okumus, 2009; Prideaux & Cooper,
2002; Thompson & Prideaux, 2009; Wang & Xiang, 2007). Gray
(1989, p. 227) contends that collaboration is ‘a process of joint decision
making among key stakeholders of a problem domain about the future
of that domain’. Extending this definition to a community-based tour-
ism context, Jamal and Getz (1995, p. 188) defined collaboration as ‘a
process of joint decision making among autonomous, key stakeholders of
 25 WINE INDUSTRY AND WINE TOURISM INDUSTRY COLLABORATION … 383

an inter-organisational, community tourism domain to resolve planning

problems of the domain and/or to manage issues related to the planning
and development of the domain’.
The wine industry has been designated as fragmented as a conse-
quence of the numerous small and large stakeholders, the many different
regions or geographical Indices (GI) and the very different wine styles
themselves (e.g. fermented, still, fortified) (Charters, 2006; Remaud
& Lockshin, 2009). There is a paucity of research published about fac-
tors regarding regional collaboration and why industry stakeholders do
or do not participate (Getz & Brown, 2006; Wang & Xiang, 2007).
While a range of stakeholders, including regional and destination mar-
keting organisations, peak tourism and industry bodies are legitimate
players, this study focused on the grape grower, winery and cellar door
(the supply side) perspective and set about exploring the factors that
lubricated or prevented successful collaboration. This is because there is
some evidence that many wine producers/winemakers do not consider
themselves as part of tourism or wine tourism (Carlsen, 2004; Charters
& Menival, 2011; Hall, Johnson, & Mitchell, 2000). Paradoxically,
these studies found that many tourism businesses have positive attitudes
towards the wine industry—but wine businesses are not always as pos-
itive towards tourism. Fraser and Alonso (2006, p. 24) reported that
some businesses saw ‘wine tourism as distracting them from the main
business of wine production’. Despite this, tourism opportunities for
wine businesses have been found as effective, especially for smaller enter-
prises, in increasing their market share and achieving greater sales mar-
gins (Sevil & Yuncu, 2009). Indeed, Getz and Brown (2006) established
that wine tourism was an effective competitive advantage creation tool
especially in Australia where a large number of cellar door outlets oper-
ated, relative to wine producers.
For these reasons, a typology based on core activities is useful as a
starting point to determine a baseline for collaborative intent. We iden-
tified two typology studies specific to the wine industry conducted since
2012. Deery, O’Mahony, and Moors (2012) examined cases in two
Australian states, recognised for wine production and wine tourism.
They adopted, in regional wine destination contexts, the lifecycle model
(emerging, growing, mature, rejuvenating) to examine regional collabo-
ration factors. These included network strength, common marketing alli-
ances and tourism opportunity coordination. Emerging regions suffered
from poor infrastructure, for instance, access and accommodation, and
384 A. McGREGOR AND R. N. S. ROBINSON

a disconnect between tourism associations and/or business networks.

Contrarily, they found a maturing region with functional tourism net-
works but limited solidarity within individual stakeholders and their aims
and mission.
Perhaps in a more direct sense, Fensterseifer and Rastoin (2013) pro-
pose a typology based on a clustering of resources. Defined as capital,
this typology’s emphasis is on region’s attributes, as opposed to the
regional businesses and organisations per se. Given that the wine indus-
try is fragmented regionally, nationally and internationally, and that not
all wine businesses consider themselves part of the wine tourism industry,
it is useful to determine within destinations, via a typology, wine indus-
try businesses and stakeholders to include in a representative sample to
include in a destination alliance framework analysis.

The Destination Alliance Framework

So what constitutes a successful destination alliance amongst
Stakeholders? Communication, a collaboration champion, partners con-
tributing as they are expected to, a perception that benefits are equally
distributed, and trust between stakeholder partners are considered criti-
cal success factors for destinations (Palmer & Bejou, 1995; Wang, 2008).
Constraints or inhibitors to collaboration, however, include suspicion
and mistrust amongst partners and an inability to work within political,
economic or administrative boundaries. These contribute to undermine
the perceived value of collaborative ventures (Fyall et al., 2003; Naipaul
et al., 2009). Contrary to logic, smaller destinations, those with limited
resources, have been found to be more highly motivated to adopt collab-
orative approaches than larger destinations (Naipaul et al., 2009).
Accordingly, Wang and Xiang (2007, p. 75) proposed an extended
collaboration framework to ‘examine collaborative destination marketing
that brings together a diverse range of stakeholders in a concerted effort
to market and promote the destination’. They noted that dynamic inter-
actions between organisations within a collaborative alliance are multi-
party and multifaceted. However, they are affected by existing network
relationships—a factor not always accounted for in the examination of
collaborative marketing alliances. Their framework comprises four stages
(see Fig. 25.1):
 25 WINE INDUSTRY AND WINE TOURISM INDUSTRY COLLABORATION … 385

Fig. 25.1 Geographic location of granite belt (Adapted from Golbez 2006)

1. 
Precondition—economic, social and environmental conditions
existing so an alliance or network can be formed.
2. 
Motivation—reasons organisations might choose to enter an
­alliance (e.g. strategy, transaction cost, learning orientation, etc.).
3. Process—the collaborative process dynamics (e.g. stages, forms,
governance, conflict management, etc.).
4. Outcome—collaborative activity consequences (e.g. strategy realisa-
tion, organisation learning, social capital building, etc.) (see Wang
& Xiang, 2007, p. 79).
386 A. McGREGOR AND R. N. S. ROBINSON

This study examines the process stage as the destination context. The
discussion of which follows was determined to have achieved the pre-
condition and motivation stages. The critical factors of successful collabo-
ration, ‘communication’, ‘trust’ and ‘commitment’, are thus the subject
of our analysis. These factors lead into five developmental stages (i.e.
assembling, ordering, implementation, evaluation and transformation),
which then determine the nature of an alliance, how it should be gov-
erned and conflict resolved.

Research Context
One of Australia’s emerging wine regions, Queensland’s Granite Belt (see
Fig. 25.1) is viticulturally unique. Its loamy soils, varied topography, and
elevation—ranging from 680 to 1200 metres above sea level ­contribute
to an inimitable terroir and several microclimates within the region.
Mediterranean-heritage farmers settled in the Granite Belt in the late
nineteenth century and excelled in agriculture. They practised wine grow-
ing as a cultural pursuit, but not for serious commerce. Since the late
1970s, however, the true potential of the region became evident and
these farmers, and the region, attracted serious investment. The region’s
­winemakers now regularly medal in national and international wine shows.
Some 70 wineries operate in the Granite Belt, and many participate in
wine tourism, some wineries raising significant receipts from their cellar
door operations (Sparks & Malady, 2006). Concomitantly, the Granite
Belt has evolved as a tourism destination due to its natural assets; spec-
tacular national parks with camping and bushwalking. The biannual
Apple and Grape Harvest Festival attracts over 60,000 visitors across a
week-long programme (www.appleandgrape.org). Nonetheless, despite
the coexistence of maturing regional tourism and wine industries, wine
tourism has not reached its potential. Therefore, this study was con-
ducted to better understand the levers and barriers for stronger collab-
oration, via the development of a stakeholder typology and analysis via
Wang and Xiang’s (2007) destination marketing alliance framework.

Methods
A two-stage case study (exploratory and sequential qualitative method)
(cf. Creswell, 2014) was designed and administered after gaining uni-
versity ethics approval. Initially, desk-based research using a primary
 25 WINE INDUSTRY AND WINE TOURISM INDUSTRY COLLABORATION … 387

document database, business websites and other public listings, with

further refinement during the interview stages and other personal con-
tacts via snowballing was conducted, as informed by previous research
(Barnes, Raynor, & Bacchus, 2012; Turner & Guilding, 2014), to deter-
mine the typology. Principally, the statistical data available from the
Queensland Wine Industry Association (QWIA: the State’s peak indus-
try body) database was utilised; however, data were supplemented with
details as necessary from freely available consumer websites and public
listings. The typology study was developed in order to determine and
distinguish the population and also to provide and applied in a stratified
simple random selection process, to achieve a study population.
To understand the critical success factors for regional collaboration
Wang and Xiang’s (2007) destination marketing alliance framework
provided the structure and core sensitising terms that were operation-
alised in semi-structured interviews, a standard technique in exploratory
case study research (Yin, 2011). A sample was generated purposively to
affect an equal representation across the typologies. Interview protocol
questions (see Table 25.1) were designed to establish the participant’s
posture regarding the wine and wine tourism industries and to elicit
responses as guided by the destination marketing alliance framework
(Wang & Xiang, 2007). Participants were also asked some qualifying
questions to test the precondition, motivation and outcome stages ahead
of the study’s focal process stage.
Moreover, the interviewer (one of the authors) had emic sta-
tus (cf. Botterill, 2001), as the elected secretary of QWIA, enabling
‘insider’ perspectives during interviews. Moreover, as a researcher,
there was a dimension of the university facilitating, albeit indirectly, the

Table 25.1 Indicative sample questions

Interview question Aim

Can you explain, in your own words, what To determine a baseline understanding of
wine tourism means to you? what wine tourism means to industry
Which, if any, tourism collaborations have To gather information regarding collabora-
you participated in before? tive histories
Can you tell me about your experiences To elicit responses about collaborative
(as a member of a collaborative group/ experiences and attitudes
association)?
388 A. McGREGOR AND R. N. S. ROBINSON

communication and collaborative intent, in a regional destination (cf.

Rinaldi, Cavicchi, Spigarelli, Lacchè, & Rubens, 2018). They were con-
ducted face-to-face, with several exceptions as it was vintage (Skype or
telephone were used instead), they were digitally recorded, transcribed,
amounting to 44 single-spaced A4 pages and subjected to manual con-
tent analysis. A colour-highlight technique (cf. Schreier, 2012) allowed
the identification of top-line codes which were distiled in a secondary
theming process. These were then mapped against the three key dimen-
sions of the Wang and Xiang’s (2007) destination marketing alliance
framework ‘process’ stage.

Findings

Wine Industry Typologies

QWIA’s database, divides wine producers into two categories, those
producing more than 100 tonnes and those producing less. In all, 49
identified stakeholders were identified after data sorting and cleansing
of businesses that could not have data validated via crosschecking their
websites, which were removed from the study. They were allocated
across ten categories (see Table 25.2), including the local tourism asso-
ciation isolated in its own category. Businesses were identified by their
main business practice (e.g. grape growing, winemaking or winery/
vineyard) then the larger category (winery/vineyard) and divided into
smaller categories based on production level, onsite facilities and sales
distribution channels. Online searches of the businesses’ websites were
conducted to determine the onsite facilities and sales channels.
Other typology studies in wine tourism have focused on the regional
life cycle (Deery et al., 2012) or the cluster resources of a region
(Fensterseifer & Rastoin, 2013) and do not provide much detail about
the individual stakeholders within that region. In particular, a high num-
ber of businesses were reliant on cellar door sales suggesting that these
businesses were also very reliant on tourism to the region—both for wine
sales at the cellar door, but also to gain subscriptions to their ‘wine clubs’
(cf. Quinton & Harridge-March, 2003), whereby visitors committed to
purchasing cases of wine on a regular basis, that were shipped to them
wherever they resided. This typology study showed a high percentage of
small wine producers and raised the question as to whether this would
have an effect on the collaboration dynamic, compared to another region
Table 25.2 Typology category definitions

Category name Category identification Definition Population size

Vineyard owner a Grows grapes to sell to wine producers 1

Wine producers (med) b Grows grapes (for own production and sales) makes wine 3
(crushes more than 100 tonnes), has onsite cellar door and
online distribution, has F&B operation, sells wholesale, may
have additional outlet in high-population area
Wine producer (small a) c Grows grapes for own production (may buy additional) 23
makes wine or contracts winemaker (less than 100 tonnes),
has onsite cellar door and online distribution, may have F&B
outlet
Wine producer (small b) d Grows grapes for own production (may buy additional) 10
makes wine or contracts winemaker (less than 100 tonnes),
has onsite cellar door and online distribution
Viticulturist e Manages grapes (single property or contracts out) 2
Winemaker f Makes wine on contract for single or multiple property 2
Operations Mgr g Manages wine operation on behalf of stakeholders 2
Educator h Provides tourism/wine production/agriculture education 3
facilities
Wine producer (other) i Grows own fruit, production not limited to wine (beers, 2
spirits, liqueurs)
Tourism Association j Provides regional tourism promotions for local members 1
(not limited to wine)
25 WINE INDUSTRY AND WINE TOURISM INDUSTRY COLLABORATION …
389
390 A. McGREGOR AND R. N. S. ROBINSON

that may be dominated by larger producers, or have a more evenly rep-

resentative number of the typology categories. This was carried forward
in the second study. All the participants interviewed were members of
Granite Belt Wine Tourism, and the majority were members of QWIA.
These two organisations are membership-based collaborations and
involve annual fees for marketing, networking and referral benefits. The
findings are reported according to the three key dimensions of Wang and
Xiang’s (2007) collaborative process model: communication, trust and
commitment.

Collaboration: Communication, Trust and Commitment

A majority (63%) of the participants identified themselves as being
in wine tourism, it meant that many of their collaborations were
­tourism-based. Projects or associations aimed at bringing more visitors to
the region or activities to promote the region. Of the 37% of participants
that did not identify as wine tourism businesses, two were still actively
involved in tourism projects for the region. One of the participants was
a wine producer that only participated in projects to sell wine, not to
actively promote the region or encourage visitors to the region. The fol-
lowing findings are top-line only, and focus on enablers and barriers to
destination collaboration.
There was not a great divide between long-term residents and ‘new-
comers’ (less than 10 years). It seemed that the majority of participants
interviewed interacted on a regular basis with each other in the form of
committees and local events. However, it is possible that this was the
result of self-selection bias as these were the businesses that responded to
the request to participate.
Participant responses indicated that all three factors in the ­ process
stage were critical to them in judging whether a particular c­ ollaboration
was successful. Thirteen dimensions, which were categorised between
the three factors, guided the analysis and these are summarised in
Table 25.3, with indicative quotations from the data. In accordance
with the literature and theoretical framework, communication was the
response factor most frequently mentioned. The transparency, policy/
governance, competence and motivation elements of communication,
which have been discussed in similar destination alliance research (Fyall
et al., 2003; Palmer, 2002), were consistent messages for common or
mutual goals critical to a successful collaboration. Some key points were
 25 WINE INDUSTRY AND WINE TOURISM INDUSTRY COLLABORATION … 391

how communication was made, how frequently it was made and what
was the relevant content. Competence seemed a critical dimension, with
participants decrying ‘talkfests’ and a lack of feedback on projects from
key stakeholders. This is consistent with Cox and Wray (2011) who
found strong leaders, experience and expertise were integral to successful
destination marketing.
Trust is the second critical factor that was examined and the ­findings
showed that trust is critical for these participants. Trust was expressed
through the dimensions of ‘community’, ‘camaraderie’, ‘factions/
cliques/politics’, ‘accountability’ and ‘confidence’. Similar to the
regional wine study by Alonso (2011), trust is a measure of social ­capital
and it is considered essential for collaborative members when taking
collective action. However, trust often manifests in dyadic relationships
(cf. Hall, Cambourne, Macionis, & Johnson, 1997) rather than across
networks. The data showed a risk that close relationships, camaraderie
even, developed between sector-specific stakeholders, especially those
who had been in the region long-term—for example, Italian and Greek
family winery operators. The risk was, as identified by Alonso (2011)
that new entrants, particularly entrepreneurs, could be treated with
suspicion and distrust by established networks, or cliques. Participants
spoke of ‘knowing local politics, loyalties and dynamics’ in the context of
threats to building trust across the whole of the destination. In particu-
lar, the continual waxing and waning of boundaries, governance, funding
mechanisms and creation of new top-down associations were perceived
as a threat that resulted in insular behaviours and mitigated trust which
is consistent with other research (cf. Palmer, 2002). It was perceived
that as some of the governance and associations critical to trust extended
beyond the region accountability (Bornhorst, Ritchie, & Sheehan, 2010)
which diminished and so undermined confidence. Our data suggest
trust was a key determinant of the stakeholder’s decision-making pro-
cess in terms of committing their time or other resources to current and
future collaborative projects. This finding segues into the third critical
­factor—commitment. The dimensions explored in terms of best fit for
commitment were ‘knowledge’, ‘costs’, ‘benefit’, and ‘participation’.
Mostly, stakeholder feedback was positive. There was a strong latent
theme of ‘being a local’ in terms of having the knowledge required to
be committed, which intersects with the previous trust finding, that
new entrants could find themselves on the outer. Naturally, there was
a perception that smaller businesses were at a disadvantage in terms of
392 A. McGREGOR AND R. N. S. ROBINSON

Table 25.3 Critical collaborative ‘process’ factors and dimensions

Critical factors Dimensions Illustrative interview extracts

Communication Transparency Need to have transparent communication

(yellow) and processes (P4); goals need to be estab-
lished and communicated to members
(P3)
Policy/governance Too many people equal over communica-
tion (P8)
Competence Experience has the ‘right’ people running
the organisation/association (P9)
Motivation Make a positive contribution (P5); getting
people/stakeholders engaged (P6)
Trust Community We get on with each other and people
(green) can see it (P2); we help each other, are
supportive, offer advice and care (P5)
Camaraderie Sharing experiences and failures (P1);
not everyone will get along, not going to
please everyone (P5)
Factions/cliques/politics Different personalities (P4); funding issues
for local authority creates uncertainty
(P2); local politics always play a part, need
support of opinion leaders (P7)
Accountability Commitment to all members across all
member industries (P7); management to
remember that they are working for the
members (P4)
Confidence Voice not heard in large organisations
(P10); goals need to be aligned (P4, P9)
Commitment Costs Combined dollars makes the pot go
(blue) further (P11); would not join if… wasteful
use of funds (P9); perception about value
for money (P6)
Knowledge Join forces, share expertise, knowledge
and resources (P7)
Benefits Need to put into get benefit (P8)
Participation Participate in everything (P8); others can
criticise when they have put no effort in (P3)

committing resources and hence reaping benefits from collaborative pro-

jects. An element of sacrifice was evident in the data, with some partic-
ipants considering costs and deciding that while there is no immediate
benefit to the business contributing time and resources was good for the
 25 WINE INDUSTRY AND WINE TOURISM INDUSTRY COLLABORATION … 393

region, a theme present in the literature (Naipaul et al., 2009). Wang

and Krakover (2008) agree that to create destination benefits more than
one business must be involved, as individual businesses could not accom-
plish goals alone. Interestingly, many participants were inclined to con-
tribute financially but were reticent to sit on committees. This finding is
similar to Alonso (2011) and might be explained by its intersection with
the prior ‘talkfest’ and trust of associations dimensions.

Conclusions
A typology study is an important step in establishing a baseline for col-
laborative intent in tourism. One of the first questions that could be
asked is whether a stakeholder sees themselves in the wine industry or
in the wine tourism industry, which extends the research of Hall (1998).
This typology study, to our knowledge the first of its kind in Australia,
was restricted to one regional area in Queensland. It is known from pre-
vious research that the Queensland wine industry is unique in Australia
due its high proportion of small producers with an onsite cellar door as
the main source of sales revenue (Bamberry & Wickramasekara, 2012;
Sparks & Malady, 2006).
The research also contributed to a research gap by providing another
regional response to collaboration theory, as applied to wine ­tourism
(Alonso, 2011; Alonso & Liu, 2012; Wang, 2008). The critical f­actors
and the subsequent dimensions that were categorised reflected the
research findings of Palmer and Bejou (1995), Palmer (2002), and Fyall
et al. (2003). The best practices proposed by Cox and Wray (2011)
were reinforced by the participants’ responses which indicated strong
leaders, experience and expertise were positive dimensions in collabo-
rative projects. Participants acknowledged that they were inherently
connected to the region’s wine tourism, whether or not they par-
took in those activities—highlighting the role of the researcher as an
agent for promoting the importance of collaboration (Rinaldi et al.,
2018). However, in keeping with earlier research, there were a small
cohort that did not view their business as being in the wine tourism
industry whatsoever (Charters, 2006; Sevil & Yuncu, 2009; Sparks &
Malady, 2006) and internal politics, cliques and tensions mitigated full
collaboration.
394 A. McGREGOR AND R. N. S. ROBINSON

Research Implications
The typology research provided a wide-ranging categorisation that can
be used in other wine regions when devising a sample population, and
these categories can be expanded for wider tourism network studies. In
particular, it highlighted that not all supposed stakeholders in a particular
industry, in the case the wine industry, consider themselves as tourism
players. Practical applications include a wider function of the typology
study to include all regional destinations within Queensland, allowing an
in-depth understanding of the industry and its stakeholders. The study
could also be expanded to include other tourism stakeholders such as
accommodation types. In a more thorough typology study, additional
data could be collected that could be used by tourism, marketing or
other industry organisations and associations. Knowing and understand-
ing who the potential collaborators are, is critical to understanding what
the potential issues and goals might be.
In terms of the Wang and Xiang (2007) process model, this research
found that unsuccessful collaborations had poor communication, low
trust and therefore low commitment in relation to other stakeholders.
On the other hand, trusting the process of collaboration and leaders was
key. For an industry organisation, this can be applied by ensuring that all
its processes are transparent, that the collaboration has set out mutually
agreed goals that benefit the region and that there is strong leadership.
It appears that without effective communication, the other two factors
of trust and commitment were unlikely to be achieved. However, the
responses also provide a basis for a wider study in this region for gen-
eral tourism. Many of the responses indicated that there were not widely
accepted collaborations between the different tourism stakeholders.

Future Research and Limitations

While clearly this study was limited by its focus on one particular, dis-
tinctive and still maturing destination, there are research opportunities
abound. The typology study enables greater insight into who the stake-
holders are within a wine tourism region and could be used for further
typology studies in other wine regions in benchmarking and contrast and
compare exercises. Again, this study focused on only the third dimension
of Wang and Xiang’s (2007) collaborative model—the process—a more
holistic testing and application is an obvious future research direction, in
 25 WINE INDUSTRY AND WINE TOURISM INDUSTRY COLLABORATION … 395

the context of destinations with potentially binary interests vis-à-vis the

wine and wine tourism industries. In particular, this study highlights that
the formation of consistent governance, boundaries and associations, as
well as strong leadership, is critical to destination collaboration.

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 CHAPTER 26

Wine Plus Tourism Offers:

It Is Not All About Wine—Wine
Tourism in Germany

Axel Dreyer

Introduction
On a global scale, wine tourism has very different characteristics. Not
only the individual wine-producing countries but also their respective
wine regions differ from one another in terms of landscape, structure of
viticulture, and wine tourism offers. The characteristics of the customers
also differ considerably in part so that one can certainly speak of cultural
differences. Not only because of the demographic change, wine tourists
in Germany are significantly older than in Australia where wine is associ-
ated with a different and younger lifestyle. In France, for its part, wine is
more anchored in everyday life, similarly in Italy. This does not remain
without an impact on demand and touristic offers. The examples can be
continued all over the world.

A. Dreyer (*)
Institute for Tourism Research, Harz University of Applied Sciences,
Wernigerode, Germany
e-mail: adreyer@hs-harz.de

© The Author(s) 2019 399

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_26
400 A. DREYER

This article deals with wine tourism in Germany. Currently, the

perception of wine is changing due to modern wine marketing concepts
of a new generation of winemakers. Many facets contribute to a new
image of wine. Examples include a lifestyle-oriented advertising presence
of labels on individual Internet homepages, chic salesrooms, and vino-
theques, as well as a modern architecture as a new characteristic feature
in many places. In the future, these new offers will not remain without
impact on the wine touristic demand in Germany where, up to now,
around 10% of the population is interested in the subject wine solely as the
main motive of travel offers. In contrast, the number of adults who set out
to “real wine tours” is less than 1% of the total population of Germany.
In many cases, wine is definitely not an unimportant factor for trips to a
wine region but the main reasons for the trip are actually based on other
motives. Cycling and hiking trips, etc., are often found in Germany.
For aforementioned reasons, combined offers with wine (activity plus
wine) are subject to discussion as well as the typical service offered by the
wine tour guides who accompany tourists on walks and throughout visits.
This chapter focuses on these issues as well as direct sales of winegrowers
(cellar door sales) which in many places have resulted in a new quality and
in the construction of new tasting rooms. However, for a better under-
standing, a brief description will be given of the structure of the wine-­
growing sector and the specific characteristics of the German wine regions.

Structure of the German Wine Business

History
The following figures and data on the German wine market come
from the German Wine Statistics 2016/2017 (Deutsches Weininstitut,
2017). The German Wine Institute (in German: Deutsches
Weininstitut) is a marketing organization for German wine. It was
founded in 1949 as a privately operated initiative, a legal entity
comparable with a public limited company (PLC—or in German,
GmbH) under the name “Deutsche Weinwerbung” (German Wine
Promotion). Today’s associates include the German Wine-growers’
Association, the Association of German Wine-growers’ Cooperatives,
the Association of German Wineries (large, commercial wineries), the
German wine specialized trade, and the German Wine Fund (German
Wine Institute, 2017).
 26 WINE PLUS TOURISM OFFERS: IT IS NOT ALL ABOUT WINE … 401

Wine Regions and Facts

With a total vineyard area of 102,544 hectares, Germany ranks four-
teenth in the world. Since 1990, the vineyard area has been expanded by
7.4%. Since then, the wine production has risen to 8.9 million hectoliters
in 2015. This makes Germany the world’s tenth largest wine producer.
In Germany, there are 13 officially recognized wine-growing regions.
The largest growing areas are Rhenish Hesse (Rheinhessen) with
26,578 hectares and the Palatinate (Pfalz). Together with the growing
areas Baden and Württemberg, they cover just under 75.6% of the total
German vineyard area.

Grape Varieties
The cultivation of white grape varieties dominates as they account for
65.4% of the vineyard area. Accordingly, the red grape varieties take up
34.6% of the area. Over the past decades, these percent values have con-
verged though. In 1970, 85.3% of the cultivated area was planted with
white grape varieties. Reasons for this were initially a change in demand.
For some years now, the effect of the climate change has become notice-
able and resulted in grape varieties for red wine growing better in
Germany. The Riesling is Germany’s most important grape variety with
almost a quarter of the vineyard area (23%). The regions, Moselle and
Rheingau, are particularly well known for their exceptional Riesling wines.
Abroad, German wines in general are strongly identified with the Riesling.
Other important white wine varieties are Müller-Thurgau (also known
as Rivaner) with 12.4% and the Pinot Gris (Grauburgunder) (5.8%), closely
followed by the Silvaner which is especially common in the wine region of
Franconia (Franken) and by the Pinot Blanc (Weißburgunder). The impor-
tance of Burgundy grape varieties has increased significantly in Germany in
recent years. Among the red wines, the Pinot noir (Spätburgunder) domi-
nates with 11.5%, followed by the internationally unknown Dornfelder.

Wine Producers
In Germany, 43,380 enterprises own vineyard areas for wine production.
The farm size, measured by the vineyard area (in hectares), begins at
less than 0.1 hectare, whereby the vineyard area of the probably largest
private company (Juliusspital in the city of Würzburg) is 185 hectares,
which can be seen as small in a global comparison.
402 A. DREYER

While the number of smaller wine-growing farms with a vineyard size

of less than 10 hectares has been decreasing for several years now, the
number of larger wine-growing companies is increasing. The wine farms
with a vineyard area of more than 10 hectares make up 7% of all enter-
prises and meanwhile hold over 53% of the total vineyard area. As the
number of wine-growing companies decreases, one can speak of a con-
centration process which improves the profitability of the larger compa-
nies. Approximately, 39% of the enterprises in Germany own a vineyard
area of only between 0.1 and 0.5 hectares which is therefore the most
common company size. These winemakers operate in a sideline enter-
prise and deliver their grapevines to cooperatives that take over wine pro-
duction and marketing activities.
The cooperative system is widespread in Germany. The world’s first
wine cooperative is the Winzergenossenschaft Mayschoß-Altenahr which was
founded 1868 in the wine-growing region Ahr (Deutsches Weininstitut,
2011, p. 25). The vineyard area to be marketed by the cooperatives is,
apart from a few exceptions, larger than that of private companies.
Probably Germany’s largest cooperative, the Badischer Winzerkeller,
market about 1.700 hectares. It is located in the wine-growing region
Baden where cooperative marketing is typical. Contrary to the frequently
expressed opinion, cooperatives also produce excellent wines.

Wine Imports
A typical feature for German consumers is that, in contrast to most of
the world’s wine-growing countries, they do not only buy wines from
their home country but 50% of imported wines (almost 15 million
hectoliters). In terms of quantity, Italy has the largest market share in
Germany at 16%, followed by France (13%) and Spain (8%) with red
wines representing a greater share than white wines.
In Germany, 20.5 liters of wine are consumed annually per capita. In
a worldwide comparison of countries, Germany ranks third regarding the
consumption of wine measured by the total amount (not consumption
per capita). In terms of the total expenditure on alcoholic beverages, pri-
vate households spend most on wine at 35.4%, followed by beer at 25.3%
(Deutsches Weininstitut, 2017).
Contrarily, Germany exports only 1.032 million hectoliters of wine with
a total value of 299 million Euros. 85% of the exported wines are white
wine varieties, in particular Riesling. The USA, the Netherlands, Great
Britain, and Norway import approximately half of the German wines.
 26 WINE PLUS TOURISM OFFERS: IT IS NOT ALL ABOUT WINE … 403

Special Characteristics of the German Wine Regions

The German wine-growing areas are not only very different in size but
also with regard to the cultivated grape varieties and wine tourism char-
acteristics. To give an overview, the characteristics of the German wine
regions are outlined in Table 26.1.

Table 26.1 Vineyard areas 2015 and characteristics of Germany’s wine regions

Wine regions Size (ha) Selected characteristics of the wine regions

Rhenish Hesse 26.578 • Germany’s largest wine-growing region

(Rheinhessen) • Riesling and Müller-Thurgau most important grape
varieties
• The most famous wine-growing communities are
Worms, Bingen am Rhein, and Oppenheim with the
extraordinary cellar maze
Palatinate (Pfalz) 23.613 • Riesling is grown on a quarter of the vineyard area
• The oldest wine route in the world called “German
Wine Route” (Deutsche Weinstraße) passes through
the Palatinate region (Pfalz)
• One of the most famous wine-growing communi-
ties is Deidesheim which is part of the “citta slow”
cooperation
• In Deidesheim the former German Chancellor Helmut
Kohl received numerous state guests from all over the
world, among others, Gorbachev in 1990 immediately
after German reunification
Baden 15.800 • The climatically warmest wine region in Germany
(EU’s wine-growing zone B)
• Particularly strong in Burgunder grape varieties, espe-
cially Spätburgunder
• Numerous wine trip destinations, among others Lake
Constance and Kaiserstuhl (famous wine region and old
landscape of volcanic rocks)
Württemberg 11.481 • 69.4% share of red wine varieties and thus the largest
red wine area in Germany
• Important companies of the German automotive
industry (including Mercedes-Benz with museum) are
situated in the region Stuttgart
Moselle (Mosel) 8.812 • Known worldwide for Riesling in steep slopes
• Owns the steepest vineyard in Europe called Calmont
• Hiking trail “Moselsteig” is perfect for the offer
“hiking/nature plus wine”

(continued)
404 A. DREYER

Table 26.1 (continued)

Wine regions Size (ha) Selected characteristics of the wine regions

Franconia 6.087 • Müller-Thurgau and Silvaner cover more than half of
(Franken) the vineyard area
• First region in Germany that has forced modern wine
architecture, in particular many new tasting rooms have
been created
• Trained Germany’s first wine tour guides in 1997
(“Gästeführer Weinerlebnis Franken”)
• Würzburg is perfect for “culture plus wine”; the large
city Würzburg is home to some very large private win-
eries (Juliusspital, Bürgerspital) and the state winery
Nahe 4.202 • Riesling is the dominant grape variety
• Idyllic hillside landscape
• Home to several spa resort locations (in German
“Bad”)
Rheingau 3.178 • Together with the Mosel probably Germany’s most
famous Riesling cultivation area
• Riesling covers 78.5% of the vineyard area
• Headquarter of the state winery Eberbach Abbey
(Kloster Eberbach) which has become famous for its
excellent wines as well as a film location
• Domicile of probably Germany’s most famous wine
university in Geisenheim
Saale-Unstrut 765 • Northernmost quality wine-growing area in Europe
• Home to Germany’s largest sparkling wine company
“Rotkäppchen-Mumm”
• Exceptional combination of culture and wine with
numerous well-known objects of Romanesque architec-
ture. The Naumburg Cathedral (Naumburger Dom)
was declared as UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2018
Ahr 562 • Germany’s most famous red wine region with 83.6%
red wine cultivation
• Foundation of the world’s first cooperative in
Mayschoß
• A well-known red wine hiking trail runs through the
region
Saxony (Sachsen) 502 • With Dresden perfect for “culture plus wine”
• Home to Germany’s first “adventure vineyard,” the
state winery Wackerbarth Castle in Radebeul, a suburb
of Dresden
• Meissen is domicile of a world-famous porcelain factory
besides the viticulture

(continued)
 26 WINE PLUS TOURISM OFFERS: IT IS NOT ALL ABOUT WINE … 405

Table 26.1 (continued)

Wine regions Size (ha) Selected characteristics of the wine regions

Middle Rhine 469 • Located in the UNESCO World Heritage Region of
(Mittelrhein) the same name
• In the Rhine Valley, there is the world-famous
“Loreley”
• The hiking trail “Rheinsteig” is very suitable for “hik-
ing plus wine”
Hessian 455 • Home to UNESCO World Heritage Site “Lorsch
Mountain Road Abbey” (Kloster Lorsch) with a large collection of
(Hessische viticulture
Bergstraße)
Total 102.544
White wine grape 67.075 About 65% share
varieties
Red wine grape 35.469 About 35% share
varieties

Sources Own Figure. Data: Deutsches Weininstitut (2017), Wine Tourism Information: Dreyer et al.
(2015), and Deutsches Weininstitut (2011)

Demand and Target Groups in Wine Tourism

A Germany-wide analysis of the demand for wine tourism is still pend-
ing. Due to the complicated definition of wine tourism and the lack-
ing clear distinction between wine tourists and other travelers (Dreyer,
2012, p. 241), it would be difficult to obtain a reliable quantity struc-
ture by means of interviews. Typologies of target groups, on the other
hand, are easier to identify. The German Wine Institute has determined
strategically important target groups for German wines from a survey
(Sociodimensions, 2013 published by Deutsches Weininstitut, 2013,
22ff.):

• the classic wine connoisseurs (share of 3% of the German popula-

tion over 18 years old),
• the wine-lovers (15%),
• the ambitious (14%),
• the experimenters (18%), and
• the unpretentious (22%).
406 A. DREYER

Short Description of Segments and Wine-Consumer Habits

Wine-lovers (36%) and ambitious consumers (33%) make up the largest
share of wine turnover. However, there is hardly any information about
their wine-related travel behavior. Among the wine-lovers, the 45- to
75-year-olds in particular are strongly represented. They have medium
to higher education levels and are financially well secured. Time for
their families, personal interests, social contacts as well as holidays and
all types of traveling are of great importance to this group. They are
enchanted by the scenic beauty of wine regions, whereby both German
and foreign regions are equally of interest. The target group of the ambi-
tious, on the other hand, represent a younger market segment with an
age average of 30–45 years. They are particularly frequent in the mod-
ern milieus “Performers” as well as in the “Younger Established” lifestyle
groups. They are in particular strongly represented in service professions,
such as in the financial and media sectors as well as in the IT sector. The
wine consumption is based on brands and recommendations of wine
critics; the origin of wines plays only a subordinated role (Deutsches
Weininstitut, 2017, pp. 28, 32).
The majority of classic wine connoisseurs are over 70 years old. For
them, wine is part of a sophisticated lifestyle and a natural part of culti-
vated enjoyment. German wine sorts are generally very popular within
this age group and are frequently consumed (Deutsches Weininstitut,
2017, p. 24).
The ambitious are a rather young segment of wine drinkers between
30 and 45 years of age. They are professionally very committed.
Knowledge of wine is considered as a proof of high social status. When
selecting wines, they orientate themselves above all on well-known
names, recommendations of well-known journalists, and wine critics as
well as reviews on the Internet (Deutsches Weininstitut, 2017, p. 32).
Among the experimenters, all age groups between 18 and 75 years
can be found and almost all modern milieus are represented. Their main
characteristic is that they drink wine less often, wine knowledge is not
important to them, costs and intuition are the most important decision
criteria when shopping (Deutsches Weininstitut, 2017, p. 36).
The last group of the unpretentious is indeed a large group within
the population (22%), but stands for only 11% of the wine turnover in
Germany. The unpretentious come predominantly from middle and
lower social strata, consume less wine and when they do, the price plays
a decisive role for their purchase (Deutsches Weininstitut, 2017, p. 40).
 26 WINE PLUS TOURISM OFFERS: IT IS NOT ALL ABOUT WINE … 407

Wine and Tourism Activities

Numerous wine-growing areas are not based solely on wine culture.
Most of the wine regions in Germany have other attractions and sites to
offer in addition to wine. Therefore, wine is often not the only or crucial
reason for a trip but plays a more or less important role during the stay.
Wine is usually seen as a cross-sectoral issue (Dreyer & Müller, 2011,
p. 111ff.; Deutsches Weininstitut, 2011, p. 63).

Hiking and Wine

Germany’s wine regions are mostly located in beautiful landscapes
that are not only culturally influenced by viticulture but also allow
for other activities. Hiking is one of the most frequent options to get
to know a region while enjoying the beauty of the scenery. In the last
decade, numerous new hiking trails of high quality have emerged in
Germany, some of them especially in wine regions. The tourists are
offered the possibility to go hiking in the vineyards or over the vineyard
hills and experience the cultural landscape of wine directly (Dreyer &
Menzel, 2016, pp. 187, 190f.). The most recent of these hiking paths
is the “Moselsteig” which offers numerous views into the Moselle Valley
from above the vineyards on the steep terraces. Other well-known paths
are, for example, the “Rheinsteig” or the “Red Wine Hiking Trail” in
the Ahr region.

Cycling and Wine

The wine regions are crossed by rivers; in many cases, regions in
Germany (Moselle, Nahe, Saale-Unstrut, Ahr, and Middle Rhine) are
even named after rivers. Since cycling tourism along German rivers is
particularly popular, it also has a special importance in wine regions,
such as the cycling route German Wine Route (in German Deutsche
Weinstrasse) (Deutsche Weinstrasse e.V., 2017).
The popularity of cycle tourism has continually increased during the
last years and has already become a mass phenomenon in some regions
and on some cycle routes. In Germany, cycling is becoming more and
more an expression of a specific lifestyle and bicycles are increasingly an
individual and expensive product. Trekking cyclists rarely travel alone.
Therefore, wine-growing regions are very suitable for social travel experi-
ences (Dreyer, 2016).
408 A. DREYER

In fact, German wine regions benefit from the growing importance of

cycling tourism. In addition to the common “trekking-bicycles” which
are typical for tour cycling in Germany, more and more travel destina-
tions in the hilly terrain are becoming increasingly attractive for cycling
tourism due to pedelecs. Accordingly, the wine regions with vineyard
hills, which are not uncommon in Germany, are conquered by a grow-
ing number of cycling tourists on pedelecs. The demographic develop-
ment with an increasing proportion of elderly people in the population
supports the demand for pedelecs (Dreyer, 2016). At the same time,
the proportion of older people in the wine travel segment predomi-
nates in Germany, so that both demand effects complement each other.
The average age of all cycling tourists in Germany is currently 47.5 years
and 13% of the cycling tourists already used a pedelec on vacations
(ADFC, 2017).
The question arises to what extent the consumption of alcohol and
cycling can be tolerated. The principle is that the wine consumption
must be kept within limits during cycle tourism activities. The German
Wine Institute encourages—not only for cycling—to a moderate wine
consumption and refers to the Europe-wide campaign “wine in moder-
ation” (https://www.wineinmoderation.eu). In fact, a drink-drive limit
applies for cycling. However, it is not as low as for car drivers. This is due
to the lower risk potential of cyclists compared to car or truck drivers in
traffic. Therefore, from a legal point of view, cyclists are allowed to ride a
bicycle with a higher blood-alcohol level than car drivers. However, the
higher drinking limit is not a free ticket for cyclists to consume alcohol
without having to fear consequences. That’s why in Germany the alco-
hol limit for cyclists does not apply in all circumstances: In case of reck-
less cycling or even an accident, it will be treated as a criminal offense
(Huhn, 2017).
As a result, cycling tourism and wine consumption throughout the
day are not mutually exclusive. It is up to each individual to recognize
their limits as well as to comply with legal provisions which proclaim
moderate alcohol consumption and above all not to endanger other peo-
ple as well as their own personal safety.

Kayaking and Wine

Besides cycling tourism, the rivers of course offer the opportunity
for various types of water tourism, such as kayaking. Therefore, the
 26 WINE PLUS TOURISM OFFERS: IT IS NOT ALL ABOUT WINE … 409

combination of hiking with the kayak, canoe, or rowing boat in connec-

tion with enjoying a glass of wine is also to be found in wine regions.
Crucial for the development of this segment is the expansion of infra-
structure of moorings. All in all, the activities on water do not have the
same significance for tourism in wine regions such as cycling.

Culture and Wine

Wine and culture fit well together because of the high target group affin-
ity. When considering age, income, and education, there are overlaps
within the target groups which clearly show what positive synergy effects
can be achieved through the consolidation or bundling of marketing
measures. The fact that joint activities increase both the interest in wine
and cultural-tourism offers has already been successfully used in sev-
eral German wine regions. Many locations in wine regions invite guests
to visit churches, museums, historic sites, and other places of interest.
Therefore, the combination of sightseeing and exceptional wine experi-
ence is very much in demand.
Particular attention must be paid to the fact that culture also (or espe-
cially) means tradition, life culture, local identity, and language/dialects
(extended concept of terroir) (Croce & Perri, 2010, p. 19ff.; Murphy,
2017, p. 88). The design of the common social space where tourists and
locals meet is a responsible task for those involved in regional develop-
ment and destination management. In Germany, there is a clear trend
toward marketing of local products. Wine is probably the spearhead of
all local products because it varies from place to place due to climate, soil
condition, and grape varieties. This offers good opportunities for the dif-
ferentiation of individual destinations from competition.
An interesting example is the city of Deidesheim located along the
German Wine Route. The town is joining the group of citta slow-destina-
tions and does not only market itself intensively through the promotion
of local products but is home to a number of German top winegrow-
ers. The place became known by the reception of Mikhail Gorbachev by
Chancellor Helmut Kohl after the fall of the Iron Curtain in 1990.

Culinary Arts and Wine

It can be assumed that wine-related tourists in future want to seek
and enjoy even more the authentic and regional characteristics of their
410 A. DREYER

holiday destinations. These include, besides wine, typical food of the

region and other particularities which distinguish this, i.e., their holiday
region from other areas. Therefore, the combination of culinary expe-
riences in connection with wine experiences is gaining more and more
attention. Nowadays, wine experiences are not solely limited to wine
tasting. Other varying or combined offers are becoming very popular,
such as tastings in combination with food (cheese, chocolate, etc.), tra-
ditional festivities, music events, picnic at a vineyard, and cooking classes.
These offers are not only accepted in wine regions but have also become
strongly established in big cities.
In fact, the combination of culture, culinary, and wine is particularly
present in a number of German towns and bigger cities. Besides Berlin
with its world-famous gastronomy and bar scene, some towns in German
wine regions can also be mentioned in connection with wine tourism.
These have also been able to benefit from a boom in city tourism in
Germany in recent years (FUR, 2017, p. 6).
Dresden, for example, is one of the most important destinations
for city trips in Germany and at the same time is located in the small
wine-growing region of Saxony (Sachsen). At the gates of the city, there
is the state-owned adventure vineyard Wackerbarth castle in Radebeul.
The tourism offer is particularly extensive and worth seeing and is exem-
plary for German wine regions. It includes

• vineyard tours with a view over the adjoining steep slopes,

• guided adventure tours through the wine and sparkling wine cellars,
• a high-quality restaurant,
• a spacious garden restaurant located on terraces,
• a vinotheque for wine tasting,
• a wine shop,
• various locations for weddings and wedding celebrations, and
• locations for festivities of all kinds.

The cities which are important for wine tourism cannot all be listed in
detail here. Worth mentioning is the city Würzburg in the wine-­growing
region Franconia (Franken) which is home to the state-owned court
cellar (Würzburger Hofkeller) with its cellar vaults under the Würzburg
Residence (Würzburger Residenz) as well as two of the largest private
 26 WINE PLUS TOURISM OFFERS: IT IS NOT ALL ABOUT WINE … 411

wineries in Germany. One particularity is that these wineries—Juliusspital

and Bürgerspital—have been run both as a hospital and a winery since
their foundation in the sixteenth century. The Juliusspital offers excep-
tionally exciting cellar tours with a large impressive cellar with a long row
of wooden barrels.
In the context of product design, great importance in future will be
ascribed to the aspects of sustainability and thrilling live experiences.
Experience orientation takes place against the background of experienc-
ing something extraordinary and learning something new. The direct
contact to winemaker plays an important role. The interplay of wine as
a natural product and local circumstances on site is a major factor for
attractiveness in wine tourism. Wine tourism and related products should
focus on the natural resource of wine, and thus, the careful handling of
local circumstances is of great importance. Sustainable wine tourism is
closely related to sustainable viticulture. Organic wines and sustainable
wine cultivation combined with architecture particularly correspond to a
changing consumer behavior which attaches greater significance to eco-
logical aspects (Dreyer & Brammer, 2016).
Another combination of sports activities in connection with the visit
to a wine region is golf (Deutsches Weininstitut, 2011, p. 63). Golf plus
wine only plays a subordinate role regarding the number of consumers
because golf as a sport in Germany is not as popular as in the USA or
in Australia. On the other hand, the target group of the golfers suits
very well the wine-consumer group of Wine-lovers, which allows a high
degree of marketing synergies.

Wellness and Wine

Due to the current hype or megatrend concerning health, wellness offers
are being further extended and improved by accommodation facilities in
certain regions. This has led to an increasing offer of wellness and wine
in wine regions. The question of health effects and wine consumption
which is certainly worth a discussion is not addressed directly by accom-
modation facilities. Their main intention is to attract guests through
offers that contribute to relaxation and deceleration as well as to physical
well-being. Typical in this context are sauna, swimming pool and offers,
such as skin treatments and massages.
412 A. DREYER

Special Characteristics of Wine Tourism in Germany

Vineyard Guide Experiences

As far as the development of wine tourism offers is concerned, a lot has
happened in Germany since the end of the 1990s. Pioneer for many
innovations is the wine-growing region Franconia (Franken) which is
located in the north of the federal state of Bavaria/Germany. In 1997,
the first tour guides were specifically trained to give interested people an
understanding of wine. The guides are organized in an association called
“Gästeführer Weinerlebnis Franken” (www.gaestefüehrer-weinerlebnis.
de). Meanwhile, there are specially trained wine tour guides in almost all
German wine-growing regions. In most cases, they are self-employed or
work on a part-time basis.
The idea of training wine tour guides is closely related to experience
economy which proclaims that wine should be brought closer to the
customers on site. This means that customers, i.e., in most cases tourists
should not only experience wine tastings and cellar tours as a sole event
but in combination with other activities and offers. The objective is to
provide a new approach toward wine, the region, and the locals, to give
an interested audience an insight into the concept of “Terroir” and to
impart interesting and informative information in an experience-oriented
way. This means various experiences should be created in wine regions
and at individual—also smaller—winemakers’ locations far apart from the
great worlds of wine experiences (like Weinerlebniswelt Loisium/Austria,
Cité du Vin/France, etc.).
Tour guides can be considered as a kind of link between winemaker, a
wine-growing community, and guests. As a partner of the winemaker and
an expert of the tourism scene, they can improve the offer of vintners
and the entire wine region. The background being that a wine region is
only attractive to tourists if there are as many synergies between viticul-
ture and tourism as possible.
In Germany, winemakers predominantly work in smaller enterprises or
on a part-time basis (see Chapter 2 Structure), and thus, they have little
time to expand their tourist offer. In this respect, wine tour guides can
contribute to a reduced workload of winemakers with regard to market-
ing and customer care.
While in other parts of the world wine round trips with a shuttle
bus (“wine shuttle”) to several tastings at wineries are widespread, the
wine experience tour guides in Germany usually meet their guests in a
 26 WINE PLUS TOURISM OFFERS: IT IS NOT ALL ABOUT WINE … 413

wine-producing village or at a winery and then walk or leisurely stroll

to each location. Vineyard tours are a popular offer and represent the
connection to “Hiking and wine” (see Chapter 4). The training of tour
guides has a wide range of themes. The training concept of the so-called
ambassadors of culture and wine of the wine region Moselle consists, for
example, of a curriculum with the following elements (Harms, Follmann,
& Deppe, 2013, 57f.):

• natural environment,
• cultural area,
• principles of viticulture,
• wine evaluation,
• principles of tourism,
• flora and fauna,
• respective laws and regulations, and
• appropriate composition of a guided tour.

In addition to the typical vineyard tours, currently a lot of other offers

have gained in popularity. In the following, a very extensive offer from
the region of the Franconian “Mainschleife” (a loop of the river “Main”
with popular vineyards alongside the river shores) is listed as an example
for a sophisticated tourism tour offer to show the range of possibilities:

• transfers (by minibus to the canoe entry point),

• canoe trip (including canoe, life jacket, paddle, waterproof
container),
• trip through the vineyards with a tractor-trailer to different stations,
• accompaniment by a competent tour guide and a person from
“Main Erlebnis,”
• drinks,
• three wines of 0.1 l supplied by Winery Krämer, and
• picnic with fish specialties from the river Main, among other things,
from the Winery Krämer.

This offer is inclusive of all services 58€ per person (Gaestefuehrer, 2017).
Competition is good for business. The dynamism in the product
development of the guided tours is based on an increasing competition
between individual destinations and the increasing competition between
the winemakers of a region.
414 A. DREYER

Tasting Rooms and Vinotheques in Germany

Distribution channels for wine are manifold. Cellar door sales have a
high priority because of the margin savings compared to indirect sales
(Olsen & Hermsmeyer, 2008). Tasting offers are one of the core ser-
vices of winemakers to boost their wines sales. Considering all factors
that make up a tasting situation, a large scale of different concepts can
be found in Germany but also throughout the world (Kolesch, 2015;
Thornton, 2016). Orth, Heinrich, and Malkewitz (2012, p. 202) exam-
ined holistic types of interior designs for tasting rooms based on design
elements in the USA, for example, “Minimal-shell design. Factors (…)
which include high ceilings with little elaboration, plain furniture,
numerous large windows, and bright no-spot lightning, (…).” Many
tasting rooms which were built in the years 2005–2010 in Germany are
characterized by this type of construction. In the meantime, the interior
design of new buildings is often more complex without a loss of clear
design lines.
In recent years, German winemakers—especially in the w ­ ine-growing
region Franconia (Franken)—have frequently invested in new ­ tasting
rooms to intensify cellar door sales. In doing so, they benefit especially
from increasing tourism. These new tasting rooms are often referred to
as “vinotheques” in Franconia (Franken) but also widespread through-
out Germany. However, this term stands for different manifesta-
tions and it is therefore not really surprising that experts in Germany
have a complex and different understanding of what actually makes up
the difference between or is a typical characteristic of a vinotheque in
comparison with a tasting room.
In other words: a vinotheque can be but not necessarily is the
same as a tasting room or even what elsewhere is called a vinotheque.
Vinotheques and the created tasting situations there thus can vary.
Experts have different views of what makes up a vinotheque in practice.
According to an analysis in the German-speaking area, these are the core
criteria of a vinotheque (Dreyer, Ratz, & Schirrmeister, 2017).

• tasting zone,
• staff with wine and tourism expertise,
• wine and glass culture,
• wines free accessible,
• prices clearly announced, and
• events with reference to wine.
 26 WINE PLUS TOURISM OFFERS: IT IS NOT ALL ABOUT WINE … 415

A tasting zone within the sales room is useful for wine tastings. The
tasting zone can, for example, be composed of standing tables, a bar and
tables with seating facilities but this is not considered as absolutely nec-
essary. The competence in wine and tourism (!) of the staff is a further
mandatory criterion. The wine and glass culture needs to be celebrated
during tastings. The experts believe that in a vinotheque it must be
ensured that the customer receives a correctly tempered wine (from the
wine cellar) in a high-quality glass.
Wines for sale should be freely accessible to customers in terms of
sales aspects. This allows the customer not only to see the wine but also
to take it from the shelf and to touch it. When designing tasting rooms,
it is increasingly important to appeal to all senses and arouse emotions.
Besides the taste experience, the feel of the surface, as from the bar, etc.,
is important.
In Germany, the presentation of goods also includes that prices are
clearly expelled, in contrast to other wine-growing countries. When con-
sidering the guarantee of the farm gate price, expert opinions vary in two
directions. Some experts believe that wines in a vinotheque should be
offered at producer price—on the one hand, because of the credibility
and, on the other hand, because the customers have an incentive to buy
their wines in the vinotheque. In Austria, then again, the food retailers
and urban vinotheques also guarantee farm gate prices.
Other experts do not consider it necessary that vinotheques offer the
wine at the same price as the cellar door price. In Franconian regional
vinotheques, which differ from the vinotheques of individual winemak-
ers, surcharges between 0.50€ and 1.00€ on top of the cellar door price
are common; good advice and a greater diversity in the offer (range) can
justify a surcharge.
As a result, German-speaking experts consider vinotheques as
wine-cultural venues which are characterized by the principal elements
tasting, sales, and consultancy. On the one hand, vinotheques can
serve to get to know the wines and the cultivation regions without an
­obligation to buy. On the other hand, they can fulfill the role of wine
retailers/wine sales. Besides wine tasting and the serving of wine, the
consumption of small dishes is possible. Vinotheques in wine cultivation
areas which offer tourism services and information in addition to selling
wine are a special characteristic in Germany. This documents the close
connection between viticulture and tourism.
There are three basic types of vinotheques which can be classified
according to certain characteristics:
416 A. DREYER

Type of operator: vinotheques are run by an individual or several wine-

makers or rather a winemakers’ cooperative, the commune or private per-
sons not directly connected to viticulture (Wechsler, 2008, 20f.). Typical
for Germany is that winemakers’ cooperatives are frequently present. The
company size of vinotheques is determined by the spatial size, number
of employees, and the number of sales points (Algermissen, 1976, 101u,
123ff.). It is extremely rare that companies have several sales points.
Tasting rooms and vinotheques usually are at the place of production.
But they are not necessarily bound to a wine-growing region. For exam-
ple, vinotheques can also be found in large cities (Berlin, Hamburg,
etc.) (see Dreyer et al. [2017] for the characteristic of location and the
demarcation of vinotheques and wine retail shops).
Decisive features for sales are customer-friendly opening times. As
wine tourism in Germany often consists of weekend trips and shorter
wine tours, distinctive opening times from Friday to Sunday are highly
important. However, in this respect, there is still a backlog, for example,
in Franconia which is otherwise considered as an advanced wine-­growing
region, because only 39% of the cellar doors are open on Sundays
(Dreyer & Marlowe, 2017).

Range and premises: Without doubt, wine is the core product of every
vinotheque. Basically, the tasting zones of the vinotheque can be located
in the sales room or separately. Vinotheques occasionally also have a wine
bistro. With regard to the presentation of goods, the following vari-
ants can be distinguished: the exhibition of wines in a “simple shelf,” in
a “special shelf” (e.g., in the wall, cellar compartments), on presentation
surfaces (e.g., tables), in a decorative arrangement of wines in the room
(Herzog, 2015, p. 23), or with a sales-oriented presentation on pallets.
With regard to service which has a great importance for cellar door
sales (Ratz & Dreyer, 2013, 2014), the organization of sales and a tast-
ing situation also plays a strategically important role. Basically, there are
the following possibilities: (a) total personal service, (b) partial personal
service, (c) partial self-service, and (d) total self-service. Worldwide, tast-
ings are also offered on self-service dispensing machines (e.g., Enomatic,
2017; concerning expensive wines offered on dispensing machines see
Plangger, Robson, Pitt, & Campbell, 2014). In Germany, this form of
offer is extremely rare. On the contrary, there is a strong focus on per-
sonal service, whereby the tastings are often carried out by members of
the winemakers’ families.
 26 WINE PLUS TOURISM OFFERS: IT IS NOT ALL ABOUT WINE … 417

Vinotheques—Different Types for Tasting and Sales

In Germany, three types of vinotheques can be primarily found: the
­vintners’ vinotheque, the local or area’s vinotheque, and the urban
vinotheque. In contrast to Orth et al. the focus of distinction lies not
only on the interior design but on the basic business concept.
An essential feature of the vintners’ vinotheque is the fact that the
winemaker himself is the operator of the vinotheque. A cooperative takes
over the operation of the vinotheque for the large number of many win-
emakers in Germany who join a cooperative. In both cases, the vino-
theque is located on the site of the winemaker or the cooperative and
only own wines are sold at producer prices.
In contrast to a vintners’ vinotheque, a local or area’s vinotheque is
not operated by an individual but jointly by several winemakers. Wines
from participating winemakers from the region are offered. Furthermore,
other local products are often likewise sold. The site is located in the
wine region concerned, however, not at the location of an individual
winemaker but at a place that can be easily accessed. Tourists are the
mainly addressed customer group, and therefore, tourist information
material is additionally provided on site and simple advice is given in a
local or area’s vinotheque.
As usual, there are always exemptions to a structured classification
which do not fit into the corresponding scheme. For example, the vino-
theque Iphofen (Franconia/Germany) which is operated privately and
has its focus on gastronomy. The wines of numerous winemakers from
the region can be tasted and are available at a cash and carry price which
corresponds approximately to the cellar door price. However, this con-
cept is relatively rare in Germany.
Urban vinotheques are often found at an inner-city location, as the
name suggests. The range of wines on offer here consists of wines from
different regions and partly also from international cultivation areas. The
wine is frequently served at an integrated wine bar. Urban vinotheques
are mostly privately operated and in rare cases are operated by winemak-
ers (e.g., Ress in Mainz/Germany, Hillinger in Vienna/Austria).
This fact shows that the sale of wines is so diverse in reality that a clear
allocation to real existing company forms is not always possible. What can
be noted though is that vintners’ vinotheques operated by cooperatives
and local/area’s vinotheques are certainly one of the special forms of wine
sales and tasting due to their additional focus on tourist information.
418 A. DREYER

Conclusion
Germany has quite a lot to offer as far as special features in viticulture and
wine tourism are concerned. Mainly, small winegrowers and winemakers
with farm sizes of less than 20 hectares cultivate the more than 100,000
hectares of vineyards. Cooperatives take over the marketing for the small
winegrowers and often make an appearance with big vinotheques/tast-
ing and sales rooms. Wine tourism has developed dynamically, especially
within the recent 10–15 years, and many of the full-time vintners have
tourist-oriented offers. Their offers, for example, consist of vineyard
tours, picnics at a vineyard, and accommodation facilities, besides typi-
cal tastings and cellar tours. In Franconia, for example, 23% of the wine
farms have overnight accommodation (Dreyer & Marlowe, 2017).
Culinary establishments which are open only for a limited period
of time throughout the year are a special offer of winemakers. In
Germany, they are referred to as “Straußwirtschaft,” “Besenwirtschaft,”
or “Heckenwirtschaft” (Antz, Dreyer, & Linne, 2006, 47f.). The food
is rustic and limited. Only the wines from one’s own cultivation can be
served in these kinds of gastronomy by law. Further regulations can be
found in the laws of the different federal states in Germany. The rea-
son for the permission to operate temporary culinary establishments is
that the winemakers should be given the opportunity to generate addi-
tional income and obtain a further sales opportunity for their wine. In
Franconia, for example, 29% of the wine farmers also operate temporarily
an inn (Dreyer & Marlowe, 2017).
In wine regions, wine tourism is widespread and does not only live
from the visit of wineries but is often associated with further activities.
The offer is manifold and is constantly being further developed by win-
emakers and tourist experts. Cycling routes in the river valleys, hiking
in the vineyards, visiting historic sights, and current events as well as
regional culinary offers are particularly popular with tourists.

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 CHAPTER 27

The Future of Wine Tourism

in the Okanagan Valley: A Delphi
Method Survey

Michael Conlin and Alan Rice

Introduction
This chapter will discuss an exploratory survey of wine tourism trends
impacting the wine industry in the Okanagan Valley which is located
in the southern interior of the Province of British Columbia (BC) in
Canada. The survey is a qualitative opinion survey using the Delphi
Method which seeks to determine consensus about wine tourism issues
with respect to their future likelihood, significance, and prioritization.
Prior to this research, no data existed to indicate future trends in wine
tourism in the Okanagan Valley and the importance which owners, man-
agers, experts, and policy makers place on the role of wine tourism in the
growth of the industry.

M. Conlin (*) · A. Rice

Okanagan College, Kelowna, BC, Canada
e-mail: mconlin@okanagan.bc.ca
A. Rice
e-mail: arice@okanagan.bc.ca

© The Author(s) 2019 423

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_27
424 M. CONLIN AND A. RICE

The research project was conducted by the Okanagan School of

Business (OSB) at Okanagan College in Kelowna, BC, Canada. The gen-
esis of the research was to increase the profile of OSB’s applied research
agendas in tourism, hospitality, and wine industry management, and in
the wine tourism sector. This strategy acknowledges the importance of
both tourism and the wine industry specifically to the Okanagan Valley’s
economic viability and to that of the broader BC interior which forms
part of the OSB’s catchment area.
To fulfill its mandate, the OSB must determine what types of pro-
gramming and research it needs to develop in the tourism, hospitality,
and wine industry management area. The presence of a large and rel-
atively mature tourism and hospitality industry in the region suggests
that normal types of programming related to the marketing and man-
agement of destinations along with the management of hospitality oper-
ations are essential. Clearly, wine industry management is also a priority
given the existence of a large and growing number of wineries in BC,
and especially in the Okanagan Valley. Planning for program and research
development relating to both of these sectors is underway and will signif-
icantly expand the program offerings and research capability of the OSB
in this sector.
This chapter will describe the Okanagan Valley, its wine industry, and
the specific form of Delphi Method used in the survey. It will also iden-
tify and discuss the challenges and limitations associated with the Delphi
Method for this type of qualitative research with this particular industry
population, and it will discuss the results of the survey. The chapter will
conclude with a discussion about the opportunities for future research,
industry relationships, and programming emanating from this research.

British Columbia’s Okanagan Valley

The Okanagan Valley is located in what the provincial destination mar-
keting organization, Destination British Columbia, has designated as the
Thompson Okanagan tourism region (Fig. 27.1). This region encom-
passes much of the province’s southern interior, as mentioned above, and
stretches from the border with the Province of Alberta to the northeast
where Mount Robson Provincial Park is located down to the border with
the USA and the border crossing just south of the town of Osoyoos. As
Fig. 27.1 shows, the region is quite narrow and sits primarily in BC’s
Southern Interior Plateau (Thompson Okanagan, n.d.). The region
 27 THE FUTURE OF WINE TOURISM IN THE OKANAGAN VALLEY … 425

Fig. 27.1 Destination British Columbia regional marketing organizations map

includes the two major cities in the British Columbia interior, namely
Kamloops and Kelowna. The region also has a number of smaller cit-
ies, most notably Salmon Arm, Vernon, West Kelowna, and Penticton
ranging from north to south. In addition, the region has a number of
smaller towns and villages such as Sicamous, Enderby, Armstrong, Lake
Country, Peachland, Summerland, Okanagan Falls, Oliver, and Osooyos
which is, as mentioned above, located just five kilometers north of the
US border crossing at Oroville, Washington. Overall, the region consists
of 94,197.76 square kilometers and is roughly the same size as Ireland
(Stats Can Census Profile, 2016; TOTA, n.d.).
The population of the Thompson Okanagan region as of the 2016
Canadian Census was 546,287 which represented a growth rate of 4.9%
from the 2011 Census (Stats Can Census Profile, 2016). The populations
426 M. CONLIN AND A. RICE

of the two major cities mentioned above as of 2016 were 78,026 in

Kamloops representing a 7.2% growth rate since 2011 and 151,957
in Kelowna representing an 8.4% growth rate since 2011 (Stats Can
Kamloops, 2016; Stats Can West Kelowna, 2016). Vernon, West Kelowna,
and Penticton as of 2016 had populations of 48,073, 32,655, and 33,617
respectively. These represented significantly lower rates of growth than
Kamloops and Kelowna at 4.2, 5.7, and 2.4% respectively (Stats Can
Penticton, 2016; Stats Can Vernon, 2016; Stats Can West Kelowna, 2016).
While the Thomson Okanagan region stretches from the border with
Alberta to the north down to the border with the USA, the study area
that this chapter focuses on is what is known as the Okanagan Valley.
The Valley stretches from the city of Vernon some 50 kilometres north of
Kelowna down to the US border, some 125 kilometres south of Kelowna.
The area is dominated by a network of lakes with Okanagan Lake being
the largest and most important water body in the Valley. The Valley is
quite narrow and is bounded by the Cascade Mountains to the west and
the Monashee Mountains to the east. Figure 27.2 shows the extent of the
Okanagan Valley within the context of the Thompson Okanagan region.

Fig. 27.2 Okanagan Valley: principal enquiry area (Rice 2018)

 27 THE FUTURE OF WINE TOURISM IN THE OKANAGAN VALLEY … 427

The Okanagan Valley Wine Industry

From a global perspective, the wine industry in Canada is small when
compared with traditional producers of wine such as France, Italy, and
the USA. Nonetheless, it is a growing industry and in recent years, has
seen a steady growth in both the amount of farm land dedicated to wine
grape production and the number of wineries located in the region.
From a Canadian perspective, the Okanagan Valley can legitimately lay
claim to being the second largest wine producing region in Canada.
The Niagara Peninsula region in the Province of Ontario is by far and
away the largest wine producing region with approximately 80% of
Canada’s overall wine production (Conlin & Rouse, 2014). According
to the British Columbia Wine Institute (BCWI), the Province of British
Columbia has 341 licensed wineries that generate 800,000 winery visits
annually (BCWI, 2017). The Okanagan Valley in turn produces 96.35%
of the total British Columbia wine produced (Hira & Bwenge, 2011,
p. 6). It has been described as “…The northern most serious wine region
in the world…” (Bells, 2017).
The Valley currently has 172 licensed wineries (BCWI, 2017). These
wineries range in size from very small holdings up to large, comprehen-
sive operations with international reputations such as Mission Hill Family
Estates (Mission Hills, 2017). As Figs. 27.3, 27.4, and 27.5 show, the
vineyards are scattered throughout the Valley with concentrations in
Kelowna both north and south of the city, West Kelowna, Summerland
and Narramatta northeast of Penticton. There is also a very large con-
centration of vineyards around the town of Oliver south of Penticton
which run down to the US border. Finally, there are a growing number
of vineyards in the Similkameen Valley around the towns of Keremeos
and Cawston on the western boundary of the region.
In the major wine producing areas of Canada, primarily the provinces
of Ontario and British Columbia, the issue of wine tourism has been a
topic of strategic consideration and significance, mirroring what can be
seen in most wine producing regions globally (Conlin & Rouse, 2014).
Not surprisingly, the Valley’s wine industry has embraced the concept
of wine tourism, and the evidence of this can be seen in the expansion
of the region’s wineries into cellar door sales, food, and beverage out-
lets, and in some cases, specialized accommodation and resort facili-
ties. Research conducted for the BCWI in 2017 indicated that visitors
to the Okanagan Valley are looking for a comprehensive wine and food
428 M. CONLIN AND A. RICE

Fig. 27.3 Wineries in the central Okanagan Valley: Kelowna, West Kelowna
(Rice 2018). Sources Esri, HERE, DeLorme, Intermap, increment P Corp.,
GEBCO, USGS, FAO, NPS, NRCAN, GeoBase, IGN, Kadaster NL, Ordnance
Survey, Esri Japan, METI, Esri China (Hong Kong), swisstopo, MapmyIndia,
©OpenStreetMap contributors, and the GIS User Community

experience including local dining, vineyard dining, farmers’ markets,

wine touring, and interestingly, craft brewery and distillery visits (Stormy
Lake, 2017).
In addition to more traditional forms of wine tourism activity,
the Okanagan Valley is also home to two wineries located on aborigi-
nal territory in West Kelowna and Osoyoos. Both wineries are majority
owned by First Nations in the Valley. They use aboriginal themes for
wine naming and for food and beverage outlets. One of the wineries,
the Nk’Mip Winery in Osoyoos, also offers accommodation and impor-
tantly, locates a major aboriginal cultural center on the winery property.
Indeed, this winery and its various amenities are major business activities,
 27 THE FUTURE OF WINE TOURISM IN THE OKANAGAN VALLEY … 429

Fig. 27.4 Wineries in the central Okanagan Valley Narramatta and

Summerland (Rice 2018). Sources Esri, HERE, DeLorme, Intermap, incre-
ment P Corp., GEBCO, USGS, FAO, NPS, NRCAN, GeoBase, IGN, Kadaster
NL, Ordnance Survey, Esri Japan, METI, Esri China (Hong Kong), swisstopo,
MapmyIndia, ©OpenStreetMap contributors, and the GIS User Community

particularly for the southern end of the Valley (Nk’Mip Cellars, 2017).
And in what may be seen as a portent of the future growth of the wine
industry in Canada and elsewhere, what was originally positioned as the
“first aboriginal winery in the world’ is now forty-nine percent owned
by the Ontario Teachers” Pension Fund which purchased its share from
Constellation Brands in 2014 (Financial Post, October 17, 2016). The
other aboriginal winery, Indigenous World Winery, located in West
Kelowna, is a much more modest operation and is a recent addition
to the industry having opened in 2016. It does have a restaurant and
a tasting room but its wines are produced and bottled by a contracted
winery in the Valley. Both wineries are reported to be highly successful
businesses.
430 M. CONLIN AND A. RICE

Fig. 27.5 Wineries in the Southern Okanagan Valley and Similkameen Valley
(Rice 2018). Sources Esri, HERE, DeLorme, Intermap, increment P Corp.,
GEBCO, USGS, FAO, NPS, NRCAN, GeoBase, IGN, Kadaster NL, Ordnance
Survey, Esri Japan, METI, Esri China (Hong Kong), swisstopo, MapmyIndia,
©OpenStreetMap contributors, and the GIS User Community

Notwithstanding its wine industry, the Okanagan Valley is widely

c­onsidered to be a major tourism destination. TripAdvisor ranked the
region’s major city Kelowna in the “Top 10 Canadian Destinations” in
2017 (Tourism Kelowna, 2017). In 2015, the Canadian Living magazine
using Expedia data named the Okanagan Valley as the tenth top vacation
destination in Canada, an impressive feat considering the depth and breadth
of world-class tourism destinations in Canada (Canadian Living, 2015).
In particular, the Okanagan Valley has been recognized internationally
for its wine industry. In 2014, USA Today ranked the region as the sec-
ond best wine region in the world to visit, second only to the Alentejo
region in south-central Portugal (VancityBuzz, 2014). In 2015, Wine
 27 THE FUTURE OF WINE TOURISM IN THE OKANAGAN VALLEY … 431

Enthusiast included the Okanagan Valley in its Top 10 list of travel

destinations. It is worth noting, in the context of wine tourism, that this
article made specific mention of a number of wineries in the Valley which
had recently added restaurants to their facilities (Wine Enthusiast, 2015).

Research Methodology
The research used a modified Delphi Method approach in order to iden-
tify those issues which a panel of owners, managers, experts, and policy
makers felt where likely to impact wine tourism policy and management
in the Okanagan Valley and how critical they believed these issues where
likely to be in terms of likelihood of occurrence, significance of impact,
and prioritization of importance.
The Delphi Method was developed by the RAND Corporation for
the US Air Force in a project whose objective was to develop a meth-
odology for creating consensus opinions in a group of experts (Dalkey
& Helmer, 1963). A Delphi Method survey uses a structured approach
that asks experts in a particular topic area to share ideas and arrive at a
consensus in an area of policy, practice, or problem solving. The method
is based on a set of consistent criteria: (a) purposive sampling (identifying
experts); (b) emergent design; (c) anonymous and structured communi-
cation between participants; and (d) thematic analysis (Brady, 2015).
A Delphi Method survey typically incorporates three rounds of anon-
ymous surveys, or questionnaires. In the first round, an initial set of
data are gathered and shared with the participants. The second round
solicits feedback on results from the first round from the participants.
Finally, the third round incorporates feedback from rounds one and two
and is aimed at arriving at consensus among participants (Brady, 2015).
Analysis is conducted iteratively throughout the rounds.
Hasson, Keeney, and McKenna, in their 2000 article “Research guide-
lines for the Delphi survey technique” identify the following implemen-
tation and analysis advice relating to the use of Delphi Method surveys.
In the first round of surveys, participants are asked to provide opin-
ions and are given relative freedom in their responses and comments.
Qualitative data analysis techniques (QDA) are employed to identify
concepts, categories, and themes to help hone questionnaires in each
successive round of questionnaires (Brady, 2015). The resulting list of
trends is used in the second round of the Delphi Method survey which
asks participants to rate their level of agreement with the trends, how
432 M. CONLIN AND A. RICE

important they feel the trends are, and to provide additional comments.
Data are analyzed to identify convergence and change of respondents’
judgments or opinions (Hasson et al., 2000). At the end of the third
round, the level of consensus reached is evaluated and results presented.
The Delphi Method has also been used innovatively in tour-
ism research and has been effectively used to set research agendas. As
Northcote et al. state:

As a means of obtaining input into the research design from key stakehold-
ers, the Delphi process offers potential as an effective participatory method
of stakeholder consultation that removes the problems of interpersonal
influence and power relationships between participants. (Northcote, Lee,
Chok, & Wegner, 2008)

Indeed, Lin and Song (2015, p. 1099) have stated that “The Delphi tech-
nique is the most popular judgemental forecasting method in tourism
studies….” In their exhaustive article, Lin and Song identify 46 studies
published since 1970 which have been used primarily for the following
three purposes: (a) event forecasting; (b) forecasting tourism demand;
and (c) forecasting future trends or market conditions. The authors indi-
cate that the third purpose was also the most popular use of the Delphi
Method (Lin & Song, 2015, p. 1101). It is worth noting that in their
listing of the 46 surveys identified, a number of prominent tourism
researchers are to be found as authors including Hawkins, Shafer, Archer,
Schmidgall, Edgell, Faulkner, Lin, D’Amore, Ryan, Ladkin, Garrod, Fyall,
Chon, and Solnet, among others (Lin & Song, 2015, pp. 1102–1112).
This suggests that the Delphi Method is not only a popular technique but
also one which enjoys the respect of leading tourism researchers.
For many of the same reasons, the use of the Delphi Method in this
survey was considered to be appropriate. No research has been done pre-
viously to identify future trends in wine tourism in the Okanagan Valley.
Additionally, there does not appear to be published opinions about what
issues impact on wine tourism in the region. Indeed, it was not clear
whether or not there were widely held opinions as to the importance of
wine tourism for touristic development in the BC interior. The goal of this
research and the use of the Delphi Method were to address these questions.
The design for the survey called for three rounds of questionnaires
to be completed by each member of the panel. The first round solicited
broad input on trends, opportunities, and issues from stakeholders in
five key areas including: political/regulatory, economic, environmental,
 27 THE FUTURE OF WINE TOURISM IN THE OKANAGAN VALLEY … 433

sociocultural, and technology trends (PEEST). Results of this round

were analyzed and consolidated and shared, anonymously, with partic-
ipating organizations. In the second round, participants were asked to
comment on the results by indicating the likelihood each trend was to
have an impact on the wine tourism sector, as well as the potential signif-
icance of that impact. Finally, results from the second round are shared
with the group for final input before being consolidated into a final
report of key trends, opportunities, and challenges for the sector.
The surveys were distributed electronically by email. There has been
some discussion in the recent past about the advantages and disadvan-
tages of using electronic distribution and surveys for Delphi surveys.
However, that research was published several years ago and in this case,
it was felt that electronic distribution was preferable given the pervasive-
ness of email and online survey activity among the members of the panel.
The two key elements in a successful Delphi Method survey are the
identification of relevant and generally agreed issues for consideration
and the existence of a competent panel of experts. In this survey, both of
these key elements were present. The following describes the process for
compiling the panel and for identifying the issues.

Sampling Plan

Population of Interest
The population of interest identified for this study were individuals
with expertise in the wine tourism sector in the Okanagan Valley. These
included executives and senior individuals in companies and associations
involved in delivering wine tourism experience and creating policy rec-
ommendations in the area of wine tourism.

Sample Frame
As mentioned, one of the critical success factors in executing a Delphi
Method study is the selection of experts to form the panel of respond-
ents. The sample frame, or group of potential panelists, for this sur-
vey was created by asking Tourism Kelowna, the local Destination
Management Organization whose membership includes wineries,
wine tour operators, and associations involved in the wine tourism sec-
tor in the Central Okanagan, to identify key wine tourism stakeholders
from their membership. Tourism Kelowna identified 68 executives and
434 M. CONLIN AND A. RICE

senior individuals from three groups of wine tourism stakeholders. These

included 29 guided wine tour operators 36 wineries, and 3 association
executives.

Sample Methodology
Because the sample frame identified was relatively small, all members of
the frame were invited to be panelists and complete each round of the
survey.
Note that all members of the frame were invited to participate in and
comment in each round of the Delphi regardless of whether or not they
participated in earlier rounds of the survey. The responses for each round
of the survey were completely anonymous. Therefore, it was not possible
to identify which members of the sample frame responded in each round.

Response Rates
The first round of the survey had 13 responses which represented a 19%
response rate. The first round panel included five wineries with tasting
rooms, five wine tour operators and three panelists that did not identify
the type of organizations they represented.
The authors felt this was a reasonable response rate given that the sur-
vey was distributed in high season for wine tourism in the Valley and was
also consistent with a previous Delphi survey conducted by the authors.
Given the qualitative nature of the study, this was felt to be a reasonable
panel for the study.
There was significant attrition in the panel from the first round to the
second round. There were eight panel members who responded repre-
senting an attrition rate of 38%. Lin and Song, in their 2015 paper, noted
that “the iterative nature of the Delphi Method inevitably leads to high
panel attrition.” Their review of 30 Delphi Method studies revealed that
“about 36.7% had an attrition rate of over 30%, but less than 50%” (Lin
& Song, 2015). The authors identified that reasons for the high attrition
rate to be a combination of the timing of the survey and the time com-
mitment required to participate in the iterative rounds of the survey.
There were only four responses to the final round of the survey. As
such the authors agreed that while results would be presented, they
could not be used to identify the level of consensus of panelists’ opin-
ions. It should be noted, however, that a further eight persons accessed
the survey site in the third round but did not make further comment,
possibly because they did not disagree with any of the conclusions.
 27 THE FUTURE OF WINE TOURISM IN THE OKANAGAN VALLEY … 435

Presentation and Discussion of the Delphi

Survey Results
As discussed above, the survey was structured in three rounds. The
first round asked the panel to identify broad-based opinions on the key
trends, opportunities, and challenges facing the wine tourism sector in
the region. The survey was structured using the PEEST framework
(Political, Economic, Environmental Sociocultural, and Technological
environments) for environmental scanning. The panel was presented with
an open-ended question for each environment and asked to identify as
many trends, opportunities, issues, and challenges they thought relevant.
The second round summarized the results of the first round using QDA
for coding and grouping open-ended responses. Panelists were asked to
rate each of the groups identified based on: (a) likelihood the trend was
to have a significant impact: and (b) the significance of the impact they
expected the trend could have on the sector. Finally, in the third round,
panelists were presented with the rank order of each trend for its likeli-
hood and significance of impact and ask to rate whether the trend should
be ranked higher, lower, or the same as the results from the overall panel.

Round 1—Trends Identified

Round 1 identified 127 individual trends broken out as follows
(Table 27.1).
These trends were summarized and coded into 15 groups of issues
where common trends were identified by panelists. See Appendix,
Table 27.1 for the list of codes and a summary of the trends they
encompass.

Table 27.1 Trends

Environment Number of trends
identified in Round 1
Political 38
Economic 30
Environmental 15
Sociocultural 26
Technology 18
Total 127
436 M. CONLIN AND A. RICE

Round 2—Ranking Coded Trends

As previously mentioned, the second round of the Delphi asked the
panel to rate the 15 groups of issues based on their likelihood to have an
impact on the wine tourism sector as well as to rate them on the signif-
icance of the impact they might have. Rankings were established using
the combined top–two-box rankings for each.

Round 2—Likelihood of Impact Ratings

As seen in Fig. 27.6, the top six ranked issues in terms of issues seen most
likely to have an impact on the wine tourism sector were: (1) buy local
movement; (2) tax policy; (3) issues related to the Millennial market; (4)
opportunities related to e-commerce; (5) issues related to climate change;
and (6) labor supply issues including labor shortages and training (see
Appendix for a full summary of the issues identified within each trend).

Buy Local 67% 33%

Tax Policy 75% 25%

Millennials 83% 17%

E-Commerce 14% 14% 71%

Climate Change 14% 29% 57%

Labour Supply 17% 33% 50%

NGOs / Associaons 13% 25% 13% 50%

Government Support 40% 40% 20%

Exchange Rates 40% 40% 20%

Operator Licensing 40% 0% 60%

Sustainable Pracces 20% 20% 60% 0%

Target Market Changes 20% 20% 60% 0%

Social Media 43% 14% 43%

Conflict between Actors 17% 33% 0% 17% 33%

Aging Populaon 29% 43% 14% 14%

3 2 Not at all - 1 4 Extemely - 5

Fig. 27.6 Round 2: Likelihood of Impact

 27 THE FUTURE OF WINE TOURISM IN THE OKANAGAN VALLEY … 437

There was a strong consensus on the top three issues within the panel
with each issue being rated as a four of five or five of five in all cases.
There was also a reasonable consensus in the group on issues ranked
four through six. Issues related to (4) e-commerce, (5) climate change,
and (6) labor supply were the second tier of issues that the panel thought
were likely to have an impact of the sector.
Panelists identified six mid-tier trends including (7) the impact of
NGOs/Associations, (8) government support of the wine tourism sec-
tor, (9) the impact of exchange rates, (10) wine tour operator licensing
issues, (11) sustainable practices in wine tourism, and (12) target market
changes.
The bottom three ranked trends were (13) the impact of social
media, (14) conflicts between actors, and (15) impacts related to the
aging population. There were significant differences in rankings for both
social media and conflicts between actors however. Social media for
example had 42% of panelists identify the trend as being five out of five
“extremely likely” to have an impact, and 50% rating it as either two of
five or three of five meaning they felt social media was less likely to have
an impact on wine tourism.

Round 2—Significance of Issues Ratings

There was significant agreement from the panel in their top four ranked
issues in terms of the significance of the impact each issue is likely to have
(see Fig. 27.7). The (1) buy local movement, (2) tax policy, (3) issues
related to the Millennial market, and (4) economic issues including
exchange rates, all received 100% top-two-box ratings from the panel.
In fact, (1) buying local and (2) tax policy were tied with two-thirds of
the panel indicating that they expect these both to have a very significant
(five of five rating) impact.
Ratings decline steadily for the remainder of the issues identified.
Mid-tier issues, in terms of the likely significance of their impact, were
(5) climate change, (6) labor supply issues, (7) issues related to opera-
tor licensing, (8) e-commerce opportunities, (9) social media, and (10)
NGOs/associations. While these trends were ranked “mid-tier” in terms
of their top-two-box ratings, there were significant number of panelists
who rated them in the top box, five of five, or “extremely significant”
impact. For example, fully 60% of panelists identified tour operator
licensing as likely having an “extremely significant” impact.
438 M. CONLIN AND A. RICE

Buy Local 33% 67%

Tax Policy 33% 67%

Millennials 50% 50%

Exhange Rate / Economic 80% 20%

Climate Change 14% 43% 43%

Labour Supply 17% 33% 50%

Operator Licensing 20% 20% 60%

E-Commerce 29% 14% 57%

Social Media 29% 29% 43%

NGOs / Associaons 13% 25% 13% 50%

Target Market Changes 20% 20% 60% 0%

Conflict between Actors 17% 33% 17% 33%

Aging Populaon 17% 33% 33% 17%

Government Support 40% 20% 0% 40%

Sustainable Pracces 20% 60% 20%

3 2 Not at all - 1 4 Extemely - 5

Fig. 27.7 Round 2: significance of impact

The final group were ranked lowest in terms of their top-two-box

rankings. These included (11) target market changes, (12) conflicts
between actors, (13) issues related to an aging population, (14) govern-
ment support, and (15) sustainable practices.

Round 3—Summary of Consensus on Trend Rankings

In round three of the survey, the panel was presented with the ranked
trends for both likelihood of impact and potential significance of
impact. They were then asked to indicate their level of agreement with
the ranking of each trend in terms of how likely or significant an impact
it may have. The panel could indicate that a trend should be “signifi-
cantly decreases” in ranking, “decrease” in ranking, have “no change”
in ranking, “increase” in ranking or “significantly increase” in ranking.
As mentioned in the sample plan, only four panelists responded to the
final round of the survey. As such, results from the final round were not
used to adjust rankings for the trends identified.
 27 THE FUTURE OF WINE TOURISM IN THE OKANAGAN VALLEY … 439

Analysis

Likelihood/Significance Matrix
Mean ratings for each issue were compared for both likelihood and sig-
nificance in order to identify strategic priorities among issues. Issues were
plotted in a two-by-two matrix based on their mean ratings for likeli-
hood and significance. The axis values were determined by calculating
overall means for likelihood and satisfaction. Issues in the top right quad-
rant of the matrix, therefore, had higher than average ratings for both
likelihood of having an impact and significance of that potential impact.
As illustrated in Fig. 27.8, the panel, through their rankings, identi-
fied eight strategic priorities.

1. Tax policy
2. Buy local
3. Millennials
4. Labor supply
5. E-commerce
6. Climate change
7. Operator licensing
8. Social media opportunities

It was interesting that a number of these trends were not top tier
ranked trends in likeliness to have an impact or likely significance of
that impact based on their top-two-box rankings. The impact of having
a significant number of panelists rank them as five of five in these cat-
egories had a significant impact on their mean rankings. For example,
social media was in the bottom tier for likelihood to have an impact but
remained a strategic priority based on its average rankings.
Issues that had lower than average mean ratings for likelihood of
impact and significance of impact were determined to be lesser strategic
priorities. These included:

9. NGOs/associations
10. Conflict between actors
11. Target market changes
12. Government support
13. Aging population
14. Sustainable practices
440 M. CONLIN AND A. RICE

Likelihood / Significance Plot Crical Issues /

Opportunies

(mean= 3.9)
Significance
Strategic Priories Buy Local
Tax Policy

Millennials
Labour Supply
Exchange Rates E-Commerce
/ Economy Climate
Social Operator Change
Media Licensing
Likelihood
(mean= 3.9) NGOs /
Associaons
Conflict between
Actors
Government Target Market
Support Changes
Aging
Populaon

Sustainable
Pracces

Latent Issues /
Opportunies

Fig. 27.8 Likelihood/impact matrix

The one “outlier” in the matrix was the potential impact of exchange
rates/economic factors. This trend was rated as lower than average like-
lihood for impact and higher than average potential significance of its
impact.

Conclusions and Implications for Future Research

As stated in the introduction, this research was conducted with the aim
of identifying future research opportunities, building industry relation-
ships for the OSB, and assisting in the development of programming
emanating from the research.
 27 THE FUTURE OF WINE TOURISM IN THE OKANAGAN VALLEY … 441

This study has identified the utility of the approach in identifying stra-
tegic priorities for a particular segment of the tourism sector. The success
of the approach suggests that the study could be expanded to a larger
geographic area. For example, the study could be applied to the British
Columbia wine tourism sector as a whole. In addition, the study could
be carried out in various wine tourism regions, and the results of these
studies could be compared to identify similarities and differences in
trends identified between regions.
Future studies of this nature should take into account the timing of
when the study is in field with wine tourism stakeholders. One of the
key lessons for future research in this sector is that executives and key
stakeholders are extremely busy during their peak seasons and that future
studies should be conducted in either the shoulder season or off-season
periods. As evidence of this, the study authors were contacted by two of
the potential panel members who indicated that they would like to par-
ticipate in the study but were too busy at the time. As such the authors
believe that response rates would increase and attrition could decrease
with a change the timing of future applications of this methodology.
Finally, the research findings will be used in further developing future-­
oriented courseware for several programs at the OSB in both the tourism
area and in its viticulture programming. Several courses at the OSB blend
course design with applied research theory and models and this research is
consistent with this approach to courseware development and delivery.

Appendix: Summary of Trends and Issues Coding

Axial code Open coding

Tax policy Issues related to tax policy including the importance of keeping the
farm gate exemption, the problem of tying the excise tax to inflation,
inter-provincial tax policy, and over-taxing the tourism sector
Millennials Issues and opportunities related to the younger market and
“Millennials” including growth in this market, increased disposable
incomes, as well as challenges in attracting these segments, and the
growth in some undesirable markets
Buy local Issues and opportunities related to the “Buy Local” movement in food
and wine. The movement is seen as growing and that the wine sector
is well positioned to take advantage of this trend. However, it was also
identified that there are good and bad aspects to this trend such as the
significant seasonality of locally produced products
442 M. CONLIN AND A. RICE

Axial code Open coding

E-commerce Issues and opportunities related to e-commerce including increased
internet shopping, use of mobile devices for shopping, digital media
communication tools, and improved website functionality
Climate change Issues related to climate change including increase in flooding events,
wildfires and smoke, several weather events, warmer summers, and
issues related to water availability
Labour supply Issues and challenges related to labor supply including shortages of
qualified labor, labor readiness, and training
NGOs/ Non-Governmental Organizations or Associations: Issues and oppor-
associations tunities related to associations including Destination Marketing
Organizations, Industry Task Forces (i.e. Appellation Task Group),
and Industry Associations (BC Wine Institute, BC Wine Authority)
Government Government support of the wine tourism sector including policies
support supporting sustainable practices, LDB being more supportive of BC
wineries, support of wine regions, and improved training programs
Exchange rates The current $US/$CAN exchange rate has recently been seen to
stabilize creating opportunities to educate the US market as well as
causing more Canadians to choose to vacation at home in Canada.
This is coupled with the possibility that the Ontario market may now
be more willing to travel to BC for wine tourism experiences
Operator Issues related to tour operator licensing including too many licenses
licensing being issues, the presence of illegal operators, and an under-resourced
Department of Transportation resulting in a lack of inspections and
enforcement
Sustainable Issues and opportunities related to sustainable practices for wineries and
practices wine tour operators in the context of increasing “green consumerism”
including reducing the carbon footprint of wine tourism operations,
and growth in the use of more sustainable inputs
Target market Issues and opportunities related to changes in the consumer market
changes including increased health consciousness, increase in dietary restric-
tions, move to more experience driven consumption, and a move to
higher quality consumption
Social media Issues and opportunities related to social media usage and participation
including increased importance of effective social media communica-
tion, ease of access to target markets, and the sectors effective use of
social media
Conflict Conflicts between actors within the wine tourism sector including
between winery/tour operator conflict related to practices on both sides such
actors as unfair policies, conflict with other tourism sectors including hotel
policies, and conflicts with large events
Aging Issues related to the aging population including decreasing con-
population sumption, people with more disposable time, decrease in travel and
activities
 27 THE FUTURE OF WINE TOURISM IN THE OKANAGAN VALLEY … 443

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 CHAPTER 28

Wine Tourism in South Africa:

Valued Attributes and Their Role
as Memorable Enticements

Robert J. Harrington, Michael C. Ottenbacher,

Byron Marlowe and Ulrike Siguda

Introduction
The growing interest and significance of wine and gastronomic tourism
can be seen worldwide with growing academic journals, studies, and
conferences in this specific area of focus as well as regions around the
globe using local wine and food as important components of marketing

R. J. Harrington (*) · B. Marlowe

Washington State University, Richland, WA, USA
e-mail: rharrington@wsu.edu
B. Marlowe
e-mail: byron.marlowe@wsu.edu
M. C. Ottenbacher
Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS, USA
e-mail: ottenbacher@hs-heilbronn.de
U. Siguda
Heilbronn University, Heilbronn, Germany

© The Author(s) 2019 445

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_28
446 R. J. HARRINGTON ET AL.

and branding of a tourist destination (Dreyer & Stoeckl, 2017). With

that said, numerous gaps are evident with implications for wine tourism
from both theoretical and practical perspectives.
This chapter looked at wine tourism using South Africa as a bench-
mark for assessing the importance of wine tourism attributes, the role
of prior expectations of tourists, the impact and level of satisfaction,
and the potential for wine tourism attributes to entice tourists to return
to the region. Using these aspects as a basis, implications are provided
along with a model of proposed relationships leading from wine tour-
ism importance, expectations, delivery, satisfaction, memorable entice-
ments, and, ultimately, desired consumer outcomes (loyalty, word of
mouth, etc.).
Thus, research questions include: (1) How important are wine and
gastronomic attributes to South African tourists? (2) What wine and
gastronomic attributes create the highest satisfaction? (3) Are wine
and gastronomic attribute satisfaction enticements for return visits? and
(4) What are the theoretical and practical implications of these relation-
ships for other new world wine regions?

Background on Wine Industry and Gastronomy

in South Africa

Overview of Wine Regions, Wines, and Food

South Africa is located in Africa; it can be found on the southernmost
tip of the continent. The South African wine industry is one of the “old-
est” outside of Europe with the first vineyards planted in the 1650s
and wine being produced since then (Bruwer, 2003). Significantly, the
South African wine industry can be traced to the Constantia Wine Estate
located just outside of Cape Town, South Africa (Robinson & Harding,
2015). In 1685, here and at other similar sites much of the influence
for the planting of grapes and winemaking were from the Dutch trad-
ers who originally called port in the Cape Town area but began to claim
land and residence in the area. Although now considered a new world
wine region, the South African wine industry has been in existence for
over three centuries. South Africa’s modern wine history was solidified
in 1973, under the “Wine of Origin” act in which the wine regions of
South Africa were defined. As with other wine regions like the French
 28 WINE TOURISM IN SOUTH AFRICA: VALUED ATTRIBUTES … 447

appellation d’origine controlee (AOC) system, all South African wines

must be made from grapes from a region within the Wine of Origin
(WO) in South Africa. During the late 1980s and 1990s, the cultural and
political phenomenon which brought apartheid to an end made way for
the growth of exporting South African wine. This created both invest-
ment and unprecedented expansion to the South African wine industry.
The twenty-first century has shown the wine world that South African
wines can now be found spread across the globe.
The wine regions of South Africa include: the Northern Cape,
Olifants River Valley, Coastal Region, Cape Point, Overberg, Breede
River Valley, and Klien Karoo. Within these wine regions, there are
districts which include—Orange River, Douglas, Constantia, Paarl,
Worcester, Stellenbosch, Walker Bay, and Robertson (Stevenson, 2005).
Finally, various wards which designate the specific growing regions
within the South African wine region districts can be found throughout
wine country in South Africa. The South African wine industry provides
a good example of wine and tourism products that are both spatially
fixed in a radius of between 100 and 200 km from Cape Town City as
the center point (Bruwer, 2003). The Stellenbosch wine route became
the first official wine route in South Africa when it was established in
1971 (Preston-Whyte, 2000). Several of the grapes in South Africa are
now famous for the high-quality Pinotage wine which they produce, but
none are as widely planted as the Chenin Blanc varietal which makes up
almost twenty percent of all the quality grapes planted in South Africa.
Grape varieties which account for the majority of the South African
wine industry include: Chenin Blanc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Colombard,
Shiraz, Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Pinotage, and Merlot. Many of
these grapes, which have long been considered fit for consumption in
South Africa with local South Africans and wine tourists alike, are just
beginning to gain in international notoriety that the South African port
wines have had for decades. The South African wine industry has a long
history of producing fortified wines. Made from a variety of grapes, the
“Cape Port” as it has become to be known is a South African classic. The
many styles of the “Cape Port” include—Cape White port, Cape Ruby
port, and the Cape Tawny port (Johnson, 1989).
The foods and ethnic influences of this diverse African country com-
plement the wines and the tourism of South Africa. From sea to land,
South African gastronomy can be as varied as its wines. Surprisingly,
448 R. J. HARRINGTON ET AL.

South Africa’s food reputation has yet to gain the international acclaim
of its wines, but recognition of the sophisticated yet simple food tradi-
tions of South Africa are becoming more common. A sea trading stop
over the years for many who travel the Cape Horn to Asia; South African
cuisine is made up of many curries and spices which originated in Asia.
Although curry in South Africa is much milder in its spice profile then
those from traditional Asian cuisine, many variations can be found to
be just as delicious (Coetzee, 1977). Another example is the traditional
Indian dish Biryani prepared with South African flair. This Southeast
Asian dish made of heavily spiced rice is very popular at the South
African dinner table. As with wine, the Dutch influence on South African
food can also be found in the sausage dish Boerewors. This South
African take on the sausage is flavored with curry and barbeque spices
to give it a more flavorful taste with a South African identity. Finally, the
native African influence on cuisine gives South Africa a wonderful diverse
offering of native dishes. More specifically, Bobotie, known as South
African’s national dish, is a reflection of these varied culinary influences
working together for a native and tourist in South Africa. This bright and
flavorful casserole of curried meat is a culinary classic and authentic to
South African gastronomy.
While South Africa appears to have substantial wine and food
resources to facilitate wine tourism, little research to date has looked at
this location and used it to assess the impact of various elements in this
unique bundle of wine, food, and activities as drivers for wine tourism or
as levers for the wine tourists.

Research Methodology
To provide a discussion and analysis of wine and gastronomic tourism
in South Africa, the authors surveyed 252 tourists at dispersed locations
where visitors were engaged in wine tourism activities. The questionnaire
allowed for an assessment of the importance of wine tourism, expecta-
tions prior to the visit, the quality of these wine tourism aspects, wine or
gastronomy items likely to entice return visits, as well as the top aspects
of South African wine tourism and attributes needing to be improved.
The survey used a grounded 5-point scale for all items ranging from
not important at all to very important, very low expectations to very
high expectations, not satisfied to extremely satisfied, and no potential to
very high potential.
 28 WINE TOURISM IN SOUTH AFRICA: VALUED ATTRIBUTES … 449

Findings
Table 28.1 provides the mean and standard deviations for wine tourism
items regarding the investigated variables—namely importance level,
prior expectations, attribute satisfaction, and the potential to entice
return visits.

Level of Importance
The level of importance of specific items of the tourist location attributes
is a significant predictor for a visitor to make a travel decision. In the case
of South Africa, the wine tourism item expressed as the highest impor-
tance was regional wine followed by authentic wine or food items on
local menus or for purchase. Traditional dishes of the region also ranked
higher in importance than fine dining opportunities. These relationships
indicated that regional and authentic wine and food experiences were
moderately high in importance for the South African tourists in the sur-
vey but that haute cuisine experiences were only moderately important
for the average visitor.

Table 28.1 Wine tourism attributes: importance, expectations, satisfaction, and

visit enticements

Wine tourism items Importance Prior Attribute Potential to

level expectations satisfaction entice return
visits

Traditional dishes of the region 3.4 (0.9) 3.6 (0.8) 3.9 (0.7) 4.0 (0.6)
Fine dining 3.0 (1.0) 3.4 (0.9) 3.7 (0.9) 3.5 (0.9)
Regional wines 3.8 (0.9) 3.8 (0.8) 4.2 (0.7) 4.1 (0.8)
Authentic food/wine items 3.4 (0.9) 3.7 (0.8) 4.1 (0.7) 3.7 (0.8)
for purchase
Authentic food/wine items 3.5 (1.0) 3.7 (0.9) 4.0 (0.5) 3.8 (0.8)
on menus
Friendliness of staff in NA 4.3 (0.7) 4.1 (0.7) NA
restaurants/hotels
Friendliness of staff in wineries NA 4.3 (0.7) 4.2 (0.7) NA
Competencies staff in NA 4.3 (0.7) 4.2 (0.7) NA
restaurants/hotels
Competencies staff in wineries NA 4.3 (0.7) 4.2 (0.6) NA
450 R. J. HARRINGTON ET AL.

Prior Expectations
Expectancy theory has been a long-established notion regarding prior
expectations and whether or not these impacted if tourists are satisfied
(experiences exceeded expectations), neither satisfied nor dissatisfied
(when experiences were equal to expectations) or dissatisfied (experi-
ences were below expectations) (Pizam & Milman, 1993).
In this study, tourists appeared to have the highest level of expecta-
tions associated with wine tourism service expectations. Expectations of
staff friendliness and competencies were shown to be very high on aver-
age (4.3/5 points). This was followed by high expectations for regional
wines (3.8), authentic food or wine items (3.7), traditional dishes of the
region (3.6), and fine dining experiences (3.4).

Attribute Satisfaction
The measure of customer or tourist satisfaction has been a long-stand-
ing benchmark used to predict consumer behavior outcomes.
However, the direct relationship between satisfaction and customer
loyalty has been shown to be only moderately correlated and not
a direct (linear) predictor for loyalty (Bowen & Chen, 2001). This
appears to be true in the case of tourism in general or wine tourism
as well due to visitors’ desire or importance of variety, wine tourism
aspects as one of the bundle of the tourism decision drivers, and the
fact that wine is also a product that can be purchased or consumed out
of the context of place (and the physical place replaced with memories
and storytelling).
As described earlier, the notion of satisfaction is thought by many to
be associated with or at least tempered by prior expectations. For the
South African tourist, wine tourism product attributes ranked higher in
satisfaction based on the actual experience than the average prior expec-
tation. These included the following from highest satisfaction—regional
wines, authentic wine or food items, traditional regional dishes, and fine
dining experiences. The wine tourism service experiences were about
equal to prior expectations. This finding contradicts basic expectancy
theory where high prior expectations resulted in high actual experience
perceptions and high service satisfaction (i.e., expectancy theory predicts
the tourists should be neither satisfied nor dissatisfied [in which case, the
mean should be around 3 points out of 5]).
 28 WINE TOURISM IN SOUTH AFRICA: VALUED ATTRIBUTES … 451

Potential to Entice Return Visits

The concept of customer loyalty has been studied extensively in market-
ing literature and tourism; it has been perceived as an important indica-
tor of success for today’s business environment to achieve higher profits
and many benefits of customer retention and on-going relationships
(Bowen & Chen, 2001). For this study, we asked visitors to indicate the
likelihood that specific wine tourism products would entice return visits
to the region.
In this study, South African tourists indicated regional wines and
traditional dishes from the region were the most enticing followed by
authentic wine or food items (for purchase or on menus) and fine dining.
These all rated fairly high with regional wine and local dishes being at
the level of 4 out of 5 or higher.
While gastronomic tourism attributes have generally been shown to
rate about second or third place in the overall tourism bundle, this study
indicated that the importance and prior expectations of these items are
likely to impact the placement in the overall tourism bundle for revisit
decisions as well as other valuable consumer behaviors such as blogging,
using social media, and recommendations to friends and family.

South Africa Tourism Attributes with Highest Value

To dig deeper into the drivers of South African tourism enticement, we
asked the visitors to describe the three top items that were related to
the wine tourism experience. Table 28.2 provides a summary of the fre-
quency of these items. The top designated items are divided into three
areas of wine tourism: wine-specific activities, affordable wine and food,
and food attributes or activities.
Wine-specific activities made up about one-third of wine tourism
attributes reported. When breaking this down by activities, the top three
categories were grouped as wine tastings, wine variety/value/qual-
ity, and wine terroir/regions/settings. For wine tastings, visitors spoke
to the tastings in general as well as the quality and affordability. The
wine variety/value/quality category included an assortment of related
comments. Visitors listed specific grape varietals, the quality of the
wines, and specific styles such as the South African sweet dessert wines.
Varietals mentioned included Shiraz, Chenin Blanc, Pinotage, Sauvignon
Blanc, and Cabernet Sauvignon. The wine terroir/regions/settings
452 R. J. HARRINGTON ET AL.

Table 28.2 Frequency of tourism aspects

Wine tourism category Frequency (%)

Wine-specific activities 31.2

Wine tasting 9.7
Wine variety/value/quality 7.6
Wine terroir/regions/settings 5.8
Winery restaurants/pairings 4.6
Vineyard/winery tours 2.2
Winery picnic options 1.0
Wine region hiking tours 0.4
Affordable wine tastings and food/dining options 4.4
Food attributes/activities 64.4
Authentic/creative cuisine/local dishes 23.3
Local/quality/natural food products 21.3
Quality restaurants/markets/cafes/bakeries 10.3
Quality service/hospitality/atmosphere 4.2
Cuisine diversity/fusion 3.6
Culinary tours/classes 1.8

N = 503

category essentially captured the positive impression for the wine regions
(e.g., Stellenbosch, Paarl, Franschhoek, etc.), the beautiful landscapes,
specific wineries (e.g., Jordans, Mulderbosch, etc.), and the concept of
South African terroir.
Winery restaurants and food and wine pairings were also popular
including pairings with local cheeses, chocolate, and BBQ meats. Tours
were a popular activity mentioned by several visitors with a portion also
mentioning wine region hiking tours as a memorable activity. The afforda-
ble and enjoyable options of picnicking at a winery and the ability to bring
your own wine/food were also mentioned by a number of visitors.
The affordability factor of the South African wine region was mentioned
frequently in a variety of ways. In addition to the specific mentioning of pic-
nicking, BYO options, and inexpensive wine tastings, a substantial number
of visitors mentioned the high price value received, affordability of quality
wine and food experiences, and dining options (from casual to fine dining).
The last category in Table 28.2 is food attributes or activities associ-
ated with wine tourism. These items represented close to two-thirds of
the memorable aspects for South African tourists. The top category rep-
resented 23.3% of responses and included authenticity, creativity, and
 28 WINE TOURISM IN SOUTH AFRICA: VALUED ATTRIBUTES … 453

the local nature of the cuisine or dishes. Items frequently mentioned

were biltong (local dried, cured meat), braai (different types of seasoned
meats barbecued over an open wood fire), dishes made from springbok
(local antelope), local sweets, Cape Malay curries, etc. The responses also
spoke to the authentic nature of the food and the innovative culinary
experiences.
The second most frequent category was defined as encompassing
local, quality, and fresh food products in the region. While sometimes
it was difficult to determine if a response related to local dishes made
from a local ingredient or local foods in general, the responses pointed
out the impact of quality, local food items as part of the wine tourism
experience. Meats, seafood, cheeses, farmed produce, and fruits were fre-
quent memorable product types. Many responses pointed out the quality
of food and the use of fresh, natural, and organically grown items in mar-
kets and food service. The third most frequent category was reflecting on
the quality of South African food purveyors; these included restaurants
(casual to fine dining), food markets with tasting activities, cafes, baker-
ies, and breweries. Responses spoke to the quality, variety, affordability,
cutting-edge design, and great locations.
The quality of the South African service, hospitality, and atmosphere
was mentioned by a number of respondents. Comments included out-
standing service, great hospitality, and relaxed atmosphere as impor-
tant parts of the experience. The diversity of the cuisine impressed
many respondents expressing the impact of many cultures, how it was a
fusion or “rainbow” of food influences, and those specifically mentioned
included diverse cuisine, Indian influences, and Cape Malay cuisine.
Finally, several tourists found culinary or gourmet tours and classes to be
memorable and add value to the experience.

Implications of the Findings

The South African region is known for its quality wines and unique food
or cuisine. Not surprisingly, these aspects were important to the travel
decision and travelers had high expectations prior to visiting South Africa.
Figure 28.1 outlines some of the proposed relationships among a
wine tourism destination such as South Africa and factors deemed impor-
tant for the tourist and promoters of a region. Theoretical and practical
implications are discussed.
454 R. J. HARRINGTON ET AL.

Touristic Terroir
Service/Hospitality
Authenticity/Unique
Quality and Value
Loyalty/Return
Visits
Tourism Attribute
Importance Word-of-mouth

Recommendations
Overall Memorable
Satisfaction Enticements Social
media/blogging

Tourism Attribute Purchases of

Gaps?
Expectations product at home
location

Wine Tourism Products

Wine Tourism Systems
Wine Tourism Experiences

Fig. 28.1 Proposed relationships for wine tourism

Wine Tourism Importance and Prior Expectations

Prior to any tourism decision, tourists appear to be impacted by the
importance of the tourist experience and the importance of specific
attributes at the destination or destinations under consideration. This
represents an identified need for the product, service, or experience in
the mind of the consumer/tourist creating a target market. In the South
African example, tourists appeared to place moderately high importance
on local wine and food, local cuisine, regional wines, and quality dining
opportunities. We propose in the wine tourism framework (Fig. 28.1)
that prior expectations interact with the level of importance to (1) drive
the tourist visit decision and (2) determine whether or not the experi-
ence is satisfactory.
The perceived journey from prior expectations to satisfaction level
appears to be dependent on a variety of factors. First, following ear-
lier research in wine business, we propose that wine tourism components
can be conceptualized into three general aspects: wine tourism products,
wine tourism systems, and wine tourism experiences (i.e., Fritz, 2016).
Wine tourism products are defined as tangible products associated with
wine tourism activities; these include wine itself as a consumable product
but also other tangibles such as local food items, beverages, or local dishes
as well as the physical winery properties that are visited. These make up a
part of the wine “touristic terroir,” which can be described as the unique
bundle of products, services, and activities that make up the touristic
 28 WINE TOURISM IN SOUTH AFRICA: VALUED ATTRIBUTES … 455

destination encounter (e.g., Hall, Mitchell, & Sharples, 2003). Wine tour-
ism systems include the service delivery aspects as well as systems of distri-
bution of products and services such as transportation, education, and other
key elements that facilitate tourism quality. While these are also part of the
touristic terroir (as it includes physical, cultural, and social aspects), the
perceptions of wine tourism systems’ quality are an important predictor of
satisfaction. In South Africa, service and hospitality quality were frequently
noted as key success factors; additionally, the projection of authenticity and
innovativeness is also a system factor as these require proper communica-
tion to the visitor which can take the form of storytelling or other indica-
tors of local cultural “artifacts” tied to wine tourism elements. For example,
language (biltong, braai, etc.), myths (descriptions of divers cuisine, Cape
Malay cuisine), physical evidence (open fire barbecue, traditional dress),
beliefs/values (the relaxed dining atmosphere), etc., appear to be part of
the South African identity for visitors in this study.
The concept of wine tourism experiences ties into the notion of the
experience economy usually divided into four main areas: entertainment,
education, aesthetics, and escapism. When these elements are coupled to
the concept of wine tourism, they appear to rarely be mutually exclusive
as to whether defined as purely entertainment, education, aesthetics, or
escapism based on the experience or the individual. Examples provided
by South African tourists included the winery settings, restaurant atmos-
phere, winery/vineyard tours and tastings, pairing experiences, and other
experiences based on the wine terroir or fusion of ingredients and cuisines.

Gaps in Wine Tourism Delivery

The notion of gaps between expectations and service delivery result-
ing in dissatisfaction has been a long-held proposition related to ser-
vice quality (Parasuraman, Zeithaml, & Berry, 1985). This concept has
also been a core tenet of expectancy theory suggesting the potential for
expectation negative disconfirmation leading to dissatisfaction, meet-
ing expectations leading to neither satisfied nor dissatisfied, and positive
disconfirmation leading to satisfaction (Pizam & Milman, 1993). This
does not fully align with other theories such as Kano’s model of quali-
ty-satisfaction proposing that different attributes may lead to linear and
nonlinear relationships that could be described as dis-satisfiers (must be),
satisfiers (linear), and delighters (wow factors) (Kano, Seraku, Takahashi,
456 R. J. HARRINGTON ET AL.

& Tsuji, 1984; Rust, Zahorik, & Keiningham, 1996). While some
connection appears likely between prior expectations and satisfaction
­
level, many researchers in tourism have been critical of earlier models
and methods for assessing these relationships (Mathe-Soulek, Slevitch,
& Dallinger, 2015; Mikulić & Prebežac, 2016).
In this study, wine tourism products were generally perceived as
exceeding prior expectations and wine tourism services were about equal
to prior expectations. This relationship raises the question of a purely
linear expectancy-satisfaction relationship and the potential for a new
framework that incorporates concepts from earlier models of service
quality gaps, expectancy relationships, and categories of attributes (or
bundles) impacting satisfaction level.
For the South African study, about 10% of the respondents that con-
tributed qualitative information on their wine tourism experience pro-
vided items that needed improvement (representing gaps between
expectations and outcomes). 50% of these items were related to wine
tourism services or systems and included things such as service compe-
tencies, friendliness, knowledge, and motivation. About 25% of these
improvement items were related to wine tourism products and included
product variety (vegetarian options, cheese variety) and product qual-
ity (i.e., sweetness level in desserts). Finally, 25% of items were related
to wine tourism experience elements (such as more wine hiking tours,
longer tasting room hours). These gaps were likely to impact the rela-
tionship between quality perceptions and overall satisfaction. Wine
regions should assess expectations of wine tourists and level of quality
in their region; if deemed unsatisfactory based on expectation levels,
regional training programs are likely to be a good investment to attract
and retain wine tourists. Future research should further assess this rela-
tionship and develop theory bringing together earlier models adapted to
the wine tourism context.

Converting Satisfaction to Memorable Enticements

and Other Positive Behaviors
Earlier studies have supported the finding that the connection between
consumer satisfaction and consumer loyalty is not directly linear and,
instead, may depend on satisfaction level (Bowen & Chen, 2001).
Additionally, there are likely to be other consumer outcomes or behav-
iors that are critical for tourism destination success, including positive
 28 WINE TOURISM IN SOUTH AFRICA: VALUED ATTRIBUTES … 457

word of mouth, social media use, recommendations, etc. In the case of

wine tourism, positive outcomes may also include the purchase of wine
or other authentic products in the tourists’ home country.
As shown in Fig. 28.1, we posit that this link is likely to be mediated
by whether or not the experience transitions to a “memorable entice-
ment.” This concept evolves from the service-dominant logic (Chathoth,
Ungson, Harrington, & Chan, 2016; Vargo & Lusch, 2004), experi-
ence economy (Heinonen, Strandvik, & Voima, 2013; Pine & Gilmore,
1999), the customer-dominant logic (Grönroos & Voima, 2013)
literatures to a notion of memory-dominant logic. While these refer-
ences provide good analysis of differences between these concepts, in
a nutshell, we propose the following evolution of logic for the tourism
environment.
Product-dominant logic is based primarily on a transaction process
or value-in-exchange; service-dominant logic suggested that for ser-
vice environments, there is a value-in-use or the service process is part
of the value that consumers receive. Customer-dominant logic took this
notion to the next step suggesting a value-in-experience concept. Finally,
implicit in our model is the proposition that memorable enticements
are needed to create value-in-remembering to take place (Harrington,
Hammond, Ottenbacher, Chathoth, & Marlowe, 2019). And this move-
ment from an experience to a memory is required to increase the likeli-
hood for consumer behaviors of return visits, positive word of mouth,
social media posts, or at home purchases to take place. Figure 28.2 pro-
vides a continuum of consumer states that move from a good logic to
experience logic to a memory logic of wine tourism strategy.
In this figure, the consumer state evolves from a transacting self, to an
experiencing self, to a remembering self. While these are not conceived as
mutually exclusive, they represent three main logics to wine tourism out-
comes. First, if wine tourism products are viewed primarily as mere prod-
ucts, the primary impact will be transactional in nature (the “transacting

Transacng Self

Experiencing Self

Remembering Self

Fig. 28.2 Evolutionary consumer states impacting behaviors

458 R. J. HARRINGTON ET AL.

self”) with some experience impact based on the sensory nature of wine or
other associated products. Second, wine tourism services and systems are
likely to move the consumer state to the “experiencing self” with the addi-
tion of attributes such as quality hospitality and activities that include the
4-Es (entertainment, aesthetics, education, or escapism). We posit that, to
transition to the “remembering self” state, wine tourism experiences must
meet three main criteria: (1) The experiences must be perceived as authen-
tic and unique to the destination, (2) the experiences or their quality must
be unanticipated (i.e., becoming wow factors), and (3) for desired con-
sumer behaviors, these delighter experiences must be valued (important)
to result in memorable enticements. In the current study, the authentic/
unique experiences or products, quality that exceeded expectations, and rel-
atively high importance of wine tourism attributes appeared to be tied to
these attributes being considered memorable enticements for return visits.
Practical implications for wine tourist destinations are to shift from a
transactional or even an experience-based mind-set to one of constantly
asking the following questions in order to ensure memorable entice-
ments—Are the regional products and services presented in a way that
reflects an understanding of their authentic and unique nature? Is the
quality level higher than expectations and unanticipated? Do we target
and attract visitors that place high importance on our activities, goods,
and services? And, can we communicate the value to visitors as a pull
strategy?

Conclusions and Implications for Future Research

In general, wine and gastronomic attributes were deemed as moderately
important with moderately high expectations for South African tour-
ists. This appears to be consistent with other studies on wine regions
and how impactful these attributes are in driving destination visit deci-
sions. With that said, our findings suggest that wine-specific activities,
authentic food, and related activities appear to have the greatest poten-
tial for increasing the memorability of the experience, serve as impor-
tant enticements for return visits, and provide opportunities for visitors
to serve as social media apostles (e.g., sharing positive images and
memories on social media). Our conclusions based on key results are
that wine tourism activities and local gastronomic experiences ranked
slightly lower on pre-visit importance and pre-visit expectations—thus,
 28 WINE TOURISM IN SOUTH AFRICA: VALUED ATTRIBUTES … 459

when these result in high quality and unique offerings in a wine region,
they are more likely to be perceived as delighter attributes or wows.
Conversely, hospitality service aspects were generally ranked higher in
expectations and resulted in about the same level of perceived quality by
tourists. This suggests a couple of important implications. These rela-
tionships appear to suggest that hospitality or service quality is more
likely to be “must be” attributes rather than “delighters” (in general),
whereas, authentic and quality experiences that include wine and food
activities are more likely to be considered “delighters” and memorable.
Therefore, successful wine regions need to ensure hospitality services
are at an acceptable level of quality to achieve overall regional success
with greater overall satisfaction, enticing return visits and positive word
of mouth. By taking a regional view of hospitality training, this is likely
to also ensure the success of individual wineries and other tourism ser-
vice providers. Also, wine regions that facilitate a variety of authentic
wine and food activities are more likely to entice return visits and posi-
tive word of mouth.
Future research should further test the statistical significance of these
proposed relationships. Specifically, wine tourism researchers could view
these questions using a demand-side approach to wine tourism strategy.
In other words, study how destination leadership might look downstream
from focal firms or the region to markets and consumers to explain stra-
tegic choices and their impact. For example, how do key wine tourism
strategic choices impact construction or deconstruction of positive mem-
ories for wine tourists? Given the growth of wine consumption and wine
tourism, answers to these questions in the wine tourism context are likely
to provide valuable insights for both researchers and practitioners.

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 CHAPTER 29

Wine Tourism Destinations Across

the Life-Cycle: A Comparison
of Northern Greece, Peloponnese and Crete

Maria Alebaki and Alex Koutsouris

Introduction
Apart from being viewed as an entrepreneurial opportunity for winemakers,
wine tourism is also considered to represent a vehicle of employment gen-
eration and socio-economic development of less favoured peripheral regions
(Getz, 2000; Hall, 2005). Within this territorial perspective, Getz and Brown
(2006, p. 79) define wine tourism destinations as “regions which base some
or all of their appeal on wineries and wine-related benefits”. Tomljenović and
Getz (2009) further point out that as these elements (i.e. wine, vineyards,
wineries, and related attractions or events) evolve, so will the destination.

M. Alebaki (*)
Agricultural Economics Research Institute (AGRERI),
Hellenic Agricultural Organization DIMITRA, Athens, Greece
e-mail: mariale@agreri.gr
A. Koutsouris
Department of Agricultural Economics & Rural Development,
Agricultural University of Athens, Athens, Greece
e-mail: koutsouris@aua.gr

© The Author(s) 2019 463

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_29
464 M. ALEBAKI AND A. KOUTSOURIS

Previous studies have attempted to connect and interpret both entrepre-

neurial and regional development aspects of wine tourism by employing the
theoretical concept of “Tourism Destination Life-Cycle”. Despite the signif-
icant work already carried out over the past two decades (Deery, O’Mahony,
& Moors, 2012; Dodd & Beverland, 2001; Skinner, 2000; Tomljenovid
& Getz, 2009), empirical evidence remains sparse and derives exclusively
from research conducted in New World countries. To fill this gap, the cur-
rent chapter aims to examine the development of Greece’s wine tourism,
by employing the Theory of Tourism Destination Life-Cycle. Specifically,
the objective of this study is twofold: a. to present a critical overview of the
country’s wine tourism evolution, current state and prospects; and b. to
provide a cross-regional comparison of three selected wine tourism destina-
tions—namely, Northern Greece, Peloponnese and Crete—on the basis of
Life-Cycle stage; spatial; and network development characteristics.
Following this introductory part, the present chapter is divided into four
sections. Section “Tourism Destination Life-Cycle” presents a literature
review of the main contributions to the application of Tourism Destination
Life-Cycle Theory in wine tourism research. Section “Methodology”
describes the methodological design and tools used in this study. Empirical
results and conclusions are discussed in Sections “Wine Tourism in Greece:
An Evolutionary Perspective” and “Cross-Regional Comparison of Wine
Tourism Destinations”, respectively.

Tourism Destination Life-Cycle Theory

and Wine Tourism

The concept of “Life-Cycle” (LC) is not new in the social sciences (see
O’Rand & Krecker, 1990 for a review). Expanding previous observations
(Christaller, 1963; Gilbert, 1939), Butler (1980) was the first who intro-
duced the LC idea into the field of tourism (Getz, 1992), suggesting
that destinations go through a pattern or cycle of evolution which com-
prises a series of stages, namely, Discovery, Development, Consolidation,
Stagnation, Decline and—possibly—Rejuvenation. Almost four decades
later, Butler’s (1980) model is still being cited as authoritative by tour-
ism scholars (Butler, 2014).
In the wine tourism research area, the LC paradigm has firstly adopted
by Macionis (1996), who proposed a four-stage model to describe the
development of Australian wine destinations. Additional works followed
suit, contributing to the same discussion. Due to space limitations, a
summary description of each of these studies is provided in Table 29.1.
Table 29.1 Application of Life-Cycle Theory to wine tourism—main contributions

Author(s) Contribution Method/results

Macionis (1996) – Introduced the LC paradigm in wine tourism 4 stages of wine tourism development, namely:
research 1. Incipient, 2. Development, 3. Mature, 4. Declining
– Explored the development of wine tourism in
Australia
Skinner (2000) – Applied Butler’s (1980) model to wine tour- 6 stages of wine tourism development, namely:
ism destinations 1. Exploration; 2. Involvement; 3. Development;
– Explored the Napa wine region 4. Consolidation; 5. Stagnation (alternative—
Cooperation); 6. Decline (alternative—Conservation)
Beverland and Lockshin – Proposed a Winery LC Model for small New – Multiple case study method
(2001) Zealand Wineries (4 stages) – 4 stages of wine tourism development, namely:
1. Pre-birth; 2. Start-up; 3. Expansion; 4. Growth
Dodd and Beverland (2001) Proposed a Winery LC Model – Grounded theory approach; Case histories of winer-
ies in Texas (USA), Australia and New Zealand
– 5 stages of wine tourism development, namely:
1. Winery establishment; 2. Winery recognition;
3. Regional prominence; 4. Maturity; 5. Tourism decline
Getz and Brown (2006) – Developed a framework for comparisons – Regional case study, survey of 23 wineries in
and benchmarking between wine tourism Canada’s Okanagan Valley, British Columbia
destinations
Poitras and Getz (2006) – Linked sustainability and the LC concept – Case study method in Oliver (British Columbia,
– Developed a framework for strategic planning Canada), involving multi-stakeholder input; SWOT
for sustainable wine tourism at the commu- analysis
nity level – “Wine tourism in Oliver is possibly reaching a
mature stage”
29 WINE TOURISM DESTINATIONS ACROSS THE LIFE-CYCLE …

(continued)
465
Table 29.1 (continued)
466

Author(s) Contribution Method/results

Bojnec, Jurinčič, and – Examined the role of public administration – Six different stages of wine tourism business
Tomljenović (2007) and experts in the framework of LC Theory development
– Different role of experts and public administration
at each stage
Jurinčič and Bojnec (2009) – Explored the current state of wine tour- – Survey of 20 wineries with the use of a structured
ism in Goriška Brda (Slovenia) using a LC questionnaire
perspective – Defined each winery’s stage of development and
owners’ perceptions
Tomljenović and Getz – Developed a hypothetical Wine Tourism – Multiple methods, cross-scale analysis
(2009) Destination LC Model – 4 stages of wine tourism development, namely:
– Set indicators for the comparison of the 1. Incipient; 2. Developing; 3. Maturity; 4.
M. ALEBAKI AND A. KOUTSOURIS

Okanagan Valley and two Croatian wine Declining

regions – Different characteristics and strategies at each stage
Gazulla, Raugei, and – Provided a LC Analysis of wine (tourism) – Survey with wine producers; farmers; and
Fullana-i-Palmer (2010) industry in La Rioja (Spain) oenologists
– Use of indicators to assess environmental impacts
– Four stages identified, namely:
1. Grapes cultivation (viticulture);
2. Winemaking and bottling;
3. Distribution and sales;
4. Disposal of empty bottles
Carmichael and Senese – Proposed a three-stage model for wine tour- – 1. Winery independence; 2. Wine tourism develop-
(2014) ism destinations ment; 3. Wine tourism integration

(continued)
Table 29.1 (continued)

Author(s) Contribution Method/results

Deery et al. (2012) – Focused on the role of networks in – Qualitative approach (interviews with key
understanding the stages of wine tourism stakeholders)
development – 1. Emerging;
– Proposed a LC typology for wine regions 2. Growing;
– Set indicators for comparison between 3. Mature;
Australian wine regions 4. Rejuvenating
Boatto, Galletto, Barisan, – Identified the development stage of – Survey of 130 Prosecco wineries, Cluster Analysis,
and Bianchin (2013) Conegliano Valdobbiadene wine area (Italy) Multiple Linear Regression
– “The region is at a take-off stage”;
4 types of wineries
Alebaki, Iakovidou, and – Explored the current state of wine tourism in – Census questionnaire sent to 144 wineries
Menexes (2015) Northern Greece – Principal Component Analysis identified critical
success factors
Fereira and Hunter (2017) – Provided a geographical analysis of wine tour- – Supply-side analysis of wineries, tourism routes and
ism in South Africa wine tourism regions
– Identified spatial constructs in wine destina- – “The Stellenbosch Wine Region is in its mature LC
tion development phase”
– Positioned several wine regions in LC stages

Source Authors’ compilation

29 WINE TOURISM DESTINATIONS ACROSS THE LIFE-CYCLE …
467
468 M. ALEBAKI AND A. KOUTSOURIS

Methodology
To meet the objectives outlined in the introduction of this chapter, we
employed a qualitative research design, which is more appropriate in
exploratory studies that need a “deeper description and explanation of a
multifaceted phenomenon” (Vo Thanh & Kirova, 2018). Desk-based lit-
erature review provided the theoretical framework of our study, with the
collection of primary data involving the following steps.
Firstly, we conducted 39 personal, in-depth interviews with a
diverse group of key stakeholders and national experts of wine tour-
ism, in an attempt to explore their perceptions regarding the history
of Greece’s wine tourism and regional/local networks. Interviews var-
ied in length between 20 minutes and 2.5 hours and were all mod-
erated by the first author, during a five-month period (December
2014–April 2015). Conversations used a semi-structured guide of six
open-ended questions; they were digital-recorded, transcribed and
analysed thematically, based on a Grounded Theory approach. To
ensure anonymity, participants were identified with the letter “R” for
respondent and a number (i.e. R1, R2, R3…, R39) according to the
order of interview.
To supplement data collected by fieldwork, a variety of secondary
sources was also used, including companies’ websites; documents and
databases provided by Regional Winemakers’ Associations as well as the
Greek Ministry of Rural Development and Food. This process enabled
us to generate rich contextual information within and across the case
studies and compile each region’s profile. It is important to note that
fieldwork undertaken for this publication has been part of a larger pro-
ject,1 which aimed at investigating the resilience of Greece’s wine tour-
ism. The latter has been viewed from both a Macro-(regional) and a
Micro-(winery) perspective (i.e. General/Specified Resilience), including
a cross-regional survey of wineries in Northern Greece, Peloponnese and
Crete, to examine the current state of wine tourism in the three selected
areas.

1 The project was funded under the Action “Research & Technology Development

Innovation Projects”-AgroETAK, MIS453350, in the framework of the Operational

Program “Human Resources Development”. It was co-funded by the European Social
Fund through the National Strategic Reference Framework (Research Funding Program
2007–2013), coordinated by the Hellenic Agricultural Organization DEMETER.
 29 WINE TOURISM DESTINATIONS ACROSS THE LIFE-CYCLE … 469

Wine Tourism in Greece:

An Evolutionary Perspective
Considering the country’s long tradition in viticulture and winemaking
(Boulay, 2015), wine tourism is a quite recent phenomenon. A primary
driver behind this uneven progress has been articulated by Alebaki and
Iakovidou (2010: 17): “for many decades, the Greek tourism product was
considered to be typically Mediterranean, concentrated on the islands as well
as along the coastal strip, highly seasonal and mainly dependent on organ-
ized mass tourism”. Indeed, during the 1960s and 1970s, only a few
landmark wineries have gained visitor attention, due to either their loca-
tion in insular tourism destinations or their unique architecture.
Since 1990, rural tourism has emerged in Greece as a vehicle of eco-
nomic growth for less developed areas. Within this framework, wine
tourism has mostly been triggered by bottom-up, collective initiatives,
which emerged at a regional level, and were supported by both private
and EU funding. The first of these ventures was a non-profit, non-stock
corporation founded in 1993 by 13 wine producers of the Macedonia
region. In 2002, the network was renamed as “Wine Producers
Association of the Northern Greece Vineyard” (Greek abbreviation:
ENOABE), since several wineries from Epirus, Thessaly and Thrace had
gradually joined this initiative. Apart from its geographical expansion,
ENOABE was extended even further (in 2008) to include other than
wineries “cooperating” members (i.e. restaurants and hotels). Today, the
Association consists of 25 wine producers (owning 28 wineries) and 58
associated companies.2
ENOABE has served as an example of partnership, inspiring
other similar efforts across Greece. Since the late 1990s, five regional
Associations of wine producers were established, while, over the last
decade, various local networks have also been formed (see Table 29.2).
Of them, it is worth mentioning that the Wine Producers Association
of the Peloponnese Vineyard (ENOAP) includes four wineries of the
island of Kefalonia as well as one winery from the region of Attica. As
far as Crete is concerned, despite the existence of two distinct networks
(in the western and eastern part of the island), there is a high degree of

2 For more details on the history, objectives and activities of ENOABE, see Alebaki and

Iakovidou (2010).
Table 29.2 Collective actions towards the development of Greece’s wine tourism
470

Year Region Foundation members Members (2017) Wine routes

Northern Greece
1993 Wine Producers Association of the Northern Greece 13 25 8
Vineyard
2014 Association of Winemakers of Naoussa 19 20 –
2015 Association of Winemakers of Drama 6 6 –
2008 Amyndeon Oenos 7 10 –
Peloponnese
1998 Wine Producers Association of the Peloponnese Vineyard 19 57 7
2011 Association of Winemakers of Nemea 11 37
Attica
M. ALEBAKI AND A. KOUTSOURIS

1999 Attican Vineyards Wine Producers Association 16 39 –

2014 Wines of Athens 5 5 –
Central Greece
2008 Wine Producers Association of the Central Greece Vineyard 24 43 12
Aegean Islands
2009 Association of Aegean Wine Producers and Viticulturists 21 33 11
2010 Association of Wine Producers of Santorini 8 8 –
Crete
2006 Winemakers Association of Heraklion and Lasithi 16 25 8
Prefectures
2009 Winemakers Association of Chania and Rethymno 11 8 2
Prefectures

Source Personal communication with representatives of Wine Producers’ Associations

 29 WINE TOURISM DESTINATIONS ACROSS THE LIFE-CYCLE … 471

cooperation and coordination between the two entities, both of which

are promoted under the brand name “Wines of Crete”.
According to a recent record compiled by Alebaki (2017), today
more than 240 of the approximately 1000 active wineries across
Greece are engaged in wine tourism. At national level, coordination
between Regional Wine Producers’ Associations and the National Inter-
Professional Organization of Wine and Vine (EDOAO3) led to the for-
mation—in late 2015—of the “Wine Tourism Committee”, i.e. a working
group that comprises one representative of each Regional Association;
administrative staff of EDOAO; and national experts. Examples of actions
already undertaken include the joint organizing and promotion of wine
tourism events; the release of a “Wine Events Calendar” and communica-
tion with National and Regional Authorities towards the establishment of
a certification label for open to the public wineries.
From a geographical perspective, the Greek vineyard is composed of
the following wine regions: Macedonia; Epirus; Thessaly; Central Greece
(including Attica); the Ionian Islands; the Peloponnese; the Aegean
Islands; and Crete (Lazarakis, 2016). Considering the features of each
territory, during his interview, R1 stressed the need for a differentiation
and specialization among the various destinations:

Across regions, Greece has so many particularities, and so rich cultural ele-
ments; myths; stories; fairy tales; landscapes; all of which do not fit under
a uniform framework. There must be a relative freedom so that each place
finds its own developmental model. If appropriate guidelines and support
are given, I am sure that each region will manage to find its distinct model.

The next section focuses on Northern Greece,4 Peloponnese and Crete,

aiming to discuss their distinct differences, as derived by the results of this
study.

3 EDOAO was founded in 2000, out of a merger between the Central Union of

Wine Producing Cooperative Organizations of Greece (KEOSOE) and the Greek Wine
Association (SEO), which represent the central organizations of the wine sector in Greece
(Papadopoulos, 2010).
4 The “Northern Greek Vineyard” includes the geographical area that extends from the

Ionian Sea in the West up to the River Evros of Thrace eastwards, and from the northern bor-
ders of the country to Mount Olympus in the South, including the wine regions of Macedonia;
Epirus; Thrace and Rapsani from Thessaly (Wine Roads of Northern Greece, 2017).
472 M. ALEBAKI AND A. KOUTSOURIS

Cross-Regional Comparison of Wine Tourism

Destinations
According to Johnston (2006), comparative case research can largely be
informed by boundary analysis, which addresses the problems: “what
is the region?” and “what type of region is it?” Thus, and in line with
Tomljenović and Getz’s (2009) approach, Table 29.3 presents a compar-
ative summary of each region using specific indicators/points of com-
parison, i.e. location; wine production; industry characteristics; level of
tourism infrastructure; alliances; and wine route specifics.
From a Macro-(i.e. regional) point of view, all three areas possess a
variety of pull factors for attracting wine lovers and meet the basic pre-
requisites needed to become successful wine tourism destinations. These
concern, for instance, the “wine country appeal” (Getz, Dowling, Carlsen,
& Anderson 1999) and the “core destination appeal” (Getz & Brown,
2006). Reporting on a compilation of both the responses given by the par-
ticipants as well as the supplementary data (see Fig. 29.1 and Table 29.3),
a brief description of each region is presented in the following paragraphs.

Northern Greece
Although Peloponnese excels in terms of both number of author-
ized wine enterprises and number of wineries engaged in Regional
Associations, Northern Greece seems to achieve a larger critical mass of
wineries with well-established facilities for visitors. As R2 stated:

Northern Greece possesses several impressive wineries; you may live a

self-contained experience in the winery. Further, the area has several res-
taurants with fairly priced food and very good wine lists.

Nevertheless, R1 underlined that “one can find individual wineries with

a very high level of wine tourism infrastructure in Peloponnese, while, in
Crete, wineries with no facilities have managed to develop infrastructure
for visitors within a few years”.
With respect to networking and alliances, “Northern Greece was
the pioneer that first put wine tourism into action” (R20), represent-
ing nowadays “the best wine tourism example Greece can display nation-
wide” (R10), and being “by far the most well organized” (R2). This is
largely explained by the long history of Northern Greece’s Association
compared to other networks, as well as by the fact that ENOABE “has
Table 29.3 Regional wine tourism development: comparison of Northern Greece, Peloponnese and Crete

Points of comparison Northern Greece Peloponnese Crete

(Macro-(i.e. regional) perspective)
Location Incorporates both mass Incorporates coast line tourism Greece’s largest and most
(Chalkidiki) and more remote/ destinations and historical her- southern island, attracting 2
less developed tourism des- itage. Much of the peninsula is million foreign visitors on an
tinations (Amyndeon). The mountainous, with its northern annual basis. Well-established
majority of wineries is concen- part being close to Athens. The tourism industry; the majority
trated in the Region of Central majority of wineries is concen- of wineries is concentrated in
Macedonia, around Thessaloniki trated in the wine region of Heraklion Prefecture
which is the second-largest city Nemea (Korinthia Prefecture)
in Greece
Total land area 53,127 km2a (40.3% of the total 15,490 km2 (11.7% of the total 8335 km2 (6.3% of the total
Greek territory) Greek territory) Greek territory)
Total vineyard area 63,326.2 ha 14,395.2 ha (22.7% of total in 22,190 ha (32.0% of total) 4200 ha (6.6% of total)
(2015) country)
Total wine production 787,747 HL (30.5% of total) 824,600 HL (32.0% of total) 300,000 HL (11.6% of total)
2,580.6 HL (2016)
Main grape wine varieties Xinomavro (in Macedonia), Agiorgitiko, Roditis Liatiko
Debina (in Epirus), Muscat de
Hamburg (in Thessaly)
PDOb wines 8 10 5
PGI wines 39 24 1
Authorized wine enterprises 355 (Ioannina from Region 407 75
(2017) of Epirus and Larisa from the
Region of Thessaly included)
29 WINE TOURISM DESTINATIONS ACROSS THE LIFE-CYCLE …

(continued)
473
Table 29.3 (continued)
474

Points of comparison Northern Greece Peloponnese Crete

Alliances and networking One regional (ENOABE) One regional (ENOAP) and Two Associations (in west and
and three local Associations one local Association (Nemea) east part of the island), jointly
(in Drama, Naoussa and marketed under the brand
Amyndeon) “Wines of Crete”
Members in Regional (28 wineries, 25 entrepreneurs) 57 33
Association (2017)
Hospitality infrastructure 162.260 (number of beds 37.809 (number of beds in 170.756 (number of beds in
in 2016) (20.67% of total in 2016) (4.82% in country) 2016) (21.76% in country)
country, included Epirus and
Thessaly)
Wine routes developed 8 wine routes connecting win- 7 proposed wine routes (in a 10 wine routes, 2 in
M. ALEBAKI AND A. KOUTSOURIS

eries, associate enterprises and recently conducted strategic Chania-Rethymno and 8 in

sites of interest (hotel/guest business plan) Heraklion-Lasithi
houses; restaurants; local pro-
ducers and outdoor activities)
Restaurants in wine routes 24 41 (and 7 wine shops) 42 certified across Crete
(2010), 14 cooperating enter-
prises during the Open Doors
event (2017)
Special events and festivals Open Cellar Doors (since 2004) Peloponnese Wine Festival (in Oenotika (annual wine tasting
staged Vorina (annual wine tasting Athens) event with parallel activities
event held in Thessaloniki) Great Days of Nemea; held in both Heraklion and
European Wine Tourism Day Oenoxenia (in Egialia) Chania)
(since 2013)
(continued)
Table 29.3 (continued)

Points of comparison Northern Greece Peloponnese Crete

Since 2016, all three Regional Associations jointly organize two national events on an annual basis,
namely:
Open Cellar Doors (May); European Wine Tourism Day (November)
Visitation Open Cellar Doors No data available Open Cellar Doors
(Number of visitors in special 2012: 7951; 2017: 11,058 2014: 1200; 2017: 5000
events) Vorina in Thessaloniki Oenotika (total number in
2009: 1600; 2017: 3500 Crete)
European Wine Tourism Day 2014: 3500; 2017; 5000
2013: 1120; 2016: 5300 European Wine Tourism Day
2016: 1165
aOfwhich: Macedonia: 34,178 km2; Thrace: 8578 km²; Larisa: 5381 km²; Ioannina: 4990 km²
bPDO: Protected Designation of Origin/PGI: Protected Geographical Indication
Data Greek Ministry of Rural Development and Food; Hellenic Chamber of Hotels; Tourism Generis (2017), Hurst et al. (2000), Matzarakis and Nastos
(2011), Wine Plus (2017), Winemakers’ Associations; Konsolas, Papadaskalopoulos, and Plaskovitis (2002), and Peloponnese Wine Roads (2017)
29 WINE TOURISM DESTINATIONS ACROSS THE LIFE-CYCLE …
475
476 M. ALEBAKI AND A. KOUTSOURIS

11 7 Northern
15 28 21 8 13 355
12 Greece
18 85
2 28
17 12 27
2
8
41

55
169
31
32 33
Peloponnese 407 44
43

21
6 44 4 Crete 75

Fig. 29.1 Spatial distribution of authorized wine enterprises within the three
selected regions (Data Greek Ministry of Rural Development and Food, October
2017; authors’ compilation)

invested in setting up an office, employing a full-time director and execu-

tives who run and support various activities” (R14).
On a more cautionary note, however, R5 underlines: “Northern
Greece has been a locomotive, an example to be imitated, but I think it
has lost some steam”. Further, R2 and R10 identified the long distances
between vineyards as a main weakness of Northern Greece, with R2
arguing that: “In general, few areas of Greece provide the opportunity for
a road trip through the so-called sea-of-vineyards …From one pole of attrac-
tion to another, I have to cross something which is totally non-wine related”.
Another crucial point mentioned was the low critical mass of the
Regional Association: only 28 out of approximately 160 wineries in
Northern Greece are ENOABE members. R37 explained this discrep-
ancy as resulting from the strict preconditions of joining the Northern
Greek Association; “only wineries with proper wine tourism facilities can
 29 WINE TOURISM DESTINATIONS ACROSS THE LIFE-CYCLE … 477

become members of ENOABE”. However, R9 underlined “proper industry

representation” as a crucial factor for network development in general.

Peloponnese
Peloponnese includes the largest vineyard area in Greece, ranking first
in wine production nationwide. Moreover, it possesses the largest num-
ber of PDO wines, produced by several different vineyards (terroirs) (i.e.
Nemea, Mantineia, Aigialeia). This “provides a biodiversity value com-
pared to other regions with less indigenous varieties” (R18).
Located within a closed distance to Athens, Peloponnese constitutes a
well-rounded, all-year tourism destination, being ideal for those travelling
by passenger car (R1, R2). Yet, as R1 states: “a large part of the area’s tour-
ism potential remains unexploited”. In this respect, the overall low degree
of cooperation among the relevant stakeholders was repeatedly recognized
as a major constraint for the region’s development (R1; R5; R16; R18;
R31; R36). Several respondents (R2; R3; R4; R9; R13; R14; R18; R33)
have also mentioned the lack of accommodation and restaurants facilities in
specific sub-destinations within Peloponnese as a competitive disadvantage.
With reference to the Regional Association of Winemakers, R14
argued: “ENOAP is very active and organizes various activities, but it still
has way to go”. This “relative time delay” is also observed by R18:

When we established our Association, our priority was to solve other prob-
lems; Creating Wine Routes has not been our primary concern, because I felt
that most winemakers were occasionally engaged in wine tourism. In the first
instance, we mostly tried to organize the promotion of Peloponnesian wine.

R37 explained further:

ENOAP’s function is based on a totally different, albeit equally success-

ful model, compared to what exists in other networks; This means, no
operating costs; outsourcing events’ management to private firms; and
events that mainly occur in urban regions (i.e. wine exhibitions in Athens
and Thessaloniki) … Over the last years, ENOAP is increasingly receiving
financial support from the Regional Authority in order, for example, to
participate in international trade fairs.

Notably, since 2015, ENOAP has recruited executives in marketing and

social media to better organize wine tourism and to provide additional
support in promotion activities.
478 M. ALEBAKI AND A. KOUTSOURIS

Crete
Its remarkable natural, cultural and environmental resources have inev-
itably led the tourism industry to an enormous growth, establishing
Crete as a typical “4S” destination in the global map (Andriotis, 2006).
However, Andriotis (2006) points out that in Crete there is a develop-
ment gap between coastal/urban/north and hinterland/rural/south
areas. Quite recently, wine tourism has emerged among the various forms
of alternative tourism in Crete. Despite being the newest, the Cretan
Association is considered as “the fastest rising of the three networks” (R14).
According to R33 and R13, this may owe to factors such as:

Crete is a brand name that sells itself. (R5)

Apart from the tremendous number of tourists, which offers a huge poten-
tial for attracting winery visitors, Crete has adopted the way in which
Northern Greeks founded their Association, following their example. One
who is clever sees, observes and implements. (R33)
15 years ago, our comments for Cretan wines were not flattering. Now
they managed to produce wonderful wines, not by just blending foreign
varieties with indigenous ones. They made wines of regional character….
They have succeeded in promoting the Cretan vineyard, and -further-
more-, they seem to have developed a spirit of collaboration. (R13)

Several respondents noted wine producers’ socio-economic characteris-

tics as another reason behind this development:

The kids who are now -in their thirties- taking the reins are very good;
extrovert; I see things in the island moving forward. (R5)
Crete has begun making important steps; it is the region with the youngest
wine producers nationwide… They are also familiar with social media. (R14)

Other important assets of wine tourism in Crete include: the fact that the
island constitutes a distinct geographical entity (R28); the large number
of wineries and the beautiful landscape (R5); the variety of local products
(R2); and the financial support of the Regional Authority to the wine
sector (R1). The quality of the road infrastructure (R5) and the dis-
tance between wineries were mentioned as constraints to wine tourism
development:
 29 WINE TOURISM DESTINATIONS ACROSS THE LIFE-CYCLE … 479

You have to create an integrated experience. Nemea, Santorini and

Naoussa have achieved the critical mass … In Crete, only Peza [i.e. a wine
region in Heraklion] can provide this. (R10)

Conclusions
The current chapter sought to explore the trajectory of wine tourism
development in Greece, focusing on regional differentiations between
three primary destinations, namely, Northern Greece, Peloponnese and
Crete. Empirical findings indicate that, in their most part, wine tour-
ism initiatives have been “product- rather than demand-driven”, with
wine entrepreneurs serving as the main drivers (Tomljenović & Getz,
2009). From a Life-Cycle perspective, it can be argued that the first
stage of Greece’s wine tourism development (“Incipient wine tourism”,
see Macionis, 1996; Tomljenović & Getz, 2009) falls into the period
between the 1960s and the early 1990s. Notwithstanding the significant
steps since the foundation of ENOABE and the ventures that followed
suit, the country’s position can be considered as being at the “develop-
ing” or “growing” stage (see Deery et al., 2012; Tomljenović & Getz,
2009 respectively).
Regarding the situational analysis of the three selected destinations,
results reflect both similarities and differences between them. The lat-
ter derive from the particular features that form the context of each
case study, i.e. the environment, the history of wine and tourism indus-
try, general infrastructure and accessibility (see more indicators in Getz
& Brown, 2006). While the present chapter took some initial steps to
estimate the relative potential and progress of each region, further quan-
titative information would be beneficial to enrich the comparative frame-
work and to enable benchmarking at the micro-level.
Our findings highlight a range of strengths and weaknesses for each
of the three regions as wine tourism destinations, that could form the
basis for strategic planning. It is important to emphasize that, as revealed
in this study, the distinctiveness of places which may result in differences
in life-cycle stages among them should be considered by policy makers
and industry stakeholders when setting priorities at national level. Within
this scope, a holistic (systems) approach (see Alebaki & Ioannides, 2018)
to wine tourism management that respects the carrying capacity of each
destination is deemed particularly essential.
480 M. ALEBAKI AND A. KOUTSOURIS

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 CHAPTER 30

Wine Tourism in an Emerging Destination:

The Côte Chalonnaise, Burgundy

Joanna Fountain and Laurence Cogan-Marie

Introduction
There has been a growing focus on wine tourism developments in the
wine regions of Europe over the past few years. These developments
reflect both a geographical shift in academic interest and the growing
importance of wine tourism to the wine regions of these countries (e.g.
Alonso, Bressan, O’Shea, & Krajsic, 2015; Corigliano, 2016; Correia
& Brito, 2016; Gonçalves & Maduro, 2016; Marzo-Navarro & Pedraja-
Iglesias, 2012; Molina, Gómez, González-Díaz, & Esteban, 2015;
Presenza, Minguzzi, & Petrillo, 2010). While tourism has not been
a central feature of the European wine industry traditionally, it is seen
increasingly as a way “to market the wine product, as well as sustain and
preserve traditional wine production and wine culture, and importantly,
potentially to create more employment” (Alonso et al., 2015, p. 66).

J. Fountain (*)
Lincoln University, Lincoln, New Zealand
e-mail: Joanna.Fountain@lincoln.ac.nz
L. Cogan-Marie
Burgundy School of Business, Dijon, France
e-mail: laurence-cogan-marie@bsb-education.com

© The Author(s) 2019 483

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_30
484 J. FOUNTAIN AND L. COGAN-MARIE

One region which is emerging as a wine tourism destination is the

Côte Chalonnaise, in Burgundy, France. The wines of Burgundy are
globally renowned, but in general, wines from this subregion are consid-
ered somewhat lean and “rustic”, being described as tasting “like coun-
try cousins of those from the Côte d’Or” (Robinson, 2000, p. 145). In
fact, for many years the region was “regarded as a sort of addendum to
the adjacent Côte de Beaune” and lacked any strong identity (Lawther,
2003). When wine tourists come to Burgundy, it is primarily to Beaune
they head, a town whose streets are lined with negociants [wine mer-
chants] and wine shops making it “the wine capital” in the region. While
the more adventurous wine connoisseurs may head into the countryside
to visit the vignerons [winemakers] of Côte de Nuits to the north, Côte
Chalonnaise has remained somewhat undiscovered. That is beginning
to change, as the wine producers and other wine stakeholders in Côte
Chalonnaise look to wine tourism as a source of publicity to strengthen
the region’s identity and as a distribution channel for their wine, at a
time when wine and tourist markets are shifting.
This growing focus on wine tourism in Côte Chalonnaise reflects
broader global patterns of rural restructuring, whereby exogenous forces
of globalisation, commodification, and regulatory processes have inter-
sected in rural regions, requiring diversification and transformation of
the economic base beyond traditional agriculture or wine production
(Perkins, Mackay, & Espiner, 2015). This process is creating new rural
landscapes in what has become a “global countryside” (Woods, 2007).
While early analysis of the changing composition of regional econo-
mies and landscapes took a largely structural orientation by focusing on
the way in which global forces were impacting specific regions, more
recent approaches have shifted the attention to a greater appreciation of
active engagement and negotiations of local residents and stakeholders,
who “have the capacity to influence and shape globalisation outcomes”
(Woods, 2014, p. 32).
This relational perceptive on place is of considerable relevance in the
analysis of wine tourism destinations and the key stakeholders within
them. Given that specific localities and regions are differentially posi-
tioned in relation to these exogenous economic, political, social and
cultural forces, and the stakeholders within these regions are also situ-
ated in specific cultural, historical and economic contexts, this approach
means recognising that responses to global forces will take unique forms
in different regions (Massey, 1994; Woods, 2011). There is little doubt
 30 WINE TOURISM IN AN EMERGING DESTINATION … 485

that wine tourism is in part a response to the changing economic realities

in rural regions, the globalisation of the wine industry and the ongoing
expansion and reach of mass tourism. At the same time, wine regions are
each uniquely positioned in relation to these different forces due to their
place specificity. This is most obviously encapsulated in the concept of
terroir, which relates to a region’s physiology, soil, topography, climate
and methods of grape growing and winemaking and crucially shapes
the wine produced (Ballantyne, 2011; Spielmann & Gelinas-Chebat,
2012). The human dimension of terroir is critical to its expression, so
that “savoir-faire, knowledge, traditions, and the social characteris-
tics” of a region are all evoked in a wine’s terroir and are manifest in
the cultural practices of regions (Spielmann & Gelinas-Chebat, 2012,
p. 255; see also Charters, Spielmann, & Babin, 2017; Mitchell, Charters,
& Albrecht, 2012; Vaudour, 2002). Terroir is a dominant source of place
branding of wine also, particularly in the Old World, and underpins the
systems of protected designation of origin (PDO), which, while valuable
for wine marketing, may restrict the ability of wine producers to adapt to
changing environmental or market conditions (Charters, 2006).
This nexus of exogenous and endogenous relations provides the con-
text in which wine stakeholders negotiate their wine tourism options
and responses, and highlights why the form wine tourism takes, and
the perceptions and expectations of local wine stakeholders, will differ
both between- and within- regions. Relatively few wine tourism s­tudies
to date have explored the perceptions of wine stakeholders regarding
the role of wine tourism to their business and/or region, or their deci-
sion making around tourism development at the business or regional
level. Those that have found a range of motivations, and responses,
to wine tourism involvement. While much early research stressed the
potential economic benefits that wine tourism could bring in the form
of increased wine sales, brand awareness and loyalty, and diversified
income stream (Dodd, 1995), more recent studies have highlighted rea-
sons why wine producers may choose not to be involved in wine tour-
ism. Some of the reasons for ambivalence about wine tourism includes
a lack of time, labour, infrastructure or expertise (Alonso & Liu, 2012;
Fraser & Alonso, 2006; Hall & Mitchell, 2000), an existing and plenti-
ful market for all wine produced, or a range of alternative economic or
lifestyle priorities that may take precedence (Beverland, 1999; Dawson,
Fountain, & Cohen, 2011; Fraser & Alonso, 2006). This attitude seems
to be more prevalent in Europe, where formalised and regularly available
486 J. FOUNTAIN AND L. COGAN-MARIE

wine tourism experiences are a more recent addition to the wine industry
(e.g. Charters & Menival, 2011; Correia & Brito, 2016; Gonçalves &
Maduro, 2016; Koch, Martin, & Nash, 2013).
It is in this context that the current chapter presents an overview of
the wine tourism offerings and potential in the Côte Chalonnaise, a
somewhat peripheral wine region in Burgundy. In so doing, it presents
insights into some of the exogenous forces influencing the region and
explores how these, and local contingencies, are being negotiated by
wine stakeholders.

Study Context

The Wine of Côte Chalonnaise

The Côte Chalonnaise is a wine-producing region in the Saône-et-
Loire department of Burgundy. It is named after the market town of
Chalon-sur-Saône, situated beside the River Saône. The region is located
between the Côte de Beaune to the north and the Mâconnais to the
south. While situated in close proximity to Côte de Beaune, there is a
very clear distinction in wine production, terroir and winescape between
the regions. The vines of Beaune are planted along the limestone escarp-
ment of the central Côte d’Or, which dominates the winescape, whereas
the Côte Chalonnaise vineyards are more scattered, situated to maximise
the limestone soils, so that “vines [are] vying for space with woodland
grove, grazing pasture and fields of wheat and corn” (Lawther, 2003).
The grapes of the region are predominantly pinot noir and chardonnay
with some aligoté and gamay also grown in vineyards that spread over a
stretch 25 kilometres long and 7 kilometres wide (BIVB, 2017).
The wine produced in Côte Chalonnaise qualifies for the appellation
d’origine contrôlée (AOC) Bourgogne Côte Chalonnaise, although it is
often declassified to the generic Bourgogne AOC because of the higher
name recognition of the Burgundy regional brand. There are five vil-
lage-level AOCs in Côte Chalonnaise. They are from the north to the
south: Bouzeron, the only communal appellation for aligoté still wine;
Rully, which has 23 premier cru vineyards and is famous for its white
wine and sparkling wines; Mercurey, which is the largest volume pro-
ducer of the region—primarily red wine—and boasts 30 premier cru
vineyards; Givry, whose 17 premier crus also produce mostly red wines;
and Montagny, which produces only white wines and has 49 premier
 30 WINE TOURISM IN AN EMERGING DESTINATION … 487

crus. There are no grand cru classified vineyards in the region, mean-
ing Côte Chalonnaise wines will never achieve the prestige, or the prices,
obtained in the neighbouring Côte d’Or (Cassagnes, 2013).
Since the 1990s, the quality of the wine being produced in Côte
Chalonnaise has steadily improved, in part due to an influx of new invest-
ment in vineyards in the region by big producers and negociants from the
Côte d’Or, where land unaffordability is an issue. At the same time, and
in contrast to the Côte d’Or, a lack of the rigid traditions based on gen-
erations of winegrowing has seen a new breed of winemakers with formal
training at the Lycée Viticole de Beaune or exposure to wine production
overseas improve the quality of wines by applying new winemaking tech-
niques, including a careful vinification and lower yields in a bid to give
more weight, texture and style to their wines (Lawther, 2003).
These developments have not been without hurdles, however. Côte
Chalonnaise, alongside Côte de Beaune and vineyards in the Yonne, was
affected in April 2016 by a severe frost, resulting in damage to 10,000 ha
of vines throughout Burgundy (Hugue, 2016). These extreme weather
events are becoming a common occurrence in Burgundy, with hail and
frost resulting in very small crops in 2012 and 2013, putting signifi-
cant pressure on the cash flow of some producers. Many may need to
increase wine prices if they are to survive, which may pose a problem,
as the reputation—and demand—for Côte Chalonnaise wine is based on
its value for money, so substantial price rises would affect competitive-
ness (Lawther, 2003). Another way to improve cash flow is to diversify
income, and wine tourism becomes an option in this situation.

Wine Tourism in Côte Chalonnaise

There are a good number of reasons for tourists to visit the Côte
Chalonnaise, and latest figures show 10.3 million domestic and interna-
tional visitors came to the Saône-et-Loire region in 2013 (ADTPT71,
2013), although the number who participated in wine tourism is not
known. The iconic mediaeval forts of Château de Rully and Château de
Couches are the most well-known attractions in the region, but wine
tourism is increasing. The region has been included since 2009 as one
of six in Burgundy, and 36 nationally, with the accreditation “Vignobles
et Découvertes”. This national wine label, managed by Atout France, is
awarded to individual businesses within a region which supports wine
tourism, and includes attractions, information services, accommodation
488 J. FOUNTAIN AND L. COGAN-MARIE

and restaurants. To obtain accreditation, businesses have to meet ­certain

requirements around the welcome and experience provided (Atout
France, 2017a). The Côte Chalonnaise has 25 wine estates and cellars,
26 accommodation providers (mostly small chambre d’hôtes) and 16
restaurants thus accredited (Atout France, 2017b).
It is not all positive news, however, with another recent develop-
ment having the potential to reinforce the inferior and weaker image of
Côte Chalonnaise in the eyes of wine consumers and the tourism mar-
ket. On 4 July 2015, the “Climats de Bourgogne” were inscribed to the
UNESCO World Heritage List on the basis of unique cultural landscape.
This cultural landscape incorporates the vineyards and wine villages and
towns of the Côte d’Or as representing the “commercial dimension of
the production system” and the city of Dijon, where rests the historical
and contemporary political framework which gave rise to the “climats”
system (UNESCO, 2015). While this inscription is expected to result in
significant growth in market awareness and tourist interest in the region,
the UNESCO inscription applies only to the appellations in Côte d’Or,
further isolating the subregion of Côte Chalonnaise from its prestig-
ious neighbours. It is in this context that insights from wine stakehold-
ers regarding the development of wine tourism in Côte Chalonnaise are
presented.

Research Method
Three key data collection methods were used for this research, which
was conducted between 2014 and 2017. At the core of this project is
a series of thirty semi-structured interviews with key wine and tourism
stakeholders in the Côte d’Or and Côte Chalonnaise regions. Most of
the interviews were conducted in English, although some were fully,
or primarily, conducted in French. The majority of these interviews
were conducted in 2014–2015 with vignerons, negociants, tour guides
and representatives of tourism and/or wine organisations. While most
respondents were based in the Côte d’Or, many worked or lived in
Côte Chalonnaise and were able to provide insights and comparisons
between the regions. This was particularly the case with the represent-
atives of tourism and wine organisations and the many tour guides who
took tour groups to the region. Three interviews were specifically con-
ducted with wine producers in Côte Chalonnaise. All interviews were
recorded, with the permission of the participants, and were transcribed
 30 WINE TOURISM IN AN EMERGING DESTINATION … 489

(and those conducted in French were translated) and then analysed using
patterned thematic analysis. This involved identifying reoccurring ideas
or phrases in the transcripts and ordering them into themes based on
their underlying meanings. The themes from these interviews were sup-
plemented and informed by insights gained from participant observation
of wine tourism experiences in the region. The researchers undertook a
range of participant observations in Côte Chalonnaise, individually and
together, over an extended period of time. The participant observation
involved visiting wine and other tourism attractions, often in the role
of tourists. Extensive travel through the wine villages—independently
and on tours—aided our understanding of the winescape of the region.
During and following these visits we took notes of our key observa-
tions, and at times audio-recorded our discussions about what we had
observed to prompt our memories later on. In this way, we were able
to develop a richly textured impression about our experiences and the
issues being faced in the region (Kneafsey, 2001). These first two meth-
ods were supplemented by documentary analysis of marketing collateral
for the region, including brochures and tourist guidebooks, and various
wine tourism websites.

Findings
As stated above, wine tourism in Côte Chalonnaise has become increas-
ingly important in recent years, and the range of attractions available
for wine tourists has grown considerably. Some of these developments
have been due to the initiatives of individual businesses or wine pro-
ducers, while others represent substantial collaborative efforts. One
example of an individual business initiative is apparent at the Château
de Chamirey. Wine tourism at this Château began relatively recently in
2011, but has extended considerably since this time. The immediate
impetus for development was the need to rebuild facilities after a fire,
but the desire to extend the wine tourism offering in the process was a
response to demand from customers who wished to see the estate where
the wine was grown. This has resulted in a light, modern tasting room,
with attractive visual displays of wines, images of vineyards and jars of
soil from specific vineyards. A glass floor in one part of the tasting room
allows the visitor to view the cellar and barrels below. This respond-
ent explained that the tasting room was not enough, however, as the
Château had to be viewed as a destination in its own right:
490 J. FOUNTAIN AND L. COGAN-MARIE

To come to Mercurey you have to have a reason to come to Mercurey. It’s

not like Beaune where people just walk round and come to Beaune and
discover Beaune. Mercurey is not as famous. So to come to Mercurey you
really need a reason.

At the time of our interview with this tour guide (2014), the Château
de Chamirey had only very recently opened a table d’hôte [a type of
small restaurant]. Since this time, they have added accommodation to
their offering, so one can eat, drink and stay on the property and take a
guided tour of the vineyards around the château.
The perspective of Côte Chalonnaise being “off the beaten track” was
reinforced in other interviews. A winegrower acknowledged “You have
to make an effort if you come to Côte Chalonnaise. You have to come
intentionally”. For a number of respondents, the subregion did not yet
have “pulling power” as a wine tourism destination. As a representative
of a regional tourism organisation admitted: “if you’re interested in the
wine, then you come to Beaune”. A former tour guide who lived in the
subregion explained that while the Côte Chalonnaise could attract wine
connoisseurs, it would not appeal to the average visitor:

Beaune is the only place in Burgundy where you can be a tourist for a
week, and stay in Beaune. Further south in the Côte Chalonnaise… there’s
nothing, of any size in terms of tourism, wine tourism anyway … Chalon is
nice [but] in terms of actual significant attractions from a wine perspective,
apart from actually tasting, there’s nothing…. There’s no incentive for a
first time visitor to Burgundy to go anywhere apart from Beaune.

A number of respondents, both based in the subregion and in Côte

d’Or, expressed the opinion that the wines of the Côte Chalonnaise
did not have the exposure, or the distribution outlets, of their northern
neighbours. Wine and tourism operators based here expressed frustration
at the fragmented nature of the regional tourism response, which saw
most communication, planning and training around wine tourism initia-
tives based in Beaune, and not shared with, or open to, residents of Côte
Chalonnaise.
Winegrowers spoke also of the difficulty of getting their Côte
Chalonnaise wines onto restaurant wine lists. One winegrower explained
that this situation seemed to be being exacerbated by the arrival in Côte
d’Or of more mass tourists, including visitors from China, many of
whom seem interested in tasting only the most famous appellations:
 30 WINE TOURISM IN AN EMERGING DESTINATION … 491

I have a good friend, he owns a restaurant, [name], in Puligny. They have

a lot of Chinese people, American people. And he says this year all the peo-
ple buy a lot of wine, but very expensive bottles. And they say they have
our wine, because they love our wine, they sell … less Côte Chalonnaise
this year than Côte d’Or.

This problem was not new, however, as she explained that her parents-
in-law began the business in the mid-1970s and from the start “receive
people because they have no [distribution]…. And they have no profes-
sional contacts, so sell the wine at the cellar door”.
This vigneron had sought recently to extend and improve the wine
tourism experience offered at their property by establishing an ongoing
arrangement with a barge company that brought groups of Americans
to her premises. To meet their needs, she had developed a professional
and structured experience, for which visitors are charged a set price
per person. For her, there was no doubt that the development of this
arm of their operation was a means of publicising and distributing their
wine. Unusually for Burgundy, this domain sold over 30% of its wine
directly in this way, and during guided tours the respondent ensured
her American visitors were made aware of the US distributors of the
wine. A tour guide also explained that in general, the vignerons of Côte
Chalonnaise were much more open to her visits, and grateful for them,
because of the importance of the cellar door as a distribution outlet for
their wine.
The development of more wine tourism experiences in Côte
Chalonnaise is matched by growing interest from tour guides in visiting
with tour parties. A former tour guide explained the appeal of the region
for his tours:

It’s a far more interesting area from a general point of view because the
land is cheaper, the wine is cheaper and the quality has improved more
dramatically there than here, simply because of improvement in the tech-
niques of viticulture and wine making. They are making better quality wine
than they were.

This tour guide interest is in part a reflection of the greater difficulty

in getting to visit small vignerons—who are viewed by guides as rep-
resenting the “real Burgundy”—in the Côte d’Or, as one tour guide
explained:
492 J. FOUNTAIN AND L. COGAN-MARIE

There are 4,000 wine growers in Burgundy, the average size of a wine
grower’s estate is 20 acres. They are the people who make it Burgundy,
they’re the people who make it famous, not the big negociants…. My
role is to take people out and teach them about what the real Burgundy is
about, not the commercial side of Burgundy.

Finding small winegrowers in the Côte d’Or willing to take tour groups
was becoming increasingly difficult, a point mentioned by many tour
guides and encapsulated in the following quotation: “there are wineries
that used to be open … with an appointment, that won’t allow p ­ eople
anymore … So few of them…that have the quality, that are open, that
have wine to sell”. Small harvests over the previous few years have
resulted in much greater demand for Côte d’Or wine than there is sup-
ply. In this situation, vignerons do not need tourism to sell their product,
and in fact, there is a perception that participating in wine tourism meant
acknowledging, in the words of a tour guide, “we’re more interested
in tourists than making good wine and more of our effort is going into
that”.
A representative of the regional wine organisation, the BIVB, con-
firmed the difference in attitudes between wine regions in Burgundy
regarding wine tourism: “the people in the Mâconnais or Côte
Chalonnaise they’re much more open to wine tourism because their
wines are not as famous, whereas in Côte de Nuits they are” (trans.).
This openness to wine tourism was seen also as a consequence of a free-
dom to innovate in the subregion, stemming in part from the cheaper
cost of land, and the lack of strong traditions which stymied creative
choices. As one respondent said, “the earth is cheaper, to be honest, so
you can experiment much more. Yes, you have more freedom” (Côte
d’Or wine producer).
Wine tourism initiatives are not all being left to the vignerons and
tour guides, however, and there are a number of collective activities
coordinated by various wine associations to build the reputation of the
subregion’s wine. The first of these has been the recently renovated and
reopened Maison des Vins de la Côte Chalonnaise, a tasting room where
wines from throughout the region can be tasted and purchased at the
same price as the cellar door. The premises have a restaurant also, which
matches Côte Chalonnaise wine with food. Unlike many wine tourism
attractions in Burgundy, the association maintains an active social media
presence on Facebook. A similar and successful collaborative effort is the
 30 WINE TOURISM IN AN EMERGING DESTINATION … 493

Caveau Divin, which is organised by the local wine association, Office de

Défense et de Gestion de l’appellation Mercurey (L’ODG).
The most recent evidence of collective activity occurred in January
2017, when the Côte Chalonnaise village of Mercurey hosted the Saint-
Vincent tournante. This traditional wine festival is held in the middle of
winter and rotates through the various wine appellations of Burgundy,
returning to each appellation three times per century. Generally, this
festival has been focused inwardly, as a celebration of local community
and identity. This year, however, considerable effort was made to use the
festival as an opportunity to showcase the appellation and the subregion
to the markets outside of Burgundy, and planning for the event lasted
1000 days. There was considerable promotion of the event via social
media and posters and significant buy-in from the local winegrowers
who each had to donate eight bottles of wine per hectare of vineyards.
As one producer explained: “This is an important financial cost for the
wine-grower but we expect an increase in awareness for the Appellation
Mercurey and of course, in the long term, an increase of the sales for
each domain”. The hard work paid off, however, and over 100,000
­visitors attended the event; the longer-term influence of the event on the
reputation of Côte Chalonnaise wine and wine tourism potential is yet to
be fully determined.

Conclusions
The analysis presented above reveals that Côte Chalonnaise is a periph-
eral region; both in terms of reputation of its wines in the minds of con-
sumers and in terms of tourist flows. Recently, however, the actions of
local wine stakeholders—individually and collaboratively—have resulted
in substantial development in wine tourism activities and attractions
for visitors. These actions have been precipitated by local specificities,
but also significantly influenced by a range of events occurring out-
side the region, including increasing land and wine prices and chang-
ing tourist flows in the neighbouring Côte d’Or. The consequence of
these local contingencies and exogenous influences is the emergence of
a more vibrant wine tourism offering in Côte Chalonnaise, which looks
set to expand, given the clear synergies emerging between the needs of
wine producers in this region to distribute their wines and the need of
Burgundy wine tour guides to find small vignerons willing to receive
visitors.
494 J. FOUNTAIN AND L. COGAN-MARIE

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 CHAPTER 31

Importance of Tasting Room Activities

and Staff Training in Emerging Wine
Regions: The Case of Northern Virginia

Jennifer L. Blanck, Laurence Cogan-Marie

and Lara Agnoli

Introduction
Wine tourism has become essential for wineries, particularly in new wine
regions, for many reasons. It is clearly a way for wineries to sell wines
directly to their customers. In 2017, US wineries’ direct-to-consumer
(DTC) sales averaged 60% (Penn, 2017). On top of securing sales, brand
loyalty can be developed through winery visits (Bruwer, Coode, Saliba,
& Herbst, 2013; Fish & Charters, 2008). Visiting a winery, meeting the
winemaker, tasting the wines, and learning about the winery’s story are
ways to transmit knowledge about a wine region and to create a special

J. L. Blanck (*) · L. Cogan-Marie · L. Agnoli

Burgundy School of Business, Dijon, France
L. Cogan-Marie
e-mail: laurence-cogan-marie@bsb-education.com
L. Agnoli
e-mail: lara.agnoli@bsb-education.com

© The Author(s) 2019 497

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_31
498 J. L. BLANCK ET AL.

bond between the winery and its visitors. For a new wine region, wine
tourism enables producers to build relationships with customers through
their direct experience with the grape (Hall, Sharples, Cambourne, &
Macionis, 2000).
Research shows that the most effective way to create a positive brand
attachment at winery visitor centers, particularly in novice wine regions,
is through providing good customer service and educating the visitor on
the winery and its wines (Byrd, Canziani, Hsieh, Debbage, & Sonmez,
2016; Olsen & Thach, 2008). There is a growing body of research on
wine tourism; its range of benefits; and the importance and interconnect-
edness of the tasting room experience, service quality, and tasting room
staff. However, there is limited academic research examining the training
needs of winery tasting room personnel (Williams, 2013). This chapter
explores the importance of training for tasting room staff in the novice
wine tourism region of Northern Virginia in the US state of Virginia.

Virginia Wine Industry

Virginia is an emerging wine region in the USA (Fig. 31.1). After
Prohibition was repealed, Virginia’s wine industry was slow to recover,
with only six new wineries in the 1970s and 46 by 1995 (McIntyre,
2012). The first American Viticultural Area (AVA) in Virginia was
established in 1982; by 2016, there were seven AVAs (Virginia Wine
Marketing Office, 2016). In 2016, Virginia hosted more than 285

Fig. 31.1 USA map highlighting Virginia

 31 IMPORTANCE OF TASTING ROOM ACTIVITIES AND STAFF TRAINING … 499

wineries and was the nation’s fifth largest state in number of wineries and
grape production (Office of the Virginia Governor, 2016). According
to the Virginia Wine Marketing Office (2016), the state had 3171 bear-
ing acres and produced 8682 tons of grapes in 2015. The Office of the
Virginia Governor (2016) reported that more than 556,500 cases of
Virginia wine were sold in fiscal year 2016 and more than 2.3 million
people visited Virginia wineries in 2015.
Northern Virginia is considered part of the Washington, DC metro-
politan area and includes five of the top 10 wealthiest counties in the
USA (Forbes, 2016). According to the Demographics Research Group
(2014), Northern Virginia encompasses the largest population among
Virginia’s eight regions, comprises almost half of the Washington, DC
metropolitan population, and has a median income of $102,499, com-
pared to the state median income of $63,636. The region hosted at least
92 wineries in 2016 and produced 3113 tons of grapes from 1192 bear-
ing acres of vine in 2015 (Virginia Wine Marketing Office, 2016). There
was also one AVA in the region, the Middleburg AVA, which was estab-
lished in 2012.

Wine Tourism, Service Quality, and Staff Training Research

The primary needs visitors seek to satisfy when they visit a winery are
the tasting and the purchase of wines; however, other needs have been
identified, such as socialization, education, and entertainment (Alant
& Bruwer, 2004; Chen, Goodman, Bruwer, & Cohen, 2016; Olsen
& Thach, 2008). In fact, Carmichael (2005) determined that the wine
tourism experience is a combination of human service quality and an
environmental, contextual perspective.
Correspondingly, an increasing number of wineries with tasting rooms
offer more than just wine. They provide enhanced customer experiences
through cellar tours, vineyard tours, seminars, and special events. Many
offer educational classes ranging from wine tasting, wine and food pair-
ing, and the blending of wine. Some wineries offer entertaining expe-
riences such as concerts and special dinners. These events are a way to
bring more revenue to the winery and build brand image.
As such, the quality of service becomes critical, and many research-
ers have demonstrated the link between high quality service and cus-
tomer satisfaction (Carlsen, 2011; Marlowe, Brown, & Zheng, 2016;
Shapiro & Gómez, 2014). Satisfaction is then proved to have an impact
500 J. L. BLANCK ET AL.

on post-purchase decisions, future purchase decisions, and long-term

customer loyalty (Heskett, 2002; Shapiro & Gómez, 2014). Therefore,
understanding the level of service quality is essential.
A number of variables can affect the quality of a tourist’s experience
and influence purchase behavior at the winery. Dodd and Gustafson
(1997) highlight four groups of attributes at a winery that are able to
affect a visitor’s propensity to purchase wine: service, wine characteristics,
winery environment, and price.
O’Neill and Charters (2000) demonstrate the usefulness of the
importance/performance technique for tasting room operators in a
study highlighting how wineries perform from a visitor point of view,
demonstrating what is important in terms of performance for wine tour-
ists. This model proves that service quality can be conceptualized as
the difference or gap between what a consumer expects to receive and
perceptions of the actual delivery. They show that when service perfor-
mance exceeds expectations, it leads to satisfaction. On the other hand,
when the service fails to meet a standard level of performance, it leads to
dissatisfaction.
A second study conducted by O’Neill, Palmer, and Charters (2002)
attempts to predict future visits using service quality dimensions. Byrd
et al. (2016) found that positive customer service and knowledgea-
ble and skilled tasting room staff are key influences for visits to North
Carolina wineries, as well as future purchases of the state’s wines.
Therefore, assessing service quality is crucial for wineries. It allows them
to improve the level of service they provide at the tasting room, thereby
enhancing brand loyalty.
Consequently, training tasting room staff becomes crucial for winer-
ies. In a survey of 500 wineries around the world—95% of whom receive
wine tourists—15% noted that training staff was one of the key areas in
need of help for their business (Livesey, 2016). The tasting room expe-
rience will impact a visitor’s perception of the brand and impact sales
(Thach & Olsen, 2006), and wineries should expect to focus their efforts
on effective customer service training and incentives for their employees
(Olsen & Thach, 2008).
Many wineries recognize the need to train tasting room staff and are
conscious of not doing enough yet (Thach & Olsen, 2003). Olsen and
Thach (2008) found that only one in five employees receives formal
customer service and professional sales training. Research suggests that
training should occur at least every 6–8 weeks (Marlowe et al., 2016;
 31 IMPORTANCE OF TASTING ROOM ACTIVITIES AND STAFF TRAINING … 501

Thach & Olsen, 2003). In a study involving tasting room staff, Thach
and Olsen (2003) found that most wineries are lacking against this
benchmark. Several studies revealed that some staff never receive any
training (Marlowe et al., 2016; Williams, 2013). One study found that
there is a general lack of training in tasting rooms in the USA (Thach &
Olsen, 2004), and lack of training and low incentive schemes can be rea-
sons for poor quality service (Nowak & Newton, 2006; Thach & Olsen,
2004; Williams, 2013).
Another issue in training tasting room staff is the recognition of train-
ing needs (Ali-Knight & Charters, 2001). Garavan (1997) found that
training can help with each of the components of a job: skills, knowl-
edge, and attitude. Marlowe et al. (2016) found it is essential that staff
have good product knowledge. Thach and Olsen (2003) demonstrated
that tasting room staff should also have basic wine knowledge.
Scholars highlight the positive role of training in retaining staff and
increasing employee satisfaction (Thach & Olsen, 2003; Williams, 2011).
An efficient training program helps to reduce turnover and build staff
loyalty (Williams, 2011). The cost of training is recouped in increased
efficiency, effectiveness, and profitability (Thach & Olsen, 2003).
The objective of this chapter is to understand the importance of train-
ing for tasting room staff in a new wine tourism region. This will be pur-
sued by (i) analyzing wineries owners’ and operators’ perspectives on
training for tasting room staff, as the leaders establish the policies and
priorities for the business; (ii) highlighting the most important forms of
training; and (iii) identifying the barriers to providing training.

Methodology
Research objectives were reached by applying qualitative techniques,
given the exploratory nature of the research. In-depth, semi-structured
interviews were conducted in person at 12 wineries in Northern Virginia.
Interviewed wineries were selected using a judgment sampling. The
adopted selection criteria aimed at ensuring sample heterogeneity (see
Table 31.1) in terms of: (i) geographical location, in order to cover the
main wine producing areas of Northern Virginia (Fig. 31.2); (ii) size;
(iii) tasting room experience; and (iv) range of tasting room models.
Selected wineries cover a territory from the towns of Washington in the
west to Clifton in the east. Four of the wineries interviewed lie within
the Middleburg AVA.
Table 31.1 Characteristics of the interviewed wineries
502

Winery ID Tasting Acres under Wine DTC Wine club Total tast- Full-time Part-time Tasting options
room opened vine (2016) production sales (%) members ing room tasting tasting room
(cases, 2016) staff room staff staff

1 2012 12 1000 80 65 5 0 5 Seated and special

tastings
2 2007 8.5 1200 97 150 14 0 14 Tasting bar, special
tastings and events,
J. L. BLANCK ET AL.

classes
3 2011 8.5 1200 100 1100 9 3 6 Tasting bar, special
events
4 2014 16 2000 95 1300 8 2 6 Seated tasting,
special events
5 1988 28 4000 80 2000 7 0 7 Tasting bar, special
tastings
6 2013 36 5000 99 2000 25 3 22 Seated and special
tastings, special
events
7 2003 80 7000 85 200 45 2 43 Tasting bar, special
tastings and events,
classes
8 2008 30 11,300 98 750 76 6 70 Tasting bar, seated
and special tast-
ings, special events
9 2010 43 12,000 95 1800 50 6 44 Tasting bar, special
tastings and events

(continued)
Table 31.1 (continued)
31

Winery ID Tasting Acres under Wine DTC Wine club Total tast- Full-time Part-time Tasting options
room opened vine (2016) production sales (%) members ing room tasting tasting room
(cases, 2016) staff room staff staff
10 2013 60 12,000 99 3500 80 12 68 Tasting bar, seated
and special tast-
ings, special events,
off-site tastings
11 2012 49 13,000 100 2000 60 4 56 Tasting bar, seated
and special tast-
ings, special events
12 1997 105 15,000 90 1500 30 2 28 Tasting bar, special
tastings and events,
classes
IMPORTANCE OF TASTING ROOM ACTIVITIES AND STAFF TRAINING …
503
504 J. L. BLANCK ET AL.

Fig. 31.2 Location of interviewed wineries (Note Northern Virginia is in dark

green. Interviewed wineries are indicated through orange circles)

The wineries represent a variety of tasting room models. Some of the

tasting rooms are open daily throughout the year, while others offer lim-
ited opening hours, with some changing hours based on the seasons.
Some have a traditional tasting bar, while others offer seated tastings
only. All host special tastings or events, although some are only available
for wine club members. Tours range from being a part of the visit experi-
ence to something extra for a fee to something free by request. A limited
selection of food is available at all tasting rooms, with one winery offer-
ing it as part of the tour and seated tasting experience, which is the only
visit option available to the public.
Interviews were conducted from November to December 2016 and
involved owners at six of the wineries and executives at the other six.
Discussions lasted from 30 to 60 minutes and were audio recorded. The
main interview topics were tasting room benefits and visitor motivations,
tasting room staff qualifications, perspectives on training, training topics
and methods, and barriers to training. Collected information was ana-
lyzed applying an inductive approach.

Findings

Tasting Room
Consistent with the literature, the Northern Virginia wineries studied
are reliant on the benefits of wine tourism, with DTC sales ranging from
80 to 100%. During the study, the tasting room emerged as the heart
 31 IMPORTANCE OF TASTING ROOM ACTIVITIES AND STAFF TRAINING … 505

of the winery. All interviewees talked about how the tasting room is the
vehicle through which a winery can tell its story—the story “behind the
wine”—and how important that story is to the winery’s success. Three
main categories of benefits emerged in having a tasting room: economic,
relational, and branding. All interviewees noted the economic benefits,
whether that related to sales in general or specifically DTC sales and
better profit margins. This was typically the first answer. Similarly, many
talked about the opportunity tasting rooms provide for people to sample
their wines. One emphasized how sampling directly impacts sales: “We
know that when we do not have a particular wine on our tasting sheet, it
does not sell as well as when we have it on the tasting sheet.”
Another recognized benefit is the opportunity to connect and develop
relationships with customers. Interviewees talked about the ability to
offer an experience and foster loyalty resulting in repeat customers—
whether at or beyond the winery. They talked about “bringing people
into the fold,” building “a community of wine lovers,” and “sharing a
passion for wine.” They also emphasized the importance of staff to
building those relationships. Some interviewees talked about wine tour-
ism as a way to connect with local nonprofits and achieve “goodwill
for the community” by either hosting or providing the facility for
fundraisers.
Branding was another popular benefit regarding tasting room activ-
ities. Interviewees spoke about establishing name recognition, building
a reputation, and controlling the environment in which their wines are
presented. They also discussed how the tasting room served as the face
of their wines. Many talked about the importance of aligning their brand
in a way that befits the location and its environment, such as an historic
battlefield.
When asked about visitor motivation, interviewees demonstrated
a clear understanding as to their customer base and why people visited
their tasting rooms. Visitor motivation responses related to the wine,
winery location, winery reputation, service, and experience. The main
drivers were linked to wine quality and location, which included such
aspects as convenience, proximity to other attractions, and the beauty
of the site itself. Winery reputation involved such factors as its his-
tory, awards received, the brand, and charitable initiatives. Service and
hospitality were mentioned, as well as professional and knowledgeable
staff. Other drivers included such differentiation elements as kid/family
friendly, dog friendly, and beer brewed and consumed onsite. Small size
506 J. L. BLANCK ET AL.

was considered a success factor by one interviewee, who noted specif-

ically that the peace and quiet of the site attracted visitors. In terms of
the experience, all 4Es of the wine tourism experience economy (Quadri-
Felitti & Fiore, 2012) emerged as important in creating a unique
experience for visitors and were noted as important visitor motivators:
(i) Entertainment: the organization of special events linked to wine,
food, arts and crafts, history, and books; (ii) Education: wine education
and the ability to witness wine production first hand; (iii) Esthetics: the
beauty of the place and its views; and (iv) Escapism: the opportunity to
have a rural experience, to convene with nature—including fishing and
viewing wildlife, and to have the “vino adventure of your life.”

Tasting Room Staff and Training

Hospitality-related skills, such as communications and interpersonal
skills, and personality traits were the top qualifications required when
hiring tasting room staff. Interviewees emphasized these aspects as vital
because they said such traits could not be taught through training. The
ability to sell is another essential skill for some.
One strong and surprising theme that emerged is that no winery
required wine knowledge when hiring tasting room staff. Many inter-
viewees stated up front that it was not needed. Some discussed qualifi-
cations and did not mention anything about it. When asked, they said
it was unnecessary. One interviewee said a lack of wine knowledge was
actually preferred: “We would rather have them not know about things
and let us train them in our…ways.” Everyone indicated that they would
teach the wine knowledge needed for the job.
Three overall perspectives were shared regarding views on training for
tasting room staff. The majority of interviewees responded that training
was essential, and they do not let a staff member interact with customers
before any training: “It’s critical. It’s everything. It’s the most important
thing that we can do.” A minority of interviewees were noncommittal
regarding training or focused solely on the hands-on nature of learning
the job. They believe that the bigger the winery, the more important
training is or say “You’ve gotta throw people into the fire. …This is a
hands on job.”
Interviewees’ initial responses about what kind of training is
essential for tasting room staff ranged from holistic approaches to
nothing. However, throughout the discussions, training on wine
 31 IMPORTANCE OF TASTING ROOM ACTIVITIES AND STAFF TRAINING … 507

knowledge—both winery specific and in general—and the story of the

winery or the brand were mentioned by everyone as training essentials.
The need for customer service/relations or hospitality training also
emerged as important—from how to read a customer and provide an
experience to how to build relationships with customers to how to “give
people what they want before they know they want it.” However, a
minority shared the opinion that these are aspects that cannot be trained.
One interviewee said, “…you can’t train customer service so easily. Some
people have a knack for it and some people don’t.”
“Alcohol control” emerged as a requirement. This refers to responsi-
ble alcohol service and is officially regulated by the Virginia Department
of Alcoholic Beverage Control—the agency that also administers the
wineries’ licenses. Violations can result in a suspension or revocation of
a winery’s license. Some wineries have security positions to monitor for
any potential rule violations. In many cases, training also covers the facili-
ties and policies, protocols, and procedures, and rarely how to sell.
The wineries rely on a wide range of training methods, consisting of
activities and materials (see Table 31.2). Training methods are employed
as stand-alone events; during pre- and post-shift; as part of other staff-
based events, such as parties; and within an orientation program. Some
wineries mentioned an organized orientation that spanned multiple days
and incorporated a variety of activities and materials.
Everyone uses tasting to train staff on their wines. Among the training
activities adopted by wineries to increase wine knowledge in their staff,

Table 31.2 Training methods

Activities Materials

Tasting Employee manual

Shadowing Fact sheets
On-the-job training E-mail updates/reminders
Internal organized instruction Printed sample hospitality and sales scenarios
Formal courses Videos
Staff meetings Resource library
Discussions
Field trips to vineyard
Role play
Games
Mystery shopping
508 J. L. BLANCK ET AL.

some offer formal courses, some incorporate wines of the world for over-
all knowledge and comparison, one winery involves tasting room staff
in the blending process, and another one opens a mystery bottle after
almost every shift. Two wineries are certified to teach Wine and Spirit
Education Trust (WSET) courses, and one allows staff to enroll. Two
wineries, one of which hosts the Virginia School of Wine, require staff to
attend specific internal courses as part of orientation and ongoing train-
ing and offer other courses as perks.
All wineries use shadowing to train their staff. Many referred to
on-the-job training, and some noted it as the main focus of their train-
ing. One interviewee proposed, “There’s always ongoing interaction that
you could call training.” Some interviewees start people in their main job
right away, while others phase people in, such as starting as greeters to
helping behind the tasting bar to leading tastings for customers.
The main barriers to training that emerged in this study are linked to
time, turnover, cost, and leadership attitudes. The challenge overwhelm-
ingly cited by interviewees is time, with many noting time as the one
and only barrier. One simply answered, “Hours in a day.” People men-
tioned finding time that worked with the winery and the staff schedules
as problematic, mainly due to the predominant part-time structure of the
staff, their full-time commitments during the week, and the long hours
they put in for each shift combined with the fact that wineries are busiest
on the weekends. Many interviewees described approaches to mitigate or
work within these challenges due to their strong commitment to a com-
prehensive training program and a level of service to which they aspire.
A small group either abandoned certain training methods, determining it
was not feasible or necessary, or, consistent with the literature, consider
ongoing training solely in terms of product-related education (Fisher,
2008; Thach & Olsen, 2003). One interviewee said there were no barri-
ers to training.

Conclusion and Practical Implications

Prior research reveals the importance and interconnectedness of the tast-
ing room experience, service quality, and tasting room staff and empha-
sizes the need for staff to receive training to maximize effectiveness
(Ali-Knight & Charters, 2001; Carlsen, 2011; Carlsen & Boksberger,
 31 IMPORTANCE OF TASTING ROOM ACTIVITIES AND STAFF TRAINING … 509

2015; Charters, Fountain, & Fish, 2009; Chen, Goodman, & Li, 2013,
Chen et al., 2016; Nella & Christou, 2010; Nowak & Newton, 2006;
Williams, 2013). However, both researchers and industry leaders alike
assert that staff do not receive the necessary training. This study exam-
ined Northern Virginia winery owners’ and operators’ views on training
for tasting room staff. The data indicate a reliance on the tasting room
experience and DTC sales, as well as a recognition of the importance
of staff, customer service, and wineries’ stories for creating memorable
experiences for wine tourists, with no differences in terms of size or age
of winery. The prevailing viewpoint is that training is imperative for tast-
ing room staff. As such, interviewees described a full range of training
topics—all of which are supported by the literature. However, more
training could be offered in sales and professional selling—two areas
emphasized by prior research (Carlsen, 2011; Chen et al., 2016; Olsen
& Thach, 2008; O’Neill et al., 2002; Williams, 2013) and shown to be
lacking in the majority of wineries interviewed and consistently lacking
in wineries’ training programs generally. Interviewees also mentioned
a wide range of training methods. Prior research discussed all of those
except role play and games (Ali-Knight & Charters, 2001; Fisher, 2008;
Marlowe et al., 2016; Thach & Cianfichi, 2004). Only a few winer-
ies achieve the benchmark suggested by research of providing training
every 6–8 weeks. In a study of tasting room personnel, Thach and Olsen
(2003) found a difference in opinion regarding advice offered during
work: Managers considered this on-the-job training, while employees did
not. This study also revealed a potential tension in terms of what con-
stitutes on-the-job training—as opposed to helpful feedback, advice, or
quality assurance checks. Time was found to be the main barrier to pro-
viding training, due to the fact that all the wineries rely heavily on part-
time staff. This reliance on part-time staff was found in the literature to
be a standard industry practice (Cossey, 2012; Thach & Cianfichi, 2004;
Williams, 2013).
As supported by previous research and this study, it behooves winery
owners and management to provide a comprehensive training program
for tasting room staff, as they not only serve as representatives of the
business, but also are key to the success of the tasting room. As such,
three broad strategic recommendations are offered with seven specific
tactics:
510 J. L. BLANCK ET AL.

Conduct a Training Program Review: Winery management

1. 
should conduct an annual review of the training philosophy and
program. Topics and methods should be considered to ensure that
customer service, sales, and professional sales, as well as other vital
topics, are included using effective and efficient means and insti-
tute changes to address any gaps and improve productivity.
Leverage Existing Resources: Regardless of the barriers, many of
2. 
the wineries interviewed execute training programs comprising key
topics and methods, offering best practices:
Start with Comprehensive Resources. A well-structured orienta-
tion program gives staff a strong foundation. Along with standard
information, supervisors could provide sample scenarios and lan-
guage in an employee manual or other resources to offer best prac-
tice approaches to hospitality and sales. Interactive and experiential
methods should be employed to reinforce and maximize learning.
Maintain Regular Communication. Supervisors should communi-
cate regularly with staff in a structured manner. A winery could
institute a knowledge management system to serve as an easy-
to-find, one-stop source, as well as consider an online interactive
forum for employees to share information and foster community.
Schedule and Follow Up. Training should be organized in advance
using a consistent schedule. E-mail messages should be sent to
everyone after training sessions to reinforce lessons for those who
attended and provide information to those who did not.
Combine with Tastings and Social Events. Wineries could consider
using all-staff tasting sessions and social events that naturally draw
staff attendance to provide training.
Leverage Technology: Given the part-time and mobile structure
3. 
of the tasting room workforce and the challenge of scheduling,
incorporating technology into the training program could help.
Video Training. Wineries could incorporate purchased or internally
produced videos as training resources. These can be used during
scheduled sessions or viewed online at an employee’s convenience.
Online Education. Sophisticated tools exist to conduct courses that
allow participants to complete the work at a convenient time and
still have interaction with the instructor and classmates. A winery
 31 IMPORTANCE OF TASTING ROOM ACTIVITIES AND STAFF TRAINING … 511

could create proprietary resources or work with other wineries to

create and administer online training courses, or an industry group
could take the lead.
Gamification. Similar to FarmVille, Vinoga, and Terroir:
A Winemaking Tycoon Game, an online simulation game could be
developed for tasting room staff to play against or with each other
or against other winery teams to have fun, earn rewards, gain a
better understanding of tasting room management, practice hospi-
tality and sales approaches, and learn other lessons.

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 CHAPTER 32

Wine Tourism and Regional Economic

Development: Of Mimesis
and Business Models

Donna Sears and Terrance G. Weatherbee

Introduction
Over the last two decades, the province of Nova Scotia (NS) has
emerged as Canada’s newest cool-climate wine-producing region. While
still very young—in comparison with the other wine regions in North
America and elsewhere—the province has seen significant growth in
the grape and wine sectors. Since 2000, the region has gone from just
three wineries to over twenty and the total acreage under vine doubled
in the five years between 2006 and 2011 (Statistics Canada, 2011). The
economic impact of this development throughout the province’s rural/
agricultural areas has been viewed so positively that the provincial gov-
ernment is financially incentivizing acreage expansion with the intent of a
further doubling wine grape acreage by 2020 (Davidson, 2016). Within

D. Sears (*) · Terrance G. Weatherbee

Acadia University, Wolfville, NS, Canada
e-mail: donna.sears@acadiau.ca
Terrance G. Weatherbee
e-mail: terrance.weatherbee@acadiau.ca

© The Author(s) 2019 515

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_32
516 D. SEARS AND TERRANCE G. WEATHERBEE

the province, wine tourism has been growing in parallel with other devel-
opments in the grape and wine sectors. The province recently reached
a benchmark of over 100,000 annual visits by wine tourists (Frank,
Rimerman + Co. LLP, 2017), and this has meant that dedicated wine
tourism businesses have become viable economic actors.
While winery locations span the province, the emergence of wine
tourism activity has largely been focused upon a dense “core” of win-
eries located in and around the Town of Wolfville. The town itself is in
the agricultural heartland of the province which is approximately one-
hour drive from the province’s Capital City; a city which represents both
the geographic and demographic centres of the province. These win-
eries quickly established an international reputation for innovation and
excellence in wine-making, and this reputation has become the founda-
tion for the branding of the Town of Wolfville as the “heart of NS wine
country”.
One wine tourist venture, in particular, the Wolfville Magic Winery
Bus (WMWB), has played a key role in the image of Wolfville as a place
to visit to taste wine and enjoy the vineyard experience. This hop-on,
hop-off tour started in 2012 as a collaboration amongst the Town and
five wineries in the immediate area. Like the products of these wineries,
the WMWB has been recognized with both national and international
awards. While there are several tour operators bringing visitors and tour-
ists to the wineries surrounding Wolfville, after five years of successful
operations, the WMWB remains the most distinctive wine tourism offer-
ing within the province.
The remarkable growth in the grape, wine, and wine tourism sectors,
and especially the success of the WMWB, has not gone unnoticed by var-
ious branches of the provincial government, local regional development
organizations, and other businesses in the tourism and hospitality sec-
tors. For many of these organizations, the WMWB is seen as a poten-
tial model to be replicated and used for economic development in other
areas of the province (Assembly, 2016). However, the speed at which the
regional wine sector has grown has meant that government policy mak-
ers, municipal economic development organizations, and researchers in
academia have not had the necessary time to consider or craft any sort of
coherent, evidence-based economic development road map for wine and
wine tourism in the province. Nor have they had the time to investigate
how best to leverage the province’s rural tourism assets related to grape
and wine. Consequently, a significant challenge in planning for the future
 32 WINE TOURISM AND REGIONAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT … 517

success of the wine tourism sector in NS now lies with first, discovering
the reason(s) for this localized success; and second, determining whether
the WMWB or a similar model is replicable elsewhere. Our intent, in this
chapter, is to address both of these crucial questions.

Research Framework
The methodological framework we have chosen for this analysis employs
Actor-Network Theory (ANT) (Callon, 1986; Latour, 2005; Law,
1992). The use of ANT allows us to highlight the complexities of the
WMWB as a tourism project; a project whose growth and evolution we
have closely observed for the last several years. The use of ANT allows us
to not only surface the manner in which various local actors established
relations amongst themselves to collaborate (or not) so as to bring about
the tour-based “adventure in the heart of Nova Scotia wine country”
(Wolfville Magic Winery Bus, 2017) but also to understand how geo-
graphic and cultural notions of place, wine tourism, and the province’s
material tourism infrastructure have worked to produce this outcome. In
prelude to our discussion of the processes wherein the WMWB became
a fully formed actor-network, in the next section we briefly explain ANT
and its use in tourism studies.

Actor-Network Theory and Tourism

[Actor-Network Theory] is better understood as a toolkit for telling inter-
esting stories … More profoundly, it is a sensibility to [understanding] the
messy practices of relationality and materiality of the world. (Law, 2007, p. 2)

Actor-Network Theory’s origins lay in one stream of the science and

technology studies that emerged out of a series of interactions and
associations of European scholars in the late 1970s and 1980s (Latour,
2005; Law, 1992, 2007; Law & Hassard, 1999). Drawing first from sci-
ence and technology studies and latterly from sociology, ANT may be
described as an alternative to mainstream sociology (Latour, 2005) and
an approach that deploys the concepts of semiotic relationality, hetero-
geneity, and materiality for the study of the social world (Law, 2007).
Thus, for Actor-Network Theorists, the social world is comprised of var-
ious actors that “take their form and acquire their attributes because of
their relations with other entities” (Law & Hassard, 1999, p. 3). This
518 D. SEARS AND TERRANCE G. WEATHERBEE

semiotic relationality allows Actor-Network scholars to avoid engaging in

either essentialist or dualistic thinking when studying the social world.
As ANT does not discriminate between human and non-human actors
(Hassard, Law & Lee, 1999), theorists also pay attention to the role of
materiality in the creation, maintenance, and sustainment of the social
world—as much as they do to any human action or conceptual activity
(Latour, 1991). In this sense, ANT is analytically agnostic when giving
voice to the human, the technological and the material. The main goal of
ANT is to observe whether actors establish relations amongst themselves
and how they come to form weaker or stronger actor-networks or heter-
ogenous assemblages of persons and things (Latour, 2005).
Taken together, the concepts of semiotic relationality, heterogeneity,
and materiality mean that ANT’s primary ontological goal is to position
the social world as constructed by actors, that is processual and precar-
ious rather than pre-structured and stable (Latour, 2005). So, ANT
stresses a performative orientation towards the activities in/of the social
world, and thus ANT works to seek out the ways things have come to
be ordered as they are found (Law, 1999). In this way, Actor-Network
Theorists anticipate the social world as the outcome of the activities and
interactions amongst actors in the world. Consequently, society is not
the “thing” which holds various social actors together. Instead ANT is
premised on the notion that society “is what is glued together” by rela-
tions established between and amongst a heterogenic group of actors
(Latour, 2005, p. 5). That is, the social world we observe is the effect of
the work of a multitude of human and non-human actors positioned in
various relational networks.
Since tourism is a form of sociological ordering of persons, places, and
material in the world (Franklin, 2004), tourism researchers have found
that ANT can lead them to insights not possible with other approaches
(see, e.g., Jóhannesson, 2005; van der Duim, Ren, & Johannesson,
2013; van der Duim, 2007). ANT perspectives have been brought to
bear on processes of tourist product innovation (Paget, Dimanche,
& Mounet, 2010); the emergent nature of stakeholder collaboration in
tourist and cultural districts (Arnaboldi & Spiller, 2011); the unfold-
ing of tourism development within a region (van der Duim & Caalders,
2008); and to interrogate the implications and role of materiality in
tourism (Ren, 2011). The usefulness of ANT as an approach to extend
our understanding of tourism has even given rise to an edited collection
dedicated to it (see van der Duim, Ren, & Johannesson, 2012). In the
sub-specialty of wine tourism, the use of ANT lags the use found in the
 32 WINE TOURISM AND REGIONAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT … 519

wider tourism literature (see Chiffoleau, Laporte, & Touzard, 2006 and
Chiffoleau & Touzard, 2015 for their studies of the Languedoc wine
region).
In determining whether the WMWB model is viably transportable—
one that can be successfully copied or employed elsewhere in the prov-
ince for regional economic development—an ANT approach allows us
to move past mere descriptions of what the WMWB is so that we may
instead focus our analytical gaze on the processes of how the WMWB
came to be. This theoretical and analytical distinction is critical as the
WMWB may be considered an assemblage or network comprised of
both human and non-human actors. This means that the success of the
business model is the outcome or effect of a complex of individuals and
organizations. Actors in the private market and the public sphere, whose
interests represent the alignment of local and regional aspirations, ena-
bled by the materiality involved in the production of both wine and tour-
ism as product and service. All of which are heavily embedded in terms
of place: either specific localities or notions of terroir. So, to understand
how these social “things”; the organizations, social structures, insti-
tutions and orderings, activities and events that are the WMWB in the
“heart of NS wine country” have been created, performed, and sus-
tained, we must trace the work of the actors in their networks. In other
words, we try to let these actors speak for themselves. A goal we attempt
in the following sections.

The Emergence of the Nova Scotia Grape

and Wine Sector

To put it very simply: A good ANT account is a narrative or a description

or a proposition where all the actors do something and don’t just sit there.
(Latour, 2005, p. 128)

Grapes have been grown in NS for over four hundred years. It is thought
that French apothecary, Louis Hébert first planted grapes in Bear River
in 1611 (Kelly, 2011). A few years later, in 1632, Isaac de Razilly
(Governor of Acadia, the land now called Nova Scotia) planted vines in
Fort-Ste-Marie-de-Grace (now LaHave) (Ripmeester, Mackintosh, &
Fullerton, 2013) where “Razilly … boasted of the vitality of his newly
planted vineyards, on the hillsides overlooking the Atlantic” (Faragher,
2005, p. 43). Three years later, in 1635, de Razilly wrote that the
520 D. SEARS AND TERRANCE G. WEATHERBEE

grapes from those vines were used to make sacramental wine for mass
(Ripmeester et al., 2013). However, commercial wine production would
not appear until the mid-twentieth century with the establishment of
Chipman’s Apple Products in 1941 which was later purchased by Peller
Estates (now Andres Wines) in the 1960s (Jezovit, 2007). Production
was limited to one plant only: a facility which first made fruit wines and
later began bottling wine made from imported grapes/juice (Jezovit,
2007). It would take another thirty years before any marketable wines
would be made from Nova Scotia-grown grapes (Jezovit, 2007).
Over the course of the last two decades, some twenty small—usually
family owned—wineries have opened their doors within the province.
In that short period, these wineries have had an impact that is out of
all proportion to their age, size, and locale. Individual wineries are dis-
tinguishing themselves by winning awards on both the national and
international stages, particularly for aromatic white wines and Méthode
Traditionelle sparkling wines. For example, L’Acadie Vineyards 2007
Prestige Brut (an organic, traditional method sparkling wine) won a
Silver Medal at the 2011 Effervescents du Monde, the 9th international
competition of the world’s best sparkling wines in Dijon, France; a Gold
Medal at the 2011 Finger Lakes International Wine Competition; and
a Gold Medal (plus Top Scoring Sparkling) at the 2010 Canadian Wine
Awards. The 2008 Methode Classique Rosé from Benjamin Bridge was
one of 20 wines—and the only rosé bubbly—to be served at receptions
at the Canadian High Commission during the 2012 Olympic Games in
London.
The success of individual businesses has led to the broader sector
beginning to mature and experience growth as well. Both Winery and
Grape Growers’ Associations were established to represent and advocate
for the grape and wine sector. A 2011 study of the economic impact of
grape and wine in Canada (commissioned by the Canadian Vintner’s
Association) included NS as one of Canada’s four significant wine-
producing provinces, finding that the total economic impact of grape and
wine was $196 million and the tourism impact was $34 million annually
for the small province (Frank, Rimerman + Co. LLP, 2013). In 2012, the
first NS appellation, Tidal Bay, was launched. The Lieutenant Governor’s
Award for Excellence in NS Wines was instituted in 2014. Concomitant
with the growth of the wine sector, the region is also experiencing
growth in the wine tourism sector.
 32 WINE TOURISM AND REGIONAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT … 521

The Emergence of the Nova Scotia

Wine Tourism Sector
Perched on the Atlantic Coast, NS is Canada’s second-smallest ­province,
with a 55,283 km2 land mass. Of the 949,500 people who call the prov-
ince home, almost half (425,900) live in one urban area; the Halifax
Regional Municipality (Halifax); the capital and only Canada Census
Metropolitan Area (www.novascotia.ca) in the province. While NS is
Canada’s most densely populated province with 17.4 inhabitants per
km2, paradoxically it still retains a mostly rural landscape. Consequently,
tourism has long been an economic driver in NS. This circumstance
is emblazoned on the provincial licence plate: “Canada’s Ocean
Playground”.
However, despite the traditional emphasis on tourism, Tourism Nova
Scotia (TNS is the provincial tourism body) has only recently recog-
nized wineries as part of the province’s tourism inventory. TNS began
collecting data on winery visits through the Visitor Exit Survey in 2010.
While market and academic study of the wine tourism sector in Canada
has been steadily growing, it has primarily been restricted to two of the
more developed Canadian wine regions: British Columbia (Williams &
Dossa, 2003; Williams & Kelly, 2001) and Ontario (Carmichael, 2005;
Getz & Brown, 2006; Hashimoto & Telfer, 2003; Telfer, 2000, 2001b).
Formal academic study of wine tourism in Eastern Canada (Nova Scotia
and the other Atlantic provinces) remains essentially non-existent except
for Laceby and Sears (2014) and Sears and Weatherbee (2017) studies.
The nascent state of the sector, combined with the lack of formal study,
has meant that the emergence of wine tourism in the province has fol-
lowed a pragmatic path at the winery level—and a haphazard path at the
sector level. Sector development has been driven forward primarily by
independent initiatives undertaken by wineries in the absence of sector
level market analysis, cross-sectoral research, or cohesive tourism policy
development.
This represents a significant challenge as provincial legislation around
the production and distribution of NS wine makes direct-to-consumer
the most lucrative sales channel for wineries. Sales through the province’s
monopoly retailer, Nova Scotia Liquor Corporation (NSLC), reduce
winery margins as the price per bottle is regulated to be consistent across
all distribution channels. Wineries may choose to sell their product
directly to consumers online (currently only available to those residing
522 D. SEARS AND TERRANCE G. WEATHERBEE

within the province), at the cellar door, or at farm markets. However,

winery practice suggests that those who purchase at the cellar door are
also more likely to exhibit important loyalty characteristics (word-of-
mouth, repeat purchase, etc.). Moreover, the trend to focus on customer
experiences—by both marketing and tourism practitioners—suggest the
critical importance of enticing potential customers to travel to the winery
to gain first-hand knowledge of the organization and its products and
services. Thus, over the last several years, NS wineries have increasingly
sought ways to encourage customers to arrive at their cellar doors.

The Heart of Nova Scotia Wine Country:

Concept and Development
The Town of Wolfville is situated in the rich agricultural land of the
Annapolis Valley, about one hour (by road) from downtown Halifax.
Wolfville itself is a small university town, with only 4195 permanent res-
idents (Statistics Canada, 2011); a population which annually expands
by an additional 3453 persons when Acadia University students arrive
(MPHEC, 2017). This total represents just 0.5% of the province’s pop-
ulation (Community Foundation of Nova Scotia). In addition to being
home to Acadia University, Wolfville is known for its quality restaurants,
quaint accommodations, and thriving arts scene. It hosts several annual
festivals, such as the Deep Roots Music Festival and DEVOUR! The
Food Film Fest: “Victorian mansions transformed into bed and break-
fasts, top-notch restaurants (Acton’s, Tempest and Blomidon Inn all fea-
ture local wines on their lists) and a main street strip of shops and cafés”
(Jobb, 2012).
Over the last decade, increasing acreage surrounding the town has
been devoted to grape production and several wineries have been devel-
oped very close to it. With the growing number of proximal wineries,
individuals and groups began to recognize the potential in positioning
the Annapolis Valley as a wine and culinary destination, with Wolfville
as a centre (or heart) of wine country (Jobb, 2012). By 2010, conver-
sations around this concept were taking place in and amongst several
groups: the local Chamber of Commerce (then East Kings Chamber
of Commerce); the Town of Wolfville and the Wolfville Business
Development Corporation (WBDC); the Winery Association of Nova
Scotia (WANS); and Taste of Nova Scotia (a membership-based culinary
marketing association).
 32 WINE TOURISM AND REGIONAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT … 523

Chamber of Commerce—Tourism Committee

Spurred by the Tourism Committee (under the leadership of Heather
Leeman and Judy Saunders) of the East Kings Chamber of Commerce—
which later merged with Western Kings Board of Trade (based in
Berwick) and Central Annapolis Valley Chamber of Commerce (based
in Kingston and Middleton) to form Annapolis Valley Chamber of
Commerce (AVCC)—persuaded one of us (Donna Sears) to lead mis-
sion/vision exercises in 2011. At the time, the members of the Tourism
Committee were convinced that the region had the potential to become
a wine and culinary destination. Therefore, they invited key stakeholders
from the area to participate in several sessions moderated by Sears. Those
in attendance included local hospitality entrepreneurs, the Chamber of
Commerce Executive and Tourism Committee members, and one local
winery owner (Hanspeter Stutz of Domaine de Grand Pré).
The ad hoc group surfaced many ideas relevant to wine and culinary
destination development during these meetings. Themes such as the
need for continued cooperation and the goal of attracting short-term vis-
itors emerged. For example, participants noted that proximity to Halifax
brought opportunities to promote visits to the region—or staycations—
as a cheaper vacation alternative, anticipating that most visitors would
not travel more than 4 hours. Further, it was observed that transporta-
tion links such as ferries (Digby and Yarmouth) and the Halifax Stanfield
International Airport would facilitate inbound travel from further
afield. The importance of knowing your customer was also emphasized.
Participants further noted the importance of agricultural ties alongside
wine and food. In terms of offerings, “simplicity, wholesomeness, and
bounty of the land translated into goods and services” were emphasized.
From a practical perspective, Prince Edward County (Ontario, Canada)
was suggested as a model. Operationalizing these ideas, some high-
lighted the need to make it easy to be a tourist in the area—and a tour-
ism bus was suggested.
Subsequent changes in the promotion of tourism in the province—
specifically the demise of Destination Southwest Nova—encouraged
people in the rural regions to engage in local initiatives such as those
undertaken by the Chamber’s Tourism Committee: “While the South
Shore team is new, other organizations continue to promote tourism
in other parts of the region previously served by Destination Southwest
Nova Association. Those groups include Yarmouth and Acadian Shores
Tourism Association, Annapolis Valley Chamber of Commerce and La
524 D. SEARS AND TERRANCE G. WEATHERBEE

Region Bon Temps” (Alberstat, 2015). With strong leadership from

Heather Leeman, the Chamber’s Tourism Committee set about to lobby
various levels of government for funding to implement its home-grown
“Simply Extraordinary” campaign, aimed at promoting the region as a
wine and culinary destination: “Last year, the chamber’s tourism com-
mittee made presentations from West Hants to Digby to solicit fund-
ing. The three-person committee was in Kentville on Feb. 23 hoping
for some cash and continued use of space at the bus station for a Visitor
Information Centre (VIC). Leeman explained that a television cam-
paign was launched last June with three different commercials. AVCC
credits this marketing with the reason for some of the increased visits”
(Elliot, 2015). The enthusiastic group was successful in securing funding
from the Nova Scotia Tourism Agency, and the Municipalities of Kings
County and Annapolis Royal (Elliot, 2015) to support their efforts to
promote the region as a wine and culinary destination.

Town of Wolfville and Wolfville

Business Development Corporation
At around the same time, conversations about wine/culinary tour-
ism potential were also sparked amongst those at the Town of Wolfville
and WBDC. Evidence of these conversations emerged in Wolfville’s
Economic Action Plan, published in September 2012. This plan identi-
fied “burgeoning food and wine industry”, “growing interest in active
tourism/agri tourism”, and “wine tours (bus?)” (Wolfville, 2012, p. 16)
as opportunities for development. The Wolfville Economic Development
Plan (Wolfville, 2012) was the product of a working group that rep-
resented stakeholders in the region: WBDC (David Hovell), Kings
Regional Development Agency (RDA—Stephen Kerr), Atlantic Canada
Opportunities Agency (ACOA—Paul Richards), Grand Pré, Winery
Association of Nova Scotia (WANS—Janice Ruddock), Acadia University
(Scott Roberts), Nova Scotia Economic and Rural Development and
Tourism (NSERDT—Louise Watson), and Town of Wolfville (Diane
Mombourquette and Jennifer Boyd) (Wolfville, 2012). One important
emphasis within the planning was the need for ongoing cooperation:
“Partnerships with the wine industry, and other tourism providers will be
extremely important moving forward” (Wolfville, 2012, p. 15).
The Wolfville Economic Action Plan further identified the need to
develop a tourism strategy in concert with local business, WBDC, Taste
 32 WINE TOURISM AND REGIONAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT … 525

of Nova Scotia, and WANS, “… to showcase Wolfville as centre of Nova

Scotia’s Wine Country. Tours should start and end in Wolfville” (p. 17).
In clarifying the operationalization of the plan, the need for appropri-
ate food-and-wine-style atmospherics in the Town was also pointed out.
Ultimately, the plan stated a lofty goal of solidifying Wolfville as “… the
food and wine destination of the Atlantic Provinces” (p. 17). To that
end, the plan suggested partnering with WANS and Taste of Nova Scotia
to create a downtown boutique that could showcase local food and wine
and serve “… as a hub of the area’s winery operations” (p. 19). Other
proposed initiatives included creating a display at Wolfville’s VIC to
demonstrate the region’s “… food and wine culture” (p. 17) and cul-
tivating partners, such as local accommodations providers, to develop
packages.
In this atmosphere of conversations around developing Wolfville
as a wine and culinary tourism destination, two forward-thinking win-
ery owners hatched an idea. Pete Luckett (Luckett Vineyards) and
Hanspeter Stutz (Domaine de Grand Pré) pitched the creation of the
WMWB to David Hovell of the WBDC.

The Wolfville Magic Winery Bus Project

To bring this exciting idea to fruition, it was necessary to garner support
and cooperation from key stakeholders in the Wolfville business commu-
nity and at nearby wineries, as well as the industry association (WANS),
and other suppliers. First, Luckett and Stutz persuaded Hovell to engage
with the project. As part of his WBDC duties, it was agreed that Hovell
would serve as the Operations Manager for the WMWB. The proposed
bus route was a loop that passed by each of the five closest wineries
and returned through Wolfville hourly. In the initial season, the partic-
ipating wineries were: Muir Murray Estate Winery, Domaine de Grand
Pré, Luckett Vineyards, L’Acadie Vineyards, and Gaspereau Vineyards
(owned by Jost Vineyards). The five wineries began receiving guests via
the WMWB in September 2012.
Another key to the success of the initiative lay in the availability of
suitable transportation. Ambassatours Gray Line in nearby Halifax
had an inventory of double-decker buses available for charter. The
64-passenger capacity and congruence of the British-style double-decker
buses with the winery theme at Luckett Vineyards (British phone box in
the vineyard and Phone Box branding) made the available buses a good
526 D. SEARS AND TERRANCE G. WEATHERBEE

fit. Ambassatours was willing to provide a dedicated bus—that could be

custom-painted to identify it as the WMWB—on weekends that would
return to its Halifax activities during the week.
Logistically, the wineries all had parking areas that were sufficient—if
sometimes a bit challenging—for the double-decker bus. However, the
height of the bus required tree branches to be trimmed at a few points
on the route. Fortunately, though, lines for phone and power didn’t
seem to pose any problems. With participating wineries engaged and a
bus secured, WANS, the WBDC, and the Town of Wolfville all pledged
support for the project, agreeing to backstop any funding shortfall for
the first season (with a stipulated maximum contribution level).
The organizers realised that it was important for the time visitors
spent on the WMWB to be both entertaining and informative. Thus,
identifying and recruiting suitable guides was of paramount impor-
tance. Jeremy Novak, a local entrepreneur and storyteller was one of
those persuaded to take the position in the initial year. Throughout
the five years of his tenure as guide, passengers consistently mention
his stories, jokes, and songs (often sing-alongs) as a highlight of their
WMWB tour.
During the first season, the WMWB operated for 14 days over 7
weekends in September and October. Passengers boarded at the public
transit bus stop on Main Street in the centre of Wolfville. No advance
tickets were sold, so potential passengers had to join a queue and pay
cash for the trip. Each passenger then received a WMWB sticker as evi-
dence that the fare had been paid. Passengers on the first departure of
the day could visit all five wineries, while those with later departures had
to choose the wineries they would most like to visit based upon the avail-
able time before final pickup (i.e. an hour at each stop).
Hovell coordinated the operations of the bus. Luckett and Stutz
hosted visitors at their wineries and served as ambassadors for the ven-
ture. Each of the five wineries provided tours and tastings, consistent
with their own brands and styles. Meals were available at Le Caveau
(Domaine de Grand Pré) and the Crush Pad Bistro (Luckett Vineyards).
Although the WMWB did not engage in any advertising, both traditional
and social media substantially contributed to the success of the venture.
For example, the WMWB received television coverage on a regional
morning show. Further, the bus spent the weekdays in Halifax as a mov-
ing billboard. The first year of the WMWB exceeded stakeholder expec-
tations and required no additional funding.
 32 WINE TOURISM AND REGIONAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT … 527

A Stabilized Actor-Network
The WMWB has enjoyed remarkable success over its six seasons, achiev-
ing the needed break-even point in its first year and improving on that
accomplishment with each subsequent year. This success has been rec-
ognized locally, nationally, and internationally. It is the only dou-
ble-decker hop-on, hop-off wine tour bus in North America (Wolfville
Magic Winery Bus). At the International Motor Coach Meeting in
Utah (2013), the WMWB won the best idea competition. The Tourism
Industry Association of Nova Scotia awarded the WMWB the Tourism
Innovator Award in 2014. In the same year, the Canadian Tourism
Commission listed the WMWB as one of Nova Scotia’s Top 10 tour-
ism experiences. Each year, the WMWB has expanded its offerings to a
longer season (now May through October) and more days of the week
(from seven weekends in 2012 to 20 weekends in 2017).
This remarkable success was, of course, also marked by inevitable
growing pains that have resulted in adaptations over the six operating
seasons. Using the bus stop on Main Street as a departure point, and
accepting only walk-up passengers who paid cash, posed several problems
for the WMWB. First, parking was very limited and businesses adjacent
to the location understandably wanted to maintain those spaces for their
customers rather than have them occupied all day while passengers rode
the bus. Furthermore, WMWB guests wanted to reserve their tickets in
advance, to mitigate the risk of sold-out departures at preferred times.
These challenges required two separate solutions. First, the departure
point was moved to the VIC at local Willow Park. Although the bus no
longer had regular stops downtown, parking was readily available at a lot
across the street from the VIC. Guests who requested drop-off in down-
town Wolfville were accommodated, but most preferred to return to the
VIC. A third-party ticket seller was engaged so that people who wished
to ride the bus could reserve—and pay for—their tickets in advance
online. A check-in desk at the VIC served as a distribution point for both
information and the stickers that riders wore as tickets. For the 2017 sea-
son, another change came into force. The WMWB website (www.wolfvil-
lemagicwinerybus.ca) was redesigned and a proprietary e-commerce site
created so that tickets could be sold directly to customers. In addition to
having more fulsome control over the user experience, the organization
now had ownership of its customer database, allowing it to communicate
directly with its customers without restriction.
528 D. SEARS AND TERRANCE G. WEATHERBEE

The number and composition of participating wineries has also

changed over time. Muir Murray closed its doors between the 2012 and
2013 seasons, leaving four wineries on the route. This situation persisted
until mid-season 2017 when Lightfoot & Wolfville opened on the out-
skirts of the Town and joined the initiative, returning the offering to five
wineries. The organizational structure of the WMWB has also evolved.
In 2015, the Town of Wolfville dramatically reduced its support for the
WBDC, eliminating the funding for Hovell’s position. This action put
the WMWB in jeopardy. In response to this threat, the Wolfville Magic
Winery Bus Limited was incorporated as a not-for-profit; and Hovell was
hired to serve as Operations Manager.
From the inaugural year, a partnership with one of the authors
allowed data to be collected from customers annually during the WMWB
seasons. The online survey instrument consisted of a series of demo-
graphic questions; questions regarding activities at each of the wineries
visited on the tour (e.g. tastings, wine purchases, etc.); and measures
designed to capture the respondent’s overall winery and destination
experiences (e.g. level of enjoyment, local sites visited, overnight stays
at accommodations, other businesses visited, total spent on purchases,
etc.). A total of 1175 usable responses were collected (2012–2015) rep-
resenting an overall response rate for the sample of 10%. Demographics
for the survey respondents indicate that ridership was overwhelmingly
university-educated (52.3%) married (74.1%) females (82%) with
an above average median household income for the province
(69% > $45,000) with an interest in wine. By far, most of the riders were
Nova Scotians (78%) from the immediate area of Wolfville (19%), the
City of Halifax (38%), and the rest of the province (43%).
WMWB passengers consistently report unusually high levels of satis-
faction with the experience; and few negative comments emerge. As we
have shown, the organization and its offerings continue to evolve and
strive to address any consistent calls for improvement. Some challenges
are inevitable, however. One consistent “complaint” suggests problems
with hearing the guide narration as the day progresses. This challenge,
though, is not related to equipment failure but rather to the volume
of rider conversations as they pass an enjoyable day of winery visits and
wine tastings. Thus, it is evident that the initiative is serving its primary
purpose: providing a positive experience in NS wine country and deliv-
ering customers to the cellar doors of participating wineries. At the same
time, the WMWB enhances the branding of Wolfville as the “heart of
NS wine country.” The overwhelmingly positive response of the WMWB
 32 WINE TOURISM AND REGIONAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT … 529

ridership and favourable qualitative descriptions of the tour further

demonstrate that the WMWB has become a NS wine country experience
in and of itself.

Rural Economic Development and Wine Tourism:

The Siren’s Call
Rural landscapes the world over are experiencing unprecedented lev-
els of change (Garrod, Wornell, & Youell, 2006). Outmigration has
resulted in economic, cultural, and social restructuring under the pres-
sures of globalization and urbanization. Consequently, governments have
increasingly sought ways to mitigate declining rural economic activity
and population losses (Briedenham & Wickens, 2004). The rural Nova
Scotian experience has followed this pattern, and the government is
actively addressing economic development in its rural areas. In 2014, the
government sponsored a panel to study the future of the Nova Scotian
economy. The commission report, Now or Never: An Urgent Call to
Action for Nova Scotians, highlighted these problems and set out a path
for addressing them that includes substantial growth in tourism devel-
opment and revenues. Tourism currently generates $2 billion in annual
revenue and generates 24,000 jobs in the province (One Nova Scotia
Commission, 2014); Nova Scotia’s GDP is $36.2 billion and employ-
ment in the province is 450,800 (Statistics Canada). The province
reports tourism indicators as part of the Current Economic Environment
and Outlook (NS Finance and Treasury Board). The Now or Never:
An Urgent Call to Action for Nova Scotians Report acknowledged that
tourism is a key factor in ensuring the province’s success, stating the fol-
lowing goal: “As Nova Scotia’s leading source of service sector exports,
gross business revenues will reach $4 billion (approximately double the
current level” (One Nova Scotia Commission, 2014, p. 49).
The “very nature of the wine industry lends itself to a marriage with
tourism” (Bruwer, 2003, p. 423). The rural landscape is a core element
of the wine industry, so wine tourism has become a pathway for rural
communities to retain jobs and to generate improvement in the fiscal
and physical infrastructures (Blair, 1995; Getz & Brown, 2006) needed
to achieve rural community and regional benefits (Hall, Johnson, &
Mitchell, 2002; Jenkins, Hall, & Troughton, 1998). Consequently, the
development of wine tourism has exploded in the rural areas of Australia,
New Zealand, the USA, and most recently Canada (Hall & Mitchell,
530 D. SEARS AND TERRANCE G. WEATHERBEE

2000). This emphasis on wine tourism is a pattern now being followed

in NS where tourism has become one of—if not the—preferred tool for
renewing rural economic activity (Williams & Shaw, 1991).
However, while tourism and rural development go hand in hand
(Hall, 2008), quite often it is a relationship fraught with difficulty as
tourism is a “mixed industry in which public, not-for-profit, and pri-
vate organisations … both compete and collaborate in creating the tour-
ist product” (Andersson & Getz, 2009, p. 847). In many regions, wine
producers do not see themselves as a part of, or related to, the tourism
service sector (Charters & Menival, 2011) where perhaps the “greatest
barrier to such developments remains the often [sic] failure of the wine
and tourism industries to understand and work with each other” (Hall,
1996, p. 113). This has been a perennial challenge for the development
of successful wine tourism as quite often wine producers and winery
owners do not understand “tourism as a product” or that tourism ser-
vices are “likely to generate added value” (Correia & Brito, 2016, p. 27).
This is a particularly critical factor during the start-up phases of winer-
ies when a product—rather than service—focus dominates the business
model (Hall, 2003, 2004) and where there is often a lack of knowledge
of the market and customer segments (Charters & Menival, 2011).
Compounding these challenges in developing the necessary levels of
inter-sectoral awareness is a failure to understand that cooperation is the
underlying mechanism by which most successful economic development
in rural areas is carried out. Unfortunately, all too often, regional initia-
tives follow a mimetic process. A process wherein either economic policy
initiatives, strategies, or business models are simply copied from one locale
to another (Reese & Sands, 2013); where success in one locale functions
as a siren call for other jurisdictions to follow. Mimesis is certainly not a
new phenomenon; fifty years of successive waves of the widespread cop-
ying of different economic development approaches (Johnson, 2007).
However, it is beginning to be recognized that the copying or cloning
of models irrespective of the nature of “place” leads to failure more often
than success (Barca, McCann, & Rodriguez-Posae, 2012; Fannin, 2012).

Conclusions and Implications

While tourism development is increasingly recognized as a complex
socio-economic process involving many local actors that depends on
thorough planning and careful stakeholder management (Southgate &
 32 WINE TOURISM AND REGIONAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT … 531

Sharpley, 2002), this complexity is often hidden to casual outside obser-

vation. This circumstance means that it is not very amenable to mimesis,
as wine tourism offerings only become possible when individual entre-
preneurs and firms in the private sector cooperate with non-profit and
public-sector organizations to design, create, and offer tourism products
and services. As we have observed in the development and evolution of
the WMWB, success requires the appetite and patience for deep social
relationships to develop between the stakeholders involved (Dredge &
Jenkins, 2003). Relationships are needed at the local level (Dredge, 2006)
as “[t]he relationship between firms and regions will always be region-spe-
cific and impossible to replicate” (Correia & Brito, 2016, p. 32).
Successful wine tourism requires conditions where wineries, elements
of the service industry (e.g. hotels and restaurants), the agricultural sec-
tor (e.g. grape growers), and the tourism sector (e.g. visitor information
centres, heritage sites) work together collaboratively (Telfer, 2001a)—
even while they compete for the attention and pocketbooks of wine
tourists. Success is only made possible if, beyond the cellar door, a des-
tination is supported by other local entrepreneurs and businesses that
are themselves supported by transportation and human services infra-
structure (e.g. accommodations) (Sharpley & Telfer, 2002). These pro-
cesses demand collaboration, planning, and adjustment amongst multiple
actors over a significant period.
The success of the WMWB may be seen to arise from two critical
elements: the unique geo-demographic positioning of Wolfville within
NS, and the basis upon which the project was created. In the first case,
nowhere else in the province is there a cluster of wineries that is within
a one-hour drive of an urban centre comprising half of the province’s
population. In the second, the relationships that have developed (and
evolved) between the WMWB actors have both inter-personal and
inter-organizational dimensions. In this sense, the WMWB is just as
much a set of “social” and “community” relationships as it is a set of
“business” ties. Relationships which are deeply embedded in the specific
locale that is Wolfville.
This is not to say that “similar” projects are not possible elsewhere.
While these projects may be based upon a “business-model” of the
WMWB, it must be remembered that the model is simply an abstract
conceptualization of the reality that is the WMWB actor-network. Thus,
while the model is portable and can be copied, the actor-network cannot.
In other words, the WMWB is a punctuated network of persons, objects,
532 D. SEARS AND TERRANCE G. WEATHERBEE

and place; an actor-network that is uniquely bound in the spatio-tempo-

ral context of where and how it came to be. Thus, the actor-network is
non-transportable.
There are several locales in the province where there are multiple and
related community-based culinary and beverage businesses. For example,
the Digby area (a town in the western portion of the province, perched
on the Bay of Fundy) now has a craft brewery, a distillery, and two win-
eries. Digby also has a port and ferry terminal that serves as a vacation
gateway into the province. However, since the town is in a sparsely
populated rural area which is over a three-hour drive from Halifax, the
demographics and motivations of its potential tourism customer base
would be significantly different than that of the WMWB current rider-
ship. Given these differences, it is the way in which an actor-network
forms which will determine the success or failure of the project—not the
business model. So, for tourism development, it is perhaps best that the
siren call of the business model be resisted.

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 CHAPTER 33

Positioning the Current Development

of China’s Wine Tourism Destinations:
A Netnography Approach

Bob Duan, Charles Arcodia and Emily Ma

Introduction
Wine tourism is generally recognized as a type of special interest
tourism (Hall, 2013). It has emerged only recently in China but has
quickly become popular (Ma, Duan, Shu, & Arcodia, 2017). Several
factors stimulated this phenomenon: one of them is related to China’s
long history of consuming alcohol, which dates back 2000 years
(Duan, Arcodia, & Ma, 2015). Chinese wine first appeared in recorded
history in the Han Dynasty (BCE206–CE8). In 138 BCE, the Han

B. Duan (*) · C. Arcodia

Griffith University, Brisbane, QLD, Australia
e-mail: bob.duan@griffithuni.edu.au
C. Arcodia
e-mail: c.arcodia@griffith.edu.au
E. Ma
University of Massachusetts, Boston, MA, USA
e-mail: ema@isenberg.umass.edu

© The Author(s) 2019 537

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_33
538 B. DUAN ET AL.

Emperor sent Ambassador Qian Zhang to visit Middle-Eastern nations:

he found a local drink made of grapes and brought samples back to
China, where only high-ranking officials were allowed access to this
wine (Duan et al., 2015). Mass wine production in China, however,
did not expand until the founding of the People’s Republic of China.
Wine production from 1910 to 1949 remained quite low at about
39,000 litres in total (Vinexpo, 2014). At that time, foreigners who
lived in or were visiting China were the main consumers of Chinese
wines. Consumption by Chinese residents remained low, and Chinese
wine brands were neither famous nor competitive in the world market.
Since 2000, the wine market in China has dramatically changed: it
is currently the largest red wine market in the world (Vinexpo, 2014).
However, average wine consumption in China is only one quarter of
the world average, suggesting further potential for growing this market
(Vinexpo, 2014). The first wine tourism attraction in China, established
in 2006 by a famous wine producer, was the Changyu Winery. The
growth of wine tourism in China has been rapid over the last 10 years;
there are now more than 345 wineries throughout six wine-producing
regions. These wine regions are Xinjiang and Shandong, which grow
large quantities of grapes; Ningxia and Yunnan, which reputedly produce
the best wines; and Shanxi and Hebei (Wei, 2015).
Since 2005, domestic tourism in China is growing at a rate of 10%
each year and has contributed to over 4% of China’s GDP (Wei, 2015).
The economic importance of wine tourism has also drawn researchers’
attention. Most studies on wine tourism in China, however, are at the
microlevel and are descriptive in nature (e.g. Liu, 2011; Xi, 2013; Zhang
& Cao, 2014); macro-level market analysis continues to be limited. The
purpose of this research is to give an overview analysis of China as a wine
destination. In particular, the research integrates a SWOT (Strengths,
Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) analysis with Pine and Gilmore’s
(2013) experience economy model, via a netnography approach, to
establish China’s overall position in the global wine tourism industry.
The experience economy model (known as 4Es) helps to determine
visitors’ positive consumption outcomes, satisfaction levels, and revisit
intentions by identifying the overall performance within the industry.
The netnographic approach uses research techniques similar to those of
ethnography (Kozinets, 2015).
 33 POSITIONING THE CURRENT DEVELOPMENT OF CHINA’S … 539

Relevant Concepts and Background

Current Chinese Wine Tourism

Drinking wine is not important in the daily life of Chinese people.
Qiu, Yuan, Ye, and Hung (2013) emphasize that the Chinese people,
particularly the older generation, have limited knowledge regarding
wine; however, most Chinese people are interested in the health benefits
of wine. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) could potentially underpin
the growth in the wine production industry. TCM, which services 40% of
Chinese health issues (Somogyi, Li, Johnson, Bruwer, & Bastian, 2011),
encourages using a moderate amount of liquor to maintain good health.
This message is very important within Chinese culture, which always tries
to link the consumption of food and beverage with health. Chinese peo-
ple believe that red wine is less harmful to the body than the traditional
Chinese spirits (Zhu, Zhang, & Ding, 2009). However, compared to
other alcohol drinking (e.g. beer, spirits), wine consumption is still a low
percentage of overall Chinese liquor consumption (Wei, 2015).
Exploring a cultural experience is one motivating factor for Chinese
people to visit wineries (Qiu et al., 2013). In other wine regions around
the world, this desire to have different cultural experiences is also a moti-
vating factor (Byrd, Canziani, Hsieh, Debbage, & Sonmez, 2016). Wei
(2015), who employed a case study approach to explore the Chinese wine
tourist experience at the Changyu Winery, claims that this new experience
of wine tourism in China lacks models and theories to support the industry.
Qiu et al. (2013) stated that there is a limited amount of research about
Chinese wine tourism and its development, and questioned whether or not
the existing facilities and marketing works effectively. The current market
operators lack valid marketing strategies that are based on good under-
standing of the target market and tourists’ feedback (Vinexpo, 2014).

Wine Tourism Destinations

Wine tourism destinations can be regarded as comprehensive systems
that contain large amounts of product, co-producing actors and services
(Gómez, Lopez, & Molina, 2015). People perceive wine tourism des-
tinations as places that hold wine-related events, festivals and activities.
While having a range of facilities is essential, the wine region itself can
540 B. DUAN ET AL.

also be considered a tourism destination or a sub-destination (Gómez

et al., 2015). As an important type of special interest tourism, wine tour-
ism uses the production and consumption of wines, as well as the local
scenery, culture, leisure, education, business and food, to create memora-
ble experiences for tourists (Quadri-Felitti & Fiore, 2016). Wine tourism
involves four categories of activities and events for wine tourism desti-
nations (Gómez et al., 2015): (1) natural sites such as the vineyard and
landscapes; (2) natural events, such as harvesting; (3) social-cultural sites
such as wine museums; and (4) social culture events such as the wine
festivals and wine education. Any one of these four aspects could moti-
vate tourists to visit a winery. In many cases, the wine could be the main
reason; in other cases, it could be the natural sites or local cultural events
that attract tourists to the winery (Frochot, 2000). Overall, wine tour-
ists pursue an experience that “is a complex interaction of natural setting,
wine, food, cultural, and historical inputs and above all the people who
service them” (Charters, 2006, p. 214).
Many studies have also applied various consumer behaviour models
and theories to contribute to evaluations of the wine travelling experi-
ence (Quadri-Felitti & Fiore, 2016). Pine and Gilmore’s (2013) “expe-
rience economy model”, which considers the hedonic nature of wine
tourism experiences, is a promising framework to evaluate the experi-
ence of wine tourism destinations. Their model examines components
of wine tourism experiences from a hedonic–experiential perspective
and has been validated as suitable to understand the customers’ expe-
riences (Quadri-Felitti & Fiore, 2016). This model has four experience
dimensions: educational, escapist, esthetic, and entertainment (Pine &
Gilmore, 2013). Education and entertainment experiences in the model
could be further combined together as “edutainment”, which refers to
the fun and learning features of wine tourism (Jarvin, 2015). Aesthetic
experience occurs when visitors are attracted by the scenery in the wine
regions as they escape from their daily routines (Quadri-Felitti & Fiore,
2016). Consumers may encounter more than one 4Es in their experi-
ence, based on their involvement levels (Pine & Gilmore, 2013).

SWOT Analysis
Hollensen (2015) describes a SWOT analysis as a useful technique used
in marketing studies, which is able to improve an industry’s strategic
development. The key features underlying a SWOT analysis include
 33 POSITIONING THE CURRENT DEVELOPMENT OF CHINA’S … 541

the external environments within an industry (threats and opportuni-

ties) and the internal strengths and weaknesses (Hollensen, 2015). The
SWOT analysis needs to be integrated with the experience economy
model: the SWOT analysis delineates performance from an industry
view; the experience economy model concerns from the visitors’ per-
ceptions. Travel experiences have a direct influence on the success of a
destination (Gómez et al., 2015). Combining these two analytic tools
allows this research to better meet the purpose of this study, provid-
ing a more holistic understanding of the industry with a theoretical
approach.

Research Method
Netnography, employed as the appropriate research technique for this
research, is an adapted version of ethnographic research techniques
used to research cultures and communities through computer-mediated
data (Kozinets, 2015). This netnography approach allows easier access
to Chinese wine tourists’ views, compared with traditional approaches.
Netnography maintains the emic perspective of a traditional ethnography
approach. As the nature of netnography is both naturalistic and unob-
trusive, this allows researchers to access information which more can-
didly represents a target group’s perspectives online or offline (Kozinets,
2015). It has been adapted to a range of research areas and has become
popular in cultural studies, in consumer studies, and in a range of other
social scientific fields (Mkono & Markwell, 2014).
In line with Litvin, Goldsmith, and Pan’s (2008) online channels, we
chose a travel blog. After reviewing a variety of travel blogs, the most
used travel blog in China, mafengwo.cn, was selected. It is the most
popular online community among Chinese tourists, with over 100 mil-
lion users and 80 million active monthly users, as at November 2015
(Morning Post, 2015). Included in the research team is a Chinese
speaker, to avoid any language or cultural barriers. A number of key-
words such as “wine tourism”, “China’s wineries”, and “wine tourism
experience in China” were entered in a search on mafengwo.cn. This has
returned 103 blogs and 65 blogs were identified as meeting the research
criteria. These blogs have rich information; any commercially oriented
or simple blogs were eliminated. These 65 blogs include a mixture of
text and photographs to describe their wine tourism experiences in
542 B. DUAN ET AL.

30 wineries over 6 wine regions. The comments made by others regard-

ing these bloggers’ travels and experiences were not included, as most of
those comments were similar or asked questions already addressed in the
blogs.
Each blog is from one individual and is coded from B1 to B65.
Saturation is considered to ensure the validity of a qualitative approach
(Krueger & Casey, 2014); consequently, a maximum of 65 travel blogs
were accessed in August 2017 (mafengwo.cn). A profile created for each
blog included gender, age, and wine trip visit time. A systematic cod-
ing was used to analyse data. In the first stage, 60 open codings (from
the SWOT) and 30 open codings (from the experience economy model)
were obtained. In the second step, the SWOT analysis returned 11 axial
codings; for the experience economy model (4Es), 14 axial codings
emerged. In the third step, seven axial codings were grounded into
SWOT, and six axial codings into 4Es. Two professors, from Griffith
University, Australia, and from the University of Massachusetts Amherst,
USA, respectively, have checked the data analysis process.

Findings
The majority of Chinese wine tourists travel bloggers were female (61%).
Their average age was young to middle-aged (18–39 years), and they
represented 92% of respondents. These profiles are similar to those seen
the Western market (Hall, 2013). For most of them, it was the first time
they had visited a winery (depicted in Table 33.1).

Table 33.1 Respond-

Aspects Frequency (percentage)
ent profiles (N = 65)
Gender
Male 25 (38%)
Female 40 (61%)
Age group
18–29 37 (56%)
30–39 24 (36%)
40–49 4 (6%)
Visit time
First time 41 (63%)
Second time 14 (21%)
Third time or more 10 (15%)
 33 POSITIONING THE CURRENT DEVELOPMENT OF CHINA’S … 543

SWOT Analysis

Strengths
According to Arlt (2013, p. 130), the majority of Chinese tourists are
“money-rich but time-poor”: they cannot afford a long holiday like the
Grey Nomads (i.e. baby boomers) and Snowbirds (seasonal workers) in
Western nations. This gives domestic wineries a monopolistic role in this
market, with their short-term, flexible, weekend wine trips, compared
with international ones marketed to the Chinese wine tourists. Typical
quotes are as follows:

We live in Beijing and this weekend we want to escape the city… … I

found a winery trip could be an excellent option… … it only takes 2 hours
to get there, and that place [winery] does not let us down. (B 2)
I have known this place [winery] for a long time. After all these years, I am
here [at the winery]. It is really nice to be away from work… … [My] life is
all about work. A nice weekend out is what we need for the family. (B 26)

Similar to Western countries, having a rural experience motivates

Chinese tourists to visit wine regions (Qiu et al., 2013), and the attrac-
tive natural resources and local culture of China’s domestic wineries meet
their needs. For example, China’s western wine areas offer unique natu-
ral resources, comfortable climates, and unique local cultures (Xi, 2013).
Those areas, such as the Mi-Le wine region in Yunnan Province, have a
well-established reputation in wine tourism. In 2016, the Mi-Le region
recorded 3,108,700 domestic Chinese tourists (Yunnan News, 2017).

Weaknesses
The three major limitations of these wineries found were having limited
facilities, providing unsatisfactory services, and employing tour guides
unfamiliar with the business. Thus, the Chinese visitors had lower sat-
isfaction levels, and leading to negative further visit intentions. Hall
(2013) emphasizes that services in wineries can build brand loyalty and
increase cellar door sales. High-level facilities and services could posi-
tively determine what customers receive. Based on the current situation,
Chinese wine tourists are likely to become bored and to quickly lose
interest in domestic wine trips. Customers’ complaints about the poor
facilities and services are as follows:
544 B. DUAN ET AL.

I am sure the winery had a lot of investment but it is only 2:00 pm and
lots of restaurants and shops were closed… … I felt really bored and want
to leave now. (B 12)
This trip is nice … … but the staff [in the winery] did not have good man-
ners as far as I can see. I asked her [the staff] to take a photo of us; she just
left us without saying anything. (B 34)
I asked a simple question about how to tell the poor quality versus good
quality wine and the tour guide cannot answer that… …I think they [the
winery] should pay more time and money to train their staff. (B 23)

Opportunities
Modern Chinese are looking for better quality in all aspects of life, com-
pared with older generations, and wine tourism as a special interest tour-
ism meets these trends (Ma et al., 2017). They want to know about wine
and have a desire to experience the image of the romance through their
wine trip, as illustrated by the following quotes:

I really enjoyed this learning trip; it has broader my horizons. As I have

seen lots of wine-related information. I think wine trip is a good tour-
ism option for us. More, while we saw the vineyard, not only did we have
some physical exercises but also touched the romantic atmospheres of
wine. (B 40)

Local government policies also support the development of local win-

eries. Five provinces (Ningxia, Jilin, Hebei, Gansu, and Xinjiang prov-
inces) have introduced wine industry development funds to support their
wineries. For example, the Ningxia Government especially gives strong
support to local wine producers: they are planning to build a wine tour-
ism “corridor” to promote the wine surrounding industries develop-
ment. In this “corridor” there will be a wine culture centre, three leading
wine cities, and ten wine theme towns by 2020 (Wei, 2015). According
to the China Tourism Year Book (2017), for overall tourism, China
received more than 4.1 billion domestic and international tourists, and
the total tourism revenue exceeded 4 trillion Chinese Yuan in 2016. The
yearbook also claims that wine tourism is a promising tourism category
for further expansion.
 33 POSITIONING THE CURRENT DEVELOPMENT OF CHINA’S … 545

Threats
Foreign wineries entering this market could be a threat. For example,
the Louis Vuitton (LV) has continued to expand in China: it is build-
ing a winery in the Ningxia wine region, and has another winery under
construction in Yunnan (China News, 2013). Chinese people perceived
wine as originally being from France (Liu, 2011), and so the LV winer-
ies or other foreign wineries could give the Chinese wine tourists more
authentic wine tourism experiences, from their perspective. In addition,
these foreign wineries have substantial industry experience, which also
increases their competitive power, compared with China’s local wineries.
However, whether or not the foreign wineries will use some Chinese cul-
tural aspects is unknown. As Qiu et al. (2013) argued, the majority of
wineries in China lack Chinese flavour, due to the replication of Western
wineries’ architecture. This feature cannot benefit the Chinese wineries
if they are targeting international wine tourists for an authentic Chinese
experience. One blogger reported about the LV winey in Ningxia:

The Ningxia Chandon Winery by LV is absolutely fabulous… … I believe

this winery has a huge potential to attract Chinese wine tourists. (B 29)

The Experience Economy Model Perspective

Educational Experience
Chinese wine tourists were satisfied with the wine educational experi-
ences. They have experienced the wine museums in the wineries, with
rich information about wine and the history of Chinese wine. Chinese
wine tourists have learned a lot of information in the wine museums.
Even this aspect of learning is different from the Western market (Hall,
2013). This learning also has also inspired their patriotism, as one blog-
ger comments:

After I have seen the information in the winery, I am now so proud of

Chinese wine and this industry. (B 47)

Wine tourists are aware that cellar door visitation increases their
knowledge of wine and this educational experience is also a motivation
for them (Quadri-Felitti & Fiore, 2016). However, some of them did
not pay much attention to wine tasting. One blogger reported:
546 B. DUAN ET AL.

I have noticed just a few people were actually listening to the tour guide
… … most of the visitors were chatting with friends … … I felt this is not
respecting the tour guide. (B 34)

Entertainment Experience
The lack of a unique character, of events, or of wine festivals led to expe-
riencing lower levels of satisfaction. Considering the Shandong wine
regions for example, where the wineries’ buildings were duplicated from
European castles and the local wineries are isolated from the local cul-
ture, visitors feel the lack of local wine culture and local character (Wei,
2015). China’s wineries lack innovation; their itineraries are not dis-
similar from region to region and have limited activity options, such as
grape picking in summer only (Zhang & Cao, 2014). There is a need for
unique local activities to add to the different wine regions. They claim:

Next time, I will not stay in the hotel in the winery, it was so boring… …
there were not many things to do, I felt like an “old” man, having to go to
bed early. (B 55)
There are few things we can do in the winery. So, we left the win-
ery early … … I suggest if you want to visit here don’t spend over than
1 hour. (B 60)

Aesthetic Experience
Most of the bloggers enjoyed the landscapes and the rural environment,
and also experienced the local culture in the wine regions. An aesthetic
experience is important in wine tourism: it could enhance visitors’ overall
experiences and lead to higher satisfaction levels (Quadri-Felitti & Fiore,
2016). China’s wine regions cover from the eastern regions with sun,
beach and sand to the western grasslands and desert areas (Byrd et al.,
2016). These natural resources can be seen as being enormous advan-
tages. The typical descriptions were:

I enjoyed the nature when we were driving to the winery … … the love-
liest part is the rose garden in the winery … … this is a perfect place for
shooting wedding photographs. (B 60)
I like the village where we stayed [in the wine region]. The beauty of
nature [wine region] is waiting for us to discover it. (B 33)
 33 POSITIONING THE CURRENT DEVELOPMENT OF CHINA’S … 547

Escapist Experience
In the escapist experiences, Chinese wine tourists had rest and relaxa-
tion at the winery as a principle motivation for their visit. Escape in this
experience does not mean doing anything in particular but could include
events, festivals, or activities to support the attraction (Quadri-Felitti &
Fiore, 2016). More events such as these need to be developed in China’s
wineries. Generally speaking, drinking wine is a way to help people relax;
this ideal applies across different age groups and cultures (Frone, 2016).
A few bloggers reported that drinking wine at the winery made them
relax. One comments:

Drinking wine at the winery made me feel relaxed … … I am not a heavy

drinker but drinking a glass of wine at this beautiful environment is a nice
thing. We need to know how to reduce pressure and promote a sense of
balanced-life. (B 45)

Discussion of the Findings

China’s wine tourism has enormous potential and numerous challenges.
China’s wineries are often located in beautiful natural environments,
with a variety of scenic vistas. These wineries could be included within
local travel resources to promote wine tourism. The domestic wineries
offer reasonable costs, in terms of time and money, but within the sim-
plified visa application processes, foreign wineries are getting easier for
Chinese wine tourists to visit (Lai, Li, & Harrill, 2013). Local wineries
could miss the opportunities arising from Chinese wine tourism due to
the weaknesses revealed in this research. With 120 million Chinese trav-
elling overseas, spending 104.5 billion US dollars in 2015, there is an
increase from 12 to 16.7% compared to 2014 (China Tourism Research
Institute, 2016). Chinese make up the second biggest number of inter-
national wine tourists visiting the Hungerford Hill and Hope Estate in
Australia (Chen, 2014). According to a survey by the French Tourism
Development Department, 80% of those Chinese tourists in the survey
who have not been to France are planning to visit France, with acces-
sibility to French wine playing an important part during their trip
(Chen, 2014).
The lack of a unique character, the inadequate facilities and services,
and the low number of events found in Chinese wineries are found to
548 B. DUAN ET AL.

lead to a lower satisfaction level in the wine tourism experience. Almost

all winery buildings lack unique Chinese design as they are replicated
from Western countries. As reported by Wei (2015), the entire Chinese
wine tourism is lacking history and culture, consequentially leading to
low involvement in the visiting experience. The poor facilities and ser-
vices, which lead to the visitor having lower satisfaction, turn into weak-
nesses. The market operators lack valid marketing strategies that are
based on a good understanding of the target market and of tourists’
feedback (Ma et al., 2017).
This industry also faces a shortage of trained wine professionals and
therefore will continue to struggle with the huge demand for these pro-
fessionals in China’s wine regions (Wei, 2015). To overcome this pro-
fessionalism shortage, two options are available. First, the wineries could
cooperate with universities to set up training programmes for current
staff. Second, Chinese universities should open up more wine tast-
ing or production schools or programmes to develop professionalism
in the industry, to meet the need for more wine schools training future
employees.

Conclusion
The findings of this study contribute to the literature of the current
state of Chinese wine tourism by providing a holistic understanding of
the market profile. Wine tourism needs to meet the market with the
rising of the Chinese middle classes and the local government drive in
wine tourism development. The findings of the study also help wine
tourism operators to design and to promote their products. In inves-
tigating Chinese customer experiences, this study has contributed to
both the literature and the local development of wine tourism. The
methodology, which employed the experience economy model embed-
ded with a SWOT analysis, has offered a new approach for investigating
wine tourism.
Further studies using empirical data to analyse three main points are
strongly recommended. First, further research should be undertaken
to explore how the industry can improve their facilities and services.
Second, measuring the authentic experiences in China’s wine tourism
destinations is highly recommended. Third, extending the local Chinese
culture into the winery experience could also be the focus of further
studies.
 33 POSITIONING THE CURRENT DEVELOPMENT OF CHINA’S … 549

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 CHAPTER 34

The Role of Networks,

Synergies and Collective Action
in the Development of Wine Tourism:
The Case of ‘Wines of Crete’

Anna Kyriakaki, Nikolaos Trihas and Efthymia Sarantakou

Introduction
Globalisation, the launch of new technologies and the constantly
­increasing competition in tourism, has lead to a series of changes in tour-
ism destination management. Several destinations encourage new organ-
isational structures (such as networks, clusters, partnerships) in order to
respond to and develop sustainably within a constantly changing and

A. Kyriakaki (*)
University of the Aegean, Chios, Greece
e-mail: a.kyriakaki@aegean.gr
N. Trihas
Technological Educational Institute of Crete, Agios Nikolaos, Greece
e-mail: ntrihas@staff.teicrete.gr
E. Sarantakou
Hellenic Open University, Patras, Greece
e-mail: esarad@otenet.gr

© The Author(s) 2019 551

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_34
552 A. KYRIAKAKI ET AL.

highly competitive environment (Bras, Costa, & Buhalis, 2010). Still,

the new organisational structures can only lead to sustainable results if
their members overcome the challenge of their own personal goals and
cooperate with each other to set new collective goals and a common devel-
opment strategy. The above challenge often contains some difficulties as
the enterprises participating in a network or cluster can be competitors.
Tourism is an economic activity that takes place in an international-
ised environment and has multiple effects on the economic and social life
of the area it takes place in. The links of tourism to other production
sectors render tourism particularly vital for regional and local develop-
ment (Kyriakaki, Zagkotsi, & Trihas, 2016). The development of wine
tourism is an example of such a link between tourism and local produc-
tion, exploitation and promotion of local products and natural resources.
According to Gomez and Molina (2012, p. 353), wine tourism is
defined as a ‘form of travel, which is based not only on a visit to the wineries
and wine areas but also on carrying out other complementary activities’.
Within this framework, this chapter attempts to reveal the role of
networks in the development of wineries and wine tourism destinations
within an internationalised environment. More specifically, it examines
how a wine network influences the operation, development and export-
ing potential of the wineries in the region of Crete. Crete is considered as
an example of a tourism destination with many competitive advantages: it
is a popular, developed Greek destination, whereas at the same time it is
a pioneer in programmes interrelating agrifood and tourism (Sarantakou
& Kontis, 2016; Taliouris & Trihas, 2017). A primary research was con-
ducted for addressing the study aims by using a structured question-
naire that targeted the 31 wineries participating in the network ‘Wines of
Crete’. The network started in 2006 with the creation of the Heraklion
Winemakers’ Network, which provided the initial impulse for what it
was later developed into ‘Wines of Crete’. This network urged the cre-
ation of the Chania—Rethymnon (West Crete) Winemakers’ Network
two years later. Subsequently, Prefecture of Lasithi joined the network
of Heraklion’s. Then, the ‘Wines of Crete’ network was set up as an
umbrella over these two networks. Today, the network comprises 31 win-
eries from the four prefectures in Crete. The main objectives of the whole
action are two. On the one hand, the promotion and recognition of
Cretan wine, both inside and outside Greece, and on the other, the devel-
opment of wine-tourist mainstream on the island, taking advantage of a
series of ‘tourist’ advantages the island displays (Wines of Crete, 2016).
 34 THE ROLE OF NETWORKS, SYNERGIES AND COLLECTIVE … 553

Definition and Utility of Networks

According to Lynch (2000, p. 95), ‘the term (network) describes the
interactions of the firm with the external environment, and offers poten-
tial insights into such areas as business relations, industrial organisation,
regional agglomeration, strategic management of small firms and the cul-
turally induced outlooks and behaviours of small firms’.
Gibson, Lynch, and Morrison (2005) classified networks based on the
degree of their ‘formalisation’ into three categories:

• Formal networks: these include a set of formalised actors/partici-

pants who interact in the context of predefined goals, e.g. a regional
tourism organisation.
• Semi-formal networks: these include a set of formalised actors/par-
ticipants who interact in the context of predefined network goals,
e.g. a local initiative for the collective marketing of firms. Social
interactions are construed and evaluated equally according to the
identified goals of the network.
• Informal networks: these include a set of actors/participants who
have mainly social aims or exchange information of great signifi-
cance. These networks have neither an official registration of mem-
bers nor any clearly defined goals.

The degree of social or economic success of the networks depends on a

series of factors, such as the identification/determination of goals, the
organisational structure of the network and its administration, the man-
agement of human resources, the funding and natural resources and the
members participating in the network (Baggio, 2008).
Ojala (2009) supports that in the context of a network model of
internationalisation a firm can develop formal or informal relationships
to various actors, including customers, suppliers, distributors, competi-
tors, non-profit organisations, organisations of public administration,
etc. Thanks to these network relationships, firms belonging to net-
works can draw several advantages by utilising some of the resources
of their fellow companies (Johanson & Vahlne, 2009) thus increasing
their competitiveness (Awuah, Gebrekidan, & Osarenkhoe, 2011) and
gaining from the ability to internationalise their activities and produc-
tion, whereas at the same time ensuring better terms and conditions
for their exports. Furthermore, firms participating in a network share
554 A. KYRIAKAKI ET AL.

information and know-how (Zhou, Wu, & Luo, 2007), experiential

market knowledge (Johanson & Vahlne, 2009), achieve a better access
to markets (both domestic and international ones), reduce the time and
cost involved in entering new markets and moderate their risk (Zhou,
Wu, & Luo, 2007). Thus, they improve their business image (Dalmoro,
2013), develop innovations, identify new business opportunities (Awuah,
Gebrekidan, & Osarenkhoe, 2011), and consequently, achieve better
marketing terms (Lynch & Morrison, 2007).
Still, network development does not offer advantages only to its
participating firms, but it also lays the foundation for the growth of
national and—even more so—regional economies (Beggali, Capitelo, &
Codurri, 2014). The positive outflows of networks that are related to the
exchange of know-how, information and collective knowledge are spread
in the local business ecosystem, thus encouraging the provision of prod-
ucts and services and strengthening the competitive advantage of each
region (Kyriakaki, 2009). Even if it is argued that economic activities
tend to be affected by globalisation, many competitive advantages still
focus on a local level (Baggio, 2008).

Business Networking in Greece

Greece is characterised by many small and very small—family—­enterprises,
which are very flexible but not export-oriented (Sarantakou, 2010) and
pay great attention to long-standing established relations and to the
­frequency of contact and exchange as key factors for the development
of collaborations. Although theoretically the development of collabo-
ration is profitable for small enterprises, the Greek experience indicates
that small and very small enterprises do not easily participate in clus-
ters and networks. The majority of the networks in Greece have been
­established in the context of tenders for co-funded or European com-
petitive programmes which have been realised systematically since 2000.
It should be noted that such initiatives had a very limited response and
consequently they were considered ineffective, whereas in many cases the
lifetime of the networks established did not exceed the duration of the
corresponding project.
Research (Ministry of Development, 2013) has found that the fac-
tors inhibiting the creation of networks in Greece include: the ­limited
resources available to small enterprises; the limited ability to take any
 34 THE ROLE OF NETWORKS, SYNERGIES AND COLLECTIVE … 555

risk; the difficulty to find the right partner; and the fact that the majority
of the small and medium enterprises are not convinced about the
­advantages of establishing collaborations.

Wine Tourism and Networks

The connection between the wine and the tourism sector is very impor-
tant at a regional level, as it contributes to the strengthening, retrieval
and promotion of regional brands (Sigala & Bruwer, 2016), thus rein-
forcing regional economic development (Hall, Johnson, & Mitchell,
2000). The development of wine tourism favours the creation of net-
works between wineries and (a) tourism enterprises (Bras, Costa, &
Buhalis, 2010), (b) enterprises or persons involved in the primary pro-
duction sector, (c) non-profit organisations and local government organ-
isations (Mitchell & Schreiber, 2007), as well as (d) other wineries. As a
result, a wine network can include enterprises, cooperatives or regional
associations that transfer their knowledge, share their equipment or
know-how and contribute to the creation of common development and
promotion actions. Moreover, a network can be the meeting point of
organisations or enterprises of all different sizes and types, both interna-
tional and local, which are in different phases of production or engage
in different fields, through informal contacts or by means of a formal
agreement. According to Hall et al. (2000), networks linking wine and
tourism firms can include informal relations, joint ventures and formal
networks.
The Greek institutional legal framework adopted the concept of wine
tourism only very recently 2014.1 Nowadays, there are approximately
560 active wineries located in Greece, half of which can be (commer-
cially) visited. Still, only eleven of them have received a ‘Sign of visita-
ble winery’ by the respective tourism authorities, which indicates that the
main objective of the wineries remains the sale and promotion of their
wine rather than their relation to tourism activities.

1 Article 25 of Greek Law 4276/2014 defines ‘Wine tourism’ as the special form of tour-

ism which refers to providing hospitality, reception, guidance and food services in locations
that are operatively combined with winemaking or wine-producing (winery) facilities.
556 A. KYRIAKAKI ET AL.

Advantages of Wine Networks

A wine network is an important network for the economic and social
development of a region as it strengthens the region by means of local
development strategies usually without including any limitations on the
participation (in the network) of private or public entities, enterprises or
organisations from other sectors, such as tourism.
Wine networks can support wineries that lack the financial resources
or funding to finance for market expansion and transportation/export
costs, wineries that lack knowledge and experience in participating in
international exhibitions and events (Bianchi & Wickramasekera, 2013).
Dalmoro (2013) supports that networking allows wineries to share
information, make useful contacts, access databases and necessary tech-
nological and productive resources, promote their activities abroad and
enhance their image at a local and international level. Furthermore, the
wineries participating in networks have more chances of becoming inter-
nationally known (Francioni, Vissak, & Musso, 2017), which is vital for
their competitiveness and sustainability. Gibson and Lynch (2007) con-
cluded that the establishment of networks can significantly support the
economic development of a tourism destination, by enabling the follow-
ing advantages and benefits: (a) exchange of knowledge and information,
(b) economic activities and (c) community (social coherence).

Limitations on the Establishment of Networks

in the Wine Industry

Despite the estimated advantages (at a sectoral, local, regional and

national level) from the establishment of wine networks, Hall et al.
(2000) identified some limitations and constraints in the development
of networks within wine-producing regions, especially between wine
producers and tourism enterprises. The constraints relate to: the lim-
ited awareness about the advantages of tourism development by the
wine industry operators (Mitchell & Schreiber, 2007); the confidence
of wine producers that wine can be promoted in the market as a domi-
nant or individual product; the lack of experience and knowledge about
the relation between tourism and wineries; the lack of entrepreneurial
wits, marketing skills and ability to design a tourism product; the nat-
ural constraints (e.g. distance between vineyards and wineries); the
 34 THE ROLE OF NETWORKS, SYNERGIES AND COLLECTIVE … 557

administration barriers due to the complexity and bureaucracy of the

public authorities; and last but not least the lack of a motive, reason and
incentive that could encourage the creation of the right environment for
the development of formal partnerships (Mitchell & Schreiber, 2007).

Research Methodology
This study aimed to evaluate the benefits that could emerge from the
establishment of networks between wine and tourism operators within
a tourism destination by using as a specific case study, the establishment
of the network ‘Wines of Crete’. A research instrument was designed to
specifically investigate the contribution of this network for a variety of
stakeholders: (a) the wine producers themselves, (b) the local community
and economy and (c) the relation and synergies created between tourism
and wine production. To achieve this, the study specifically investigated
the opinions and perceptions of the wineries’ staff that participated in the
network ‘Wines of Crete’.
The study adopted a qualitative research approach. The use of a
questionnaire was considered as the most appropriate means for col-
lecting information, as it can offer high reliability and trustworthiness
(Bird, Hammersley, Gomm, & Woods, 1999). Thus, the study used a
structured questionnaire including 10 questions, most of them being
closed-type questions, a five-point Likert scale, dichotomous questions,
multiple-choice questions, etc. The questionnaire was structured in
two sections (Alebaki, Iakovidou, & Menexes, 2014; Bras et al., 2010;
Stavrinoudis, Tsartas, & Chatzidakis, 2012). The questions in the first
section focused on the features of the enterprise/winery. The second
section included questions relating to the network ‘Wines of Crete’, its
contribution to both the enterprise/winery and to the destination and
region, the advantages that an enterprise/winery can gain from partici-
pating in the network and any limitations that the enterprise/winery par-
ticipation in the network might entail.
The study population included the total number of the wineries par-
ticipating in the network ‘Wines of Crete’, i.e. 31 wineries (Wines of
Crete, 2016). The questionnaire was emailed to all the 31 wineries.
Due to the nature of the research (email survey), the responsiveness
was rather low, and so, email reminders were sent. Overall, the ques-
tionnaire was sent four times to all the study population during August
558 A. KYRIAKAKI ET AL.

and September 2016. Moreover, all the wineries were also contacted
by phone to remind and kindly ask their participation in the survey.
Ultimately, 17 valid questionnaires were collected. This represents 55%
of the study’s population, which—given the nature and difficulties of the
research—is a good representative sample.
The collected data were statistically analysed using the Statistical
Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS), version 24.0. Descriptive sta-
tistics were used to investigate winemakers’ profile, attributes and per-
ceptions. Moreover, to investigate if there is a statistically significant
connection between the dependent variables and the independent varia-
bles (the demographic characteristics of the wineries), a series of one-way
analysis of variance (ANOVA) were conducted.

Research Findings
As illustrated in Table 34.1, the respondents represent winemakers
from all four prefectures of Crete. However, the vast majority of them
(76.5%) are based in the Prefecture of Heraklion, which is not surpris-
ing, since 22 out of the network’s 31 wineries (70.9%) are active in this
Prefecture.
Regarding the wineries’ year of establishment, the wineries can be
classified into three time periods: those wineries that were founded
before 1990 and which are in fact quite old (three wineries were estab-
lished in 1927, 1932 and 1966, respectively), the wineries that were

Table 34.1 Profile of responding wineries

N %

Location (Prefecture) Heraklion 13 76.5

Chania 2 11.8
Rethymnon 1 5.9
Lasithi 1 5.9
Year of Establishment Before 1990 3 23.1
1990–2000 3 23.1
2001–2010 7 53.8
Total annual wine production (in litres) <50,000 2 11.8
50,000–100,000 8 47.1
100,001–500,000 5 29.4
>500,000 2 11.8
Total 17 100.0
 34 THE ROLE OF NETWORKS, SYNERGIES AND COLLECTIVE … 559

founded in the 1990s (3 wineries), as well as a significant number of new

wineries that started operating in the decade 2001–2010. The latter can
also be associated with a new tendency of young Greek people, many
of them with remarkable studies, to return in rural areas and engage in
traditional professions. Considering the volume of the annual wine pro-
duction in wineries, there are 2 wineries (11.8%) that produce more
than 500,000 litres of wine per year, 5 wineries (29.4%) that produce
wine quantities ranging between 100,001 and 500,000 litres, 8 wineries
(47.1%) that produce 50,000–100,000 litres of wine per year and only
2 wineries (11.8%) that produce less than 50,000 litres of wine annually.
These data show that the wineries in Crete have large areas of vineyards
in their possession, while it should be also noted that some wineries use
not only their own vineyards, but they also rent the land of other smaller
producers or purchase their grapes, thereby increasing their production
capacity.
Subsequently, the participants were asked to rate twenty-two
statements concerning the contribution and the benefits of the
network ‘Wines of Crete’ by using a scale from 1 (not at all) to 5 (very
much). It should be noted that these statements were selected based
on the objectives included in the foundation document of the ‘Wines
of Crete’ as well as other wine-producing networks operating both in
Greece and abroad. This section of the questionnaire aimed to investi-
gate the effectiveness of the network in a number of desired results.
Participants were quite positive in their responses, agreeing to a very
large extent that the ‘Wines of Crete’ network contributes positively
to almost all of the above aspects (Table 34.2). Specifically, accord-
ing to the participants, the largest contribution of the network is the
promotion of the Cretan wine identity and awareness (mean = 4.76),
the participation of the members of the network in important inter-
national wine exhibitions (mean = 4.59) and the promotion of native
grape varieties (mean = 4.53). The development of wine tourism is
another area in which the network appears to have contributed substan-
tially (mean = 4.24). On the other hand, the network appears to play a
less important role in the participation of the wineries in research and
market research (mean = 3.18), in the sustainable management of the
island’s natural resources (mean = 3.18), and in the creation of new jobs
(mean = 3.18), concluding that these are some areas where network
managers might have to focus their attention more.
Table 34.2 The benefits of the network ‘Wines of Crete’
560

Not at all Slightly Quite enough Much Very much Mean SD

Design and signage of wine routes 0.0 0.0 17.6 29.4 52.9 4.35 0.786
Improvement of brand awareness of 0.0 0.0 0.0 23.5 76.5 4.76 0.437
Cretan wines
Promotion of native varieties 0.0 0.0 0.0 47.1 52.9 4.53 0.514
Facilitation of the access of wines to the 0.0 5.9 11.8 64.7 17.6 3.94 0.748
Greek and international markets
A. KYRIAKAKI ET AL.

More effective promotion and 0.0 0.0 17.6 58.8 23.5 4.06 0.659
marketing of Cretan wines
Participation of network members in 0.0 0.0 0.0 41.2 58.8 4.59 0.507
major international wine exhibitions
More effective advertisement and reduced 0.0 5.9 17.6 35.3 41.2 4.12 0.928
promotional costs for network members
Development of collaborations and synergies 0.0 0.0 23.5 29.4 47.1 4.24 0.831
between network members
Networking and development of collaborations 0.0 5.9 58.8 17.6 17.6 3.47 0.874
and synergies with other organisations and
companies outside the network
Protection of the network members’ interests 0.0 5.9 17.6 47.1 29.4 4.00 0.866
Better tackling of competition 0.0 5.9 52.9 23.5 17.6 3.53 0.874
Promotion of local entrepreneurship 0.0 5.9 23.5 29.4 41.2 4.06 0.966
Exploitation of funding opportunities from 0.0 0.0 17.6 41.2 41.2 4.24 0.752
national and European development programmes

(continued)
Table 34.2 (continued)
Not at all Slightly Quite enough Much Very much Mean SD
Supporting the modernisation of network members 0.0 17.6 35.3 17.6 29.4 3.59 1.121
Participation in research programmes and market 0.0 29.4 35.3 23.5 11.8 3.18 1.015
research
Training and knowledge transfer 0.0 5.9 29.4 41.2 23.5 3.82 0.883
to network members
Provision of technical support and know-how 5.9 17.6 29.4 35.3 11.8 3.29 1.105
to network members
Establishment of quality criteria for network members 0.0 17.6 35.3 29.4 17.6 3.47 1.007
Sustainable management of the region’s natural 5.9 17.6 41.2 23.5 11.8 3.18 1.074
resources
Creation of new jobs 0.0 29.4 29.4 35.3 5.9 3.18 0.951
Development of wine tourism 0.0 5.9 17.6 23.5 52.9 4.24 0.970
Establishment of quality standards for visits to wineries 0.0 5.9 17.6 52.9 23.5 3.94 0.827
34 THE ROLE OF NETWORKS, SYNERGIES AND COLLECTIVE …
561
562 A. KYRIAKAKI ET AL.

ANOVA tests were conducted for investigating any significant effects

of the demographic characteristics of the responding wineries (location,
year of establishment, annual wine production) on their ratings of the
twenty-two statements concerning the contribution and the benefits of
the ‘Wines of Crete’ network. Findings revealed some statistically signif-
icant effects in a number of cases. In particular, the annual wine produc-
tion appeared to have some influence on the respondents’ perceptions
of the network’s contribution to: ‘networking and development of col­
laborations and synergies with other organisations and companies out-
side the network’ (p = 0.008), ‘support of the modernisation of network
members’ (p = 0.045), ‘creation of new jobs’ (p = 0.012) and ‘devel­
opment of wine tourism’ (p = 0.037). In all cases, the winemakers that
produce large quantities of wine (100,001−500,000 litres annually)
tend to be more positive in their perceptions than the other winemakers
(Table 34.2).
In the next step, winemakers were asked to evaluate a number of
advantages and disadvantages that arise for their wineries from their
participation in the network (Table 34.3). Findings revealed that the
winemakers are fairly conservative. The main benefit they reported to
have gained by participating in the network is that they can easier pres-
ent their wineries in exhibitions and in the media (mean = 4.06), fol-
lowed by the promotion of their wineries through the network’s website
(mean = 3.71) and the image improvement along with the creation of
reputation for their wineries (mean = 3.65). Therefore, the main bene-
fits that winemakers acknowledge from their participation in the network
are related to marketing issues of their businesses. At the same time,
the increase in the number of visitors to their wineries and the subse-
quent development of wine tourism are also evaluated quite positively
(mean = 3.41). On the other hand, the network seems to lack support
and modernisation of its members, since the modernisation of the win-
eries (mean = 2.47), the funding opportunities (mean = 2.65), the tech-
nical assistance and know-how (mean = 2.76), and business advices and
training (mean = 2.88) have been evaluated quite low. Finally, wine-
makers do not feel that their participation in their network has caused
particular problems, with the main drawbacks recognised being the
obligation to adopt the quality specifications defined by the network
(mean = 2.82) and the possibly limiting of the wineries’ autonomy. Still,
they acknowledge the positive contribution to the quality of the products
and services provided by the wineries.
Table 34.3 The advantages and disadvantages of the ‘Wines of Crete’ network for the participating wineries

Not at all Slightly Quite enough Much Very much Mean SD

Better tackling of competition 0.0 0.0 23.5 23.5 52.9 3.29 0.849
Improvement of image and brand 0.0 11.8 29.4 41.2 17.6 3.65 0.931
awareness of my winery
Promotion of my winery on the 0.0 17.6 11.8 52.9 17.6 3.71 0.985
network’s website
Promotion of my winery in exhibitions 0.0 0.0 17.6 58.8 23.5 4.06 0.659
and the media
Attraction of visitors/development 0.0 17.6 41.2 23.5 17.6 3.41 1.004
of wine tourism
Business advice and/or training 0.0 35.3 47.1 11.8 5.9 2.88 0.857
Technical support and know-how 5.9 41.2 35.3 5.9 11.8 2.76 1.091
Funding opportunities 5.9 47.1 23.5 23.5 0.0 2.65 0.931
Creation of profitable collaborations 0.0 35.3 23.5 35.3 5.9 3.12 0.993
within and outside the network
Increase of sales/turnover 5.9 11.8 58.8 23.5 0.0 3.00 0.791
Modernisation of my winery 23.5 17.6 47.1 11.8 0.0 2.47 1.007
Decrease in decision-making autonomy 23.5 41.2 23.5 11.8 0.0 2.24 0.970
Increase of the cost of participating in 29.4 29.4 17.6 17.6 5.9 2.41 1.278
the network’s promotional actions
Obligation to adopt the quality standards 11.8 23.5 41.2 17.6 5.9 2.82 1.074
defined by the network
Increase of network’s control over 29.4 47.1 11.8 11.8 0.0 2.06 0.966
34 THE ROLE OF NETWORKS, SYNERGIES AND COLLECTIVE …

my winery’s operation
563
564 A. KYRIAKAKI ET AL.

Once again, ANOVA tests revealed some statistically significant

correlations between the annual wine production and the respond-
ents’ answers about the importance of the ‘Wines of Crete’ network
for the following statements: ‘improvement of image and brand
awareness of my winery’ (p = 0.046), ‘promotion of my winery on the
network’s website’ (p = 0.016), ‘promotion of my winery in exhibi-
tions and the media’ (p = 0.037) and ‘creation of profitable collab-
orations within and outside the network’ (p = 0.006). In all cases,
these factors seem to be more important for the wineries with a
smaller wine production (<50,000 litres), while they have been rated
as not important by wineries producing very large quantities of wine
(>500,000 litres). However, the latter finding is not that reliable,
because of the low representation of these categories of wineries in
the sample (only 2 wineries in both cases).
Considering the importance of networking, it can be observed
(Table 34.4) that to a great extent the winemakers consider that the
networking of wineries is now the only way to survive (mean = 4.41),
and that is why it is desirable to network and cooperate with other
winemaking networks in Greece (mean = 4.29). It is interesting, how-
ever, the fact that participants are more sceptical about the possibility
of increasing the number of winemakers participating in the ‘Wines of
Crete’ network for its further success (mean = 3.65). At the same time,
there seems to be a climate of co-operation among the members of the
network (mean = 4.29), and winemakers agree that the participation of
their businesses in this network has contributed positively to their devel-
opment and profitability (mean = 4.06). Finally, the expectations that
they had prior to the entry of their winery into the network seem to
have been largely met (mean = 4.00).
Moreover, some significant effects (p < 0.05) were detected con-
cerning the respondents’ evaluation of the above statements regarding
networking (Table 34.4). Specifically, the location (prefecture) appeared
to influence winemakers’ perceptions of the statement ‘the network-
ing and cooperation with other wine networks in Greece is desira-
ble’ (p = 0.001). The wineries from the Prefectures of Chania and
Rethymnon strongly agree with the statement (mean = 5.00), while the
winery located in the Lasithi Prefecture strongly disagrees (mean = 1.00).
The year of establishment seems to influence their level of agreement with
Table 34.4 Level of agreement in various statements about networking

Strongly disagree Disagree Neither agree Agree Strongly agree Mean SD

nor disagree

The participation of my winery 0.0 0.0 23.5 47.1 29.4 4.06 0.748
in the ‘Wines of Crete’
network has contributed
positively to its development
and profitability
The expectations I had before 0.0 0.0 17.6 64.7 17.6 4.00 0.612
my winery’s integration into
the ‘Wines of Crete’ network
have been fulfilled
My relationship with other 0.0 0.0 17.6 35.3 47.1 4.29 0.772
wineries of the network is
cooperative relationships
The networking of wineries 0.0 0.0 17.6 23.5 58.8 4.41 0.795
is now the only way to survive
For the further success of the 5.9 5.9 35.3 23.5 29.4 3.65 1.169
‘Wines of Crete’ network, the
number of wineries participating
in it must be increased
The networking and cooperation 5.9 0.0 5.9 35.3 52.9 4.29 1.047
with other wine networks in
Greece are desirable
34 THE ROLE OF NETWORKS, SYNERGIES AND COLLECTIVE …
565
566 A. KYRIAKAKI ET AL.

the statement ‘the participation of my winery in the “Wines of Crete”

network has contributed positively to its development and profitability’
(p = 0.034). In that case, the newer wineries established in the decade
2001–2010 are more negative compared to the older ones.

Conclusions
A substantial body of theoretical and empirical literature emphasises the
importance of networking as a key factor for wineries’ growth, compet-
itiveness and profitability. Many wine producers worldwide are moving
away from obsolete models of operation, discovering the power of net-
works, collaboration and synergies. Focusing on the case of the ‘Wines
of Crete’ network, this chapter has been written to provide further con-
sideration for wine producers, to contribute to the body of knowledge
on wine networks and to stimulate further research in the field. Since
2006, when the first winemakers’ network was formed in Crete, the
Cretan winemaking industry has entered a new growth path following a
mindset of cooperation and synergies. The findings of this study suggest
that in the case of the ‘Wines of Crete’ network, the main constraints
on networking—especially for SMEs—have been overcome, while the
trust of the network’s members has been greatly assured. More specif-
ically, according to the respondents, the main objectives for which the
network has been set up have been largely met. A common understand-
ing of the need to set up networks at regional and national level has
been recorded. It is extremely positive that winemakers recognise the
need for co-operation for the survival, development and sustainabil-
ity of their businesses. Synergy is fundamental to this process because
it provides opportunities for extroversion, as well as a more effective
marketing. Moreover, the contribution of the network is acknowledged
mainly in strengthening the identity of the area, increasing the aware-
ness of Cretan wine and developing wine tourism. On the other hand, it
seems that there is space for improvement, as the network seems to lack
support to its members in specific areas, such as modernisation, fund-
ing opportunities, technical assistance and training. Overall, the Cretan
winemakers believe that it is desirable to network and cooperate with
other winemaking networks in Greece. Future research should take into
account the perceptions of winemakers that participate in other net-
works in Greece.
 34 THE ROLE OF NETWORKS, SYNERGIES AND COLLECTIVE … 567

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 CHAPTER 35

Economic Impacts of a Developing

Wine Tourism Industry in Iowa

Oksana Grybovych Hafermann and Samuel V. Lankford

Introduction: Wine Tourism Development

in Rural Areas

In search of innovative ways to diversify their agricultural bases through

tourism-related consumption and production, many rural areas are
turning to food and beverage tourism (Hall, Sharples, Cambourne, &
Macionis, 2000; Plummer, Telfer, Hashimoto, & Summers, 2005). Wine
tourism, being one subset of food and beverage tourism, offers localities
a wide range of benefits, including foreign exchange earnings, creation
of full- and part-time jobs, as well as generation of secondary economic
activity (multiplier effect) (O’Neill & Charters, 2000; Wargenau & Che,
2006). Furthermore, with wine having an agricultural base, it has the
potential to benefit local communities and play an important role in rural
tourism development as well as local economic development (Plummer

O. Grybovych Hafermann (*)

University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls, IA, USA
e-mail: oksana.grybovych@uni.edu
S. V. Lankford
California State University, Fresno, CA, USA
e-mail: slankford@csufresno.edu

© The Author(s) 2019 571

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_35
572 O. GRYBOVYCH HAFERMANN AND S. V. LANKFORD

et al., 2005; Telfer, 2001). Successful development of wine tourism is

however a lengthy and complex process (Tomljenović, 2006).
Formal links between tourism and wine, especially through creation
of wine roads, have existed since the first half of the twentieth century,
although they have considerably expanded in the past several decades
(Hall & Mitchell, 2000). As the number of travellers that are drawn
to wine-producing regions and wineries increased, a new form of special
interest travel emerged—wine tourism (Getz, 2000). The most widely
used definition of wine tourism is visitation to vineyards, wineries, wine
festivals, and wine shows for which grape-wine tasting and/or experienc-
ing the attributes of a grape-wine region are the prime motivating fac-
tors for visitors (Hall, 1996). Another definition describes wine tourism
as travel for the purpose of experiencing wineries and wine regions and
their links to lifestyle (Charters & Ali-Knight, 2002). The very nature of
wine associated with relaxation, being with others, and hospitality, lends
itself to a marriage with tourism (Dodd, 1995).
Wine tourism draws substantial numbers of tourists, not only in
the renowned wine regions. While WineAmerica (a national associa-
tion of American wineries) estimates 7 million wine tourists annually in
California (with wineries and vineyards being the second most popular
tourist destination after Disneyland), in the Midwest the number of wine
tourists in 2017 ranged from 6000 in Nebraska, 22,000 in Minnesota,
30,000 in Iowa, and 64,000 in Indiana to 157,000 in Michigan,
183,000 in Missouri, 271,000 in Ohio, and 234,000 in Illinois (all data
from 2017 national economic impact study of the American wine indus-
try by John Dunham & Associates).1
Promises of economic development through the creation of jobs
and the sale of local merchandise (Hall & Mitchell, 2000) have further
pushed the Midwestern regions in the USA to embrace the potential of
developing wine culture through establishing recognised wine regions.
The potential of developing wine and tourism industries has been rec-
ognised by many farmers interested in sustainable rural and agricultural
practices. Research on grape varieties best adapted to cool climates is on

1 As with any economic data, one can easily find other visitor numbers—for example,

MKF Research estimated 358 thousand wine-related tourists in Iowa in 2012, as opposed
to 30 thousand tourists (or 101 thousand tourist visits) reported above. It was our deliber-
ate choice to report more conservative numbers.
 35 ECONOMIC IMPACTS OF A DEVELOPING WINE TOURISM … 573

the rise, and local state and municipal bodies have begun to form net-
works and clusters marrying wine and tourism development in the area.
But to realise and maximise potential benefits of wine tourism develop-
ment, emerging wine regions need to develop effective destination mar-
keting and development strategies and analyse existing and potential
forms of consumer behaviour, especially through sales and return cus-
tomers (Charters & Ali-Knight, 2002). As Getz (2000) points out, while
established wine regions can utilise wine tourism as a tool for enhanc-
ing their destination image and diversifying into new market segments,
for newly emerging tourism destinations wine tourism can be a catalyst
of regional economic development. Realising the opportunities of wine
tourism however can be rather challenging for small rural wineries in
emerging wine regions given the saturated wine market and the domi-
nance of large producers.

From Corn to Grapes: Winemaking

and Grape Growing in Iowa

Famous as a “corn state”, Iowa has a long winemaking and grape-growing

history. In the years preceding the American Civil War, European immi-
grants established small vineyards on their farms to supply fresh grapes
and to make juice, wine, and jam for their families. In the Council Bluffs
area grapes were grown as early as 1857, when A. S. Bonham planted a
vineyard on a hill overlooking the city. In the 1899 Census of Agriculture,
the state was ranked eleventh in grape production; in 1919, it was the
sixth (Pirog, 2000). But by the mid-1900s, the Iowa grape industry was
nearly gone. The main reasons: one, the Armistice Day Blizzard on 11
November 1940 killed every apple tree and grape vine in the state; two,
the use of highly volatile 2,4-D herbicide on corn and pastures starting
in the mid-1940s greatly damaged newly planted grape vines, and three,
regional crop base moved to row crop production (corn and soybeans)
due to United States Department of Agriculture’ farm subsidy programs.
It was not until the 1990s that the state winemaking industry entered a
modern resurgence.
Another significant development in the regional winemaking and
grape-growing history was establishment of the two federally approved
American Viticultural Areas (distinct grape-growing regions)—the Upper
Mississippi River Valley AVA (the largest designated winemaking region
574 O. GRYBOVYCH HAFERMANN AND S. V. LANKFORD

in the country, sprawling over northeast Iowa, southeast Minnesota,

southwest Wisconsin, and northwest Illinois), and the Loess Hills
District AVA along the western border of Iowa and Missouri. The two
designations are an extremely favourable development for the vineyards,
grape growers and winemakers alike; if 85% of the grapes used in the
production of a wine are grown within an approved AVA, its name can
be used as the Appellation of Origin on the wine label. Moreover, the
AVA designations promote awareness of the unique identity of wines
produced in the regions and appeal to the visitors.

Cool- and Cold-Climate Viticulture

While California still produces most of the wine in the USA (with about
85% of all wine production), Iowa leads the nation with the fastest
growth in Cold-Climate Viticulture (Hrdlicka, 2017). The fast growth of
Cold- and Cool-Climate Viticulture is apparent not only in the northern
USA, but also in the Northern Europe and Canada, with cold Ontario
alone having a phenomenal 12,000 acres of vineyards.
Cool and cold here can be defined as a cool growing season that
limits fruit ripening and a cold winter that threatens the vines with
winter injury (interestingly, cool areas may not necessarily be cold, but
cold areas are always cool). Growing many classic European vines in
cool and cold regions involves extra effort and expense without a guar-
antee that the vines will thrive or even survive. On the opposite, cold-
hardy hybrid varieties developed at Cornell University, the University
of Minnesota, or by individual grape breeders usually have a shorter
growing season and are more disease resistant, in addition to their cold
hardiness (Chien, 2011). As an example, 30 of the 40 types of grapes
grown in Iowa are different hybrids; their names are not always ­easily
recognisable by the consumers, but they can make very high-quality
wines.
There is a great market potential for ripe hybrid wines grown locally.
As Chien (2011) points out, while most rural customers just want a wine
that tastes good to them, and care little about the origin of grapes, the
more sophisticated wine consumers will eventually demand a local source
of grapes. As new viticulture technology keeps improving, it will be up to
the local growers to find the perfect balance of their wine offerings that
would appeal to their visitors.
 35 ECONOMIC IMPACTS OF A DEVELOPING WINE TOURISM … 575

Wine Trails and Wine Tourism Development

in Iowa: Rapid Growth of the Early 2000s

Wine trails (also known as wine routes, or wine roads) are tourist routes
connecting several wine estates and wineries in a given area (Bruwer,
2003). Most are characterised by a bounded space whether it’s an offi-
cially demarcated wine region or a geographical descriptive name such
as Napa Valley (California) or Champagne (France). While there are
a great many benefits to establishing a wine trail (such as shared mar-
keting strategies, more efficient use of resources, as well as greater
value added to the wine and food products (Hall & Mitchell, 2000;
Telfer, 2001), there are quite as many challenges. Plummer, Telfer, and
Hashimoto (2006) illustrate how even a successful trail can fall apart
when partners are in for individual benefits; effective trails require col-
laboration and building bridges between all stakeholders (Duarte Alonso
& Liu, 2010). Moreover, bringing visitors to the wineries and vine-
yards is only one step towards a long-lasting relationship (Nowak &
Newton, 2006). According to Getz (2000), the main role for the win-
ery manager is to never let a visitor leave without attempting to estab-
lish a relationship—as simple as gathering names and contact information
(Jaffe & Pasternak, 2004). This leads to brand loyalty and encourages
repeat visitation, which in marketing terms means increased spending on
and off site in the future, positive word of mouth, and a higher rate of
satisfaction (Bruwer, 2002; Mitchell & Hall, 2004).
Iowa has vineyards and wineries in 86 of Iowa’s 99 counties; the
majority of wineries are small enterprises. There currently are eight wine
trails that encompass most of the state (Amana Colonies Wine Trail,
Back Roads Wine Trail, Heart of Iowa Wine Trail, Iowa Wine Trail, I-80
Wine Trail, Northwest Prairie Wine Trail, Scenic Rivers Wine Trail, and
Western Iowa Wine Trail). In addition, a Great River Road Wine Trail
crosses over Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Iowa. At the same time, a large
number of Iowa wineries do not belong to a specific trail.
Wine trails and wineries in the state have been quite successful in
attracting visitors: according to the 2011 Iowa Welcome Center Survey,
over 13% of visitors to the state expressed their interest in visiting win-
eries. The Welcome Center study further reports that travellers with an
interest in wineries also tend to spend more money and are more likely
to extend their stay in Iowa (DeWitte, 2012). Participation in established
576 O. GRYBOVYCH HAFERMANN AND S. V. LANKFORD

wine trails adds yet another competitive advantage—according to Iowa

winery owners, wine trails drive about 25% of the business to the wine
shops, and wine trail visitors are desired customers as they tend to travel
in groups and make larger purchases (DeWitte, 2012).
In efforts to entice new and repeat visitors, Iowa wineries have
expanded their offerings to include, among others, concerts, tasting
events, private parties, weddings, and festivals held on their properties.
An MKF Research study estimated over $2 million in revenue generated
from these wine-related events in Iowa in 2012, up from nearly $950
thousand in 2008. Duarte Alonso and Liu (2010) argue that such exten-
sions of the traditional winery experience may contribute to creating
synergies and additional activities to attract visitors. Besides generating
revenue, wine-related festivals and events can also assist communities in
developing a regional identity, enhancing a regional wine and culinary
image, and promoting local tourism resources (Macionis & Cambourne,
1998). The ultimate goal is to make a wine region a true destination
(Getz, 2000; Wargenau & Che, 2006).

Wine Trails and Wine Tourism Development

in Iowa: Signs of Maturity

There appears to be a strong momentum for the wine and grape indus-
try in Iowa driven by the efforts of the Iowa Department of Economic
Development, the Midwest Grape and Wine Industry Institute, the
Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship and the Iowa
Wine Growers Association (MKF Research LLC, 2010). Over the last
decade, several pieces of legislation were enacted in support of the grow-
ing industry including the legislation to provide financial assistance for
grape and wine promotion, or to classify winery buildings as agricultural
properties thus granting them tax breaks (Jordan, 2012). Grape growers
see grapes not only as a high-value crop that diversifies their portfolio,
but also as a crop that can bring high profits in the long run. One acre of
grapes yields roughly the same or even more earning potential than 150
acres of corn and beans, in terms of net profit per acre (White, 2005).
Rebirth of the Iowa wine industry comes at a time of growing
demand for wines in the USA, especially that for “value” wines priced
under $10 a bottle (MKF Research LLC, 2010). As a result, the early
2000s saw a growth of wine production and sales: the number of acres
 35 ECONOMIC IMPACTS OF A DEVELOPING WINE TOURISM … 577

of grapes in production increased from only 30 in 2000 to nearly 1300

in 2018 (Frank, Rimerman + Co. LLP, 2014; Iowa Wine Growers
Association, 2018), annual wine sales grew from 260,000 litres in
2004 to 1,177,000 litres in 2016, and total wine production reached
1,534,000 litres in 2016. This rapid growth eased in 2010, and the
industry has stayed relatively stable since then. While the number of win-
eries exploded from just two native wineries in the 1990s to 13 wineries
in 2000 and about 100 wineries in 2010, in the past 6 years it has been
bouncing up and down around 100, with 106 licensed wineries in opera-
tion in 2018. Similarly, Iowa vineyards matured and condensed from 425
in 2010 to 267 in 2017, covering the same 1250 acres (Hrdlicka, 2017).
At the same time, wine consumption in Iowa trails the national aver-
age: on average, Iowans consume about 5.8 litres of wine a year per per-
son, compared to the national average of 11 litres per person (Hardy &
Oyervides, 2017). Growth and expansion of a native wine industry in
Iowa have a potential to increase accessibility to wine and bring state
wine consumption closer to the national average. But most importantly,
it can spur economic growth and development (Tordsen, Clause, &
Holz-Clause, 2004).

Understanding Economic Impacts of Tourism

Changing economic structures often force communities to look for ways
to diversify their local economies through tourism and other service
industries. Economic impact studies can help predict the “ripple effects”
of new and expanding (or old and declining) industries. If used wisely,
economic impact assessments can provide planners and communities
with estimates of employment, gross sales, and income that will result
from new economic activity (e.g. tourism). Comparison of the alterna-
tives can help communities decide where to invest time and resources to
get the greatest benefit (Miller, 2017).
Economic impacts are the effects a project or policy has on the
­economy of a designated area, measured in terms of the change in busi-
ness sales, jobs, value added, income, or tax revenue. In tourism, eco-
nomic impacts are commonly defined as the net economic change in the
incomes of host residents that results from spending by tourists. The
core of economic impact analyses is the multiplier concept—what Archer
(1973) likened to the ripples set up in a pool if more water is poured
578 O. GRYBOVYCH HAFERMANN AND S. V. LANKFORD

into the system (the pool represents the local economy, and the addi-
tional water symbolises extra spending by the visitors).
The total economic impacts of visitor spending are a sum of direct,
indirect, and induced impacts. Direct impacts (direct consequence of
travel activity in the area) represent direct expenditures of the visitors.
For example, a visitor spends money on restaurant meals and drinks,
hotel accommodation, retail purchases, and festival tickets and conces-
sions. These are direct injections in the local economy. Indirect impacts
represent subsequent rounds of economic activity resulting from initial
expenditures by the visitors. For example, businesses spend part of their
receipts on goods and services they need to serve customers, their sup-
pliers then must make additional purchases, and so the chain continues
through numerous rounds, with portions leaking out each round. Lastly,
induced impacts represent proportion of household income (additional
wages and salaries) spent locally on goods and services. In other words,
as residents’ wages and salaries increase, local consumption increases as
well. Since tourism-related businesses tend to be labour intensive, they
tend to have larger induced rather than indirect impacts.
The ratio of the total to initial change in a local economy is called a
multiplier and is rather easy to calculate. Four multipliers are commonly
used to assess impacts of initial visitor expenditures:

• Output (sales) multipliers—estimate the total change in local sales

resulting from a $1 spending by the visitors. If a region reports a
sales multiplier of 1.4, it means each $1 of direct sales (tourist
expenditures) generated an additional $.40 for the local economy.
• Employment multipliers—measure the total change in employment
(the number of new jobs created in the area).
• Income multipliers—measure the total increase in income generated
from a $1 spending by the visitors.
• Value-added multipliers—provide an estimate of the additional
value added to the products as a result of visitor spending. Value
added includes employee compensation, indirect business taxes,
proprietary, and other property income.

Unfortunately, tourism multipliers have frequently been misapplied, mis-

used, and misunderstood (e.g. many studies do not properly account
for visitor purchases of goods that are not locally made). Consequently,
it is not uncommon to find studies overestimating secondary effects of
 35 ECONOMIC IMPACTS OF A DEVELOPING WINE TOURISM … 579

tourism spending (multipliers of 2.0 or greater). In reality, however,

tourism spending multipliers are most likely to fall somewhere between
1.0 and 1.5. The value of the multipliers greatly depends on the geo-
graphic size of the region, size, and economic diversity of the regional
economy, the nature of the economic sectors involved, and the study
year. Larger areas with diversified economies will therefore have higher
multipliers that will need to be adjusted year to year to reflect economic
(price) changes.
Economic impacts of visitor spending are typically estimated by some
variation of the following equation:

Economic impacts of tourist spending = Number of tourists

× Averagespendingpervisitor
× Multiplier

The four typical approaches researchers employ to estimate economic

impacts of tourism include subjective expert opinion, secondary data in
aggregate form, secondary data in disaggregate form, and primary data/
formal models. The primary data approach is usually considered supe-
rior to the others, but it is also more complex and therefore also costlier.
And while it is tempting to use existing data sets to estimate economic
impacts of tourism, these only provide a picture of what the economic
impacts might look like someplace else at some other time. Since multi-
pliers are highly variable and need to be adjusted to a specific geographic
region, it is highly recommended to rely on primary data (usually visitor
surveys) to determine economic impacts of tourism in a specific commu-
nity. These are time-consuming, but relatively inexpensive and provide
the most accurate depiction of economic impacts in a region.
There are many reasons why understanding tourism impacts are
important for communities, among them:

• Economic significance of tourism gives the industry greater respect

among the business community, public officials, and the public in
general (Stynes, 1997). This often translates into decisions or public
policies that are favourable to tourism.
• Economic impact assessments provide a better understanding of the
role and importance of tourism in a regional economy. Comparison
of the alternatives can help communities decide where to invest
time and resources to get the greatest benefit (Miller, 2017).
580 O. GRYBOVYCH HAFERMANN AND S. V. LANKFORD

• Tourism enterprises depend on each other, other sectors of

the economy, local government, as well as local residents. In
other words, tourism impacts the entire community one way or
another. For tourism to succeed, community support is extremely
important—and this support can be acquired by showcasing the
positive impacts of tourism on the local economy.

Study Design and Methodology

This empirical study focused on the visitors to the Iowa Wine Trail—the
first trail in the state, established in 2005 as a result of a collaborative effort
of the Iowa Department of Economic Development staff, wineries in the
Northeast Iowa, and associated partner businesses. Over the past decade,
the trail has become a regional visitor destination and has proven to be a
viable marketing strategy for participating wineries, as shown by the growth
from the original 5–11 wineries. The Iowa Wine Trail currently includes
wineries in Anamosa, Baldwin, Bankston, Clinton, Decorah, Marquette,
Guttenberg, Fredericksburg, West Branch, DeWitt, and Waukon.
Data for the study were collected using a questionnaire-based survey that
sought responses regarding visitors’ party and trip characteristics, spending
patterns, travel motivations, and satisfaction with the visit. Demographic and
socio-economic characteristics of travellers were also gathered. An instru-
ment was pretested at three participating wineries prior to the beginning of
the project in spring 2005. After slight modifications questionnaire surveys
were mailed to the wineries on the Iowa Wine Trail for further self-adminis-
tered distribution over the period of June–November 2005.
A random sample of thirteen weekends was generated and mailed to
the wineries in a table format, along with the memo on administering sur-
veys, blank questionnaire surveys, and self-addressed stamped envelopes.
Questionnaire surveys were also distributed during two Iowa Wine Trail
events in April and November 2005. A memo on administering surveys
provided the wineries with the information on how to intercept visitors
(wineries were asked to intercept every third travel party in the case of large
visitor numbers, and each travel party in the case of small visitor numbers).
The sample was drawn from visitors to three wineries—Tabor Home
Vineyards and Winery in Baldwin, Eagles Landing Winery in Marquette,
and Park Farm Winery in Durango. By November 2005, a total of 170
surveys were collected. Data were analysed using SPSS and IMPLAN
software.
 35 ECONOMIC IMPACTS OF A DEVELOPING WINE TOURISM … 581

Visitor Spending Patterns

Lodging was the highest spending category (M = $135.33, SD = 62.71),
followed by buying wine at the winery (M = $72.07, SD = 63.48), res-
taurant and bar meals and drinks (M = $67.10, SD = 56.30), shopping
(M = $60.08, SD = 141.01), admissions (M = $42.81, SD = 44.90),
transportation/gas expenses (M = $42.72, SD = 32.52), and groceries
(M = $28.99, SD = 33.43). The average total spending was $206.52 per
travel party with the median of $155. As mentioned previously, mean
travel party size was 3.51 (median 2). Table 35.1 and Fig. 35.1 show
spending on different categories per party.

Table 35.1 Mean and median spending per travel party

Spending category Mean Median SD

Lodging 135.33 100 62.91

Buying wine at the winery 72.07 50 63.48
Restaurant and bar meals and drinks 67.10 50 56.30
Shopping (souvenirs, etc.) 60.08 25 141.01
Admissions 42.81 25 44.90
Transportation/gas 42.72 40 32.52
Groceries/convenience store food and drink 28.99 20 33.43
Total spending 206.52 155 216.13

To accurately estimate spending patterns, visitors were asked how

many people in their travel party these expenses cover. The mean spend-
ing party size reported was 2.8 (median 2).
An independent t-test was performed in order to examine differences
in means for the first-time and repeat visitors, and for the wine tourists2
as compared to other visitors. Overall, first-time visitors (M = $271.92,
SD = 247.79) spent more than repeat visitors (M = $220.01,
SD = 180.11), however, this was not statistically significant at p = .106,
t(142) = 1.452. On the other hand, total mean expenditures of wine
tourists (M = $184.66, SD = 145.70) were lower as compared to other
visitors (M = $266.58, SD = 231.88), and the mean differences between
2 For the purpose of an independent t-test and logistic regression analyses, wine tourists

were identified as visitors who indicated their primary purpose of visit as either “to specifi-
cally visit this winery” or “to follow the Iowa Wine Trail”.
582 O. GRYBOVYCH HAFERMANN AND S. V. LANKFORD

160
140
Mean spending 120
100
80
60
40
20
0 Buying wine
Transportati
Lodging at the Restaurants Shopping Admissions Groceries
on/ gas
winery
Mean spending 135.33 72.07 67.10 60.08 42.81 42.72 28.99

Fig. 35.1 Mean spending per travel party

the two groups were statistically significant at p = .044, t(141) = −2.035.

Further analysis of the findings revealed that lower mean expenditures of
wine tourists could be attributed to lower mean spending on purchasing
wine at the wineries (M = $54.27, SD = 32.10) as compared to other vis-
itors (M = $79.01, SD = 71.07). These results were statistically significant
at p = .44, t(133) = −2.037.
To shed some additional light on important variables/factors that
determined total expenditures, the spending variable was further
dichotomised into higher spenders and lower spenders and regressed
(in a binary logistic fashion) on the following factors: (a) primary pur-
pose of the trip (wine tourists/other); (b) day/overnight visit; (c) trav-
elling party size; (d) gender; (e) education high school/above; and (f)
household income below $50,000/higher. The dichotomous grouping
variable was the spending level (higher/lower than average in the state
of Iowa). Two groups of visitors were identified—those who have spent
over $198, and those who have spent less than $198 per travel party.
The figure of $198 was interpreted as a mean of total visitor expendi-
tures that were reported in five studies conducted by the Sustainable
Tourism and Environment Program in the region in 2004, and total
visitor expenditures reported by the Iowa Department of Economic
Development in 2004 (M = $189.76). Table 35.2 reports result of logis-
tic regression model.
 35 ECONOMIC IMPACTS OF A DEVELOPING WINE TOURISM … 583

Table 35.2 Logistic regression model for higher and lower spenders

Predictor Wald Exp[β] p

Primary purpose of the visit: wine tourists/other visitors .893 .566 .345
Day/overnight visit 34.503 .029 .000***
Travelling party size 4.689 1.368 .030**
Gender 2.779 2.532 .096*
Education high school/above 2.073 3.576 .150
Household income below $50,000/higher .559 .640 .455

***p < .01; **p < .05; *p < .10

The Hosmer and Lemeshow omnibus test was significant,

χ2 (8) = 9.36, p = .31 (the null being that at least one of the predictors
is significant). In addition, both the Cox and Snell R2 = .44 and the
Nagelkerke R2 = .59 were rather high, suggesting that variables included
in the model predict visitors’ spending patterns well. The classification
confirmed that the model predicts 85.6% of cases correctly.
Of the variables selected as predictors of higher expenditures, three
emerged as significant. They were (a) day/overnight visit (β = −3.533,
Exp[β] = .566, p < .01), (b) travelling party size (β = .313, Exp[β] = 1.368,
p < .05), and (c) gender (β = .929, Exp[β] = 2.532, p < .10). Thus, over-
night visitors were more likely to spend over $198 per party as compared
to day visitors, and females were more likely to spend more as compared
to males. For wineries located on the Iowa Wine Trail, these findings
suggest that organising events which take place in the late afternoon/
evenings, could encourage visitors to stay in the area overnight, hence
increase the chance they will spend over $198 during their visit.

Economic Impact of Wine Visitors:

Establishing the Baseline
Economic impact analysis of wine visitors in Northeast Iowa was done
using the IMPLAN Input–Output (I–O) Model, developed by the US
Forest Service and currently operated by the MIG, Inc.—Minnesota
IMPLAN Group (IMPLAN, 2006). The model included Clayton,
Dubuque, and Jackson counties, where Eagles Landing Winery, Park
Farm Winery, and Tabor Home Vineyards and Winery are located,
respectively, as well as their contiguous counties (see Fig. 35.2).
584 O. GRYBOVYCH HAFERMANN AND S. V. LANKFORD

Jackson

Clinton

Fig. 35.2 Map of Iowa (Highlighted counties in Northeast Iowa were included
in the IMPLAN model)

In order to estimate the economic impacts of visitors’ expenditures in

these counties, the uses of the output from each sector were examined
as inputs to other sectors of the economy. The resulting model estimates
economic effects of wine visitors’ expenditures in Northeast Iowa on the
total value of economic transactions, on the overall level of household
income, and on the number of jobs created. The area under examina-
tion is 6503 square miles, with the population of 294,538 residents, or
125,047 households (IMPLAN model).
Wine visitors’ expenditures in Northeast Iowa had a direct economic
impact of $1.82 million in direct sales, $921 thousand in value added/
income, and supported 43 jobs in the region. In total, accounting for
the secondary effects, wine visitors to the wineries in Northeast Iowa
supported $2.65 million of direct sales, $1.35 million in value added/
income, and 53 jobs in the area (see Table 35.3).
All reported estimates are based on the total number of wine visi-
tors being 15,644. This number was derived using the total number of
visitors as reported by Eagles Landing Winery, Park Farm Winery, and
 35 ECONOMIC IMPACTS OF A DEVELOPING WINE TOURISM … 585

Table 35.3 Economic impacts of wine visitors in rural Northeast Iowa

Multiplier Direct impact Indirect impact Induced impact Total impact

Economic impacts 1,823,472 404,013 418,145 2,645,627

($ Sales/output)
Economic impacts 921,223 198,605 227,942 1,347,771
($ Value added/
income)
Economic impacts 42.6 4.3 4.6 52.6
(Employment/
jobs)

Tabor Home Vineyards and Winery during the course of the study
(21,800 visitors), adjusted by the percentage of those who reported
that their main travel motive was to specifically visit the winery or fol-
low the Iowa Wine Trail (71.76%). As a result, the total number of
wine visitors included in the IMPLAN model was estimated as 15,644
(21,800*71.76%).
As the table above illustrates, initial wine visitors’ expenditures of
$1.82 million generated $2.65 million in terms of sales, $1.35 mil-
lion in terms of personal income and created 53 full-time equivalent
jobs. For those wishing to examine the table closer, two indicators are
most noteworthy—total impact on resident income, and the number
of jobs created. While sales impacts estimate an increase in sales, they
may represent purchases of products outside the region and are there-
fore of most interest to business owners rather than tourism planners
and developers. The impacts on resident income, on the other hand,
measure effects of visitor expenditures on the changes in household
incomes. These impacts are usually lower than those of sales but pro-
vide a more accurate depiction of how tourism can impact resident
incomes/standard of living. Secondly, the number of jobs created—a
very important indicator—needs to be interpreted with caution. 52
new jobs attributed to wine tourism do not necessarily represent new
full-time positions, since business owners often release existing employ-
ees from other duties to accommodate temporary peak demand or
request existing employees to work overtime (Crompton & McKay,
1994). New hires will most likely be temporary, part time and/or
seasonal.
586 O. GRYBOVYCH HAFERMANN AND S. V. LANKFORD

Economic Impacts of the Iowa Wine Industry

As this empirical study focused on the economic impacts of wine tour-
ism in the state, it should be noted that wine tourism is a relatively
small but growing segment of the Iowa wine industry. A 2014 study by
Frank, Rimerman + Co. LLP estimated the economic impacts of wine and
wine grapes in Iowa at $420 million, an increase of around 80% from
$234 million in 2008 (MKF Research LLC, 2010), and a 2017 study
by John Dunham & Associates suggested the impact was $1.6 billion.
The economic impacts of wine, grape and related industries in selected
Midwestern states are provided in Table 35.4.
The numbers clearly differ from our findings for the following
reasons:

• 2014 and 2017 statewide studies included wine, grape and related
industries, while we only focused on wine tourism,
• While Frank, Rimerman + Co. LLP and John Dunham & Associates
examined the entire state of Iowa, we only focused on 10 counties
in the Northeast, and
• Our exploratory research was carried out as the Iowa wine industry
was beginning to take off, while the other two studies were com-
pleted a decade later.

Table 35.4 Economic impacts of wine, grape and related industries in selected
Midwestern states

State 2013–2017 estimates* 2017 estimate**

Illinois $164 million (Tuck & Gartner, 2014a) $7 billion

$692 million (Frank, Rimerman + Co. LLP, 2013)
Indiana $72 million (Purdue University, 2017) $2.4 billion
Iowa $420 million 2012 (Frank, Rimerman + Co. LLP, 2014) $1.6 billion
Michigan $5.4 billion (John Dunham & Associates, 2017a) $4.9 billion
Minnesota $80 million (Tuck & Gartner, 2016) $2.9 billion
Missouri $1.76 billion (Frank, Rimerman + Co, 2015) $3.2 billion
Nebraska $27 million (Tuck & Gartner, 2014b) $873.3 million
Ohio $1.3 billion (Frank, Rimerman + Co. LLP, 2017) $6.1 billion
Wisconsin $120 million (Tuck & Gartner, 2014c) $3.6 billion

*Economic impact numbers were derived from studies commissioned by individual states
**Economic impact numbers were reported by John Dunham & Associates (2017a) in a nation-wide study
prepared for WineAmerica, available at http://wineamerica.org/impact and reported by McKee (2017)
 35 ECONOMIC IMPACTS OF A DEVELOPING WINE TOURISM … 587

As mentioned earlier, wine tourism is a relatively small but growing seg-

ment of the Iowa wine industry. This growth however is critical to the
success of wineries and vineyards in the state. According to the Alcohol
Beverages Division, of 106 wineries in Iowa, the top 23 account for 80%
of the industry in the state. These top 23 wineries are making money
on wine, as well as other entertainment revenue sources, while the other
83 wineries are not making money on the wine itself, but rather on the
events—weddings, meetings, live music events, Christmas parties, and
other events (Hrdlicka, 2017). With relative low wine consumption in
the state as compared nationally, Iowa wine industry is currently highly
associated with tourism. Quoting Michael White, field specialist in vit-
iculture for the Iowa State University Extension and Outreach and the
Midwest Grape and Wine Industry Institute,

The wine sales in Iowa are all about tourism. It’s all about tourism —
events, food, gas, lodging, gifts, etc. The wine is the seed. If you have
good seed, you can bring all those things in that package together. (White
in Hrdlicka, 2017)

Final Thoughts: Creating Integrated

Wine Tourism Experiences
In the end, wine tourism is not just visiting wineries and purchasing wine
(Carmichael, 2005). It involves unique experiences of the wine region
including landscape, environment, culture, food, and ambience—what
Peters (1997) calls winescapes. Specific attributes of the wine and cultural
heritage form the core of the region’s identity and can become valua-
ble assets for rural communities pursuing wine tourism as a development
option. Unique rural landscapes, farms, and other attractions not only
add to the regional diversity and help educate visitors about the region,
but they also serve as additional attractions for wine tourists, creating a
local experience package (Carlsen, 2004). Demand for these experiences
is on the rise and has been defined in the literature as the Hermann Hesse
Syndrom, or interest in tourism that allows visitors to mingle with the
local community and rediscover the sense of identity of place through
tradition and direct contact with the local people (Asero & Patti, 2009).
Established wine regions have long realised that “the ‘experience’ of
wine country is definitely more important than specific attractions and
products” (Getz & Brown, 2006, p. 156). Successful destinations such as
588 O. GRYBOVYCH HAFERMANN AND S. V. LANKFORD

California’s Napa Valley offer a broad range of wine tourism experiences

that go beyond tasting: visitors can explore the region by limousine,
plane, hot air balloon, or the historic Napa Valley Wine Train; they can
hike, bike, kayak, attend cooking lectures and exhibitions, among oth-
ers, all while enjoying Napa Valley wines (Wargenau & Che, 2006; www.
napavalley.com). Scherrer, Duarte Alonso, and Sheridan (2009) refer to
this as “integrated quality wine tourism product” (p. 461). In our case,
integrated wine tourism experiences are those capitalising on the power
of rural ambience in attracting visitors.
To further increase wine travel to the state and thus boost the eco-
nomic impacts of wine tourism, the state should develop strategies to
promote and encourage integration between government, private busi-
nesses, wineries, and the tourism industry; and vineyards and wineries
need to focus on understanding their visitors and providing them with
integrated experiences that will keep them longer and generate repeat
visitation. Furthermore, incorporating rural ambience in the actual
wine product and creating a whole local experience package can provide
unique and memorable wine experiences for the visitors and help brand
Iowa as a quality wine tourism destination.

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 CHAPTER 36

A Vehicle for Destination Development?

The Case of the Wolfville
Magic Winery Bus

Donna Sears and Terrance G. Weatherbee

Introduction
Based in the Town of Wolfville, Nova Scotia (Canada), the Wolfville
Magic Winery Bus (WMWB) is North America’s only double-decker,
hop-on hop-off wine tour experience (Wolfville Magic Winery Bus,
2017). The WMWB initiative is the outcome of various industry actors
who have established social and organizational relationships amongst
themselves to collaborate (or not) to bring about a tour-based ‘adven-
ture in the heart of Nova Scotia wine country’ (Wolfville Magic Winery
Bus, 2017). In this case, we highlight the complex history of interactions
and relationships that might otherwise remain hidden from scrutiny. Our
perspective is the culmination of nearly a decade of our engagements

D. Sears (*) · Terrance G. Weatherbee

Acadia University, Wolfville, NS, Canada
e-mail: donna.sears@acadiau.ca
Terrance G. Weatherbee
e-mail: terrance.weatherbee@acadiau.ca

© The Author(s) 2019 593

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_36
594 D. SEARS AND TERRANCE G. WEATHERBEE

with persons and businesses in the Nova Scotia wine and wine tourism
sectors. It is based on numerous and extended interviews with winery
owners and operators; winemakers and sommeliers; and tour operators
throughout the region. These qualitative data are supported by quanti-
tative data from a series of surveys of wine consumers and wine tourists
in Nova Scotia conducted over the last five years (Sears & Weatherbee,
2017). All of this has been further contextualized by our discussions with
various industry actors and associations, our own observational, doc-
umentary, and historical research, and lastly, informed by the wine and
wine tourism literatures.
The Province of Nova Scotia stands at a precipice. Geographically, the
small province is perched at the edge of the Atlantic Ocean, bordered
by water on all sides, and connected to the continent only by the nar-
row Isthmus of Chignecto. More importantly, however, it faces urgent
threats due to an ageing population, out-migration (particularly to
Western Canada), and economic distress—accompanied by job loss—due
to the decline of traditional industries. These problems are particularly
acute in rural areas of Nova Scotia. Tourism has long been an important
economic driver in ‘Canada’s Ocean Playground’1 and that focus was
heightened with the release of Now or Never: An Urgent Call to Action
for Nova Scotians, which called for swift and critical change to rescue the
Province from its dire social and economic circumstances (One Nova
Scotia Commission, 2014). Consequently, the Provincial Government,
and particularly those responsible for economic development, are con-
stantly searching for successful models to repeat in other parts of the
province. The remarkable success of the Wolfville Magic Winery Bus may
seduce those without a clear understanding of the reasons for its success
to attempt to reproduce it elsewhere in Nova Scotia.

The Wolfville Magic Winery Bus, in ‘The Heart

of Nova Scotia Wine Country’

Wolfville is a small town in the Annapolis Valley of Nova Scotia. Since

it is in the midst of rich agricultural land that is increasingly devoted
to grape production, several wineries have been developed close to the
Town. Wolfville has 4195 permanent residents (Statistics Canada),

1 Tagline on Nova Scotia vehicle licence plates.

 36 A VEHICLE FOR DESTINATION DEVELOPMENT? … 595

a population that nearly doubles when Acadia University’s 3453 students

(Maritime Provinces Higher Education Commission) are on campus. In
addition to being home to the University, Wolfville is known for its qual-
ity restaurants, quaint accommodations, and thriving arts scene, hosting
annual celebrations such as Deep Roots Music Festival and DEVOUR!
The Food Film Fest. The Town’s geographic location—an easy hour’s
drive from the Capital City of Halifax Regional Municipality (home to
nearly half of Nova Scotia’s population)—makes it a popular destina-
tion for those who want to get away from the city and spend a day vis-
iting farmers’ markets, wineries, hiking trails, and other offerings in the
vicinity.
With the growing number of wineries proximal to the Town, several
individuals and groups recognized the potential to brand Wolfville as
the centre (or heart) of wine country in the province and to promote
the Annapolis Valley as a wine and culinary destination. Consequently,
numerous conversations around the topic were sparked. By 2010/2011,
there were parallel conversations about Wolfville’s potential as a wine and
culinary destination happening within several stakeholder groups: the
local Chamber of Commerce; Taste of Nova Scotia; Town of Wolfville;
Winery Association of Nova Scotia (WANS); and Wolfville Business
Development Corporation (WBDC). It was in this atmosphere of con-
versations about developing Wolfville as a wine and culinary tourism
destination, that two forward-thinking winery owners hatched an idea.
Pete Luckett (Luckett Vineyards) and Hanspeter Stutz (Domaine de
Grand Pré) pitched the creation of the Wolfville Magic Winery Bus
to David Hovell of the Wolfville Business Development Corporation
(WBDC). Hovell was convinced, and the small group persuaded other
stakeholders—such as the Town and three other wineries on the initial
route—to join the endeavour.
In the first year of the Wolfville Magic Winery Bus, the tour ­operated
for 14 days over 7 weekends in September and October. Passengers
boarded at the bus stop on Main Street in the centre of Wolfville.
No advance tickets were sold, so potential passengers had to join
a queue and pay cash for the trip. Each passenger received a Wolfville
Magic Winery Bus sticker as confirmation that the fare had been
paid. Passengers who boarded on the first departure of the day were
able to visit all of the wineries, while those with later departures had
to choose which wineries to visit in the available time (i.e. an hour at
each stop).
596 D. SEARS AND TERRANCE G. WEATHERBEE

The Wolfville Magic Winery Bus has enjoyed remarkable success

over its first six seasons, breaking even in its rookie year and improving
on that achievement with each subsequent year. It is believed that the
economic impact of the WMWB is now more than $900,000 annually
(NowNS, 2016). Each year has seen the WMWB extend its operating
season, dramatically increasing operating days from only 14 in 2012 to
80 in 2017 (for details please, see Table 36.1).
This success of the WMWB has been recognized locally, nationally,
and internationally. A few of these awards are highlighted in Table 36.2.
From a customer perspective, Wolfville Magic Winery Bus passengers
consistently report very high levels of satisfaction with the experience
and very few negative comments emerge. The organization continues to
evolve its offerings and works to address any consistent calls for improve-
ment. Thus, it is evident that the initiative has served its purpose: to
draw visitors to Wolfville, provide a positive experience in Nova Scotia
wine country and deliver customers to the cellar doors of participating
wineries.

Table 36.1 Wolfville Magic Winery Bus season

Year Number of participating wineries Operating days

2012 5 7 weekends (14 days)

2013 4 11 weekends (33 days)
2014 4 14 weekends (42 days)
2015 4 16 weekends (64 days)
2016 4 16 weekends (64 days)
2017 4/5 20 weekends (80 days)

Table 36.2 Wolfville Magic Winery Bus awards

Year Award Awarded by

2013 Best Idea Competition International Motor Coach Meeting

(Utah, USA)
2014 Tourism Innovator Award Tourism Industry Association of Nova
Scotia (TIANS)
2014 Nova Scotia’s Top 10 Tourism Canadian Tourism Commission (CTC)
Experience
 36 A VEHICLE FOR DESTINATION DEVELOPMENT? … 597

Universality of Place? Challenges of Understanding

a Business Model for Wine Tourism Development

By its very nature, rural tourism is a complex network of intersectoral

relations tied to community. Relationships that must be established
amongst public and private enterprises, between profit and not-for-profit
organizations, all of which are subject to multiple levels of governance,
and all are welded to the specifics of a landscape. The development
of wine tourism must always contend with each of these challenges.
Abstracted business models often mask the differences of place that are
key to the success of any one particular tourism endeavour. For rural
development, it is, therefore, critical to identify which wine tourism busi-
ness model elements are transportable from one landscape to another,
and which are not.

Discussion Questions
1. What are the advantages and disadvantages of transplanting a rural
tourism business model?
2. For place-based initiatives such as wine tourism, are there situa-
tions in which transplanting a wine tourism business model might
be appropriate? If so, what are they?
3. What is the role of community in the development of successful
wine tourism initiatives? (e.g. governance, social, economic impact,
tourism infrastructure, and inventory)

References
Maritime Provinces Higher Education Commission. (2015–2016). Enrolment.
Retrieved 12 August 2017 from http://www.mphec.ca/research/maritime-
universitystatistics/enrolment.aspx.
NowNS: Expanding on an industry with barrels of potential. (2016). The
Chronicle Herald. Retrieved 2 November 2017 from http://thechronicle-
herald.ca/artslife/1354315-nowns-expanding-on-an-industry-with-barrels-
of-potential.
One Nova Scotia Commission. (2014). Now or never: An urgent call to
action for Nova Scotians. Retrieved 10 August 2017 from https://www.
google.ca/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=3&cad=r-
598 D. SEARS AND TERRANCE G. WEATHERBEE

ja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwiJg4OjptfVAhXmw1QKHclpCpUQFggy-
MAI&url=https%3A%2F%2Fonens.ca%2Fimg%2Fnow-or-never.pdf&usg=
AFQjCNH4p5k9YccMrbqN-c4T5nAD2nOlZg.
Sears, D., & Weatherbee, T. G. (2017). The Wolfville Magic Winery Bus:
Profiles and segmentation of wine tourists in a nascent North American
cool-climate wine region. Academy of Wine Business Research.
Statistics Canada. Census Profile, 2016 Census Wolfville, Town (Census subdi-
vision), Nova Scotia and Nova Scotia (Province). Retrieved 12 August 2017
from http://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2016/dp-pd/prof/
details/page.cfm?B1=All&Code1=1207024&Code2=12&
Data=Count&Geo1=CSD&Geo2=PR&Lang=E&SearchPR=01&Search
Text=Wolfville&SearchType=Begins&TABID=1.
Wolfville Magic Winery Bus. (2017). www.wolfvillemagicwinerybus.ca.
 CHAPTER 37

Metsovo as a Wine Tourism Destination

Maria Dimou

It is clear that Greece is not just sun, islands and beaches. There are
many beautiful spots and places of special interest to attract the con-
temporary traveler. A characteristic paradigm is the village of Metsovo, a
mountainous village in Greece. It is located on the slopes of Mt Pindus,
in the region of Epirus, at an altitude of 1200 meters. As a settlement,
it dates back to the twelfth century, and it has experienced periods of
intense acne and decline. In the first half of the twentieth century, the
living conditions in Metsovo were so hard that significantly reduced the
population of the village.
In the early 1950s and thanks to the private initiative of Evangelos
Averoff and private resources of Tossizza Foundation, a set of struc-
tures was designed and developed in order to change the physiognomy
of Metsovo. The interventions were planned along three different axes.
The first axis concerned environmental interventions to protect the
­village from landslides. Three million trees were planted and several small
dams were built on the Arachthos river to reduce soil erosion. The sec-
ond axis was the financial development of the area. This was achieved by
the establishment of a woodworking factory that exploited the logging

M. Dimou (*)
Katogi Averoff S.A., Metsovo, Greece
e-mail: mdimou@katogiaveroff.gr

© The Author(s) 2019 599

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_37
600 M. DIMOU

of the region and a dairy farm that exploited the production of milk
from the livestock breeding in the wider region of Metsovo. The third
axis was educational and cultural development. The Museum of Folk Art
of Metsovo1 was founded, preserving valuable elements of the tradition
of the area, 108 schools were built in the wider region of Ioannina and
a student dorm in Athens, all of which aimed at offering the best possi-
ble education to the residents of the area. Furthermore, the shops of the
central square of the village were built in a way to upgrade the aesthetics
of the village, and the first ski center was constructed in Metsovo. The
plan for the public development was completed with the establishment
of the E. Averoff Gallery,2 which until today is the museum with the sec-
ond largest exhibited collection of Modern Greek art in Greece. All these
interventions led to the improvement of the living conditions and the
educational level of its now 3200 inhabitants and have lifted Metsovo to
the status of an attractive tourist destination with more than 150,000 vis-
itors per year, as its natural beauty and proximity to the unique beauty of
the mountains of Pindus is suitable for various types of thematic tourism
such as sports tourism, cultural, educational, winter and, of course, wine
and gastronomic tourism. This is important as visitors, in the context of
thematic tourism, devote more time to one place and as a result know it
better and reserve its memory.

Katogi Averoff
Katogi Averoff3 began in the late 1950s, when Evangelos Averoff
planted Greece’s first Cabernet Sauvignon vines on the precipitous slopes
of Mount Pindus and bottled the wine now known as Katogi Averoff in
the “katogi” (lower story) of his home in Metsovo.
“French vines in Greek mountain soil” read the label he lovingly
designed for that first wine. Part of a wide-ranging effort, a vast work-
in-progress aiming at stimulating economic and cultural development
in the region, Averoff’s wine-making activities were born of a vision:
transforming Pindus’ abandoned slopes into vineyards and reviving a
viticultural tradition which had flourished during the eighteenth and
nineteenth centuries.

1 www.metsovomuseum.gr.

2 www.averoffmuseum.gr.

3 www.katogiaveroff.gr.
 37 METSOVO AS A WINE TOURISM DESTINATION 601

And that is precisely what he did. With the help of experts from
Greece and France, Averoff created one of Greece’s most celebrated and
elevated vineyards and built a small winery on the outskirts of Metsovo.
But Katogi’s red wine, which quickly made a name for itself both in
Greece and abroad, where it won a number of international awards, was
just the first step in the company’s master plan: releasing the vast poten-
tial of the Greek vineyard by promoting the cultivation of native Greek
grapes and blending traditional Greek and international varieties. The
company was also one of the first Greek winemakers to embrace authen-
tic methods of growing and making wine.
Evangelos Averoff died in 1990, but Katogi Averoff S.A. continued to
grow both rapidly and in accordance with the philosophy of its founder.
New vineyards were planted around Metsovo, and the company contin-
ued to experiment with new grape varieties and new blends of wine. The
winery was brought up-to-date through a series of extensions, and the
company increased its total production and expanded its national and
international distribution.
Throughout the years, Katogi Averoff has always welcomed its visi-
tors that were however only a few hundred per year. Then in 2008, the
Katogi Averoff Hotel & Winery officially opened its door to the public,
offering and all-round wine experience. A pioneering Greek wine tour-
ism operation situated in a magical natural landscape. The winery offers
a guided tour that employs a range of audio-visual media to offer the
visitor an original introduction to wine production and the history of the
winery and is rounded off with tastings of a selection of Katogi Averoff
wines. The hotel’s fifteen luxuriously appointed rooms enjoy views of
the winery or Metsovo’s magnificent scenery. Since the opening of the
Katogi Averoff hotel, the increase of the number of visitors has been
impressive. In 2015, 12,000 persons visited Katogi Averoff winery and
one year later, in 2016 the visitors were more than 17,000 with almost
15% of them coming from abroad.
Katogi Averoff reached its goal to increase its number of visitors due
to three different factors: the extension of its operation to seven days per
week, the development of synergies within the village (between restau-
rants and hotels, foundations and museums) as well as the improvement
of its cooperation with tour operators and finally the presentation of its
premises and potentials through promotion and advertising.
602 M. DIMOU

Katogi Averoff’s goal for the next few years, apart from the produc-
tion of high quality wines, is to become the first tourist attraction in
Metsovo, exceeding 20,000 visitors per year, while developing differ-
ent aspects of wine tourism, such as educational programs specifically
designed for school children, hiking among the vineyards and visual
interventions in the vineyard. In summary, through numerous and
long-lasting actions Metsovo has succeeded in becoming a well-known
destination in Greece and with a pioneering wine tourism presence.
 CHAPTER 38

Epilogue: An Ecosystems Framework

for Studying Wine Tourism: Actors,
Co-creation Processes, Experiences
and Outcomes

Richard N. S. Robinson and Marianna Sigala

Building on the new knowledge generated by the first book in this

series Wine tourism: Managing and marketing wine tourism business
(Vol. I) (Sigala & Robinson, 2019), which focused on businesses and
wine tourism, what is apparent in the previous pages of this volume is
that there is equal attention required at the tourism destination level.
Both classic texts in the field of wine tourism (cf. Croce & Perri, 2017;
Hall, Sharples, Cambourne, & Macionis, 2009 [both re-editioned]), and
recent reviews (cf. Ellis, Park, Kim, & Yeoman, 2018; Gómez, Pratt, &
Molina, 2018), highlight the centrality of the destination to the wine

R. N. S. Robinson (*)
St Lucia, Australia
e-mail: richard.robinson@business.uq.edu.au
M. Sigala
University of South Australia, Adelaide, SA, Australia
e-mail: marianna.sigala@unisa.edu.au

© The Author(s) 2019 603

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.),
Wine Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8_38
604 R. N. S. ROBINSON AND M. SIGALA

tourism phenomena. Destinations are the physical, or perhaps even vir-

tual (Martins et al., 2017), entities where the tourist, tourism supply and
other destination stakeholders all coalesce.
Partially accelerated by global warming, wine is now produced in such
far-flung regions as the southern-most reaches of New Zealand’s south
isle and as far north as Sweden. Whether it is economies rapidly mod-
ernising, and so coveting the (Western) symbols of social capital (Duan,
Arcodia, Ma, & Hsiao, 2018), or the secularisation of countries where
prohibition previously existed, the global appetite for wine and wine
experiences grows. After a relative decline coinciding with the GFC,
wine consumption is expected to reach new heights by 2021 with wine
consumption projected to be valued at US$224.5 billion with the US
market alone anticipated to grow by 25% (Wang, 2018). This growth,
coupled with ever-increasing tourism and travel receipts, is a recipe for
increased wine tourism demand. Wine tourism destinations, established
and emerging, are literally and metaphorically ‘popping their corks’!
Theoretical approaches to wine tourism destination management
continue to be a combination of mobilising the somewhat relative and
related antecedent food tourism literatures and utilising established the-
ory (cf. theory of reasoned behaviour in Hsu, Robinson, & Scott, 2018)
and developing the new. Like food, wine is a mundane yet memorable
activity for many, that is elevated to the experiential, especially when
travelling. It should be no surprise then that wine and tourism have
become entangled. Essentially however, both wine and tourism comprise
economic activities—and that has been the focus of this book—in
particular investigating how tourism wine destinations might seek out a
competitive edge by identifying their tourist markets, promoting them-
selves, developing products and experiences, and working with other
destination stakeholders. This book has pulled together a selection of
empirical and conceptual research articles, and working case studies, to
showcase contemporary theoretical approaches and practices with a focus
on the wine tourism destination.
Some of the drivers that tourism destinations need to be attentive to
include; technology, both in terms of reaching new and established markets
(cf. Thanh & Kirova, 2018), pushing the right motivational demand-side
triggers (Ye, Zhang, & Yuan, 2017), increasingly sophisticated experi-
ence-seeking travellers demanding the satisfaction of higher order needs,
and blending work with serious leisure pursuits (Paay et al., 2016). Yet it
is particularly important to achieve these factors in harmony with authentic
 38 EPILOGUE: AN ECOSYSTEMS FRAMEWORK FOR STUDYING WINE … 605

settings (cf. Thomas, Quintal, & Phau, 2018). Somewhat counter-

intuitively tourists are not only seeking transformative experiences they
are always conscious of their wellbeing, and that of others. These are sig-
nificant challenges for the appeal of wine tourism destinations to diverse
individuals and markets. Inevitably, there are constraints too (Bonn, Cho,
& Um, 2018). As highlighted in the first volume of this series, creating
products and experiences that deliver needs and wants to all members of
travelling groups including families is a challenge. Equally, navigating cul-
tural and religious values, as wine has varied meanings in different con-
texts. At the destination level considering the expectations of residents
and ­managing visitor numbers can be a fraught and contested issue, as
Visentin and Vallerani (2018) allude to in their Venetian/Prosecco study.
In Part I, ‘Wine Tourists: Who Are They and What Do They Want
from Wine Destinations?’, a collection of intriguing studies explored the
demand-side factors. Kim, Del Chiappa and Napolitano surveyed effec-
tive ‘clustering’ techniques for Sardinian wine tourists, according to their
experiences of wine-related elements, such as pricing, wine destination
attractions and general tourism services. Fountain and Thompson broad-
ened the discussion to investigate in what ways New Zealand’s tourism
marketers could value-add to the wine tourists’ experiences by promot-
ing and integrating the cultural heritage of the central Otago region.
Pratt in the last chapter mobilised self-image congruity on a sample of
domestic Australian wine tourists to reveal four distinct psycho-social
segments, related to different levels of identification with wine tourists.
Moving to rural north-east Iowa, in the USA, Grybovych and Lankford
examined the profile and motivations of wine tourists in the area and
identified ways in which the local wine operators can address them.
Finally, Tataridis, Kanellakopoulos, Kanellis and Gatselos used a predom-
inantly demographic profiling to conclude that despite strong visitation
to Greek wineries, international tourists have a poor knowledge of Greek
wines, inhibiting destination attractiveness for the international market.
‘Wine Destination Marketing: New Approaches and Practices’,
Part II of the book, presented a collection of empirical and concep-
tual works that investigate some of these new approaches to marketing
wine destinations, in the New and Old wine worlds. Bonarou, Tsartas
and Sarantakou’s e-storytelling chapter reflected on how winery collec-
tives can textually and visually narrate stories for marketing their busi-
nesses and destinations, concluding that a product only focus is being
superseded by one where wines can embody powerful historical and
606 R. N. S. ROBINSON AND M. SIGALA

cultural stories. Sigala used the concept of cultural ecosystems for argu-
ing the cultural heritage value of winescapes and then, discussing the
implications of UNESCO heritage listing on the marketing and sus-
tainable development of wine destinations. Sigala gave practical impli-
cations about UNESCO heritage listing by analysing the case study of
Mount Lofty Ranges that is currently in the process of bidding, while
Thuriot provided existing hard evidence of the impacts of UNESCO
listing by analysing results from the UNESCO status achieved years ago
by the region of Champagne (France). Finally, Sigala discusses another
innovative way to market wine destinations, i.e. the business model of
coopetition. A wide literature is discussed for providing theoretical
underpinning and understanding of the concept, while the example of
the Ultimate Wine Experience Australia is used for providing practical
evidence of the application and implications of coopetition within the
wine context.
Part III ‘Designing Experiences: Developing and Innovating Wine
Destinations’ provides a great collection of theoretical contributions and
practical studies explaining how to design engaging and multi-sensorial
wine tourism experiences. Wine experiences are the major driver and
generator of wine tourists and they highly contribute to the creation of
a memorable experience motivating visitors to revisit and refer the des-
tination. Two chapters (one contributed by Donald Getz and the other
by Staggs and Brenner) highlight the role of local culture and identity to
enrich the experience of wine and food events and festivals. Authenticity
and interpretation are at the core for creating appealing wine experi-
ences with a distinguishable brand name. Two chapters examine the
demand issues that need to be addressed when designing wine experi-
ences. Bonnie Canziani highlights the need to provide a wide variety of
wine experiences and customise them to the needs of the various types
of wine tourists. In their chapter, Correia, Cuntha, Matos and Fernades
analysed user-generated-content published on TripAdvisor and Facebook
about visitors’ wine experiences in the Douro Valley (Portugal) for show-
ing how social media can be used for understanding and addressing the
visitors’ needs and preferences. The last two chapters highlight the role
of art in designing highly engaging wine experiences that do not only
trigger people’s emotions, but they also inspire people’s thinking and
mental processes and contribute to the development of transformational
value. In her chapter, Marianna Sigala developed a 4C framework that
identifies four ways for designing art-based wine experiences (art to be
 38 EPILOGUE: AN ECOSYSTEMS FRAMEWORK FOR STUDYING WINE … 607

consumed, art to be commoditised, art to be co-created and art as a

catalyst), while their chapter, Sigala and Rentschler used the case study
of The d’Arenberg Cube for showing how art is used for designing an
iconic building and converting it into a live, social and co-creative expe-
riential space with meaning and cultural significance. Three case studies
provide further practical evidence of the role of events, culture and art in
wine experiences: Velikova and Bouzdine-Chameeva debate the pros and
cons of the idea of building a National Wine Museum in Tbilisi (cap-
ital city); Bouzdine-Chameeva, Ponsignon, Durrieu and Pesme analyse
the challenging issues of experience design and technological innovations
in the cultural wine centre ‘La Cité de Vin’ (Bordeaux, France); and
Charitonidou, Tsoukala and Bolis discuss the design of a wine festival in
Aigialeia (Greece) that promotes the local wine culture and heritage.
Part IV, ‘Designing and Managing Wine Routes: Packaging and
Partnerships’, drew together theoretical and practice studies that high-
lighted the development of wine routes within, or between, destinations.
Contributions emanated from established and emerging European desti-
nations, Asia Minor, as well as Australia and New Zealand. Dimitrovski,
Rachão and Joukes invoked the product life cycle theory, and its tour-
ism cousin, the tourism destination life cycle, in the Portuguese context.
They established that three of North Portugal’s wine routes represented
differing stages concurring with the product life cycle continuum. Oncel
and Yolal presented a historical and cultural journey into Turkey’s
ancient wineries in an endeavour to create wine routes for contempo-
rary tourists, and in so doing compete with more established European
wine tourism destinations. Prokes considered not cycles of the life cycle
variety bicycles—and wine. Using survey data, he established key indi-
cators for the wine destination success of various bicycle routes in the
Moravia region of the Czech Republic. In the last chapter, Sigala dis-
cusses how the development of a hop-on hop-off bus in Swan Valley
(Western Australia) enabled visitors to design customised wine itinerar-
ies. The chapter also identifies the impact of the bus services on visitors’
mobility patterns and behaviour and the latter’s implications on wine
destination performance. Finally, in his case study, Robinson explained
how an emerging Queensland wine region developed an innovate wine
trail, to showcase unusual Australian varietals, so as to avoid competition
with the major wine regions who more economically produce popular
varietals.
608 R. N. S. ROBINSON AND M. SIGALA

Finally, Part V of this volume ‘Planning and Development of Wine

Destinations: Collaborations and Horizons’ brings together numer-
ous international contributions focusing on exploring the factors and
the processes contributing to the development of wine destinations.
All contributions highlight the need to address two major factors: the
internal (and sometimes conflicting) interrelations and interdependen-
cies of stakeholders within wine destinations; the external environmen-
tal factors (and specifically the demand trends and challenges) affecting
wine destinations. Although wine destinations need to address these two
issues simultaneously, the contributions of this chapter tend to high-
light and investigate more one aspect in relation to the other. Hence,
industry collaborations, partnerships, synergies and networks are mainly
explored by the chapters contributed by: Arwen and Robinson; Dreyer;
Fountain and Cogan-Marie; Blanck, Cogan-Marie and Agnoli; Sears
and Weatherbee; Kyriakaki, Trihas and Sarantakou; Hafermann and
Lankford. On the other hand, the chapters contributed by the following
authors pay more attention and stress the need to address the external
issues related to the wine tourism demand, competition and the environ-
mental trends: Conlin and Rice; Harrington, Ottenbacher, Marlowe and
Siguda; Alebaki and Koutsouris; Duan, Arcodia and Ma. Two case stud-
ies provide further practical evidence to the process and factors contrib-
uting to the development of a wine destination. The case study by Sears
and Weatherbee discusses the developmental process and success factors
of the operations of a hop-on hop-off bus in Nova Scotia (Canada), and
the case study written by Dimou discusses the entrepreneurial and other
private initiatives contributing to the development of the wine destina-
tion in Metsovo (north Greece).
This book focused on discussing issues related to wine tourism from
the macro-perspective of the wine destination. The book contributions
explain how to develop, manage and promote wine experiences not as
a single business entity but from a holistic tourism destination perspec-
tive. In this vein, the book is complementary to our previously published
book (Sigala & Robinson, 2019) that looked at wine tourism research
from a micro-level perspective (i.e. individual wine operator). By adopt-
ing a helicopter view, this book also expands and adds an additional
layer for understanding the model of wine tourism research proposed
by Sigala and Robinson (2019). The initial model (Sigala & Robinson,
2019) conceptualised wine tourism research from a system-based
 38 EPILOGUE: AN ECOSYSTEMS FRAMEWORK FOR STUDYING WINE … 609

thinking identifying all the elements that warrant investigation as follows:

the major inputs (i.e. actors), the co-creation processes amongst actors,
the outputs (wine experiences) and the outcomes of these processes.
From a destination point of view, this book expanded this understanding
and conceptualisation of wine tourism research, by adding and analysing
the following elements and dimensions:

– Book contributions identify and discuss additional and new actors

coming from the wine and tourism sectors as well as from other
sectors. All chapters but specifically chapters in Parts II–V iden-
tify and discuss the agendas, interests and perceptions of various
additional actors (from both the private and public sphere) such
as: planners, destination managers, city councils, governmen-
tal agencies and organisations at local, national and international
level. New actors not related to wine and tourism sectors (e.g.
actors from the art and cultural space) are also identified as major
contributors to the design and identity of the wine tourism offer-
ing and experience. The chapters explain the role and influence
of these stakeholders on wine tourism, investigate their interde-
pendencies and interrelations and stress the need to build syner-
gies, networks and collaborations amongst them for designing and
managing wine experiences from a holistic and multi-dimensional
perspective.
– Book contributions also perceive the wine destinations as the plat-
form/space that can support, constrain and/or foster actors to
exchange resources for co-creating value. As an actor engagement
platform whereby value co-creation activities take place amongst
actors, several book chapters show how the wine destinations need
to nurture the contextual conditions, rules and frameworks to
manage the different and sometimes conflicting interests and ten-
sions between the actors and to act as fertilisers to build synergies,
collaborations, networks, alliances and/or even coopetition models
that can.
– Perceived as cultural ecosystems, several book contributions
identify the various cultural and heritage elements of wine des-
tinations and show how to embed them into wine tourism expe-
riences for enhancing their value, building their identity and
610 R. N. S. ROBINSON AND M. SIGALA

enhancing their value generating affordances. Chapters also iden-

tify elements from the cultural and art space that can be used as
triggers to inspire and support not only the behavioural and emo-
tional but also the cognitive and spiritual engagement of wine
visitors. By conceptualising wine tourism to include not only the
wine product but also the sociocultural space and the people, the
book provides a better understanding on how to design appealing
and meaningful wine tourism experiences that can generate trans-
formational value.
– Book chapters also identify another dimension in relation to
the outputs of wine experiences. Wine tourism experiences go
beyond the cellar door of individual wineries. Wine tourism
experiences are also designed and delivered at a destination level
and require the collaboration and co-creation activities of numer-
ous (private and public) actors. Several chapters and case stud-
ies analyse how to design and deliver wine experiences related
to wine roads, wine trails and wine routes and how to manage
them successfully in order to generate value to all actors being
involved.
– Wine tourism takes places within a wider sociocultural environment
and economic system, and so many book chapters expand the out-
comes of wine tourism to include the generation of value not only
to wine tourism demand and supply, but also to all the actors being
directly and/or indirectly related to wine tourism activity. To that
end, book chapters stress the need to use wine tourism as a vehi-
cle to also achieve economic and regional development as well as
well-being and quality of life of local communities.

Figure 38.1 shows the additions of this book to the original model
(Sigala & Robinson, 2019) by highlighting them in yellow coloured text
in italics.
Overall, the book, which was not designed to be comprehensive, has
identified and analysed in sufficient depth some of the most critical issues
and factors required for managing and marketing wine destinations. The
book contributions provide both theoretical underpinning and practical
evidence, while they also contribute to wine tourism research by offer-
ing multi-disciplinary as well as new theoretical approaches and meth-
odologies (e.g. art-based-initiatives, cultural ecosystems, netnography) to
investigate the area.
 38 EPILOGUE: AN ECOSYSTEMS FRAMEWORK FOR STUDYING WINE … 611

INPUTS - CO-CREATION OUTPUTS OUTCOMES

ACTORS PROCESSES
ANTECEDENTS: DRIVERS
& CONSTRAINTS

Movaons intenons, PATTERNS, PROCESSES & WINE TOURISM EXPERIENCES

Involvement, (SOCIAL) PRACTICES Products, experiences, value co-creaon, OUTCOME IMPACTS ON
preferences, access of
Wine tourists Temporal, spaal, policy, meanings and transformaonal value INDIVIDUAL ACTORS & THE
resources (monetary,
me, knowledge, knowledge creaon, SYSTEM / WINE
Wine experiences supporng and ECOSYSTEM / WIDER
cultural) customer engagement,
fostering behavioural, cognive, COMMUNITY
Actors from the art and actor involvement emoonal/social and spiritual
cultural space engagement Social, cultural, economic
and environmental impacts
Wine experiences reflecng collaborave on wine tourists, wine
Public organisaons at local, pracces such as wine roads, wine trails,
communies, desnaon
naonal and internaonal level wine routes
managers and policy
makers, the wine tourism
Wine suppliers -
Planning, Quality of life and well
strategic being of local communies
Wine desnaons as an engagement plaƒorm
management Wine intermediaries
and markeng and a cultural ecosystem providing the: Regional sustainable
development
Wine desnaons Triggers (Art, cultural/heritage elements) to
design highly engaging wine tourism experiences
Wine desnaon communies
Condions, rules and frameworks to support:
networks, coopeon, collaboraon,
partnerships, collaboraon amongst actors

Fig. 38.1 A framework for understanding and creating knowledge in wine

tourism (Adapted from Sigala & Robinson, 2019)

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 Index

A 128, 140, 166, 169, 171, 172,

Adelaide Hills, 104, 122, 123, 125, 231, 233, 235, 247, 248, 265,
140, 166, 169, 170, 173, 362 269, 301, 344, 373, 374, 382,
Aegean Islands, 72, 80, 329, 470, 471 383, 386, 393, 399, 411, 465,
Affective destination image, 46–53, 59 529, 542, 547, 606, 607
Agiorgitiko, 73, 473 Authenticity, 78, 87, 90, 91, 139, 145,
Analysis of variance (ANOVA), 16–19, 148, 150, 154, 158, 206, 248,
22, 558, 562, 564 452, 455, 606
Art, 11, 52, 79, 80, 82, 108, 139– Averoff, Evangelos, 599–601
141, 149, 221–229, 231–240,
246, 248, 249, 251, 252, 254–
256, 259, 262–265, 267–269, B
271, 272, 280, 286, 288, 290, Barossa, 54, 104, 122–125, 247, 373
294, 297, 299, 328, 329, 336, Basket Range, 140, 166, 168–171,
347, 363, 409, 506, 173–180
522, 595, 600, 606, 607, Bordeaux, 91, 141, 167, 171, 234,
609, 610 277, 279–284, 287, 289, 290,
Art-based-initiatives (ABI), 140, 294, 607
222–229, 231–233, 238, 239, Branding, 29, 30, 41, 45, 76, 78, 81,
246, 264, 268, 610 83, 93, 114, 129, 130, 155–157,
Artisan wine, 166, 172, 173 168, 177, 234, 374, 446, 485,
Assyrtiko, 73 505, 516, 525, 528
Australia, 7, 8, 45, 50, 51, 54, 75, Burgundy, 121, 305, 401, 484, 486,
79, 80, 100, 104–111, 124–126, 487, 490–493

© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2019 613

M. Sigala and R. N. S. Robinson (eds.), Wine
Tourism Destination Management and Marketing,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00437-8
614 Index

C Consumer experience, 166, 189

Cabernet, 335 Convenience sample, 14, 25
Cabernet Sauvignon, 73, 328, 332, Coopetition, 4, 75, 76, 99–106,
334–336, 374, 447, 451, 600 109–111, 606, 609
Cellar door, 1, 33–35, 45, 57, 61, 73, Côte Chalonnaise, 484, 486–493
106–108, 110, 151, 168, 174, Crete, 80, 329, 464, 468–475, 478,
210, 234, 246–248, 254–256, 479, 552, 557–560, 562–566
258, 259, 263, 362, 375, 381, The Cube, 248, 249, 259, 260, 262,
383, 386, 388, 389, 393, 400, 263, 265, 269–272
414–417, 427, 474, 475, 491, Cultivars, 73
492, 522, 528, 531, 543, 545, Culture, 7, 11, 12, 14–19, 22–25,
596, 610 42, 75, 77, 81, 82, 84, 91, 113,
Central Otago, 29–42, 605 117, 118, 120–122, 130, 141,
Champagne, 76, 79, 119, 135–137, 149, 150, 157, 174, 216, 224,
167, 349, 575, 606 227, 228, 231, 236, 237, 240,
Chardonnay, 31, 73, 332, 334, 335, 246, 255, 259, 263, 272, 276,
374, 447, 486 277, 280, 281, 283, 285, 290,
China, 490, 537–539, 541, 543–548 293, 307, 328, 330, 336, 341,
Chi-squared, 17, 192 404, 407, 409, 410, 413–415,
Climate, 4, 20, 30, 35, 36, 83, 125, 453, 483, 539–541, 543, 544,
128, 207, 248, 288, 328, 330, 546–548, 572, 587, 606, 607
332, 335, 336, 401, 409, 436, Current status, 230, 268
437, 439, 485, 543, 564, 572, 574 Cycling, 36, 333, 343, 351, 352, 400,
Collaboration, 3–5, 42, 76, 102, 122, 407, 408, 418
155, 228, 239, 281, 293, 314,
317, 318, 320, 333, 337, 345,
351, 381–384, 386–388, 390, D
393–395, 516, 518, 531, 554, D’ Arenberg, 104, 140, 246–249,
555, 560, 562–564, 566, 575, 251–260, 262–268, 270–272,
608–610 607
Commitment, 108, 109, 114, 115, Delphi Method, 423, 424, 431–434
117, 123, 128, 130, 277, 371, Destination, 1–15, 17–19, 22–26, 30,
386, 390–392, 394, 434, 508 33–40, 45–53, 57–59, 61, 71–73,
Communication, 59, 81, 82, 90, 91, 75, 76, 78, 83–86, 91, 93, 99–102,
104, 109, 209, 222, 226, 281, 104, 106, 109–111, 114, 116–120,
321, 384, 386, 388, 390–392, 129, 130, 136, 139–141, 143,
394, 431, 455, 470, 471, 490, 506 150–158, 203–207, 216, 217, 223,
Competition, 4, 76, 99–104, 110, 232–237, 239, 245–247, 271,
149, 168, 245, 284, 286, 289, 272, 283, 284, 298, 299, 301,
292, 302, 338, 345, 347, 365, 302, 304, 311, 317, 327, 328,
368, 409, 413, 520, 527, 551, 330–336, 349, 353, 357–362,
560, 563, 596, 607, 608 364, 367–371, 373–376, 381–384,
Congruence, 51, 525 386–388, 390, 391, 393–395, 403,
 Index 615

408–410, 413, 424, 430, 431, 221, 234–236, 238, 240, 265,
446, 453, 454, 456, 458, 459, 267, 269, 270, 297–299, 315,
463–467, 469, 471–473, 477–479, 316, 333, 336, 338, 347, 348,
484, 489, 490, 522–525, 528, 350–352, 354, 360, 363, 366,
531, 538–541, 548, 551, 552, 371, 381, 390, 410, 412, 414,
556, 557, 572, 573, 576, 580, 418, 432, 463, 471, 474, 475,
587, 588, 595, 600, 602–610 477, 487, 493, 499, 502–504,
Destination management organisations 506, 507, 510, 519, 539, 540,
(DMO), 374 546, 547, 556, 576, 580, 583,
Development, 1–3, 5, 7, 23, 25, 49, 587, 606, 607
67, 71, 76, 78, 80, 101–104, Evolution, 1, 5, 111, 113, 119, 121,
109, 114, 116, 118–120, 122, 283, 313, 320, 457, 464, 517,
124, 127–130, 135, 136, 151, 531
152, 154, 155, 157, 158, 168, Experience design, 12, 139, 141, 144,
170, 179, 188, 196, 203–205, 146, 158, 281, 607
207, 226, 228, 229, 235, 247,
251, 279, 280, 283, 284, 293,
301, 302, 305, 311, 313, 315, F
320, 321, 323, 327, 328, 330, Festivals, 26, 70, 79, 80, 108, 139–
331, 334, 335, 337, 338, 141, 143, 145–151, 155–159,
341–345, 348, 350, 353, 367, 166, 168–170, 172–180, 188,
370, 373, 382, 383, 386, 408, 198, 205, 208, 221, 222, 234,
409, 412, 413, 424, 432, 236, 269, 299, 300, 330, 335,
440, 441, 463–467, 470, 473, 336, 338, 347, 381, 386, 474,
477–479, 483, 485, 487–489, 493, 522, 540, 546, 547, 572,
491, 493, 515, 516, 518, 521, 576, 578, 595, 606, 607
523, 524, 529–532, 539, 540, Functional destination image, 47, 52,
544, 548, 552, 554–557, 559, 53, 58, 59
560, 562–566, 571–577, 587, Future trends, 423, 432
594, 597, 599–601, 606–608
Differentiation, 129, 150, 207, 230,
374, 375, 409, 471, 479, 505 G
Dionysus, 85, 89, 327, 329 Gastronomy, 11, 107, 206, 207,
Douro Region, 121, 313, 318, 319 248, 297, 299, 305, 311, 315,
316, 331, 354, 410, 417, 418,
446–448
E Georgia, 140, 275–277
E-storytelling, 81, 85, 86, 88, 89, 92, Germany, 399–412, 414–418
605 Greece, 7, 8, 71, 72, 78, 80, 91–93,
Events, 48, 54, 58, 59, 70, 78–83, 92, 141, 234, 297, 464, 468–471,
93, 108, 109, 127, 139, 143– 473, 477, 479, 552, 554, 555,
159, 172–174, 176, 177, 187, 559, 564–566, 599–602, 607,
193, 195, 197, 199, 206, 208, 608
616 Index

H 250, 259, 331, 332, 337, 344,

Heritage, 4, 8, 12, 24, 30, 35, 357, 358, 367–370, 399, 400,
37–42, 75, 76, 78, 84, 114–124, 431–433, 435–440, 446, 448,
126, 129, 130, 136, 141, 158, 451, 453, 456–459, 466, 484,
206–208, 215, 234–237, 267, 499, 500, 505, 515, 520, 572,
280, 333, 334, 336, 373, 386, 577–580, 583–586, 588, 596,
404, 405, 473, 488, 531, 587, 597, 606, 607
605–607, 609 Ionian period, 327
Hiking, 36, 297, 351, 352, 400, Iowa, 7, 8, 68–70, 572–577, 580–
403–405, 407, 409, 413, 418, 588, 605
452, 456, 595, 602
Hittite, 327, 329, 336
Hop-on hop-off bus, 302, 358, 363, K
364, 367, 370, 607 Know-how, 135, 366, 554, 555,
Hotel, 233, 299, 312, 317, 333, 346, 561–563
449, 469, 474, 475, 531, 578,
601
L
Label, 13, 30, 69, 70, 79, 92,
I 135–137, 172, 174, 235, 348,
Identity, 3, 4, 45, 77–79, 81, 83, 85– 400, 471, 487, 574, 600
87, 89, 91–93, 117, 119, 129, La Cité du Vin (LCV), 277, 280, 281,
140, 141, 144, 147, 157, 158, 285, 293, 294, 607
166–171, 173–181, 224, 227, Landscapes, 8, 12, 30, 32, 35, 41, 48,
234, 235, 246, 250, 267, 275, 71, 77, 87, 90, 108, 113, 114,
286, 289, 298, 313, 331, 374, 118–126, 129, 130, 136, 169,
409, 448, 455, 484, 493, 559, 189, 204, 206–208, 212, 213,
566, 574, 576, 587, 606, 609 215, 216, 233, 248, 254, 260,
Image, 2–4, 13, 24, 25, 30, 34, 36, 265, 275, 299, 315, 316, 349,
37, 39, 40, 45–53, 55, 57–59, 369, 399, 403, 404, 407, 452,
61, 79–81, 84–86, 88, 90, 91, 478, 484, 488, 521, 529, 540,
93, 117, 119, 129, 135, 136, 546, 587, 597, 601
149, 152, 154–157, 171, 176, Life cycle, 301, 304, 312, 319, 321,
205, 209, 224, 226, 227, 233, 323, 388, 464, 465, 607
234, 236, 245, 250, 254, 265, Likert scale, 14, 39, 53, 212, 557
280, 283, 294, 315, 331, 359, Local culture, 116, 140, 231, 233,
369, 373, 400, 458, 488, 489, 299, 315, 328, 543, 546, 606
499, 516, 544, 554, 556, Logic model, 143, 152, 153,
562–564, 573, 576 158, 159
Impacts, 11, 49, 53, 60, 78, 82, 93, Loyalty, 49, 145, 154–156, 195, 226,
104, 110, 139, 143, 148, 151, 233, 250, 366, 368, 369, 446,
152, 154, 156–159, 168, 172, 450, 451, 456, 485, 497, 500,
174, 186, 204, 225, 229, 249, 501, 505, 522, 543, 575
 Index 617

M New Zealand, 7, 8, 29, 31, 33, 40,

McLaren Vale, 104, 122, 246, 247, 45, 84, 157, 301, 344, 465, 529,
255, 262 604, 605, 607
Mean, 16–19, 22, 23, 33, 37–41, Northern Greece, 80, 84–87, 89–91,
53, 68, 69, 81, 83, 86, 90, 103, 464, 467–473, 476, 479
127–129, 146, 171, 180, 186,
193–195, 222–224, 226, 228,
237, 351, 360, 363, 365, 439, O
449, 450, 491, 510, 560, 563, Oinoxeneia, 297–299
565, 581, 582 Operations, 107, 111, 152, 186, 224,
Median, 499, 528, 581 248, 259, 280, 302, 316, 320,
Merlot, 73, 328, 332, 334, 336, 374, 367, 374, 381, 386, 389, 417,
447 424, 427, 429, 491, 516, 525,
Metsovo, 599–602, 608 526, 552, 563, 566, 577, 601,
Mobility patterns, 302, 357–361, 369, 608
370, 607 Organisation, 13, 14, 57, 59, 101,
Mobility services, 302, 357, 361, 362, 102, 105–107, 109, 115, 116,
368–370 118, 167, 224, 225, 229, 239,
Moschofilero, 73 281, 288, 293, 314, 337, 344,
Motivations, 4, 7–17, 19, 23, 24, 42, 374, 383–385, 390, 392, 394,
46, 47, 55, 58, 59, 67–69, 71, 488, 492, 530, 553, 555, 556,
82, 89, 91, 128, 145–149, 152, 560, 562, 609
153, 156, 159, 188–190, 195, Ottoman, 330, 332
197, 205, 210, 212, 307, 311,
330, 335, 385–387, 390, 392,
456, 485, 504, 505, 532, 545, P
547, 580, 605 Packaging, 107, 224, 226, 227, 301,
Multiplier, 128, 571, 577–579, 585 302, 607
Partnerships, 106, 107, 109, 114,
116, 117, 125, 128–130, 155,
N 276, 293, 301, 302, 319, 320,
Narratives, 78, 81–87, 91–93, 139, 367, 369, 370, 469, 524, 528,
375, 519 551, 557, 607, 608
Netnography, 538, 541, 610 Peloponnese, 72, 80, 297, 464, 468,
Network impacts, 298 470–475, 477, 479
Networks, 29, 42, 84, 100–111, Perceptions, 3, 4, 11, 13, 30, 34,
136, 155, 169, 173, 209, 210, 37, 41, 48, 93, 119, 120, 146,
217, 298, 299, 319, 331, 337, 154, 155, 166, 167, 171, 172,
342, 343, 383–385, 391, 394, 186–188, 195–197, 208, 217,
426, 464, 467–469, 472, 477, 226, 229, 230, 233, 234, 251,
517–519, 531, 532, 551–566, 259, 263, 264, 266, 330, 337,
573, 597, 608, 609 346, 351, 384, 391, 392, 400,
618 Index

450, 455, 456, 466, 468, 485, 410–417, 424–427, 430, 432,
492, 500, 541, 557, 558, 562, 435, 441, 445–447, 449–453,
564, 566, 609 456, 459, 463, 467–472, 476,
Phrygian, 327, 334 477, 479, 484–493, 498, 499,
Pinot noir, 8, 29, 31, 36, 374, 401, 501, 515, 518, 520, 523–525,
486 530, 531, 538, 543, 546, 552,
Place, 17, 18, 30, 36, 39, 40, 48, 69, 554, 556, 557, 561, 572–574,
78, 83, 88–90, 92, 104–106, 578, 579, 582, 584, 585, 587,
108, 113, 116–120, 124, 126, 588, 594, 599, 600, 604–607
128–130, 147, 154, 155, 159, Regional development, 89, 204, 205,
166, 171, 174, 187, 207, 208, 208, 331, 409, 464, 516, 610
222, 231, 233, 235, 249, 255, Regional economic development, 116,
263, 283, 285, 288–290, 293, 519, 555, 573
311, 320, 321, 323, 327, 333, Regional tourism, 108, 386, 389, 490,
334, 336, 345, 351, 352, 357, 553
359–362, 367, 369, 371, 400, Regression analysis, 582, 583
409, 411, 416, 417, 423, 450, Respondents, 13–15, 17, 26, 33–42,
451, 454, 457, 458, 479, 484, 46, 51–57, 59, 60, 170, 176,
485, 490, 506, 516–519, 522, 177, 179, 180, 191, 208–213,
530, 532, 539, 552, 583, 587, 215, 217, 314–316, 319, 320,
597, 599, 600, 609, 610 347, 350–352, 432, 433, 453,
Port wine, 207–209, 304, 305, 311, 456, 468, 477, 478, 488–492,
313, 315, 317–319, 321–323, 447 528, 542, 558, 562, 564, 566
Product life cycle (PLC), 301, 304, Riesling, 401–404
311, 607
Protection, 114, 116, 127–129, 298,
560 S
Sardinia, 7, 11, 13–15, 22, 23, 25,
605
R Satisfaction, 4, 10, 47, 54, 68, 78,
Region, 8, 10, 14, 19, 20, 23, 25, 119, 146, 148–150, 152, 155–
30, 31, 33–42, 70, 75, 77–80, 157, 159, 174, 186, 189, 190,
83, 86, 91–93, 108, 121–124, 212, 214, 250, 256, 281, 311,
126–130, 136, 137, 140, 147, 347, 349, 357, 364, 369, 370,
156–159, 165, 167, 169–171, 439, 446, 449, 450, 454–456,
173, 175–181, 185, 203–205, 459, 499–501, 528, 538, 543,
207, 208, 210–212, 216, 217, 546, 548, 575, 580, 596, 604
248, 254, 255, 268, 298–302, Sauvignon Blanc, 31, 73, 334, 374,
305, 313, 317–319, 328–336, 447, 451
341–343, 346–351, 353, 354, Segmentation, 4, 10–12, 23, 24, 147,
357, 359, 361–363, 367, 368, 338
373–376, 381–384, 386, 388, Self-congruence, 49
390, 391, 393, 394, 401–407, Semiology, 81
 Index 619

Servicescape, 83, 145, 146, 150, 223, Terroir, 78, 83, 91, 121, 171, 174,
224, 226, 227, 232, 233, 246, 290, 301, 304, 345, 373, 386,
249–251, 258, 259, 261, 265 409, 412, 451, 452, 454, 455,
South Africa, 45, 79, 147, 344, 477, 485, 486, 511, 519
446–456, 458, 467 Tourism, 2, 3, 6, 7, 11, 12, 18, 20,
Staff, 15, 17, 30, 35, 37, 38, 52, 59, 22–25, 29, 33, 37, 46–49, 59,
60, 108, 123, 144, 146, 206, 60, 75–80, 84, 90, 91, 99,
226–228, 248, 256, 266, 280, 101, 102, 105, 107–111, 113,
281, 284, 414, 415, 449, 450, 114, 116–118, 121, 122, 124,
471, 498, 500, 501, 504–511, 125, 128–130, 136, 137, 140,
548, 557, 580 144, 149–152, 157, 169, 179,
Stakeholders, 2–6, 29, 76, 113–115, 188–190, 196, 207, 208, 216,
118, 120–125, 128, 130, 151, 221, 224, 231–233, 246–249,
152, 154, 155, 157, 173, 225, 251, 264, 271, 272, 280, 301,
228, 229, 246, 280, 293, 301, 304–306, 311–313, 316, 317,
311, 319, 323, 337, 371, 319, 320, 323, 328, 331,
374, 381–384, 386, 388, 389, 332, 335, 342, 346, 348, 350,
391–394, 432–434, 441, 465, 357–360, 362–370, 373–375,
467, 468, 477, 479, 484, 488, 381–384, 386–390, 393, 394,
518, 523–526, 530, 531, 557, 407–410, 412–415, 424, 430,
575, 595, 604, 608, 609 432, 441, 445, 447, 448, 450,
Start new businesses, 117, 208, 451, 454–457, 459, 464, 466,
222–224, 226, 227 467, 469, 472, 473, 477–479,
Strategy, 59, 67, 71, 73, 78, 81, 483, 485, 488–490, 492, 516–
100–102, 117, 125, 130, 154, 525, 527, 529–532, 537, 538,
157, 158, 178, 186–188, 196, 540, 544, 551, 552, 555–557,
197, 251, 277, 299, 312, 344, 571–573, 576–580, 585, 587,
374, 375, 385, 424, 457–459, 588, 595, 597, 600, 602–605,
466, 524, 530, 539, 548, 552, 607–609
556, 573, 575, 580, 588 Tourism destination life cycle, 301,
Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities 312, 464, 607
and Threats (SWOT), 465, 538, Tourism marketing, 25, 109, 205
540–542, 548 Training barriers, 501, 504, 508, 509
Substitutes, 317, 365 Training methods, 507–509
Swan Valley, 104, 238, 302, 358, Transformational experiences, 230,
362–366, 370, 371, 607 238, 249, 272
Trás-os-Montes, 310, 311, 313–316,
321–323
T Travelling exhibitions, 276, 277
Tasting room, 187, 252, 283, 400, Trust, 109, 287, 384, 386, 390–394,
404, 414–416, 429, 434, 456, 566
489, 492, 498–501, 504–506, Turkey, 235, 301, 302, 327–332,
508–511 334–338, 607
620 Index

Typology, 12, 226, 382–384, 386– 110, 139–141, 166, 223, 224,
390, 393, 394, 405, 467 230–232, 236–238, 249, 255,
257, 262–265, 267, 268, 272,
362, 409, 410, 412, 588, 601,
U 604, 606–610
United Nations Educational, Scientific Winemaker, 24, 58, 84, 87, 89, 90,
and Cultural Organization 92, 93, 106, 149, 155, 173–176,
(UNESCO), 4, 76, 114–116, 178, 181, 196, 197, 205, 235,
118, 121, 122, 124, 125, 127, 259, 268, 328, 343, 351, 362,
136, 137, 204, 207, 208, 279, 375, 386, 400, 402, 411, 412,
404, 405, 488, 606 417, 418, 484, 487, 558, 562,
564, 566, 574, 594, 601
Wine museum, 20, 26, 90, 141, 235,
V 276, 277, 332, 540, 545
Vineyard, 30, 31, 35, 36, 68, 71, 79, Wine operators, 4, 187, 605, 608
80, 85, 88–91, 107, 118–121, Wine owners, 92, 284
136, 137, 188, 193, 205, 207, Wine region, 11, 13, 24, 29–31, 33,
234, 236, 247, 248, 251, 252, 36, 38–40, 45, 48, 50–55, 57,
260, 290, 291, 297, 298, 304, 59–61, 70, 72, 76, 79, 80, 84,
316, 327, 330, 332–334, 336, 91–93, 104, 107, 110, 114,
337, 343, 346, 348, 349, 351, 119–123, 130, 140, 157, 165,
352, 362, 388, 401–404, 407, 166, 168–170, 180, 181, 188,
408, 410, 413, 418, 427, 428, 203, 206, 234, 236, 238, 247,
446, 452, 455, 463, 469, 470, 248, 285, 302, 305, 311–314,
473, 476, 477, 486–490, 493, 328, 330, 331, 345, 349, 352,
499, 507, 516, 519, 525, 540, 353, 362–366, 371, 373, 382,
544, 556, 559, 572–575, 577, 386, 394, 399–401, 403, 404,
587, 588, 600–602 406–412, 417, 418, 427, 430,
Vinho Verde, 310, 313, 314, 319, 446, 447, 452, 456, 458, 459,
321–323 465–467, 471, 473, 479, 483,
Vinotheque, 400, 410, 414–418 485, 486, 492, 497, 498, 515,
Vintners cooperative, 417 519, 521, 538–540, 542, 543,
Visitor impacts, 152 545, 546, 548, 572, 573, 575,
576, 587, 607
Wineries, 1, 8, 10, 11, 13, 14, 18–20,
W 23–25, 29–31, 33–36, 39, 41,
Wine and food festivals, 146, 147, 42, 45, 52, 54, 57–60, 67, 68,
154, 155 70–73, 78–80, 84–87, 89–93,
Wine buyer, 140 100, 104–111, 118, 140, 145,
Wine cluster, 342–345, 353 149, 151–153, 155, 156, 171,
Wine experiences, 2, 4, 5, 41, 52, 53, 185–190, 192, 194–197, 205,
58–61, 76, 104, 106, 107, 109, 215, 216, 233–237, 299, 301,
 Index 621

302, 312, 316, 317, 320, 330, 181, 185, 186, 188, 203–210,
332–338, 341–343, 348, 349, 213, 216, 217, 223, 230–236,
352, 353, 357, 362, 364, 374, 239, 245, 246, 281, 299, 302,
375 304, 305, 311, 313, 318–320,
Wine roads, 5, 79, 84–86, 89, 91, 93, 323, 327, 328, 330, 331,
475 334–338, 341–354, 357, 358,
Wine routes, 5, 20, 79, 85, 92, 119, 361, 362, 364, 374, 381–384,
137, 299, 301, 302, 304, 305, 386–388, 390, 393–395, 399,
308, 311–317, 319, 321–323, 400, 403, 405, 410–412, 416,
328, 331–335, 337, 338, 352, 418, 423, 424, 427, 428,
403, 409, 447, 470, 472, 474, 431–437, 441, 446, 448–459,
560, 575, 607, 610 463–473, 476–479, 483–493,
Winescapes, 1, 2, 13, 30, 31, 34, 40– 497–499, 501, 504–506,
42, 76, 78, 113, 114, 118–120, 516–518, 520, 521, 529–531,
122, 130, 237, 240 537–541, 543–548, 552, 555,
Wine stakeholders, 4, 484–486, 488, 559, 561–563, 566, 571–573,
493 575, 576, 585–588, 594, 597,
Wine tour guides, 400, 404, 412, 493 601–611
Wine tourism, 1, 2, 4–6, 8–15, 17–20, Wine trails, 5, 68–70, 109, 169, 193,
22–26, 30, 33, 36, 38–40, 45–53, 302, 337, 341–343, 349, 352,
55, 57–61, 67, 71–73, 76, 78–81, 373–375, 575, 576, 580, 581,
83–86, 90–93, 99, 104–110, 113, 583, 585, 607, 610
114, 118, 119, 121, 127, 137, World Heritage listing, 76, 126
139, 140, 151, 165, 169, 180,