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Terroir is a French concept suggesting that the qualities (and quality) of agricultural and rural products and services are determined by the physical and socio-cultural environment of their origin. In this paper, we refine the conceptualisation of terroir to clarify the integrated relationship between its physical-natural and socio-cultural constitutive domains through place, history and the senses. Using this reconceptualization, we theorise terroir's unique and powerful contribution to sustainability through the integration of place and sensory, visceral experience. In turn, we derive six propositions that describe the relationship between terroir and business actions, with clear implications for the sustainability of rural businesses and regions.

The influence of growing region on hop quality was examined in three American aroma hop varieties (Mosaic®, Simcoe® and Strata®) that were harvested from two to five distinct sites within each of eleven commercial fields located throughout the Willamette Valley, Oregon. Weather, climate, and management data were collected for each of the eleven fields, while site-specific soil characterization was performed at each of the 50 sites. While hop variety had the largest influence on chemical differences, Multiple Factor Analysis revealed regional groupings attributable to differences in soil, weather, and management. Supplemental data for this article is available online at at https://doi.org/10.1080/03610470.2021.1968272 .

The influence of growing region on hop quality is examined in three American aroma hop varieties (Mosaic®, Simcoe® and Strata®) from eleven locations throughout the Willamette Valley, OR. Hops from each site were analyzed for total oil content, α- and β-acids, and the oil was analyzed via GC-FID to quantify selected aroma compounds. Single-field IPAs were brewed using composite samples from each field and assessed via sensory evaluation. While hop variety had the largest influence on chemical differences, as expected, Analysis of Variance revealed differences between fields within the same variety. Sensory discrimination and descriptive testing of the single-field IPAs also showed significant region-based differences among samples within the same variety. Supplemental data for this article is available online at

Sudanian zone is one of the regions in West Africa most confronted with high climate variability, challenging agricultural sustainability and rural livelihoods. Despite multiple research efforts devoted to exploring how farmers in this region perceive climate variability and how perceptions relate to adaptive responses, much remains to be done. This study examined farmers’ perception of climate variability compared with scientific evidence in the terroir of Benguene, between 1983 and 2018. Data was collected from twenty-nine (29) farmland heads (representing 49% of the total farmland heads in the village) through a survey conducted in October 2019. Monthly temperature data from ground measurement and daily rainfall data extracted from the gridded African Rainfall Climatology version 2 (ARC-2) time series was used. Descriptive statistic was used to analyse survey data. Climate data analysis included Mann Kendall trend analysis and computation of growing season parameters (Onset, Duration and Cessation) and its trend. In the end, a conformity index was used to compare farmers’ perceptions to climatological evidence. Conformity graph showed that apart from temperature, the farmers have low, to a weak perception of the other variables used to assess their perception. Results showed that many smallholder farmers have observed a rise in temperature (90%), delay onset (93%) and early cessation (93%) of rainfall. The analysis of the climate data showed high variability in the climate during the study period as observed in the increasing trends in temperature (p-value of 0.0007) and in the rainfall (p-value of 0.0001). Concerning the season parameters, the results show increasingly early-onset (June 1st ± 22 days) increasingly late cessation (October 09th ± 14 days) and consequently a long duration of the rainy season (130 ± 27 days). Conversely, farmers thought the opposite. These results imply the urgent need to increase smallholder farmers awareness of climate variability and change by providing climate information for better adaptation

The aim of this study was to analyze and classify the soils of the municipality of Alcubillas (La Mancha, Central Spain) and establish their suitability for vine cultivation. Alcubillas is a traditional location dedicated to vineyards and the production of wine. The pedological fingerprint of this location is the iconic red Mediterranean soil, and a plausible process for the soil formation is discussed. Considering the nature of the soils and the extent and types of natural limitations, as defined by the eight classes of land capability established by the US Soil Conservation Service, the majority of the soils in Alcubillas are suitable for vineyards (i.e., classes 1, 2 and 3) while moderately suitable sites only occupy a small area. The marginally suitable land class is located around a single hill, which occupies only a few hectares of terrain. Given that soil is a major factor in terroir expression, the findings reported here highlight the importance of soil suitability in determining vine performance in vine-growing zones with a Mediterranean environment.

Terroir is one of the core concepts associated with wine and presumes that the land from which the grapes are grown, the plant habitat, imparts a unique quality that is specific to that growing site. Additionally, numerous factors can influence yeast diversity, and terroir is among the most relevant. Therefore, it can be interesting to use Remote Sensing tools that help identify and give helpful information about the terroir and key characteristics that define the AOP (Appellation of Origin). In this study, the NDVI (Normalized Difference Vegetation Index) calculated from Landsat 8 imagery was used to perform a spatio-temporal analysis during 2013, 2014, and 2015 of several vineyards belonging to four different AOP in Galicia (Spain). This work shows that it is possible to use Remote Sensing for AOP delimitation. Results suggest: (i) satellite imagery can establish differences in terroir, (ii) the higher the NDVI, the higher the yeast species richness, (iii) the relationship between NDVI, terroir, and yeasts shows a stable trend over the years (Pearson’s r = 0.3894, p = 0.0119).

The concept of terroir has an extensive history in France linking a multitude of agricultural products to climate, soil, and local knowledge. More recently, terroir is used in viticulture to emphasize the distinctiveness of wine with respect to regional natural and cultural resources and in so doing has become important to tourism. This article addresses terroir by pointing to its substantial virtues while unveiling its potential for mystification. In the age of mass production, terroir offers distinction, an essential attribute for touristic appeal. However, in its emphasis on climate and soil in the viticultural domain, terroir conceals important historical processes that in the end speak as much, if not more, to how we rank and regard wine. Moreover, the focus on natural conditions rather than those that are social also masks social relations that are embedded in class privilege and thus give the impression that wine has a life of its own independent of its historical and social contexts.

In 1999, Darjeeling tea became India’s first Geographical Indication (GI). GI has proliferated worldwide as a legal protection for foods with terroir, or “taste of place,” a concept most often associated with artisan foods produced by small farmers in specific regions of the Global North. GI gives market protection to terroir in an increasingly homogenous food system. This article asks how Darjeeling tea, grown in an industrial plantation system rooted in British colonialism, has become convincingly associated with artisan GIs such as Champagne, Cognac, and Roquefort. The answer lies in a conceptual dyad that frames how British colonial officials, the Indian state, and international consumers have understood Darjeeling and its signature commodity. Since the colonial era, these actors have conceived Darjeeling as both an idyllic “garden” space and an industrial “plantation” space. As I show through an analysis of GI marketing materials and interviews with planters, pluckers, and consumers, this dyad maps in surprising ways onto labor relations. While planters’ and marketers’ discourses tend to emphasize the “garden,” laborers’ investment in GI lies primarily in an active—if also ambivalent—embrace of the plantation, encapsulated in the Nepali word “kamān.”

The influence of changes in agro-climatic conditions of grape growing on the wines quality in the conditions of LLC “ITC Shabo” is studied in the paper. For the past two decades, scientists around the world have been concerned about the effects of climate change. Studies of the global climate change impact on agriculture have already covered a significant area of global food crops. Growing grapes more than growing any other plant depends on climatic conditions, soil condition, temperature in certain periods of vegetation and development. This requires a particularly careful approach to the territorial location of wine production, including in terms of varietal. As a result of research, the qualitative characteristics of red grapes: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot Noir, white varieties: Pinot Gris, Rhine Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay and Telti Kuruk were analyzed in order to justify production of the Shabo terroir wines. Comparative analysis of data obtained from the white and red wine materials study, allowed to establish ranges of their chemical composition variation. Compliance of wine products with the regulatory documentation requirements primarily characterizes the qualitative characteristics of wine materials. The scientific concept provides taking into account by the winemaker a set of natural, climatic conditions and agricultural techniques for a particular area of the vineyard from which the wine is produced. The main task of this approach is to maximize display and preserve in wine individual characteristics, as display of a complex of terroir descriptors with obligatory preservation of descriptors of a grape variety.

Aim: The aims of this study were to (1) formulate a baseline understanding of the performance of the indigenous Cypriot white grape Xynisteri and the red grape Maratheftiko (Vitis vinifera L.), and (2) compare these varieties to Shiraz and Sauvignon blanc grown in a Cypriot vineyard.Materials and results: The investigation involved multiple dry grown vineyards from the Krasochoria region of Lemesos, Cyprus, during the 2017, 2018 and 2019 vintages. Vine performance measurements, including midday stem water potential, stomatal conductance, chlorophyll content, stomata density, vine phenology and vegetative and reproductive measurements, were taken at flowering, veraison and pre-harvest. Xynisteri had the greatest stomatal density, more shoots, more leaves, heavier bunches, greater yield, higher leaf water potential at harvest, and a stomatal conductance equal to Maratheftiko, but greater than that of both Shiraz and Sauvignon blanc. Maratheftiko had the longest shoots, largest shoot diameter and the greatest chlorophyll content out of all four varieties.Conclusions: This study identified the ability of the indigenous Cypriot grape varieties, Xynisteri and Maratheftiko, to better tolerate hot and dry conditions when compared to more commonly cultivated varieties grown in the same environmental conditions.Significance and impact of the study: The changing climate of wine growing regions worldwide is placing great pressure on the resources for sustainable viticulture. Many vineyards in hot climate zones base their businesses on European grape varieties traditionally grown in regions with abundant water resources. It is therefore necessary for the global wine industry to investigate grape varieties that are indigenous to hot climates. The eastern Mediterranean island of Cyprus is one such place, with more than 10 indigenous grape varieties that grow well in a hot climate without irrigation. Consumer studies have demonstrated that wines made from these Cypriot varieties are equally, if not more, acceptable than wines made from more traditional European grapes; therefore, the potential for their use in other hot wine growing regions is promising.

Traditional ‘terroir zoning’ has largely relied on heuristic ‘expert’ opinion coupled with approaches to land classification based on thematic mapping to describe the influence of soil conditions and climate on wine composition. Recent advances in geographical information systems (GIS) and digital mapping have enabled more robust quantitative methods to be developed, but with few exceptions recent terroir research has remained reliant on heuristic opinion and conformity to previously defined terroir units, rather than employing data-driven approaches. Using two case studies at regional scale, the aim of this paper is to illustrate how the use of methods of quantitative spatial analysis, as used to guide understanding of production system variability and to underpin precision viticulture (PV), may assist in better understanding terroir at a range of scales. In the Barossa region of Australia, cluster analysis of indices of soil physical and chemical fertility (available water capacity and cation exchange capacity), with critical climate variables (growing season rainfall, mean January temperature and growing degree days), clearly delineates differences between the Barossa and Eden Valleys but does not robustly promote further sub-division. Meanwhile, in the Marlborough region of New Zealand, interpolation of data supplied by wine companies from over 450 vineyards over several seasons suggests a consistent and characteristic regional ‘terroir’ in terms of vine yield and harvest date. Similarly consistent results were obtained for sub-regions of the Wairau Valley and a comparison of the Wairau and Awatere valleys. Thus, with scale-dependent modification, the methods of spatial analysis used to underpin PV and studies of within-vineyard variability offer much potential for terroir analysis and the identification of terroir zones. Importantly, these methods are unbiased, data-driven, and not reliant on heuristic opinion.

Understanding how different pedoclimatic conditions interact with vine and berry physiology, and subsequently impact wine quality, is paramount for an good valorization of viticultural terroirs and can help to optimize mitigation strategies in the face of global warming.The aim of the present study was to establish terroir zones in a steep slope region in Switzerland based on vine and berry physiology. The study area, Villette in the AOC Lavaux, was a unique experimental site due to the homogeneity of plant material in a relatively small microclimate (140 ha) and a multiplicity of different expositions, soil types and altitudes. Vine and berry physiology as well as temperature of twenty-two plots were monitored during three consecutive seasons to investigate whether a link with pedoclimatic parameters can be established.The annual temporal variation of the average temperature was 142 growing degree days (GDD) over all years. Remarkably, spatial temperature variability was twice as high, with a variation between most extreme plots of 395 GDDs on average over all years. PCA and hierarchical clustering of assessed vine and berry physiological parameters resulted in a vintage dependent grouping of plots differing between years, which was not congruent with geological entities. This highlights the importance of the vintage effect, which had a large influence on vine and berry physiology and impacted terroir zones more than soil groups. Important differences in budburst and flowering were observed between plots, whereas altitude was the main driver of precocity in all years, being relatively independent of the vintage, which confirms the importance of topography in viticultural terroirs.

Vineyards are variable. In spite of this, conventional approaches to winegrape production infer that the optimal practice is to apply uniform management strategies in vineyards on the assumption of homogeneity. The availability of a suite of technologies, which have collectively become known as Precision Viticulture, provides grapegrowers and winemakers with the means to move away from this ‘one-size-fits all’ approach. Instead, management may be targeted within vineyards according to variation in their inherent characteristics and particular goals in terms of grape yield and quality. Thus, better patches can be exploited whilst weaker areas may be improved. This chapter provides a summary and review of recent research into vineyard variability and the development and adoption of Precision Viticulture. A particular feature of this work has been its focus on improved fruit quality and wine flavour and aroma outcomes.

Background and Aims Wines that exhibit regional characters are often the most sought after and the highest valued wines available in the marketplace. This study evaluated the sensory properties that were regionally distinctive for Australian Shiraz wines. Methods and Results Sets of wines (22–28 wines) from six prominent Australian Shiraz‐producing regions were initially evaluated by groups of local winemakers using a rapid sensory method called Pivot Profile (PP) to obtain maps of their sensory characteristics. Three or four wines from each region were then selected using cluster analysis of the PP data and were evaluated using sensory descriptive analysis. The regional PP assessments provided a sensory fingerprint of the variability of each of the regions studied and identified sensory characteristics that typified the largest groups of wines of each region. The descriptive analysis highlighted sensory characteristics that distinguished the wines from the different regions, including mint, cooked vegetal, viscosity, dark fruit and savoury attributes. Conclusions This work has provided detailed quantitative data on the sensory properties associated with each of the regions and demonstrated that there are distinctive, region‐specific sensory characteristics. Significance of the Study Sensory fingerprints that differentiate one region from another will aid producers and the trade in appreciating what can be expected from different regions; they allow targeting of production decisions to enhance distinctive sensory attributes and will assist in improved communication between marketers and consumers.

International audience; BACKGROUND Today, many agricultural products claiming a link to their origin and typicity receive a warm welcome on the market. Nevertheless, the notion of typicity is blurred for consumers and needs to be objectified for communication purposes. This study aims at formalizing a methodology for studying typicity of terroirs, with PDO wines as an example, using a participatory approach with professionals of the wine sector from terroirs, using focus group and tasting. The vision of typicity of terroirs by professionals outside of these terroirs has been studied by a free word association task.RESULTS This study allowed a clear distinguishing of the typicity of the studied terroirs. Professionals from terroirs identified the global conceptual typicity of their terroirs using various factors, mainly soil, geography and grape variety, whereas professionals outside terroirs expressed their visions of terroirs by reputation or sensory characteristics of wines. Tasting results showed a discrimination of wines based on their typicity and highlighted descriptors involved in sensory perceptual typicity for each studied terroir.CONCLUSIONS Professionals from terroirs share a common vision of their typicity and identify more typicity factors than professionals outside terroirs. Sensory typicity has been highlighted for five of the six terroirs studied, according to the various descriptors. The study of two populations, from and outside terroirs, shows the gap between the typicities identified by professionals from terroirs and those perceived by professionals outside terroirs. (c) 2020 Society of Chemical Industry

Perceived value is a subjective impression of the consumer about the value of a product or a service. There is a lack of research and understanding of Slovenian wine consumers preferences, while at the same time the importance of the Slovenian wine sector is increasing. 221 adults from the two biggest Slovenian winegrowing regions who at least occasionally consume and purchase wine were interviewed with a structured questionnaire. The Perval scale was used to measure and identify the factors (dimensions) of the perceived value for wine. Further, the relation between Slovenian winegrowing regions and the perceived value dimensions was investigated. It was shown that respondents from the two largest Slovenian winegrowing regions perceive three different dimensions of value for wine: quality-price, emotional-social, and a dimension where indicators for humane, environmental and region of origin factors highly correlated, and were therefore named terroir. We also found that respondents value Primorska winegrowing region the most, followed by Podravje and other wine regions. Both winegrowing regions correlate to terroir and quality-price value dimensions. It was also found which value dimensions are more important to different socio-demographic groups, which can give wine producers and wine-sellers some ideas on consumer segmentation and marketing strategy.

Geographical concentrations of wineries often occur within a region for obvious reasons of terroir. However, localised spatial concentrations of wineries may exist because of other factors. This paper explores whether co-location exists among wineries that have higher wine ratings in the Hunter Valley wine region in New South Wales, Australia. Key conclusions are that clustering of Hunter Valley wineries producing high-quality wines does not exist, the quality rating of a winery is influenced by its terroir, and wine quality among wineries in the region is higher for those producing the territorial brand wine of Semillon. Blending was found to have no impact on the quality of wine produced by a winery. Keywords: Wine quality, Archetypes, Wine cluster, Hunter Valley Australia

The specificity of dairy Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) products is related to their “terroir” of production. This relationship needs better understanding for efficient and sustainable productions preserving the agroecological equilibrium of agroecosystems, especially grasslands. Specificity of PDO Comté cheese was related to the diversity of natural raw milk bacterial communities, but their sources need to be determined. It is hypothesized that raw milk indigenous microbial communities may originate from permanent grazed grasslands by the intermediate of dairy cows according to the sequence soil–phyllosphere–teat–milk. This hypothesis was evaluated on a 44 dairy farms network across PDO Comté cheese area by characterizing prokaryotic and fungal communities of these compartments by metabarcoding analysis (16S rRNA gene: V3–V4 region, 18S rRNA gene: V7–V8 region). Strong and significant links were highlighted between the four compartments through a network analysis (0.34

In Italy, Chianti Classico identifies a territory located in the heart of Tuscany that was once known as Chianti. From the pedological point of view, the entire DOCG (Denomination of controlled and guaranteed origin) has some common features but also shows many specific features related to certain small areas that give rise to the presence of many “terroirs”. Due to the intertwining created by the alternation of valleys and hills and the different characteristics of the territory, factors such as altitude and exposure play a very important role in the vegetative and productive expression of grapes. Some production areas were identified within the appellation where it is argued that the terroir and the grapes are quite distinct from those of other surrounding areas, albeit within the Chianti Classico appellation. On the basis of this information and considering that no data are available in the literature, the present study proposed an innovative multidisciplinary approach (analytical and statistical) that was capable of carrying out an objective evaluation of the various sub-areas investigated, using Sangiovese grapes as the variety in question. This research took into account the climatic results and the different pedological characteristics, evaluating the evolutionary phenomena that were linked to the ripening of the grapes in each phase of its formation.

Terroir is the set of factors including climate, soil, and management practices that influence the character of a wine. Of these factors, soil texture and chemistry is a major determinant in wine grape quality (van Leeuwen et al., 2009). Understanding the characteristics of the soil is key to making decisions that support the production of the highest possible quality grapes from the resources available. Few studies have been conducted in the Snake River Valley AVA (SRVAVA). This study seeks to build upon the data already available and provide analysis of vineyard-scale terroir in a leading grape growing district of the SRVAVA. Nine vineyards from the Sunnyslope wine grape growing district of southwestern Idaho were selected for their diversity of geographic location and growing environment. Soil pit locations in each vineyard were determined using a stratified-random sampling technique and normalized difference vegetation indices (NDVI) calculated from aerial imagery. This study combines field collection, sampling and analyses of soil texture and chemistry to characterize the soils in the selected vineyards. The results show the majority of vineyards contain aeolian or colluvium-derived soils composed of coarse silts and fine sands. Only two vineyards, those located closest to the Snake River, contain basalt gravels and lithic sands not observed in the other vineyards. Geochemical data show an increase in Ca with elevation and a decrease in Fe and Mn with elevation, which may be the result of varying soil parent materials or recent deposition of sediments. The results of my study support the presence of vineyard-scale terroir and the assertion that intra- and inter-vineyard heterogeneity is inherent. Further, my results show recent sediment deposition and agricultural practices have overprinted the original soil profiles. Understanding vineyard-specific soil characteristics like those investigated in this study will allow vineyard owners to manage for specific soil traits and promote the unique terroir of their product. Management of vineyards in this way can support the growth of high-quality grapes and the production of desirable wines that reflect the unique conditions under which they were grown, their terroir.

Bacteria have a fundamental role in determining the fitness of grapevine, the composition of grapes and the features of wines but at present, little information is available. In this work, the bacteria colonizing the different portions of grapevine (bark, leaves and grapes) were explored in the vineyards of the Alpine region of Trentino, considering the impact of different environmental and agronomical variables. The vineyards included in the work were selected based on their different geographical positions (altitude) and grapevine training systems in order to explore the whole variability of the grapevine ecosystem. Moreover, the surface amount of copper was measured on grapes and leaves during the vegetative growth. Bacterial analysis, performed using plate counts and Illumina MiSeq, revealed an increase in the concentration of grape bacteria proportional to the progress of the ripening stage. Conversely, the peak of bacterial concentration onto leaf and bark samples occurred in August, probably due to the more favourable environmental conditions. In bark samples, the bacterial microbiota reached the 7 log CFU/cm2, while 6 log UFC/g were measured in grape samples. A remarkable biodiversity was observed, with 13 phyla, 35 classes, 55 orders, 78 families and 95 genera of bacteria present. The presence of some taxa (Alphaproteobacteria, Desulfovibrionaceae, Clostriadiales, Oscillospira, Lachnospiraceae and Bacteroidales) was ubiquitous in all vineyards, but differences in terms of relative abundance were observed according to the vegetative stage, altitude of the vineyard and training system. Bacteria having oenological implication (Lactobacillus, Pediococcus and Oenococcus) were detected in grape samples collected in August, in low abundance. The data revealed a complex bacterial ecosystem inside the vineyard that, while maintaining common traits, evolves according to environmental and agronomical inputs. This study contributes to define the role of bacteria in the complex balance established in each vineyard between human actions and agricultural environment, known as terroir.

Recent research has expanded our understanding on vineyard-associated fungal community assembly, suggesting non-random distribution and implicating regional differences in the wine terroir effect. Here, we focused on the culturable fraction of the fungal community that resides on grapes and determine wine quality, the so-called wine yeast populations. We aimed to analyze local-scale yeast community assemblages and to test whether the hypothesis of biogeographical patterns also applies to wine yeasts in particular. Surveying 34 vineyards across four main viticultural zones in Greece showed significant trends in vineyard-specific patterns. At a local scale, viticultural regions were also linked to distinct yeast community compositions. Importantly, major yeast populations directly related to wine fermentation contributed significantly to the delimitation of regions, highlighting their potential influence on the regionality of wine characteristics. In terms of the microbial terroir influence, yeast communities within an area were temporarily stable, which is critical for the regional character of the wine. Community structure could be explained only partially by environmental features. Maximum temperature, elevation, and net precipitation were the highest correlated variables with the yeast community biogeographic patterns. Finally, we also showed that certain environmental factors may drive the population size of specific yeast populations. The present results indicate that the wine yeast community has a geographical character at local scale, which is an important feature of the microbial terroir concept and thus for the wine industry.

Hops (Humulus lupulus L.) is a species that grows spontaneously in Corsica, but the characterization of this species in this territory has not yet been investigated. The main objectives of this study are to explore the features of wild hops from Corsica and to determine the effect of the island terroir on some cultivars in the first year of growth. A multidisciplinary approach consisting of the genetic analysis, morphological comparison and chemical characterization of essential oils was carried out on four wild Corsican hops and three hop cultivars grown in Tettnang, Germany and Corsica, France. The morphological and GC-MS analysis of Corsican wild hops, set cluster coastal samples apart from the one far from the coast. This dissimilarity is supported by the SSR analysis by two of the three coastal accessions. The genetics demonstrate a proximity between the European noble cultivar Tettnanger and the mountain Corsican wild hop from Corte. The morphological comparison between German hops cultivated in Tettnang and in Corsican soil, and the GC-MS characterization of their essential oils’ chemical profiles, show different features between year 0 and year +1 for each sample. This multidisciplinary approach highlights an acclimatization of hop cultivars to the Corsican terroir one year after planting.

Orientation: Wine festivals and events not only attract visitors, but also play a vital role in creating exposure to regional wines and wineries, increasing regional wine sales and stimulat...

This article examines current efforts by the woman-led Lower North Shore Bioproducts Solidarity Coop on the northeastern coast of Quebec, Canada to re-brand their region for sustainable economic gr...

China has now become one of the world’s top wine producing and consuming nations. Within this booming wine trend, terroir has played a central role to define the place of wine production, which is ...

(2019). Exploring terroir: a sense of place in food and farming. Geography: Vol. 104, No. 1, pp. 42-48.

Slow tourism provides a new approach to contemporary touristic practices by taking into account local populations, extending the length of stay at the destination, and making the tourist experience more fulfilling. The Douro is a rural region that could benefit from slow tourism practices. However, the main tourism activity at the destination is presently limited largely to all-inclusive cruises packages in the Douro river valley, the terroir of the world-renowned port wine. This research first explores the extent to which attributes of slow tourism exist in the region, particularly in relation to modes of transport, local attractiveness, natural and built heritage, and interaction with local people. It then investigates how they are represented in promotional videos of the Douro region produced by the municipalities in conjunction with its DMO. A qualitative analysis of content was conducted alongside with an in-depth interview. The study takes a multi-method approach by analyzing not only the content but also the context by drawing upon complementary information provided by the interviewee. The results obtained testify to the presence of some slow tourism attributes in the videos. However, a clear message is still missing that could elevate the potential of this region to become a sustainable and slow destination.

Grapes and wine production on the Balkan Peninsula dated back to the ancient times due to the favorable natural conditions for vine-growing. Despite its small territory, with its geographic location Bulgaria has an extremely varied relief and climate. On the basis of the diverse terroir the country was divided into 5 wine-growing regions where along with the common, globally known vine varieties, some local ones, characteristic and typical of each region, are also grown. Over the past two decades, the development of the wine sector in the country and the legislation had been in line with the requirements and arrangements with the European Union. From 2002 to 2010 there was a significant decline in the cultivated area of vineyards and the wine export. Full control has been introduced on the planting of wine grape varieties. During the years following the accession of Bulgaria to the EU, there has been a gradual expansion of the cultivated areas with wine and table grape varieties, although the process of setting up new plantations is extremely slow. The preservation and expansion of the vineyards of traditional Bulgarian varieties has been encouraged. Wine varieties dominate in the structure of vineyards and occupy 95% of the vineyards and the table grapes – about 5%. The red wine varieties are predominant, as they are about 58% of the area of ​​the vineyards and white wine varieties are 42%. During the last decade, the interest in bio and organic produce has grown strongly and the areas for organic grape production are constantly growing. Over the past 100 years, viticulture and wine-making development in Bulgaria had marked times of rise and times of severe crises however it had always preserved its place as a subsector determining the structure of Bulgarian agriculture, being of great importance for the country’s economy.