CONCEPTUALIZING TERROIR WINE TOURISM.

Terroir tourism has been recently recognized to have the potential for developing a new tourism product. However, little research has investigated terroir tourism and its characteristics, differentiating it from wine tourism. For the purpose of this study, characteristics of terroir tourism were categorized into the constructs of territory, plant growing, advertising, and identity. Through content analysis, the researchers found that terroir tourism has 59 characteristics developed from the literature review on terroir and its relationship to wine and rural tourism. The findings will help future research to better understand the characteristics of terroir tourism and differentiate it from wine tourism. An outcome of this study validates the conceptual framework of terroir tourism and will help vineyards to develop further rural agritourism practices based on their terroir characteristics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]