ENOTOURISM IS A RELATIVELY NEW FORM OF TOURISM V. Stepaniuk N. Mykhailova National University of Food Technologies The revenues generated by wine tourism is growing in every wine country around the world. How has this industry developed and where could it be heading in the future? Enotourism is becoming more and more profitable in recent years. The main goal of it is to taste wine and explore the areas where it is produced. Many travel packages often involve the relaxing part or enjoying historical sights, but the difference is the active part wineries are taking in it, showing the visitors where and how their favorite drink is produced. Enotourism is a relatively new form of tourism, and its history varies from region to region. In places such as the Napa Valley in California, it saw an extensive growth thanks to concerted marketing effort implemented in 1975, with a further boost by the 1976 Judgment of Paris. Other regions, like Catalonia in Spain, started their marketing efforts on enotourism just in the mid-2000’s, primarily focusing on how it is an alternative form of tourism to the seaside. The industry around enotourism has grown throughout the first decade of the 21st century. Most visits to the wineries take place at or near the site where the wine is produced. Visitors typically learn the history of the winery, see how the wine is made, and then taste them, usually with local foods. Most importantly for the producers, visitors usually buy the wines made by the winery they visit, accounting for up to 33% of its annual sales. Strictly speaking, enotourism includes tasting, consumption and purchase of wine, often where it is produced. A visit involves a tour to the site where the wine is produced, with an explanation of the history of the winery and the production process. Visitors have the chance to taste the wine, sometimes with full meals to pair them, and have the chance to buy some bottles that they can take home with them. Most tourism agencies see this segment of the tourism industry with tremendous growth potential, and in some regions it’s only working at 20% of its full potential. For examples, the Stellenbosch Wine Routes in Cape Town, South Africa, originally founded in 1971 by Frans Malan, Simonsig Estate and Neil Joubert, now boasts 152 wineries as members. The wine industry in the Western Cape even contributes about $2 billions to the region’s economy every year, and officials are now looking to market a new campaign with this in mind: the Stellenbosch Wine Experience. There is no doubt that enotourism will continue to grow, and the wine regions will have to deal with the increasing crowds, meaning that the initial infrastructure has to be in place or tourists will begin facing rises in tasting room fees, as it’s happening in the Napa Valley in California. The potential is tremendous but the producers will need to be careful because the rise in prices could lead the tourists to fly away and turn off the interest in enotourism. Winery of CA: The art of winemaking at Solis Winery began in the early 20th century and since then the strong foundation of creating the perfectly crafted wine has been combined with modern technology to produce meticulously crafted award- winning California wines. Located near San Francisco, Solis is tucked in the picturesque Hecker Pass region which is just at the southwestern edge of Santa Clara Valley and just west of downtown Gilroy. You'll enjoy our charming tasting room where you will be able to sample our wide variety of wines. Winery of Spain: One of the world's most famous wine-producing regions, La Rioja is the headquarters of Spanish wine tourism. Spain boasts the largest vineyard surface area of any nation in the world. Unlike most wine-producing countries, there is literally something for everyone in Spain; Spanish wineries craft high-quality wines of numerous varieties, including reds, whites, sparkling wine and even sherry. Winery of France: France is the source of many grape varieties that are now planted throughout the world, as well as wine-making practices and styles of wine that have been adopted in other producing countries. Although some producers have benefited in recent years from rising prices and increased demand for some of the prestige wines from Burgundy and Bordeaux, the French wine industry as a whole has been influenced by a decline in domestic consumption, while internationally, it has had to compete with the increased success of many new world wines. References 1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enotourism 2. http://wineandabout.com/business/enotourism-anyone/ 3. http://wikitravel.org/en/Enotourism .