Johan Bruwer

South African Wine Routes: Some Perspectives on the Wine Tourism Industry's Structural Dimensions and Wine Tourism Product

Wine tourism has emerged as a strong and growing area of special-interest tourism in ‘New World’ wine countries in particular, and represents an increasinglysignificant component of the regional and rural tourism products of these countries. The development of wine routes throughout Europe, and increasinglyin ‘New World’ wine countries, provides the link between wine and tourism. South Africa is believed to be one of the most aggressive in the short- to medium-term in getting out its wine tourism message. The twofold purpose of this paper is to investigate the structural dimensions of the South African wine industryas these specificallyrelate to wine route estates and to determine the nature and extent of the wine tourism ‘product’ offered on the wine route estates. In this context, 125 face-to-face interviews were conducted with wine route estate enterprises. Wine route estates have long recognised the potential of wine tourism and the implications of their involvement in wine tourism through their inclusion in wine routes are discussed. r 2003 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Hedonic Nature of Wine Tourism Consumption: An Experiential View

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to use the experiential view of consumption to better understand the nature of the motivations of the wine tourist in a congested wine region environment. It also aims to determine the impact of travel antecedents such as the perceived characteristics of the wine region, information sources utilised, and previous knowledge of the region and its products on the destination decision-making process and ultimately the visitation motivations.Design/methodology/approach – Information is obtained from a random sample of 304 respondents from 12 wineries representing all size groups situated on the Paarl Wine Route (PWR) in South Africa. Data are collected through the use of a self-administered, highly structured questionnaire, self-completed by respondents at each of the winery cellar door venues.Findings – The most important characteristic of the entire winescape is the region’s scenic beauty. Other high impact characteristics are the friendly people and their hospitality, overall ambience and the diversity of wine estates. These factors point to hedonic behaviour in a highly social context and primarily a search for enjoyment/pleasure, mainly by first-time visitors. The dynamic of first-time and repeat visitation plays a key role in visitors’ wine tourism behaviour. The decision to engage in wine tourism is generally impulsive, even spurious, the visit duration short and the motivations guiding the visitors’ behaviour predominantly hedonic in nature.Research limitations/implications – The impact of the natural landscape underlines the premise that an experiential research approach can yield valuable insights and sheds new light on the fact that a memorable experience for a wine tourist does not only evolve inside the winery’s cellar door. In the process it exposits what could be unique selling points for marketing differently positioned wine regions.Originality/value – This study is of value to academic researchers, travel and accommodation providers and wine industry practitioners alike as it highlights important aspects of wine tourism behaviour with regard to the actual (underlying) motivations that drive them to visit cellar doors in awine region.

Segmentation of the Australian Wine Market Using a Wine-Related Lifestyle Approach

As wine increasingly becomes a lifestyle beverage and more acceptable and desired by a wider spectrum of consumers, there is a greater need to understand wine consumer values, consumption patterns and profiles. This research recognises that lifestyle is inextricably linked to values and the processes by which people seek to achieve their values through various modes of expression, including the consumption of wine. For this purpose, this study developed a new wine-related lifestyle (WRL) measurement instrument for segmenting the Australian domestic wine market. Although the study was exploratory in nature, there is clear evidence that five wine-related consumer lifestyle segments exist in the Australian domestic wine market. These segments are: purposeful inconspicuous premium wine drinkers, ritual oriented conspicuous wine enthusiasts, enjoyment seeking social wine drinkers, fashion/image oriented wine drinkers, and basic wine drinkers.

Regional Brand Image and Perceived Wine Quality: The Consumer Perspective

Purpose- The overall aim of this study is to examine the regional brand image of selected California wine regions and the effect of that image on consumers’ quality perceptions when included on wine labels. It also seeks to examine the importance of regional brand image with respect to information other than place-of-origin provided on the wine labels. Finally, the study seeks to define consumer preference for selected California wine regions, with a deeper look at Sonoma, and their preference for appellations within those regions. Design/methodology/approach- Data collection took place by means of a highly-structured online survey of male and female wine consumers, during a two-week period in May 2006 across the USA. The sample was limited to two groups of wine consumers who are the recipients of monthly and quarterly wine newsletters respectively. The request to participate was directed to 9,922 e-mail boxes that yielded a response rate of 5.7 percent, finally resulting in 570 usable surveys. Findings- The perceived quality of a wine region raises the quality expectation of the sub-regions or appellations within that region. This was especially evident in the case of Sonoma County. The wine region is the most important information to predict quality on wine labels. Almost without exception, the addition of regional information on a label increased consumer confidence in the quality of the product. The ever-increasing number of American viticultural areas (AVAs) results in a fragmented offering in terms of the place-of-origin marketing strategy to consumers and is not desirable. Research limitations/implications- The research suggests that a wine regional brand image is multi-dimensional in nature and that many, in fact, most individual AVAs have weak regional brand strength when compared with the high equity ones such as Napa Valley and Sonoma. These findings are, however, tentative as the study was conducted only in the USA and largely among California residents with a relatively high wine involvement level. These issues warrant further investigation. Originality/value- This paper is of value to academic readers, wine industry practitioners and regional wine and/or tourism associations alike as it synthesises the importance of a wine’s region of origin in the consumer wine-buying process and the impact of place-of-origin as a wine marketing strategy.

Place‐based marketing and regional branding strategy perspectives in the California wine industry

Purpose- The purpose of this paper is to explore different levels of place-based marketing in the form of region of origin strategies used by wineries in their branding efforts. The overall aim is to obtain insights into wine consumer dynamics such as product involvement level, consumption frequency and differences between segments on the basis of gender and age from a regional branding perspective. Design/methodology/approach- Data collection took place by means of a highly-structured online survey of wine consumers across the USA. The request to participate was directed to legal wine drinking age people of 21 years and older to 9,922 e-mail boxes that yielded a response rate of 5.7 percent, finally resulting in 570 usable surveys. Findings- Consumers used regional branding cues, information and images in their assessment and valuation of comparative wine labels. Almost without exception, the addition of regional information on a wine label increased consumer confidence in the quality of the product. Research limitations/implications- Any follow-on work to the study should also include a broader sampling of consumer types throughout the USA and comparisons made with the study to assess the validity of generalising the results here . Practical implications- Regional branding efforts should be targeted at high wine product involvement consumers rather than their low involvement counterparts, as high involvement consumers are likely to be more influenced by brand-based cues. Originality/value- The paper is of value to academic readers, wine industry practitioners regional trade and tourism associations and other regional trade and tourism associations and other commercial entities that market their products with regional branding cues.

Wine-Related Lifestyle (WRL) Market Segmentation: Demographic and Behavioural Factors

ABSTRACT The primary objectives of this research were to further strengthen the wine-related lifestyle (WRL) instrument and to compare and contrast the composition and nature of the wine market segments with the earlier studies. Data collection took place by means of the computer-assisted telephone interviewing (CATI) method among wine drinking residents in South Australia, resulting in a final randomized sample size of 401 households. People who were the primary wine buyer of their household and had consumed wine in the six-month period prior to the survey, were interviewed. The South Australian wine market consists of five wine-related lifestyle (WRL) segments, each differing in size and level of involvement with wine. This segmentation structure is relatively stable but continues to evolve as two new market segments were identified, namely ‘mature time-rich wine drinkers’ and ‘young professional wine drinkers’. The WRL-instrument is a domain-specific segmentation tool that is suitable for identifying and measuring wine market segments, but needs to undergo further testing on both a cross-cultural and data collection method basis. The research reconfirms that there are five lifestyle-related segments in the South Australian wine market and that this is of an evolving nature. The findings are somewhat tentative as the study was conducted in South Australia only.

Consumer Behaviour and Sensory Preference Differences: Implications for Wine Product Marketing

Purpose- Exploratory research was conducted in a well-known Australian wine region to determine the differences in the behaviour dynamics and sensory preferences of consumer groups. The overall aim is to gain some insights into the product style preferences of consumers and what this means in practical terms to wine product marketing. Design/methodology/approach- Information was obtained from a random sample of 150 visitors to ten wineries in the Yarra Valley wine region in Australia. Data were collected by means of self-administration surveys using a highly structured questionnaire at each of the winery tasting room venues. Findings- Specific differences exist in the wine consumption behaviour and sensory preferences of males and females and between generational cohorts, specifically Millennial and older consumers. Females drink less wine than males, spend less thereon but tend to “compensate” for this by buying higher priced wine per bottle, which could represent a risk-reduction strategy. Females are noticeably higher than their male counterparts in white wine consumption, showing a preference for a sweeter wine style at a young age, and reported a strong preference for medium body style wines over light and full-bodied wines. From a sensory preference viewpoint, fruit tastes and aromas are by far the most important, especially among females, as are vegetative characters, wood/oak, and mouth-feel characters. More males, on the other hand, preferred the aged characters of wine. Research limitations/implications- It is possible to target wine consumers in accordance with their gender and lifecycle stage as far as the sensory and certain behavioural aspects of the product are concerned. However, this should not be oversimplified and drive product marketing strategies in the wrong direction. Originality/value- This study is of value to academic researchers, wine industry practitioners and other wine distribution channel members alike, as it provides insights into consumer behaviour differences and one of the core tangible aspects of a wine product, namely the sensory preferences of consumers.

The Role of Perceived Risk in Wine Purchase Decisions in Restaurants

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the level of perceived risk and implementation of risk-reduction strategies (RRS) regarding the consumer wine purchase decision in the fine dining restaurant environment. The study seeks to evaluate the effectiveness of elements within the control, or influence of the restaurant (staff, reputation, previous visitation and previous consumption) on reducing the perceived risk of consumers. Design/methodology/approach – Data are collected through the use of a self-administered, highly structured questionnaire in a well established fine dining restaurant in central Adelaide, South Australia over a three week period in April and May 2008. The sample consists of restaurant consumers who made a wine purchase decision at the restaurant during the collection period. A response rate of 85 per cent is achieved resulting in 105 useable questionnaires. Findings – A low overall level of perceived risk is noted in the wine purchase decision-making process in the fine dining environment. The restaurant’s reputation and advice from staff are found to be important RRS with a high incidence of utilisation. The reputation of the restaurant, incidence of previous visitation and previous consumption of the wine ordered in the restaurant, are all found to reduce the level of perceived consumer risk. A significant incidence of customers engaging in riskseeking behaviour through selecting wines with which they are unfamiliar, is also noted. Research limitations/implications – The findings of this research suggest that the overall level of risk associated with the consumer wine purchase decision may be lower than previously observed and can be reduced through measures within the restaurant management’s control. Although tentative due to the exploratory nature of this study, these findings may provide useful insights to the wine and restaurant industries and would benefit from further investigation on a larger scale. Originality/value – This study is of value to academic researchers, restaurant managers/sommeliers and the wine industry as it highlights important aspects of consumer behaviour with regard to wine purchases in a growing and lucrative sector of the on-premise trade.

Region of Origin and its Importance Among Choice Factors in the Wine-Buying Decision Making of Consumers

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the importance of wine’s region of origin in the consumer wine-buying decision-making process in the Australian domestic market. Design/methodology/approach – Data collection takes place by means of a self-administered and online approach in tandem utilising a highly structured questionnaire completed by wine consumers. The sample is limited to three groups of wine consumers – patrons of a wine bar in Sydney and two online wine communities unlocking access to a cross-section of on-premise trade and online consumers. The active memberships of the online communities amount to 3,600. In total, 352 usable surveys are obtained. Findings – Region of origin is an important choice factor in the wine-buying decision making process of consumers, but particularly so in terms of its multi-dimensional nature (region name, wine type and grape variety). The most important choice factors in consumers’ wine-buying decisions are quality, price, grape variety, wine style and region of origin. Region of origin varies in degree of influence within different segments. Higher ratings for region of origin are given by female wine consumers, high involvement wine consumers and consumers who have participated in wine tourism to a greater degree. Research limitations/implications – The findings of this research suggest that wine’s region of origin is a significant choice factor in the Australian consumer’s wine-buying decision making process. More than half of the respondents are residents of Sydney and the findings are therefore tentative due to the geographical limitation. Originality/value – This study is of value to academic researchers, wine industry practitioners, and on- and off-premise operators alike as it furthers the understanding of the importance of various choice factors in the consumer’s wine-buying decision-making process and in particular the relative importance of region of origin within the main choice factors. It also highlights the specific market segments (geodemographic, behavioural and involvement level) and conditions under which the relative importance of region of origin varies.

Region of Origin as Choice Factor: Wine Knowledge and Wine Tourism Involvement Influence

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify and examine key areas of the wine consumer’s interaction with region of origin, specifically through access to wine information, wine knowledge, the auxiliary relationship with wine tourism involvement and the impact this has on the wine buying decision-making process.Design/methodology/approach – A conceptual research ‘‘model’’ was developed to set the direction for the development of the research hypotheses and questions. A highly structured questionnaire was administered at a high-end independent wine retail shop in Sydney, Australia using a convenience sample of 100 randomly selected respondents, all of whom were in the basic wine drinker category or higher. A series of quantitative and qualitative datasets were collected during timeslots spanning 8-15 minutes per questionnaire.Findings – The results confirm that as wine knowledge increases together with wine involvement, it develops into a greater understanding of a wine’s region of origin, impacting positively on the consumer’s wine decision-making process. A consumer’s willingness to interact with wine-related motivations through wine tourism visitation has a profound effect on the importance of a wine’s region of origin, therefore attributing to greater recall of wine region in the wine buying decision- making process.Research limitations/implications – Wine education and access to wine information have a strong relationship with increasing a consumer’s awareness of wines’ region of origin and offer scope to further investigate the importance of in-store assistance and cellar door staff interaction with consumers. Although both these aspects are considered positively by a statistically significant percentage of the sample study, a relationship does not coexist with the importance of wine region as an aid or attribute for consumers when purchasing wine.Originality/value – Wine marketing strategies in Australia are beginning to incorporate a complementary product brand relationship with region of origin and the use of regional branding, not only as a point of difference, but as an extension of a wine product’s attributes. This study aids in further identifying information regarding regional branding and its relative importance, which could lead to subsequent comprehensive research studies. The research findings may be utilized to provide small- to medium-sized wineries an overview of how they may consider closer interaction between their individual brand and regional branding.