French Wine Brotherhoods and Wine Tourism: A Complex Relationship

France has one of the oldest traditions of wine making in the world and the development of this industry has also led to the elaboration of various tourism developments, such as wine trails and wine cellars/visitor centres. In addition, wine makers have recognized that in order to sell their production effectively, they needed to group themselves in associations to contribute, together, to the promotion of their wines on a regional, national and international basis. This impetus has witnessed the blossoming of various brotherhoods which, despite their casual image of good eaters and good drinkers, are well structured and powerful bodies in promoting French wines. Their prime role as wine promoters and ambassadors to their regions implies that they have opened up to the professional wine world. However, their contribution to the development of wine tourism is not yet fully utilized. The paper reviews the evolution of wine brotherhoods and structures and then addresses their links with tourism through their participation in events and their association with historic monuments. The paper concludes with a series of recommendations detailing the extent to which wine brotherhoods could further contribute to the development of French wine tourism.