Wine tourism, Sicily looks to the California model

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Can wine tourism become a relevant activity for the turnover of Sicilian wineries? What steps are necessary to give answers to the question of experiences in the cellar and in the vineyard? What is the target audience? These are just some of the questions that Assovini, the association that brings together around a hundred Sicilian wineries, tried (and tries) to answer, which dedicated a round table to the topic during Sicilia en Primeur, the international showcase of Sicilian wine which was attended by over a hundred Italian and foreign journalists from the sector. Everyone looks with interest at California where companies have built an important part of their turnover around wine tourism. And Sicily, compared to California, could have some advantages: a cultural and landscape heritage unique in the world, a great gastronomic tradition, the history of vines, vineyards and cellars. In short, Sicily has, as it was customary to say until recently, an infinite deposit whose value is recognized by tourists.

The interest of travelers in wine tourism

The data, on the side of travel intentions or requests, presented during the Sicilia en Primeur course by Roberta Garibaldi, professor at the University of Bergamo and president of the Italian food and wine tourism association, play in favor of the island: «Sicily confirms its primacy as the best food and wine destination for Italian tourists thanks to the fascination exercised by food & wine – he says -. Wine tourism is one of the strengths of the offer, and in the future it will be called to evolve and enrich itself. Looking at the wishes of Italians who intend to make a food and wine trip to Sicily, the desire to experience open spaces and immerse yourself in rurality is strong, tastings at sunset excel (indicated by 66%), dinners in the vineyard (60%), grape tourism (46%), wine trekking (42%) passing through the new trend of foraging (46%). The key word is to diversify, but based on the target, without forgetting ad hoc proposals for families with children».

The role of the Next Generation

Aware of the growing trend of Sicilian wine tourism, the members of Assovini Sicilia therefore bet on the combination of tourism and wine that can help drive the Sicily brand by enhancing its territory. And the role of the Next Generation is relevant, the new generation of Sicilian viticulture that is preparing for generational turnover: many of the young people under 40 are involved in hospitality with the aim of diversifying the wine tourism offer, transforming it into a wine experience.

Sicily, wine destination of excellence

In recent years, the cellars have equipped themselves: according to a survey by Assovini addressed to the members, 90% of the companies have a structure intended for wine tourism for tasting in the cellar; 32% own an accommodation facility with beds and 30% offer a restaurant proposal. The services offered by the wineries are increasingly refined and diversified, turning into wine experiences: over 51% offer from cooking classes to wellness programs, from wine trekking to tours that interact more and more with the landscape and culture of the places. But, evidently, there is still some progress to be made by focusing more on the wine experience and on what we can call the long tail of the visit to the cellar which can bring benefits in terms of marketing and future purchases in the places of residence of the tourists. «By combining the successful marketing strategies of hospitality adopted in California, with the uniqueness, the richness of Sicily’s historical, cultural and archaeological heritage and the authenticity of Sicilian places and producers, Sicily has all the credentials to become a wine destination of excellence – says the president of Assovini Laurent de la Gatinais -. With the wine experience we want to transfer the emotions from the vineyard to the wine up to the final consumer, through the personal experience and history of the producers. And we want to do it in a unique setting: that of the territory, the cellar, the wine. We intend to enhance the wine tourism of our associates as a strategy to promote the diversity and quality of the Sicilian territories, their richness and gastronomic culture, the landscape-cultural heritage”.

On the island 70 native varieties

At the base there is always a single system. «The richness of the island is given by an enviable climate but also by a territory that has more than 70 native varieties and 42 thousand hectares of sustainable viticulture – underlines Antonio Rallo, president of the Consorzio di Tutela Vini Doc Sicilia, retracing the history of the Consorzio DOC Sicily since 2012 –. Among our priority commitments is that of dedicating ourselves to the conservation of biodiversity generated by the 3,000 years of viticulture on the island».