The Wine Route and emergence of wine-related tourism in Burgundy between the two world wars
At the end of the nineteenth century, tour guides totally excluded vineyard visits and gastronomic activities from their Burgundy sightseeing tours. Only natural sites and medieval monuments were of interest to visiting travelers. Gourmet products and wines were perceived at the time as being internationally recognized high-end upper-class luxury products, so not associated with any particular region. The trading weight of certain wines and the winemaking freedom enjoyed by vintners (freedom to produce blended wines from grapes of different geographical origins) were major factors contributing to this situation. Towards the late 1930s, major changes occurred in production and marketing standards in France, with the introduction of appellations of origin, together with a cultural renaissance based on regional traditions, along with a strong drive on the part of the Republic’s political establishment to promote local “homeland” areas within the great French motherland. In appropriating Republican ideas on the concept of tradition, entrepreneurs in the fine Burgundy wines market created an entirely new world of meanings associated with their particular end product. The creation of France’s very first Wine Tour Route in 1937 established wine-related tourism as a key feature of the Burgundy region, a region whose wines and vineyards are still attracting visitors today.