Incentive and vineyard, Under the sign of Bacchus

Wine and the pleasures of the table are indisputably part of French culture, but it's only very recently that the wine industry has organised itself to welcome tourists of all kinds, including incentive groups. Shaken to the core by competition from wines from the New World, all those involved in the industry have rallied to the challenge. In 2000, Maison de la France joined forces with the Burgundy and Aquitaine regional tourist boards, Sopexa, the French agri-food promotion agency, and Viniflhor, the national inter-professional office for fruit, vegetables, wine and horticulture, to set up a working group on wine tourism. "We have 54 partners from across the industry. One of the results of this meeting was the publication of a map of France's wines, featuring the 17 French vineyards and their most outstanding sites", explains Fanny Lendi-Ramirez, head of the Culture and Art of Living department at Maison de la France.

Aware of the potential of this market, the Ministries of Agriculture and Tourism asked Paul Dubrule, co-founder of the Accor group, to produce a report on the sector. The study, which was completed in 2007, found that "despite a fast-growing market, the French sector is lagging behind its foreign competitors. In California, Argentina and South Africa, visitors are systematically offered a tour of the vineyards. In Rioja, Spain's leading appellation wine region, recently built bodegas are designed to welcome the public. In this region, wine tourism, which has developed thanks to public and private funding, is regarded as a genuine tourist industry. In Portugal too, many quintas receive visitors.

In the heart of the vineyards

However, the French market is beginning to take initiatives that could be of interest to incentive groups. This is confirmed by Didier Arino, Managing Partner of Promotourisme: "Sites and accommodation located in the heart of vineyards are developing rapidly. For example, last June saw the opening of the Golf du Médoc Hôtel & Spa in the Médoc, at the heart of the wine route and its grands crus. This four-star resort offers wine tastings and wine-themed dinners, either in its gourmet restaurant or at the region's châteaux, including those in Pauillac, Margaux and Saint-Julien. It also has 200 m2 of meeting rooms."

Elsewhere, in the Beaujolais region, the Hameau du Vin, a leisure park designed around wine and vines, welcomes groups and can be privatised. On site, professionals can find seminar and reception rooms, exhibition and tasting areas, a restaurant, a garden of scents and aromas, a wine storehouse, a host of attractions on wine-related themes and also a train museum... "This summer, we inaugurated an area in the former goods station, with 500 m2 dedicated to exhibitions, showrooms, product launches and so on," says Anne Duboeuf, director of the Hameau du Vin. An accommodation project is also under consideration.

Another original success story is Philippe Raoux's Winery in Arsac, in the Médoc. Situated at the foot of the famous Margaux vines, in the heart of a 26-hectare park, the site is a lively place for sharing knowledge and tasting! Wine-related shows and events, a cellar with 2,000 wines selected by a tasting panel, a restaurant, Le Wy, offering food and wine pairings, and gourmet picnic baskets to enjoy in the shade of the pine trees. Not forgetting the Sources de Caudalie, where the nectar of Bacchus is available in all its forms, including the unexpected vinotherapy.

All these examples illustrate the fabulous potential of wine in all its incentive developments: gala dinners at famous châteaux, introductory wine-tasting courses, abseiling in Champagne cellars, winegrowers' meals, induction into a wine brotherhood, rallies on foot, mountain bikes, classic cars, 4×4 vehicles, helicopter or hot-air balloon flights over the vineyards... Evazio, for example, offers the chance to discover the vineyards of Bordeaux, the Médoc and Saint-Émilion in authentic 2CVs. These fun, original rallies are very popular with groups," says Stéphane Fritsch, director of Evazio. Our routes are combined with tastings in the wineries, dinners at the estates and winegrowers' lunches, with entrecôtes on the menu... obviously grilled on vine shoots."

Based in Burgundy, Fugues en France specialises in wine and gastronomy. The agency organises a variety of games, particularly for groups, as its director Catherine Thevenin explains: "Bacchus workshops, oenological challenges, a wine casino, barrel-building, quad biking and Mehari rallies... But whatever the activity, we always combine it with a cultural and gastronomic discovery of the region." Thomas Chevalier, head of business tourism at the Burgundy Regional Tourist Board, adds that "helicopter flights over vineyards are also very popular".

Vines in Paris

For his part, Thierry Baudier, Director of Maison de la France, highlights private initiatives such as the one undertaken at Château Giscours, in the Bordeaux region, classified as a Grand Cru Margaux. "Its owners are interested in business tourism, including incentives. In particular, the estate has a small conference centre and a team specially dedicated to this clientele."

Still in the Bordeaux region, Château Kirwan, classified as a Grand Cru Margaux, is organising English-style picnics, while its neighbour, Château Lynch-Bages in Pouillac, is restoring the small village of Bages, as confirmed by Hélène Fouquet, director of the Bordeaux Convention Bureau. "In addition to their château and winery, the owners have opened a two-Michelin-star hotel with a village bistro, brasserie, bakery and reconstructed town hall... On site, clients can organise a traditional village festival with craft stalls and tasting of local produce."

But you don't always have to travel across France to discover vineyards and cellars. For example, Œnodysée organises group visits to confidential vineyards in Paris and the Ile-de-France region. "Using walking rallies in particular, groups visit the Parisian vineyards of Montmartre, Bercy and the centre of the capital, as well as those in the inner suburbs with all the places associated with wine: cellars, wineries, wine bars, chalk quarries, etc. We also organise themed tours on wine and perfume, dinners and oenological events", comments Ghislain Pages, director of the company. Activities that can be found in all the wine-producing destinations, such as California in the United States, the Cape Town region in South Africa, Chile, Argentina and, closer to home, Portugal and Spain. French groups love to compare French wines with foreign varieties, as Mélanie Perret, Project Manager at the Sobeincentive agency, can attest. "It's the whole convivial, discovery and gastronomic side of wine that appeals: a VIP picnic in the gardens of a South African estate, a presentation of Bohemian vintages at the National Wine Bank in Prague, an introduction to grape harvesting and winemaking at a winery in Porto, a conference on painting and wine in San Sebastian, Spain... The possibilities are immense!"

In Spain, as in Portugal, there are few incentive holidays where local wines are not given pride of place, with visits to wineries, meals in bodegas and inductions. "The Rioja, Andalusia and southern Catalonia regions are particularly well-suited to this type of request," says Jaime-Axel Ruiz, Director of the Spanish Tourist Office. Elsewhere, and particularly renowned, are the vineyards of the Cape region in South Africa. "They attract 90 % of incentive groups staying in Cape Town", says Tina Herold, head of the business tourism department at the South African Tourist Office, who notes that "almost 10 % want an itinerary focusing exclusively on wine and that French people 'doing' the wine route love the Franshoek region where French Huguenots settled. It's worth noting that the longest wine route in the world is in South Africa: number 62!"Tina Herold also points out that "wine tastings are also a pretext for getting to know South African culture, with the programme including a visit to a township, dinner at a private home followed by the discovery of local vintages...".

Jean-Emmanuel Simond, director of Œnotropie, adds that "abroad, French wine tastings are very popular. In London, for example, we regularly organise wine tastings for British incentive groups invited by investment banks and insurance companies. Always on the lookout for innovative incentives, the agencies have plenty to offer, both in France and abroad, with particularly tasty programmes. Without moderation.