There is a trend emerging amongst Napa and Sonoma’s roughly five hundred wineries. Given the slowdown in their visitor business they are looking at novel ways to attract wine country tours and tourists as best that they can during the recession and one of the quickest ways into wine lovers’ hearts, is through their stomachs. Instead of the usual plain palate cleansing crackers or worse – nothing, many wineries are now offering interesting hors d’ oeuvres, offering gourmet food and interesting events, and even entertainment in the hopes of being more of a destination for visitors, rather than merely a stop in passing.
Of course this trend won’t sit well with the oenophiles, but those don’t make up the bulk of the wine tourists coming through on wine country tours so the wineries are addressing their audience and making the best of these lean times. The hope is that the visitors will stick around and spend more money on wine while they’re there if they stay longer, and take more with them when they go. The key is to address the obvious hunger pangs that creep up on visitors and keep them from venturing off to the local restaurants when that happens. And a side benefit that has come in the new approach is a new attitude to be found in the wineries; one that is warm, welcoming, and fun.
