A survey on wine tourism regulations in Italy and an extremely successful case study. The successful move from heritage to luxury wine tourism: the case of Marchesi di Barolo By Duilio Cortassa 1. Introduction Mediterranean countries have long been associated with wine production. However, only recently, as regions come to face the implications of global rural restructuring, have wine and tourism been utilized for regional development and re-imaging strategies. Michael Hall and Richard Mitchell were writing this back in year 20001. Hall and Mitchell define wine tourism as visits to vineyards, wineries, wine festivals, and events in which tasting and/or experiencing the characteristics of winemaking regions are the principal pull factors for visitors. It can therefore be included in the subsectors of agricultural, rural, cultural, special interest, and, of course, industrial tourism. While industrial tourism was in principle related exclusively to visit industrial historical heritage, there is today greater recognition of current or active industrial heritage for its tourist use. For this reason, according to María Andrade-Suárez and Iria Caamaño-Franco, “industrial tourism is made up of three different types of resources (pre-industrial heritage; heritage of the industrial revolution; living industry) that are included in two groups: industrial archaeological heritage and living industry. Wine tourism, as a form of industrial tourism, can be seen as a tool for regional development that favors the integration of the primary (agriculture), secondary (wine industry), and tertiary (tourism) sectors. Furthermore, the landscapes of winemaking regions are of particular value, due to the unique nature of the regional “tourist terroir”2. “Indeed, winemaking has endowed many regions with a rich cultural heritage, made up essentially of traditional wineries and vineyards which today comprise one of the emerging tourist trends with the greatest appeal and potential for growth. Wine culture is the essential component of wine tourism activity and, therefore, is directly related to the environmental, economic, and social sustainability”3. Tackling the topic of agritourism from a legal point of view, too, means identifying the actors who can play a role in this area. We shall explore, thus, all topics which deserve being discussed in this respect, from the figure of the agricultural entrepreneur and the differences with the industrial enterprise, suggesting why even large wineries are agricultural enterprises, and then move on to deal with the Italian regulations on the management of agritourism, direct sales of wine in the cellar and, finally, the management of the more strictly hotel services. 1 C. Michael Hall and Richard Mitchell, Wine Tourism in the Mediterranean: A Tool for Restructuring and Development, Thunderbird International Business Review, Vol. 42(4) 445–465 • July–August 2000. 2 María Andrade-Suárez and Iria Caamaño-Franco, The Relationship between Industrial Heritage, Wine Tourism, and Sustainability: A Case of Local Community Perspective, Sustainability 2020, 12(18), 7453. 3 M. Marzo-Navarro, M. Pedraja-Iglesias, Desarrollo del turismo del vino desde la perspectiva de los productores. Una primera aproximación al caso de Aragón—España. Estudios y Perspectivas en Turismo 2012, 21, 585–603.
1st World Congress on Wine Tourism and the Law 2. What a farmer is An entrepreneur is anyone who professionally carries out an organised economic activity for the purpose of producing or exchanging goods or services: this is the definition provided by Article 2082 of the Civil Code. The figure of the agricultural entrepreneur, or farmer, i.e., anyone who carries out land cultivation, forestry, animal husbandry and related activities, is instead regulated by the Civil Code in the new wording of Article 2135, amended by Legislative Decree No. 228 of 18 May 2001, according to which, services provided through the prevalent use of equipment or resources of the farm that are usually employed in the agricultural activity exercised, including activities for the enhancement of the territory and rural heritage, are also considered agricultural. Cultivation of land, forestry and animal husbandry are defined as activities directed towards the care and development of a biological cycle or a necessary stage of that cycle, of a plant or animal nature, which use or may use the land, forest or fresh, brackish or sea water. A correct perception of the figure of the farmer in Italian law is crucial to appreciating the set of rules that allow agricultural activities to take place. The amended text of Article 2135 goes on to specify that activities carried out by the farmer for the handling, conservation, processing, marketing and valorisation of products obtained mainly from the cultivation of the land or woodland or from animal husbandry, as well as activities for the supply of goods or services through the prevalent use of equipment or resources of the holding normally used in the farming activity carried out, including activities for the valorisation of the territory and the rural and forestry heritage, or reception and hospitality activities are considered connected to the main farming business. Within the meaning of Article 1 of legislative decree No 99 of 29 March 2004, a professional farmer (IAP4) is any person who, while having occupational skill and competence within the meaning of Article 5 of Council Regulation (EC) No 1257/1999 of 17 May 1999, devotes at least fifty per cent of his, or her, total working time, either directly or as a partner in a company, to agricultural activities as defined in Article 2135 of the Civil Code and derives at least fifty per cent of his or her total earned income from such activities. The professional farmer (IAP) only is entitled to enter into a so-called “agrarian contract”, i.e., a contract ruled by the Act No 203 of 3 May 1982, which provides for a contractual duration of no less than 15 years and no more than 30 in the case parties are not assisted by a union, whereas, in the case of covenants in derogation, with the parties assisted by a union, a contract duration of less than 15 years is possible, never however for less than one year or, in any case, for a duration of less than the minimum duration that allows the completion of the biological cycle of the crop on the land under contract. It is therefore clear that, while drafting the new definition of agricultural entrepreneur, the law-maker had in mind to include in the agricultural business sector any activity that is based on the performance of an entire biological cycle or an essential phase thereof, bearing in mind that an agricultural activity is such despite its object being limited to one necessary phase of the plant or animal production cycle without necessarily encompassing the entire process. 4 Imprenditore agricolo a titolo principale.
Duilio Cortassa 3. The winery: farm or industry? However, farming activity, like the wine production, is not necessarily carried out on an individual level, nor is it mainly carried out by the farmer's own labour, nor by that of the farmer's family. While the so-called family business, regulated by Article 230-bis of the Civil Code, certainly affects most Italian wineries, in 2021, important M&A transactions in the world of wine transformed the ranking of the leading domestic producers. The sales leadership in 2021 remains with the Cantine Riunite-GIV group, with sales of 635.2 million (+9.7% over 2020). In second place Italian Wine Brands (EUR 423.6 million), which climbs five positions after the acquisition of Enoitalia and the US-based Enovation Brands Inc. Completing the podium is the Botter/Mondodelvino (Clessidra) pole, up 19.3% on 2020 to 415 million. Followed by five other companies with revenues in excess of EUR 200 million: the Romagna cooperative Caviro, whose whose 2021 turnover of EUR 389.9 million grew by 7.7%, the Trentino-based Cavit (2021 turnover of 271 million euros, +29.2% compared to 2020), the Tuscan Antinori (265 million euros, +24.6% compared to 2020), the 2020), Veneto's Santa Margherita (220.6 million, +28.3%) and Piedmont's Fratelli Martini, which achieved a growth of 5.4% to 219.4 million euro. Regarding the largest increases in turnover in 2021, Tenute Piccini dominates the scene with a +61% over 2020 that places it ahead of the Lunelli Group (+57.6%), Terra Moretti (+47.6%), Serena Wines 1881 (+40.1%) to close with +32.7% for Villa Sandi5. A significant number of wineries, however, even large ones, have either not abandoned the farming enterprise form6, or have maintained, alongside the industrial structure, one or more farms that manage the grape production, leaving only the processing and distribution phase to the industry. There's no denying that undoubted fiscal advantages in farm management play an important role in the companies' choice; however, even the simple opportunity to communicate to the consumer that the wine he, or she, is buying comes from a farm, however large, and not from an industry is a non-secondary element. By the circumstance we indicated earlier, namely that the professional farmer (IAP) only is entitled to enter into an agrarian contract, the consequence follows that the mere productprocessing industry, the so-called 'bottlers', will not need to structure themselves as a professional farmer (IAP), whereas this can be an essential tool where all stages of production, from the work in the vineyard to winemaking and bottling, are carried out in the winery. 4. The legislative decree No 79 of 2011: tourism code Pursuant the code of State regulations on tourism rules and market, laid down in legislative decree No 79 of 23 May 2011, pursuant to Article 14 of Law no. 246 of 28 November 2005 and implementing Directive 2008/122/EC on timeshare contracts, long-term holiday product contracts, resale and exchange contracts, the central Government can legislate on tourism matters only to enhance, develop and make more competitive, both domestically and internationally, the tourism sector as a fundamental resource of the country and to reorganisation the national tourism supply. The bill constitutes a comprehensive reform of tourism legislation and, among others, repeals the Act No 135 of 29 March 2001, Reform of national tourism legislation. 5 Mediobanca, Il settore vinicolo in Italia, May, 2022. 6 T Me rarrecMh eosrieFt trieDs ci sotbr iabl duiz isooncei eSt.àr . la. gcroinc ot rloa l sS .ar . nl . uumn ibpeerros of na garl ei c; uCl tauvri ta lacnodmCpaavniireos .a r e c o o p e r a t i v e s m a d e o f f a r m e r s ;
1st World Congress on Wine Tourism and the Law In the meaning of the code, tourism businesses are those carrying out economic activities, organised for the production, marketing, intermediation and management of products, services, including bathing establishments, infrastructures and establishments, including those serving food and beverage services, which are part of local tourism systems, competing in the formation of the tourism offer. Accommodation facilities are divided amongst (a) hotels or similar establishments; b) nonhotel accommodations; (c) outdoor accommodation; (d) accommodation facilities of mere support. In the context of this survey, a clear division between hotels or similar establishments, on the one side, and non-hotel accommodations, on the other side is material. While the first group (Art. 12 of the code) includes (a) hotels; (b) motels; (c) hotel-villages; d) tourist hotel residences; (e) multi-building hotel; (f) period hotel residences; g) bed and breakfasts organised in entrepreneurial form; (h) health residences - beauty farms; i) any other tourist accommodation whose features may be linked to the previous categories; the second one includes (a) room rental facilities; (b) family-run accommodation facilities - bed and breakfast; c) holiday homes; d) furnished accommodation units for tourist use; (e) accommodation facilities – residences; (f) youth hostels; g) accommodation facilities in restaurants; (h) agro-tourism accommodation; (i) rural residences accommodation; (l) guesthouses for tourists; (m) study centres; (n) non-hotel historical residences; (o) hiking huts; (p) mountain huts; (q) any other tourist accommodation whose features may be linked to the previous categories. Whilst mainly non-hotel accommodations are obviously material in the rural world, we shall see below that luxury hôtellerie is by no means unknown in the wine world. Accommodation in the context of agritourist activities are premises in rural buildings managed by farmers within the meaning of the Act No 96 of 20 February 2006, which will be examined in greater detail at the following chapter 5. Different cases, although with some points of contact, are on one side room rental facilities, i.e., rooms located in several furnished flats in the same building, where accommodation and possibly complementary services are offered, and on the other, the “country house”, i.e., an accommodation facility in a rural residence or in a manor house or rural building to be used for sports-recreational activities consisting of rooms with a possible kitchenette, however, where a restaurant shall be open to the public. Finally, a “bed and breakfast” is a family-run accommodation facility managed by private individuals in a non-business form, providing accommodation and breakfast in parts of the same building unit provided they are functionally connected and have shared family spaces. Such a model is clearly not applicable to the agricultural enterprise. Before going into detail on wine tourism, let us recall that Art. 22 of the tourism code provides for national circuits of excellence to support the tourism offer and the Italian system. In order to overcome the fragmentation of the promotion and structuring of the offer in order to promote virtuous circuits, capable of linking the whole of Italy and strategically contributing to the creation of a thematic offer capable of satisfying the multiple needs of domestic and international tourists, national circuits of excellence are created to support Italy's offer and tourist image, corresponding to homogeneous tourist contexts or
Duilio Cortassa representing similar realities and constituting Italian excellences, as well as real thematic itineraries throughout the national territory. Food and wine tourism is listed, needless to say, among national circuits of excellence, which are defined as the routes, products and homogeneous thematic itineraries linking different Italian regions, also taking into account the accommodation capacity of the districts concerned and the promotion of accessible forms of tourism, in agreements with the main tourism enterprises operating in the territories concerned through packages with advantageous conditions for young people, the elderly and persons with disabilities. 5. What are we talking about when we talk about agritourism? The above mentioned Act No 96 of 20 February 2006, opens with an extremely ambitious introduction, in line, by the way, with the narrative on agriculture-promotion shared by all European countries. In keeping with the rural development programmes of the EU, agriculture is supported through the promotion of suitable forms of tourism in the countryside, aimed at: (a) protecting, qualifying, and enhancing the specific resources of each territory; b) encouraging the maintenance of human activities in rural areas; c) encouraging multifunctionality in agriculture and the differentiation of farm incomes; d) encouraging initiatives to protect the soil, land, and environment by farmers by increasing farm incomes and improving the quality of life; e) rehabilitating the rural building heritage by protecting the specific features of the landscape; f) supporting and encouraging typical productions, quality productions and related food and wine traditions; g) promoting rural culture and food education; h) promoting agricultural and forestry development. Agritourism activities are identified as reception and hospitality when carried out by farmers, as defined in Art. 2135 of the Civil Code, also in the form of corporations or partnerships, or in association with each other, using their farms in connection with landcultivation, forestry, and animal husbandry. The code of tourism cited in previous chapter 4, defines at Art. 12, § 9, agritourist accommodation as premises in rural buildings, managed by farmers, within the meaning of the Act No 96 of 2006. Which activities exactly fall however into agritourism? Reference should be made to § 3 of Art. 2 of said Act No 96 of 2006, ruling that agritourism encompasses accommodation in lodgings or open spaces for campers7; meals and beverages consisting mainly either of the farm’s own products, or of those sourced from farms in the area, including alcohol and spirits, with preference for regional products identified by DOP, IGP, IGT, DOC and DOCG or included in the regional list of traditional food products; recreational, cultural, educational, sports, hiking and horse riding activities, also outside the farm, also through arrangements with local authorities, aimed at enhancing the territory and rural heritage. Finally, the topic at the centre of this survey, namely, tastings of farm products, including wine-tasting, to which the Act No. 268 of 27 July 1999 applies. This aspect will be addressed in the following chapter, while it is worth mentioning here that, to ensure that the agritourism activities do not have an economic impact such as to lose the link with farming, 7 Accommodation activities in rural residences, also called “country houses”, i.e., non-hotel accommodation se tvreunc tpuarretsi al lol yc a, wt eidt hi inn enxai st itoi nnga lbouri l rdei ng igosn, ar ul pr aalr ok rs , mc oannsoi rs thi nogu soef sr, oi no mt oswwnist hs ma ak li ltec rh et hnaent t 1e ,0i,f0n0e0c rees ss iadreyn, at sl soor l foacl al itnegd, iangrsiteopuarriastme. buildings but forming part of the same land, are a different concept, not to be confused with
1st World Congress on Wine Tourism and the Law local governments (“Regioni”) set criteria for assessing the connection of agritourism activity with farming, in such a way that farming prevails. On 21 March 1987, the mayors of 39 cities and towns8 met in Siena to set up the Associazione Nazionale Città del Vino (National Association of Wine Cities), in response to the methanol wine scandal that just the year before, 1986, threw a socio-economic system based on wine into despair. From that negative event precisely the 'renaissance' of Italian wine ideally started; a scandal that was one of the main reasons that drove that group of mayors to set up the Città del Vino, realising that the operation that had to be carried out - of a cultural as well as a marketing nature - was to make the relationship between wine and territory ever stronger. In 1998, driven by a renewed interest in the quality of the territory, or “terroir”, as a resource for local communities, the Association produced the Piano Regolatore delle Città del Vino, a Town Planning of Wine Towns, setting two important concepts that are still valid today: the vineyard is a fundamental part of the landscape and so are all the agricultural areas involved, whose protection is strategic for the quality of the territory and shall therefore be planned in the administrative action; local development can only derive from a virtuous cooperation and shared choices between public and private. The aim of the Association is to help municipalities to develop around wine, local products and food and wine, all activities and projects that allow a better quality of life, sustainable development, more job opportunities. A concrete example of this is the commitment to the development of wine tourism, which combines the quality of landscapes and well-preserved environments, the quality of wine and typical products, and the quality of the offer spread throughout the territory by wineries and operators in the sector. Rural tourism in the Città del Vino is growing steadily, also thanks to the regulatory instruments which will be examined in the following chapter. Before proceeding, however, it is necessary to mention the Movimento Turismo del Vino (Wine Tourism Movement), a non-profit association established in 1993, including among its about 1,000 members some of the most prestigious wineries of Italy. 6. “Strade del vino” and other tools designed to enhance the value of vine and wine areas The objective of the Act No 268 of 27 July 1999, Regulation of the “Strade del vino” ('wine routes'), is to enhance the value of the territories of wine, with reference to areas where wines with a designation of origin, or a geographical indication, are made. Wine routes are signposted and publicised routes, along which it is possible to find natural, cultural, and environmental values, vineyards, and cellars of individual or associated farms open to the public; they are a tool through which wine territories and their production can be advertised, marketed, and enjoyed as a tourist offer. Reception and hospitality activities, including the tasting of farm produce along with recreational, cultural, and educational 8C C a h M r ia d a n u y t c o i c , r i s , G C a f a r t o s ti t m n e a l lr A in a l , b a a i G n , r A e C s v h t e i i a , n i B n t a i ,r C C b h a a i s r a t e n e s l t c n i o , u , o J B e v s a o i r , B il L e e a , r a B r M a d r o e o r n l r o g a , a , , B D M u i o a a n r n i c o n o o d n , ’ v A M e l n b e t a l o i , s , D s C o a a , g n l M i a a l n o e i n , , f C D o a o r r t z e e z m , a , M a F , o i C r n e a t n r a m z lc e i i , g n F n o r a , a n s M o c , a o t Cn i, a t e G s c t a a a i g o ro n le t e t t i o n o, MSieonnate, fTarlecios,oMdo’AnltbeasceuZdaagioa,roNleoi.ve, Nizza Monferrato, Ovada, Pramaggiore, Radda in Chianti, Rufina, San Severo,
Duilio Cortassa activities, carried out by farms as part of the 'wine routes', are classified as agritourism activities. Selling traditional agri-food products and products with a protected designation of origin (PDO) or protected geographical indication (PGI) of the regions to which the 'wine routes' belong, not prepared, or cooked at the same time as the serving of wine, may be carried out by wine-producing farms located along the 'wine routes', subject to minor bureaucratic requirements. Making every effort to push traditional products, this law stipulates that, by way of derogation from the provisions in force, even industrial wine cellars and wine shops located within the 'wine routes' may carry out the presentation, tasting and serving of wine products, in compliance with the rules laid down for wine-producing farms. Sale of farm-products inside the farms, by farmers who are direct producers, whereby those are the owners of land directly managed or cultivated by them, as much as by sharecroppers, tenant farmers, settlers, leaseholders together with their cooperatives or consortia, was regulated already by the Act No. 59 of 9 February 1963. The Strade del Vino aimed at being a broadly innovative regulation, not only reflecting the entry of a new category of tourism services into the market, but helping to develop this sector. At the same time, offering traditional agri-foodstuffs, together with PDO or PGI products, shall nevertheless remain secondary to the prevailing and characteristic activity of wineries which belong to the 'wine routes'. However, it is only with the legislative decree No. 228 of 18 May 2001 that the wine tourism sector takes on its current and more modern outline. Farmers, both individually or associated among them, provided they are registered in the Register of Companies, were allowed to become direct retailers, all over the country, of foodstuff mainly coming from their farms. Farmers' markets are examples of direct sales from producer to consumer following the idea of the 'short supply chain'. They were born and developed to contrast the so-called 'long supply chain', in which, in general terms, the agricultural product is intermediated by one or more operators before being purchased by the consumer. The short supply chain is now being rediscovered because of the importance of the direct relationship between producers and buyers. Farmers' markets, which came into being for social as much as for economic reasons, are mainly aimed at increasing agricultural production at the local level, giving rise to new farms and promoting local products; providing farmers with an alternative marketing route; enable farmers and consumers to deal with each other, consolidating the relationship of trust and avoiding intermediaries; provide an educational forum for consumers, teaching them, for example, what product certification is and how products are obtained; provide educational opportunities for farmers on marketing; improve the quality of life by enlivening city centres and suburbs, including recreational activities in the market; preserving the agricultural heritage and the historical role of farmers9. Farmers are also allowed to sell directly agricultural products and foodstuffs belonging to one or more agronomic sectors other than the products of their own farm, on condition they are directly purchased from other farmers. The only requirement is that the income from the sale of products from their own farms shall exceed the income from goods purchased from other farmers. 9 One cannot fail to mention the “Campagna Amica” programme by Coldiretti, number of agritourism, farms, farmers' markets referenced on the maps of main Italian routes.
1st World Congress on Wine Tourism and the Law According to the Observatory of Wine Tourism10, in year 2020, the sale of bottled wine represented an average 80% of the turnover of wineries, including sales in the winery, while turnover from the tourism sector (restaurant, hospitality, visits) accounted for 7% and another 7% was the average part of the turnover from the sale of bulk wine. Generally speaking, for 9 wineries out of 10 the turnover comes also from tourism or, in other words, more than 9 wineries out of 10 offer wine tourism11. 7. Wine and tourism in the Italian practice An extremely varied and articulate picture that can be drawn, without doubt, within the legal framework that we have tried to describe in the preceding chapters. In this chapter we will be analysing some situations that deserve attention because of their peculiarities. The vineyard Landscape of Piedmont, Langhe-Roero and Monferrato, is made up of five distinct wine-growing areas and one castle: the Langa of Barolo12, the hills of Barbaresco13, Nizza Monferrato14 and Barbera, Canelli and Asti Spumante15, the Monferrato of the Infernot, and the castle of Grinzane Cavour. It is located in the southern part of Piedmont, between the Po river and the Ligurian Apennines, and encompasses the whole range of technical and economic processes relating to the winegrowing and winemaking that has characterized the region for centuries. 10c a rOrsi es es rovuatt oercioonNo ma ziico nr easl ee adreclhTaunrdi scmo on sduel lt iVnign foo/rNboums iins me sas,eAs ,parsi ls o2c0i2a 2t i.oNn os ma ni sdmpau ibsl iacna idnmd ei npies nt rdaet ni otncso. m p a n y t h a t 11 Nomisma Wine Monitor is carrying out a survey involving Italian municipalities that are members of the Associazione Nazionale Città del Vino in order to identify the specificities of wine tourism supply and demand and to define useful elements to implement the sector and promote it effectively. 12 A uTghues td 1e s9i3g 3n aat ne dd ai nr ecal uodfetsh et hger aepnet si rseu ti tearbr il teofroyr opfr ot hd eu cmi nugn' iBcai pr oa ll iot 'i ews aos fdBe lai rmo il toe, dCba ys tti hg lei oMnien iFs at el lrei tatloD, eScerrer ea loufn3g 1a dC'aAvlobuara, Dndianino pda'Artlbtah,eCtheerrraitsocroyaonfdtRhoedmdiuinnictihpeaplirtioevsinocf eMoof nCfuonrteeo.d'Alba, Novello, La Morra, Verduno, Grinzane 13 D eTc hr eeedoe fs i3g 1n aAt eudg ua sr te a1 9o f3 t3h ea ngdr aipnecsl usduei tsa bt hl ee feonr t ti hr ee pt errordi tuocrtyi oonf ot fh"eB ma rubna ircei spcaol i"t iwe sa so df eBl iamr bi taerde sbcyo ,t hNee Mi v ien, i Ts treeri isaol (pfaorrtmoefrAlylbpaa. rt of Barbaresco) and the village of San Rocco Senodelvio, formerly part of Barbaresco and currently 14 whTihleetPhDeOPDMOonNfiezrzraatwoawsaaspapprpovroevdeidni2n011999. 4 and includes an area between the provinces of Asti and Alessandria, 15 Carlo Gancia created the first Italian sparkling wine in Canelli back in 1865 using the méthode champénoise (you can still find 'Champagne Gancia' panels in the antique markets), while in 1898 Federico Martinotti invented the fwirhsot rpaaptiednstepdartkhleintgecshysntieqmueininla1r9g1e0a)u. toclaves (metodo Martinotti, or Martinotti-Charmat, from Eugène Charmat The Consortium for the Protection of Asti was officially established on 17 Dp reocde umcbeer rs , 1t h9e3 2o .wFnoelrl os wo fi nsgm tahl lee rLcaowm po na n'iTe ys ,pliacna dl oWwi nn ee rss' aonf d1 9f a3r0m, erresp, rme seet nattatthi veeTs oowf nt hHea llla irng eA sstpi at roksl ient gu pw ti nh ee institution that would promote the white Moscato grape and the wine with PDO Asti.
Duilio Cortassa The area is protected under the Cultural Heritage and Landscape Code (The legislative decree No 42 of 22 January 2004), under the responsibility of the Culture Ministry and its regional agencies and is listed since 2014 in the World Heritage List. A few kilometres from Barolo, we arrive at La Morra, the first commune for the production of Nebbiolo grapes to make Barolo wine. On the 15th of May 1841, the office of the Royal Military Command of the Province of Alba granted to Luigi Costamagna, the son of founder Francesco Antonio Costamagna, an official license “to retail the wines produced from his own vineyards in La Morra”. This is the first document testifying winemaking activity of the Costamagna family in La Morra, one of the most lively and charming villages in the Langhe, within the Barolo designated area, and it is an assessment of the quality of the wines produced in those years which was in fact granting Costamagna a certificate of excellence. At that time the family estate extended throughout the town and included the vineyards in Rocche dell'Annunziata as well as the historic cellars built in La Morra during the late 18th century. Nowadays Rocche Costamagna is not just about wine, but includes the Art Suites, restored and open to the public since 2006, located in the town centre, just above the historic cellars
1st World Congress on Wine Tourism and the Law of the family's 18th-century farmhouse. However, since La Morra’s Municipal Development Plan does not allow agro-tourism licences in the urban circle, Art Suites, although part of the winery building, are not operated as agritourist activities but rather under the room rental facilities regulations. An agreement with Uve wine bar e resort allows guests in the four elegant suites to have breakfast in the morning. Besides winemaking, Rocche Costamagna is well known for its commitment to cultural conservation. At the end of the 1960s Riccardo and Maddalena Costamagna’s granddaughter, Claudia Ferraresi, took the fate of the winery into her hands. A painter, a woman of culture, as well as an event organizer, along with her husband Giorgio Locatelli, she took a chance on Barolo and highquality wine-making. Claudia created “La Ca dj’Amis” (“The Friend’s House” in local dialect), a cultural association enhancing local arts, micro-histories, minorities, and gastronomic culture of Piedmont. In the mid-1980’s Le tavole della cultura (the Cultural Tables) events began, where the topics of food and wine were explored through conferences, books, and essays. In 1990 a selected group of professionals in hospitality, I Ristoranti della Tavolozza, dedicated to food and wine education, was founded. A major collection of more than 3500 volumes about food and wine, meticulously chosen and curated over time, stored in one of the cellar rooms, converted into a library, has been since 2005 the basis of Libri da Gustare, which is open to the public. Libri da Gustare also became the name for a series of events that, since 1996, spread and promote the cultural universe of food, territory, and its main characters. Staying in Langa territory but down 10 kilometres to Alba, in Località San Cassiano, we find one of the wonders of the wine world, the Ceretto winery, founded in the 1930s by Riccardo Ceretto, followed by his sons Bruno and Marcello who joined the business, with their innovative thinking for the time: the importance of the soil. The Cerettos story deserves to be told if only for the wines they produce, although the three Michelin stars given to chef Enrico Crippa, who moved from Brianza to Alba to open in 2005 his restaurant and suites, with the Ceretto family, in the heart of Alba, in the main square, “Piazza Duomo”, deserve a special mention, together with the “Piola”, in the very same building but at street level, the Italian ideal of the “trattoria”, i.e., a restaurant for every day. The main reason for mentioning Ceretto in this chapter on wine tourism is however not the three-star cuisine combined with top quality Barolo wine. Ceretto was the first winery in Italy to combine high-class wine and hospitality to site-specific artworks, linked to the environment in which they are created.
Duilio Cortassa It was in 1999, in fact, right the time when the Strade del Vino Act was approved, that Roberta Ceretto first approached art, entrusting the renovation of the “Barolo Chapel”, in the Brunate vineyard in La Morra, to two internationally renowned artists, David Tremlett and Sol LeWitt. Contemporary art and architecture, a number of projects carried out in the recent decades that are now true icons of the territory as well as popular stops for tourists in the Langhe looking for something new. “The Cube” in Castiglione Falletto, “The Grape” in Monsordo Bernardina, “Protect me everywhere”, made by Valerio Berruti in 2012 in Castiglione Falletto the Fresco made by Francesco Clemente in 2007 at Piazza Duomo, “My happy dream” and “La Speranza”, both made by Kiki Smith in 2014/2016 at La Piola, plus exhibitions by Maria Abramowicz, Lynn Davis and Patti Smith, Anselm Kiefer, have transformed a wine and hospitality excellence into an absolutely unique place in the Italian wine scene. We take a short diversion from the hills of Piedmont, for a moment, to tell a story that takes place in another of Italy's iconic wine locations, Valpolicella, in Veneto. Benedetti La Villa evokes, on one hand, the name of the Benedetti family, who have been growing grapes and making wine in Negrar16 since the 19th century and, on the other, recalls 16m eNnet gi or na rCilsa si ns i ct ho e, i cnec nl ut rdei nogf , tbhees iddeessi gNneagt readr ,aMr eaar af onro ,t hF eu mp raondeu, cS tai no tn' Aomf wb ri no ge si owa int dh St ha en PP Di eOt r "oVi an l pC oa rl iicaenl ol a, "a ws wi t he l lt ha es ww ihtihl et ht he ePPDDOO“sAAmma raor no ne ed edlel al l aV aVlaploploi cl ieclel al l”a aanndd“VVaallppoolliicceellllaa RRiippaassssoo ”w. Tehr ee aPpDpOr oVvael pd oi nl i c2e0l l1a0w. a s a p p r o v e d i n 1 9 6 8 ,
1st World Congress on Wine Tourism and the Law the Roman villa unearthed on the estate dating from the 2nd and 3rd century AD. This ancient villa was rediscovered in 1887, where it had been buried 7 meters underground. The excavation, no longer visible today, brought to light marvellous mosaic pavements, whose fragments are currently on exhibition in the Museo di Arte Antica in Verona. Because of this archaeological discovery, “La Villa” has been associated with the name of the Benedetti family for decades. In the estate’s logo is a stylized version of one of the characters represented in the mosaics, the Black Charioteer of Negrar17, driving a horse-pulled chariot, the horses’ heads decorated with grape leaves. The commitment of the Benedetti family to the Villa Romana delle Cortesele made the winery enter into a partnership agreement with the Superintendence of Archaeology, Fine Arts and Landscape for the provinces of Verona, Rovigo and Vicenza in 2021, pursuant to Art. 112, § 9 of legislative decree No. 42/2004. Through the agreement, the winery and the Government established cooperation aimed at ensuring use by the public of the area in which the Roman villa stands, as a place of culture within the meaning of Art. 101, of the Code of Cultural Heritage and Landscape. The first archaeological excavations under the winery vineyards brought to light some magnificent geometric and illustrated mosaics of the third century A.D Roman villa. Today the Benedetti La Villa winery is closely linked to this archaeological discovery, representing one of Valpolicella’s many charms and is granted by the Superintendence the non-exclusive use of images of the archaeological structures and any illustrative and educational material, for the purpose of promoting the brand and its products, as well as the exclusive right to use and exploit, in its brand and corporate communication, reproductions of four details of mosaics which were found in the archaeological area. 17 Designed by Giorgio de Silva©.
Duilio Cortassa It can certainly be said that the Villa Romana delle Cortesele represents a truly virtuous example of public-private partnership and an important step not just for wine tourism, but for the cultural heritage of the region. 8. Marchesi di Barolo: from heritage to glamour The various laws on tourism and wine-tourism which were analysed above produced the above-mentioned projects which, although different, have provided virtuous examples from which other companies can certainly take inspiration. However, there is a further case in which the application of the rules on wine tourism has led to the creation of a true integrated system made of a glorious winery, a great restaurant, highest level of hôtellerie, all designed for a top clientele and therefore capable of producing substantial growth and enhancement of the territory in which that system has been set up. We anticipated that the detour from the Piedmont hills would be short and, in fact, we are talking about the winery where, at the beginning of the 19th century, Barolo wine, more or less as we know it today, was created. In 1787 Thomas Jefferson, who was later to become President of the United States, tried Nebbiolo while he was staying at Hôtel d’Angleterre in Turin. In his travel journal, he described it with these words: “As silky as Madeira, as astringent as Bordeaux and as brisk as Champagne”18. It is hard to believe how the history of one of the most famous wines in the world is intertwined with human events with facts and people who, through their deliberate or forced choices, led to transforming a light and mediocre wine produced at the time by simple and archaic means into the 'wine of kings', indissolubly linking its birth and fame to one of the oldest cellars still located in Barolo. A story that has been going on for more than 200 years, dating back to when, in 1807, the last Marquis of Barolo, Carlo Tancredi Falletti19, married Juliette Colbert de Maulévrier, a 18 Domenico Massè, “Il Paese del Barolo”. 19 a fa n c A d t t v A h e l e b r y y a : w a i n n e c r t i e e h n m e t l e a f n a t m t t e io i r l n , y t e , h d t e h i y e n a F v r a a e l r l i e a o t t u t t i e s s a s t r e o e d u m r f c r e e o n s m t t io e 1 n s 1 t e i 9 d fi 8 e i n s w t s i o t o h m t h R e e a p f i a m o c l o t i t n t i h c d a a in l t d o th ; o e i c n y u mA w s e e t n r i, e t f s r a c o lr o m e n a c 1 d e 1 y r 5 n a 0 i n p w g ro i t tm h h e i W n c e o i n a m t z m f ( a o u m r n i G e ly s u a i o ) t f . t A T h s h a t e t i
1st World Congress on Wine Tourism and the Law French noblewoman (1785-1864), a philanthropist and an educator, who is venerated since 2015 by the Catholic Church with the title of Venerable. She belonged to the ancient lineage of French oenological tradition, a discipline that was started by her ancestors some two centuries earlier in the region of Reims, then in the châteaux of Brézé and Maulévrier, in the Loire region. Juliette Colbert, having tasted the wine made on the estate, which at the time was a light, sometimes sparkling wine, sensed its potential despite everything. So let us talk again to Barolo, “Vinum regum, rex vinorum”. Part of success of Barolo was due to King Carlo Alberto of Savoy who, after learning about this new wine, far more structured and full-bodied than the reds of the time, asked the Marquise of Barolo, Giulia, to taste it. The Marquise underwent a major transformation of Barolo, which had previously been a sweet, slightly mellow wine obtained by open-air fermentation: her intervention led to the construction of semi-underground cellars, which created a protected microclimate where the wine could age in a controlled manner, while developing both body and structure. The Falletti di Barolo family sent King Carlo Alberto 325 barrels (known as “carra”), one for each day of the year, excluding the days of Lent, of course. twi mo uel. dF rboemn toh ef e1w2etrh tcheannt ufri vy e, t hF ae l Fl eatltlie ti nt i tt hh ue st op wl a ny ecdo au npcriol .mAi sn emn ut cpho l ai tsi coa tl hreorl eAi snt it hbea nc ikt iyn og f fAa ml b ial .i eI ns , 1t h2 e8 2F, at lhl ee trtei managed to build up a large landed patrimony mainly in two ways: on the one hand, by acquiring allodial property, i.e t a o c .q g i u i n v i r f e u e u ll B p o a t w r h o n e l i e o r r a c s a h n s i d p t l, t e a h s n e , d fi l a e o t f n d te o tr h m e fo s o r a t nh S d e e r r s , r e ba i l y g u n ln e i g o n a r d , i i a n C l g a r s i m g ti h o g t n l s i e o t y n o e t s o e ( l F t o t a l r l e d l e t s t h , t c e o o i ) r m , d B m e e b u n t n e s i v t t e i o e l l s t o h a , e n P F d o a l m l l e le o n t n z ti a o . s , T t B i h c r e a b y , o u Pd s o i e e c d s a p w th a h g e o l f i oa th r ae m n n e d h r a L t d o a MP eot rr ri na o. TFhael l leatttti ef ro lwl oaws ipnl ge da gl eoda nb yo ft hn eo cl eosms mt huanne3o, 0f 0A0l bgao-l dwfhl oi cr hi nhs a. Wd fiot hu nt hdiesds ui tmi notfhme op nr eevyi, ot uh se cme nu tnui cr iyp-a il ni t y1 3w4o0u tl do p(DaeyltBhoe BA.n, gevins to control the communication routes to the Ligurian coast, which were crucial for Alba's trade Dalla città ai castelli: i Falletti di Alba, in La spada e la grazia. Vite di aristocratici subalpini del Trecento subalpino, Torino, Dep. Subalpina Storia Patria, 2011).
Duilio Cortassa And the King, after sharing it with the most influential families of the time, was so enthusiastic about it that he bought an estate in Verduno to produce his own Barolo. In addition to perfecting the Barolo, the Marquise dedicated her life above all to the care and education of less fortunate girls, who were coming out of prison and in need of help. In 1831 the Marquise established the institute of the Penitent Sisters of St Mary Magdalene, while in 1843 the institute of the “Maddalenine” was founded. At the death of Giulia di Barolo in 1864, the estate of the winery that had conceived Barolo was inherited first by the Opera Pia Barolo, an institution set up to administer the family fortunes whose headquarters are in the baroque Palazzo Barolo in Turin, and then by the Abbona family: around 1895, Pietro Abbona began his activity and continued to bring prestige to Barolo during the 1900s20. As we can see, Giulia di Barolo’s is a wonderful story combining entrepreneurial genius, great elegance and rare concern for the less fortunate. Almost two centuries later, the history of the Opera Pia, and the Abbona family who still owns the winery, has resulted in an excellent wine, present all over the world, combined with an exquisite level of attention to hospitality. 20 The TM “Felice Abbona & Figli, Barolo” is still in use, alongside with Marchesi di Barolo.
1st World Congress on Wine Tourism and the Law As it was mentioned in chapter 3, a significant number of large wineries either did not abandon the agricultural enterprise form or maintained, alongside the industrial structure, one or more farms in charge of grapes-growing. Cantine dei Marchesi di Barolo is nowadays a joint-stock company with no public share ownership, with a sizeable turn-over and certainly ranks among the large Italian wineries21. The company is however mainly in charge of the distribution of the wine, and part only of the wine making, while agricultural simple partnerships, Antichi Poderi dei Marchesi di Barolo and Marchesi di Barolo Green Vineyards, are involved in grape growing and wine making. Starting with a great wine, and a great brand, Marchesi di Barolo is today a model both for wine production and for the hospitality offered to customers in its winery. “Vino e Cultura” (wine and culture) was used as one the winery’s logos since the mid-1970s and registered as a trademark by the winery in 2018. 21 6% of Italian wineries have a turnover between 10 mln and 50 mln €.
Duilio Cortassa Inside the historic cellar, the “Antiche Cantine dei Marchesi di Barolo”, right above the cellar Giulia Falletti made dig in the early 1800s, a wine shop for the retail sale of wine, with an elegant tasting room, offers the public the entire collection of Marchesi di Barolo, together with the winery’s honey and the typical Christmas Panettone, made with sultanas macerated in Moscato from the winery. Products with different brands are sold as well, such as books, chocolate, sweets, pasta, various products with truffles as much as branded gadgets. The combination of wines from the winery with a few branded products and some products from local suppliers makes the wine-shop a real and impactful commercial operation, with a significant annual sales volume and, above all, not particularly tied to the season of autumn, when tourism in the Langa has always been more substantial, but taking place all year round. The winery has a neighbourhood retail licence22 dated 22 April 2005, although the first administrative authorisation for retail trade23 dates back to 5 February 1976, long before the entry into force of the first wine tourism laws, which were examined in the chapter 4. The wine tasting inside the wine-shop is managed however within the restaurant activity. Sales of products is authorized as well in the new winery, located in via Alba, 12, on the road leading to Grinzane Cavour, though a neighbourhood retail licence dated 22 April 2005, while a previous authorisation of special forms of sale24 was granted on 18 May 2000. The Foresteria is the restaurant of the winery. 22 Licenza d’esercizio di commercio al dettaglio di vicinato. 23 Autorizzazione amministrativa per il commercio al minuto. 24 Autorizzazione a forme speciali di vendita.
1st World Congress on Wine Tourism and the Law Although it is located right above the cellar, it has nothing of the traditional country restaurant, but is instead organised like a luxury restaurant, a true emotion for those who want to savour the flavours of traditional Langhe cuisine and its great wines, in a sensory journey to be experienced. The authorisation for serving food and drink to the public25 was granted on 15 March 1996, well before the Strade del Vino Act, which was discussed in chapter 6, opened to reception and hospitality activities, including tasting and serving of wine products, as part of the 'wine routes', even in industrial wine cellars and wine shops located within the 'wine routes'. Hotel hospitality is the Abbona family's gem. Despite the winery is the bearer of one of the most renowned names in the world of Barolo and the Italian wine world in general, the Abbona family chose not to use the title of rank and the House name for an on-site accommodation, instead investing in 1996, together with a group of friends, art lovers and owners of different local businesses, in restoring a XVIIIth century Villa where, for a time, lived the General Fiorenzo Bava Beccaris26 from whom the mansion took its name. 25 Somministrazione al pubblico di alimenti e bevande, pursuant to Art. 32 of the decree of the Ministry of Industry, Tl ertat edre aa)n, dwChri ac fht sc oNvoe 3r s7 5t h, eo f F4o rAeusgt eursita 1, 9c o8n8c, ei mr npsl erme set na ut irnagn tt hs es eArcvt i nNgo m4 2e6a l os f a n1 d1 Jdurni nek1s 9, 7i n1c, l ou nd i tnrga dt he .oAs er t w. 3i 2t h, §a1n, alcohol content exceeding 21 per cent by volume, as well as milk (ristoranti, trattorie, tavole calde, pizzerie, birrerie ed esercizi similari). 26 c a uTsheedGt ehne erreavl ei ns gsea dr el yg ikcni doewonf fUomr bh ea rvti on gI al et dt ht eh eh ar enpdrseosfs itohne ao nf at hr cehMi sitl aGna er ti oa tnsooBf r1e8s 9c i8i,na 1n 9e0p0i s. o d e t h a t i n d i r e c t l y
Duilio Cortassa Villa Beccaris, located on the highest part of the historical Monforte d’Alba village, few minutes away from the town centre and less than 7 km. from the winery, was abandoned for a long time, when in September 1997 was relaunch as a charming hotel. A valet car service is provided between the Foresteria and the Villa. The estate belongs nowadays to the Abbona and to the Occelli27 families and it can safely be said that this is one of the best examples of restoration of a patrician villa for conversion to hotel use in the whole of Piedmont. ***** 27 buBtteeprpainndo cOhceceesleli mAgardienaetxucrluasSiv.re.ll.y, ifnroFmarIitgaliliaannom(CilNk.), is a high-quality and well-known producer of a variety of
Contact Estoril Higher Institute for Tourism and Hotel Studies carlos.torres@eshte.pt www.tourismlaw.pt IJTTHL Celebrating five years of the first publication Vincenzo Franceschelli, On Tourism Law | Quest for general principles, https://files.tourismlaw.pt/On-Tourism-Law-Quest-for-generalprinciples/ Alejandro Corral Sastre, A new Administrative Law for a new Tourism: now or never, https://files.tourismlaw.pt/A-new-AdministrativeLaw-for-a-new-Tourism-by-Alejandro-Corral-Sastre-/ Jonas Thyberg, The Package Travel Act and the Covid19 pandemic, https://files.tourismlaw.pt/The-Package-Travel-Act-and-the-Covid19pandemic-by-Jonas-Thyberg/ Caterina del Federico, The use of artificial intelligence in the travel and hospitality industry. Civil liability profiles, https://files.tourismlaw.pt/The-use-of-artificial-intelligence-in-the-travel-and-hospitalityindustry.--Civil-liability-profiles "We are celebrating the 500 anniversary of the discovery of the Magellan strait with two online publications. On October 21, the launch of Derecho del Turismo en Las Américas brought together colleagues from all Latin American countries. On the same day, the Collective Commentary about the New Package Travel Directive, with colleagues from the then 28 Member States. More recently, Competition Law in Tourism and Tourism Law in Europe are publications demonstrating this group's dynamism. The pandemic has not broken the bonds that have united and unite us. Here we are again here in Lisbon, more numerous and more motivated than ever, to consecrate what will be the voice of our group: The new international journal of Tourism Law, The International Journal of Tourism, Travel and Hospitality Law.” • Vincenzo Franceschelli, The Lisbon Group and International Tourism Law Five years after the first international publication (The New Package Travel Directive, October 2017) at the ESHTE | INATEL International Conference in October 2022, bringing together 50 speakers from 27 countries, a new project was announced: The International Journal of Tourism, Travel and Hospitality Law (IJTTHL). IJTTHL brings together several universities and is published both in print and online. The central part will be in English but will have an IberoAmerican chapter, and the texts are immediately available through Pre-Print. Monika Jurkova, Liability of online platforms in the tourism sector, https:// files.tourismlaw.pt/Liability-of-online-platforms-in-tourism-sector-Monika-Jurkova/ Francesco Torchia, Tourism enterprise and cultural heritage protection, as a legal instrument for valorization of the territory and of the person, https:// files.tourismlaw.pt/Tourism-Enterprise-and-Cultural-Heritage-protection,-as-a-legal-for-valorization-of-the-Territory-and-ofthe-Person-by-Francesco-Torchia/ Valérie Augros, Holiday lettings in France: tips and tricks, https://files.tourismlaw.pt/ Holidays-lettings-in-France---Tips-and-tricks-by-V.-Augros/ Sarah Prager, Competition law: online travel agents and airlines, https:// files.tourismlaw.pt/Sarah-Prager,--Competition-Law---OTAs-and-airlines/ Andrej Micovic, Legal Tech and Online Dispute Resolution, https://files.tourismlaw.pt/ Microsoft-Word---A.-Micovic---Legal-Tech-and-ODR-in-Tourism./ Pilar Juana Garcia Saura, The inspection of tourist accommodation by Public Administrations: problems with the use of the robot inspector (web spider) and the responsibility of collaborative platforms, https://files.tourismlaw.pt/Collaborativeplatforms-in-accommodation-by-Pilar-Saura/ Michael Wukoschitz, A Wicked Deed’s Curse – Will X v Kuoni change the Organiser’s Liability?, https://files.tourismlaw.pt/Will-X-v-Kuoni-change-the-organisers-liability,---M.-Wukoschitz/ Bertold Bär-Bouyssiere, Sustainability and Article 101(1) TFEU, Exploring (almost) virgin territory, https://files.tourismlaw.pt/Sustainability-considerations-and-Article-101-TFEU/ Tatjana Josipović, Modernisation of information requirements for consumers on online tourism services market, https://files.tourismlaw.pt/Modernisation-of--informationrequirements-for-consumers-on-online-tourism-services-market-by-Tatjana-Josipovic/ Matija Damjan, The new online platform rules and the accommodation booking services, https://files.tourismlaw.pt/The-new-online-platform-rules-and-the-accommodation-bookingservices-by-Matija-Damjan/ Ilie Dumitru, EU legislation and contractual relationship between the travel package organizer and the air carrier in case of charter flights. Liability for cancelled and delayed charter flights, https://files.tourismlaw.pt/EU-legislation-and-contractualrelationship-between-the-travel-package-organizer-and-the-air-carrier-in-case-of-charter-flights.-Liability-for-cancelled-anddelayed-charter-flights-by-Ilie-Dumitru-IJTTHL-PRE-PRINT/ João Almeida Vidal, Arbitration and tourism: a field to explore, https:// files.tourismlaw.pt/Arbitration-and-tourism--a-field-to-explore-by-Joao-Vidal/
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