Communicating Terroir through Wine Label Toponymy Greek Wineries Practice

For the majority of consumers, the label is the primary motivation for wine purchases. Ιt appears from the literature that consumer behavior is influenced by the variety of information on the label, which captures with simplicity and clarity, the key information that the potential buyer needs to know. History, place, variety, name, and figure, are some of the basic elements that form the wine label and have the potential to profoundly affect consumer engagement with bottled wine. What do Greek Wineries wish to communicate through their wine labels? Historical concepts, identity, or quality? Could soft power and place branding be suitable factors to help transfer this message and achieve wishful feedback to the consumer’s awareness? A case study is presented, according to which Greek producers select three fundamental cues: toponymy, name description, justification of the name choice and language. Driven by this case study, the paper intends to open a discussion about the implementation of theories such as soft power and sense of place by wine industries on a global level in combination with the importance of the toponymy, not only on the labeling but also on other communicational aspects.