Place, temporality, and wine identity: a visual analysis of winery website imagery in the Okanagan valley wine region

Abstract

Over the past few decades there has been major growth and transformation in the global wine industry, resulting in increased competition between wineries and wine regions. In this context, many wineries have sought to construct brand identities connected to terroir, tradition, culture, and heritage to distinguish themselves. In the past 30 years, the Okanagan region of British Columbia, Canada has made a name for itself as a New World wine region through its production of high-quality wine and exceptional wine tourism experiences, however little is known about the specific branding strategies of its wineries. Through an analysis of photographic images found on local winery websites, this study reveals how visual representations of place and temporality provide a recurring motif across a range of wineries. More specifically, Okanagan wineries rely on wider region-specific imaginaries to construct their identity, and attempt to evoke longer-term temporalities through imagery suggestive of both historical and intergenerational connection to place. Drawing on the literature on corporate heritage, this study shows how these ‘omni-temporal’ practices are used strategically by wineries to create authenticity in a bid to appeal to consumers influenced by wine’s conventional place-time imaginaries. Overall, these findings add to the wider literature on wine brand identity and have relevance for industry and regional development stakeholders interested in place- and time-based branding strategies.