Planting Vines and Nations; The Lebanese Wine Industry

AbstractThis article examines the social impact of economic strategies deployed within the Lebanese wine industry. Focusing on Kefraya in the West Bekaa, a vibrant viticulture region, this article explores sentimental ties to the land. This industry generates strong attachments to place through requirements for long-term investments of capital and labour, encapsulated in the concept of 'terroir'. This concept, which condenses many layers of meaning pertaining to production and identities linked to land, provides a useful lens through which to examine the complexities of the relationships between economic pursuits that change the face of the land and ideas about enduring attachments to place.