ABSTRACT
Portugal is well known as a gastronomic and wine destination. After the dissemination and promotion of the historical and natural heritage of Portugal, the last decade was dedicated to gastronomy, one of the great values and passion of the Portuguese. The election of the “7 Wonders of Gastronomy” (“7 Maravilhas da Gastronomia”) divulged and promoted the national gastronomic heritage, recognized and appreciated all over the world for its diversity, unique flavours and quality of the products with which the dishes are made. Portugal is a good example of an area where the combination of food and wine play an important role for visitors. Several Portuguese places and wonders of gastronomy were selected based on the existence of typical food and wine traditional dishes. Therefore, digital communication and social networks can strongly influence the fame of regional products (food and wine), but also the feeling of community and territorial identity. This chapter discusses the association of food and wine to place marketing activities and the promotion of such phenomena on social media. The exploratory analysis of examples of the “7 Wonders of Gastronomy” suggests the relevance of future research connecting social media communication of food and wine attributes of places with the measurement of place attachment in its multidimensional construct. This topic represents important implications for destination management and local development.
