(Forbes) - Recently there has been an uptick, at different hotspots in Europe, in favor of fresh approaches toward wine, hospitality, and entrepreneurialism.

Today’s post is the first in a series that looks at two such initiatives in France.

Not surprisingly, both are embedded in two of that country’s legendary wine regions — Burgundy and Bordeaux. What does come as a surprise, however, is a willingness to stretch strategies and models beyond historical and ideological boundaries.

When it comes to wine, France has long been the looked-to standard, and rightfully so. When it comes to the future of the wine market, and its interdependent influences of technology and entrepreneurialism, France is looking out — and benefiting from that exterior perspective.

“We focus on business first. Wine is the medium we use to show good business practice.”

That’s Damien Wilson, director of the Wine Business program at the School of Wine and Spirits Business in Dijon, France.

Normally the focus is the other way around.

Normally, Wilson observes, the focus in the wine sector is on maintaining the image of a beautiful, luxurious, iconic niche. The top end of the market is where all the discussion is, “but that’s where there’s very little turnover,” he said. “The commercial sector is ignored by the cognoscenti, but that’s where the growth is.”