The label is but one aspect and has nothing to do with the wine inside. However, many consumers see only the label. If nothing else, they have trouble finding a wine they have heard about because they can't easily recognize its label, it isn't distinctive enough.

I'm glad people criticized the French years ago for their labels. And they should also criticize the names. Too many chateaux and too many similar wine names make it hard to remember or recognize a wine, even if you've tasted and liked it. They will need to listen sooner or later.

Marketing modernity, yes. In today's world, visual impact is everything. No product can be sold without visual appeal. The old world approach is to imagine that "because we make the best wines in the world" – or did until recently – "we shouldn't stoop to tricks like the New World does."

French wines will need to meet the competition on its own level. The world has changed, memorable visuals are the only way to be recognizable and to elicit a response in consumers.

The dog on the label is a red herring. Forget the dog, and make a product that says "buy me" in the cultural language of that market.

Shop for French wine? No one "shops for French wine" except francophile wine geeks. The majority shop for "good wine". One doesn't shop for "Australian wine", but they make a beeline for Yellow Tail. They can easily find it on the shelf, the name is easy to remember, and they find it to be high quality for the price. Which it is.

Taking the rarified air approach is fine, "nothing wrong with our wines and we won't screw around with labels". If that's the road you travel, there is zero basis for rioting in the streets and causing disruption and injury because the "great wines" don't sell to the mass market.