Last week I was interviewed for the French TV channel France5 on how to market efficiently French wines to international markets. The first question of the journalist was: is there any difference between “Old World” and “New World” wine labels? She wanted me to show some “New World” labels. I pointed the “Red Rover” label to her as being “fun” and efficient with the dog face, the name “Red Rover” and the obvious grape mentioned on the label. She was sure no French wine could feature a dog on a label. Really?

Next day I had lunch with a friend in a Bordeaux restaurant and we both ordered a glass of Château La Folie 2005 with our lunch. We asked to see the bottle. And bingo! There was the cutest little dog on the label. Of course the style of the design was very different: I didn’t have my camera and couldn’t take a picture but it was one of those nice looking dogs – not the impressive mean-looking dog of Red Rover.

What does it mean? First of all, French labels are getting more contemporary. Wine makers are now aware that pets are part of our everyday life, like our wine and food. This kind of design is a good way to reach the consumer and appeal to his/her emotional side. Then, it also means that wine makers are ready to simplify their message on wine: wine is not always a serious and difficult subject. It’s fun and can be drunk without commenting on it for hours. Enjoy your wine in front of the fire place with your dog sitting at your feet during the cold season or outside in the garden while your dog is playing when it’s nice!

This is the very unusual sight I came across today. At first the title of the article read: “Wine for women”. I got mildly annoyed and was about to move away when a sentence caught my eye: “Every smile has a story. And many stories are shared over a glass of wine”. Banal? Yes, but true. In our days of bad news, a smile is to be treasured preciously.

Back to wine! SmileVino is a weird but touching try to reach people through the best of their heart. Each label depicts a woman smiling. Each smile carries a different emotion: compassion, accomplishment, whatever. The back label tells the story behind the smile. What about the wine? There are two bottles – one of Merlot and one of Chardonnay, both from California. My feeling is that the wine is just the messenger for woman’s charities in various communities in spite of Nancy Moore, vice-president, affirmation: “Our signature Chardonnay and Merlot were specially created in California and offer a fresh taste for wine lovers.”

I like the positive side of the story: smile, telling a positive story, giving back to the community. But why only women and why so little on the wines?

I have a couple of issues with gender marketing applied to the wine business. First, many studies showed clearly that women don’t have special attraction to “feminine” wines, such as pink or sweet wines. Second, women are now learned in wine: they know what they like and what they want to buy. Last but not least, they are usually sharp shoppers and detect easily the false bargain or the marketing trick. Because let’s be honest and even brutal: a wine designed for women is usually poorly made – too sweet, heavy, poorly balanced. Give us real wines – with a smile, yes but also a wine that will bring a smile to our face!