The 2009 harvest is upon us (at least in parts of the northern hemisphere), and grapes from this new vintage are being culled and crushed. With the prolonged troubled economy, diminishing sales of wine at higher price points, as well as earlier vintages of wine piling-up worldwide (Hong Kong excluded of course), to what extent do you think producers will alter their marketing strategies in order to stimulate sales?

Although declassification may be unnecessary and even counter-productive for most, surely there will be an increase in the production of second labels as well as other bottlings under the same winery. Some (or maybe all?) of the best juice from an estate could be allocated to these labels for eventual sale at a lower price. This would avoid creating any perception of a cheapening of the producer's premier brand while encouraging the consumer to purchase.

However, the most intriguing likelihood for me (and one for all of you mystery lovers and conspiracy theorists out there) is the potential for a sudden influx of new labels from producers working under pseudonyms who are offering some exceptional wine at attractive pricing. Will this be the vintage that starts a trend and creates a paradigm shift in the market? This could be successful for everyone involved, certainly a better option than (Gasp!) lowering prices on top labels (from a producer's perspective). Of course we will have to wait until the wine is finally released to uncover the truth. In fact, we may never know who the real producers were or even what the true pedigree of the wine is, but it could be a fun time of treasure hunting and mystery solving if it were to happen.

I don't think declassification is the answer, this could carry a negative stigma for the winery/producer that something went wrong. There is also a financial risk with introducing a "new label", throwing dollars behind the marketing and production of said wine.

Rolling back prices on a good-great wine will increase demand for that wine. Will there be a long term cost for the image; I don't think so. A good-great wine should be able to rebound and increase prices once again when the time is right.

Just today I ordered some CA Cabernet for $30 each that is claimed to be the same wine that is sold under a prestige label for $90+.

The merchant said that they could not disclose the label, but gave the name of the wine maker, Kirk Venge. It only took a few clicks to find the website of the source.

How do I know for sure? This is the second vintage this wine has been offered. Last time, the copy on the merchant's offering matched to the word the description on the winery website.

I don't believe any marketing is being done by the winery for the second label. It was probably pre-sold before being bottled. There are plenty of close-out and liquidation specialists that can make small lots of wine disappear without a ripple.

I'm no winemaker or businessman, but I think the first step is to crush and ferment, then assess the quality. Talking about producing a 'second label' while the fruit is still on the vine seems a bit premature frankly.