Earlier this year, an Australian marketing team put on a grand show at Crush restaurant at which the various regions and 'terroirs" of Australia were highlighted and explained. Indeed there were some terrific - yet not incredibly pricey - wines, including the lovely Skillogalee Riesling.

A marketing contact explained that they were looking to boost quality and price perceptions in Canada which, like the US, has been swamped with "critter wines". That's an industry term for the cute-animal branded bottles of easy drinking, fruity, and usually big, wines at modest prices.

Between shifting taste preferences - the market is still moving away from "fruit bombs" to lighter reds and to lighter, fresher whites - and price/quality perceptions, Australia definitely needs to get the focus back to quality. Fortunately, few countries are better placed to deliver quality, so this is likely just a temporary setback.

Slate's Mike Steinberger took a look at the precipitous decline in both sales and price-per-bottle achieved by Australian producers in the US market and, while acknowledging the role of the rising Australian dollar on US retail prices, he pretty much blames the critters.