This time its free drinks on the house. A new locally grown wine has just been bottled and these drinkers are getting a chance to taste it.

Except there is a catch... The wine label reads " Vin de Merde", which loosely translated means "crap wine." Not really a traditional selling point.

But it seems to have gone down well with these patrons. In fact, "vin de merde" is anything but. At nearly 7 euros a bottle, its a quality wine developed at this co-operative in Cignac deep in the heart of the wine growing region of Languedoc.

For decades wine from here was considered poor quality compared to its counterparts in say Bordeaux or the Rhone Valley. Even though the quality has improved - the reputation of local wine hasn't.

So this publicity stunt was an act of desperation. This restaurant owner was behind the " vin de merde" idea and financed the project.

It will probably take a lot more than stunts like this to turn around local winegrowers fortunes here especially as consumers worldwide switch to new world wines. Many are getting out of the business for good, ripping up their vineyards in return for one-off payments from Brussels.

This farmer has seen his revenue fall from 200 thousand euros to 75 thousand in 8 years. The irony is that the first 5,000 bottles of "vin de merde" sold out within days. 7,500 more bottles are being put on the market to meet demand.