What goes up...

must,...how's that song go? Great, now I have Tom Jones on constant rotation in my brain. You can thank me later for planting the seed in yours.

Constellation To Boost Mondavi Napa Production

Gee, I didn't see this one coming. Uber-corporation pays 1.3B, cash on the barrel head and now they want to see some return on the money.

"Richard Sands, chairman and chief executive officer of Constellation brands has said he plans to increase production of Robert Mondavi Napa wines by about 40%, returning them to the level of several years ago."

I know this is what you would like to do and I'm sure the stock holders are foaming at the mouth with the anticipation, but how? I can't imagine the word about Woodbridge could be disseminated any more than it has. And according to my friend Huge Johnson:

"Currently, growth in sales of wine, aggregate of all catagories, in the US is around 2 - 3% annually.
-If you think that is good, you probably work for a fedora or buggy whip company
-In reality, that type of growth (or lack thereof) for an alcoholic beverage is horrid
-If you subtract the growth in the table wine and under $7 catagories in the last three years, the growth rate would likely be less than 2%"

So where in the hell are you going to get 40% growth? Oh yeah, Constellation has bought half of the world in the last few years, so bury one or two of those 'family run' joints and put all your chickens in one basket.

"We are firing on all cylinders and anyone involved in the business can feel the momentum building."

I can feel something building....Oh wait, I just have to use the bathroom.