Freemark Abbey

Dear Mr. Jaeger,

Freemark Abbey should delay harvesting the Riesling grapes until after the potential approaching storm.  This decision is based on three reasons.  First, there is the potential for a botrytis mold to form on the grapes.  Second, this decision has a limited financial risk.  And third, Riesling production is a small percentage of total output.

The first reason is due to the possibility of botrytis mold forming with a warm, light rain.  This would enable the company to produce a highly sought after botrytis Riesling.  The bottling of this wine would enhance the long term reputation with consumers, retailers and distributors versus competitors.  This could also result in increased sales of all the company’s offerings due to the reputation enhancement.

Another reason is the limited financial impact of this decision.  The potential alternatives for the grapes, based on the storm, consist of being able to produce variety of different Rieslings, selling the grapes wholesale, selling the wine in bulk or not bottling at all.  The probability of the alternatives in regards to profits is minimal compared to the decision to immediately harvest, with the potential upside of being able to bottle a botrytis Riesling mentioned above.

The final reason is that Riesling consists of only four percent of the company’s production.  This small percentage creates a minimal risk to the company’s finances.  Also, the risk to the relationships with consumers, distributors and retailers would likely be minimal as the vast majority of the products will not be affected.

In conclusion, the decision to delay the harvest until after the possible approaching storm outweighs the risks.  The potential upside of producing botrytis Riesling, the limited financial impact and the minimum amount of production at risk all provide the necessary rationale for delaying harvest.

Sincerely,

Mr. Watts