Would you invest your entire retirement account in one stock that you thought would do better than any other? No, of course not. You might take a “flier” on that one stock, but you would—I hope—stay diversified with bonds, cash, funds that contain hundreds or thousands of stocks and maybe even some alternative assets or real estate. Why? To reduce the risk of catastrophic market fluctuations.

Now, let’s say you are going to plant a vineyard in Napa, Calif. What is your first thought as to what to plant? Cabernet Sauvignon. How much of your vineyard should be planted to it? The answer I keep hearing is 100%. Across the state, we’ve seen a move toward monovarietal regions, and this is increasing both systemic risk for the industry and financial risk for individual entities.

CONTACT OUR EDITORIAL STAFF »