LSAT Explanation PT 39, S4, Q10: The wholesale price of one bottle

LSAT Question Stem

If the statements above are true, which one of the following must also be true on the basis of them? 

Logical Reasoning Question Type

This is a Must Be True question. 

Correct Answer

The correct answer to this question is B. 

LSAT Question Complete Explanation

Let's first break down the information given in the passage:

1. The wholesale price of Veritas Vineyards wine is the same today as it was in 1991.

2. Profit = wholesale price - production costs (including the cost of glass bottles and corks).

3. All production costs have remained constant, except for the cost of corks, which is nearly twice as much today as in 1991.

Think of it like this: you're selling lemonade and your profit is calculated by subtracting the cost of making the lemonade (lemons, sugar, and cups) from the price you sell it for. If the price you sell the lemonade for stays the same, but the cost of cups doubles, your profit per cup of lemonade will decrease.

Now, let's look at the question type and the answer choices. This is a Must Be True question, which means we need to find the answer choice that must be true based on the information given in the passage.

a) We don't have any information about the number of bottles sold, so we can't conclude that it has remained unchanged.

b) This answer choice aligns with our lemonade example. Since the wholesale price has stayed the same and the cost of corks has increased, the profit per bottle must be less today than it was in 1991.

c) We know that the cost of corks has increased, but we don't have any information about the cost of producing those corks, so we can't conclude that it has increased as well.

d) The passage doesn't provide any information about the aggregate profit, so we can't draw any conclusions about it.

e) We don't have enough information to compare the cost of corks to the cost of glass bottles, so we can't conclude that the cost of each cork is currently greater than the cost of each glass bottle.

Based on our analysis, the correct answer is (B): Each bottle of Veritas Vineyards wine that is sold today brings the winegrower less profit than did each bottle sold in 1991.