"That would eat away at any benefit many buyers would see if they bought just part of the company."

Besides the potential anti-trust question that reader Del noted in the comments on a possible Fortune Brands breakup leading to the sale of Acushnet, Fortune's Jessica Hall and Martinnne Geller pointed out a few weeks ago that a massive capital gains tax tab--excuse me, "tax leakage" problem--facing Fortune might prove a deal killer.

"There's no magical restructuring that the board hasn't thought about. There's a tax leakage problem that makes it hard to shuffle the deck," said the source, who declined to be identified by name.

But who surely gets everyone playing B-speak bingo in the boardroom. Go on...

The source was not authorized to speak with the media.

Probably a good thing.

A potentially unattractive tax bill would result if Fortune sold certain brands or split up the company because it has held the assets so long and they have appreciated in value. Fortune would owe taxes on the increase in value since it began owning them, the source explained.

Tax consequences might also cause Fortune to demand a higher price for its assets to cover the taxes it would owe on a sale.

"That would eat away at any benefit many buyers would see if they bought just part of the company," the source said.