[Federal Register: April 19, 2004 (Volume 69, Number 75)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 20823-20825]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr19ap04-12]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau
27 CFR Part 9
[T.D. TTB-10; Re: ATF Notice No. 958]
RIN 1513-AA40
Temecula Valley Viticultural Area (2001R-280P)
AGENCY: Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB), Treasury.
ACTION: Final rule; Treasury decision.
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SUMMARY: This Treasury decision renames the ``Temecula'' viticultural
area in southern California as the ``Temecula Valley'' viticultural
area. The size and boundaries of the Temecula viticultural area remain
unchanged.
EFFECTIVE DATE: This final rule is effective on June 18, 2004. Approved
labels using the former name for the area may continue to be used until
June 19, 2006.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: N. A. Sutton, Specialist, Regulations
and Procedures Division (Colorado), Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade
Bureau, 6660 Delmonico Drive, No. D422, Colorado Springs, CO 80919;
telephone 415-271-1254.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Effect of Homeland Security Act
Effective January 24, 2003, the Homeland Security Act of 2002
(Public Law 107-296, 116 Stat. 2135 (2002)) divided the Bureau of
Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) into two new agencies, the Alcohol
and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) in the Department of the
Treasury and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives in
the Department of Justice. The regulation of alcohol beverage labels,
including viticultural area designations, remains the responsibility of
the Treasury Department and is a function of TTB. References to ATF and
TTB in this document reflect the time frame, before or after January
24, 2003, of the viticultural area petition process.
[[Page 20824]]
Background on Viticultural Areas
TTB Authority
The Federal Alcohol Administration Act (FAA Act) at 27 U.S.C.
205(e) requires that alcohol beverage labels provide the consumer with
adequate information regarding a product's identity while prohibiting
the use of misleading information on such labels. The FAA Act also
authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to issue regulations to carry
out the Act's provisions. The Department's Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and
Trade Bureau (TTB) administers these regulations.
Regulations in 27 CFR Part 4, Labeling and Advertising of Wine,
allow the establishment of definitive viticultural areas and the use of
their names as appellations of origin on wine labels and in wine
advertisements. Title 27 CFR Part 9, American Viticultural Areas,
contains the list of approved viticultural areas.
Definition of an American Viticultural Area
Title 27 CFR, section 4.25(e)(1), defines an American viticultural
area as a delimited grape-growing region distinguishable by geographic
features whose boundaries have been delineated in subpart C of part 9.
These designations allow consumers and vintners to attribute a given
quality, reputation, or other characteristic of a wine made from grapes
grown in an area to its geographic origin. We believe that the
establishment of viticultural areas allows wineries to describe more
accurately the origin of their wines to consumers and helps consumers
identify the wines they may purchase. Establishment of a viticultural
area is neither an approval nor endorsement by TTB of the wine produced
in that area.
Requirements To Establish a Viticultural Area
Section 4.25(e)(2) outlines the procedure for proposing or amending
an American viticultural area. Any interested person may petition TTB
to establish a grape-growing region as a viticultural area or modify an
existing area. A petition for a new area should include:
Evidence that the proposed viticultural area is
locally and/or nationally known by the name specified in the petition;
Historical or current evidence that the
boundaries of the proposed viticultural area are as specified in the
petition;
Evidence of geographical features, such as
climate, soil, elevation, and physical features, that distinguish the
proposed area from surrounding areas;
A description of the proposed area's specific
boundaries, based on features found on United States Geological Survey
(USGS) or USGS-approved maps; and
A copy of the appropriate USGS-approved map(s)
with the boundaries prominently marked.
A petition requesting the modification of an established
viticultural area must include information, evidence, and the
appropriate maps to support the requested change(s).
Impact on Current Wine Labels
General
This viticultural area's name change may affect bottlers who use
brand names containing the terms ``Temecula'' and ``Temecula Valley.''
If you fall in this category, you must ensure that your existing
products are eligible to use the new name of the viticultural area,
``Temecula Valley,'' as an appellation of origin. For a wine to be
eligible, at least 85 percent of the grapes in the wine must have been
grown within the viticultural area.
If the wine is not eligible for the appellation, you must change
the brand name and obtain approval of a new label. Different rules
apply if you label a wine in this category with a label approved prior
to July 7, 1986. See 27 CFR 4.39(i) for details. Additionally, if you
use the viticultural area name on a wine label in a context other than
appellation of origin, the general prohibitions against misleading
representation in part 4 of the regulations apply.
Use of the Name ``Temecula'' as an Appellation of Origin
From November 23, 1984, until June 18, 2004, the effective date of
this final rule, the viticultural area's name was ``Temecula.'' Since
this is the first time we have changed the name of a viticultural area,
we are allowing a two-year transition period during which approved wine
labels bearing this viticultural area's former ``Temecula'' name may be
used.
When this final rule takes effect, we will approve wine labels that
show ``Temecula Valley,'' not ``Temecula,'' for the name of this
appellation of origin. We have considered the following elements before
approving this name change:
The viticultural area has been known
interchangeably by the ``Temecula'' and ``Temecula Valley'' names prior
to, and since, the 1984 original approval of the viticultural area;
Commenters confirm the area has been known by
either name in the past, but emphasize that the newly approved
``Temecula Valley'' name is accurate and appropriate for the
viticultural area; and
The ``Temecula Valley'' name is distinctive and
is incorporated into numerous business and area names found within the
established boundaries.
Two years after the effective date of this rule, approved labels
using the original name for this viticultural area, ``Temecula,'' as an
appellation of origin will be revoked by operation of this regulation.
We have added a note to this effect as paragraph (d) of the Temecula
Valley regulation at 27 CFR 9.50.
If we receive other petitions to change the names of existing
viticultural areas, we will request comments on appropriate transition
rules and make a decision based on the facts and circumstances of each
case.
Rulemaking Proceedings
Temecula Viticultural Area
ATF established the Temecula viticultural area (27 CFR 9.50) in
Treasury Decision ATF-188, published in the Federal Register on October
23, 1984 (49 FR 42563). Located in southern California, the 33,000-acre
Temecula viticultural area is in southwestern Riverside County in the
Temecula Basin. The viticultural area covers the southern portion of
the former Vail Ranch, and its outer boundaries generally follow those
of the historical Santa Rosa, Temecula, Little Temecula, and Pauba land
grants.
The original Temecula petitioners desired to use a true, historical
name for the viticultural area and not the more recent commercial name
of ``Rancho California,'' which some growers in the area favored at
first. Treasury Decision ATF-188 noted that the name ``Temecula'' is
derived from the Luiseno Indian word ``Temeku,'' which means ``a place
where the sun breaks through the white mist.'' The original Temecula
petition stated that this description applied to the entire
viticultural area, which is in a valley characterized by bright sun and
misty marine air that flows inland from the Pacific Ocean. The 1984
decision noted that it is this marine air, which enters the Temecula
Valley through gaps in the Santa Ana Mountains, that allows grape
growing in this area.
Temecula Valley Petition
In August 2001, the Temecula Valley Winegrowers Association
submitted a petition to ATF requesting that the ``Temecula''
viticultural area's name be
[[Page 20825]]
changed to ``Temecula Valley.'' The petition stated that this name
change would provide a more accurate description of the Temecula area's
geography and greater clarity as to the area's location for wine
consumers and the public. The petition did not request any change to
the established Temecula viticultural area's boundaries.
The 2001 petition noted that when the Temecula viticultural area
was originally established twenty years ago, the area was largely rural
and agricultural. It added that the then small, unincorporated village
of Temecula is now an incorporated city, larger in size, with a growing
population. The city of Temecula's growth, the petition stated,
accentuates the differences between the city and the surrounding
agricultural region known as the Temecula Valley. The 2001 petition
stated that when ATF approved the viticultural area's establishment in
1984, area residents and businesses used the terms ``Temecula'' and
``Temecula Valley'' interchangeably. The name change petition noted
that the original Temecula Treasury Decision (ATF-188) cited Tom
Hudson's 1981 book ``A Thousand Years in the Temecula Valley''
(Temecula Valley Chamber of Commerce) with its many uses of the term
``Temecula Valley.'' The 1984 decision additionally noted the planned
establishment of the Temecula Valley High School within the
viticultural area's boundaries.
The Temecula Valley Winegrowers Association's 2001 petition also
noted that local Temecula telephone directory lists numerous businesses
and agencies using the name ``Temecula Valley'' in conjunction with
their operating name.
Their petition also related that the organization is a merger of
the Temecula Valley Vintners Association and the Temecula Winegrape
Growers Association. The new Association stated in the petition, ``To
continue to mandate the term `Temecula' is to honor a loose and ill-
defined use of the term.'' The petition cited the use of ``Napa'' and
``Napa Valley'' as an example of how the differences between a city
(Napa) and the surrounding agricultural area (Napa Valley) are
recognized in a viticultural area name.
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking
ATF published a notice of proposed rulemaking regarding the name
change from ``Temecula'' to ``Temecula Valley'' in the October 21,
2002, Federal Register as Notice No. 958 (67 FR 64573). In that notice,
ATF requested comments by December 20, 2002, from all interested
persons concerning the renaming of the Temecula viticultural area as
the Temecula Valley viticultural area. ATF received three comments, one
with the petition and two in response to Notice No. 958, all in favor
of the Temecula Valley viticultural area name change.
Mr. Gary McMillan, one of the original Temecula viticultural area
petitioners, sent his supporting comment in with the 2001 name change
petition. He recalled in his comment that the names Temecula and
Temecula Valley were used interchangeably at the time of the original
petition. His comment provided some supporting historical information
on the names' interchangeability. The other two commenters, Mr. Peter
Poole of Mt. Palomar Winery and Mr. Joe Travis Hart of Hart Winery,
also supported the viticultural area's name.
TTB Decision
TTB finds that the petitioners provided sufficient evidence
supporting their request to rename the ``Temecula'' viticultural area
as ``Temecula Valley.'' Temecula is no longer the small, agricultural
village of 20 years ago. It is now a much larger city of 75,000 people
covering 18,050 acres (see demographic information at http://www.cityoftemecula.org
). We agree that ``Temecula Valley'' is now the
more accurate name for this viticultural area. This change allows
growers to better describe the origin of their grapes and helps
consumers differentiate between the city of Temecula and the
surrounding agricultural area in the Temecula Valley.
Regulatory Analyses and Notices
Paperwork Reduction Act
The provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 44 U.S.C.
chapter 35, and its implementing regulations, 5 CFR part 1320, do not
apply to this rule because we impose no requirement to collect
information.
Regulatory Flexibility Act
We certify that this regulation will not have a significant
economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. This
regulation imposes no new reporting, record keeping, or other
compliance burdens on a substantial number of small entities. Any
benefit derived from the use and reputation of a viticultural area name
is the result of a proprietor's own efforts and consumer acceptance of
wines from that area. Accordingly, a regulatory flexibility analysis is
not required.
Executive Order 12866
This rule is not a significant regulatory action as defined by
Executive Order 12866. Therefore, no regulatory analysis is required.
Drafting Information
The principal author of this document is N. A. Sutton (Colorado),
Regulations Division and Procedures Division, Alcohol and Tobacco Tax
and Trade Bureau.
List of Subjects in 27 CFR Part 9
Wine.
Authority and Issuance
0
For the reasons discussed in the preamble, title 27, Code of Federal
Regulations, Part 9, American Viticultural Areas, is amended as
follows:
PART 9--AMERICAN VITICULTURAL AREAS
0
1. The authority citation for part 9 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 27 U.S.C. 205.
Subpart C--Approved American Viticultural Areas
0
2. Section 9.50 is amended by revising the section heading, paragraph
(a), and the introductory text of paragraphs (b) and (c), and by adding
paragraph (d) to read as follows:
Sec. 9.50 Temecula Valley.
(a) Name. The name of the viticultural area described in this
section is ``Temecula Valley.''
(b) Approved map.The approved maps for determining the boundary of
the Temecula Valley viticultural area are seven USGS quadrangle maps in
the 7.5 minute series, as follows:
* * * * *
(c) Boundary. The Temecula Valley viticultural area is located in
Riverside County, California. The boundary is as follows:
* * * * *
(d) From November 23, 1984, until June 17, 2004, the name of this
viticultural area was ``Temecula''. Effective June 18, 2004, this
viticulture area is named ``Temecula Valley''. Existing certificates of
label approval showing ``Temecula'' as the appellation of origin will
be revoked by operation of this regulation on June 19, 2006.
Signed: November 26, 2003.
Arthur J. Libertucci,
Administrator.
Approved: March 19, 2004.
Timothy E. Skud,
Deputy Assistant Secretary (Tax, Trade, and Tariff Policy).
[FR Doc. 04-8827 Filed 4-16-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4810-31-P