[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 249 (Wednesday, December 29, 2010)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 81846-81849]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-32873]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau
27 CFR Part 9
[Docket No. TTB-2010-0001; T.D. TTB-88; Re: Notice No. 103]
RIN 1513-AB31
Expansion of the Santa Maria Valley Viticultural Area
AGENCY: Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, Treasury.
ACTION: Final rule; Treasury decision.
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SUMMARY: This Treasury decision expands the Santa Maria Valley
viticultural area in Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo Counties,
California, by 18,790 acres. We designate viticultural areas to allow
vintners to better describe the origin of their wines and to allow
consumers to better identify wines they may purchase.
DATES: Effective Date: January 28, 2011.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Elisabeth C. Kann, Regulations and
Rulings Division, Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, 1310 G
Street, NW., Washington, DC 20220; telephone 202-453-2002.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background on Viticultural Areas
TTB Authority
Section 105(e) of the Federal Alcohol Administration Act (FAA Act),
27 U.S.C. 205(e), authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to prescribe
regulations for the labeling of wine, distilled spirits, and malt
beverages. The FAA Act requires that these regulations, among other
things, prohibit consumer deception and the use of misleading
statements on labels, and ensure that labels provide the consumer with
adequate information as to the identity and quality of the product. The
Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) administers the
regulations promulgated under the FAA Act.
Part 4 of the TTB regulations (27 CFR part 4) allows the
establishment of definitive viticultural areas and the use of their
names as appellations of origin on wine labels and in wine
advertisements. Part 9 of the TTB regulations (27 CFR part 9) contains
the list of approved viticultural areas.
Definition
Section 4.25(e)(1)(i) of the TTB regulations (27 CFR 4.25(e)(1)(i))
defines a viticultural area for American wine as a delimited grape-
growing region distinguishable by geographical features, the boundaries
of which have been recognized and defined in part 9 of the regulations.
These designations allow vintners and consumers to attribute a given
quality, reputation, or other characteristic of a wine made from grapes
grown in an area to its geographical origin. The establishment of
viticultural areas allows vintners to describe more accurately the
origin of their wines to consumers and helps consumers to identify
wines they may purchase. Establishment of a viticultural area is
neither an approval nor an endorsement by TTB of the wine produced in
that area.
Requirements
Section 4.25(e)(2) of the TTB regulations outlines the procedure
for proposing an American viticultural area and provides that any
interested party may petition TTB to establish a grape-growing region
as a viticultural area. Section 9.3(b) of the TTB regulations requires
the petition to 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 supports setting the
boundary of the proposed viticultural area as the petition specifies;
[[Page 81847]]
Evidence relating to the geographical features, such as
climate, soils, elevation, and physical features that distinguish the
proposed viticultural area from surrounding areas;
A description of the specific boundary of the proposed
viticultural area, based on features found on United States Geological
Survey (USGS) maps; and
A copy of the appropriate USGS map(s) with the proposed
viticultural area's boundary prominently marked.
Santa Maria Valley Expansion Petition
Background
On August 5, 1981, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms
(ATF), our predecessor agency, published T.D. ATF-89 in the Federal
Register at 46 FR 39811 (August 5, 1981), establishing the Santa Maria
Valley viticultural area (27 CFR 9.28) on 97,483 acres in southern San
Luis Obispo and northern Santa Barbara counties, largely within the
Central Coast viticultural area (27 CFR 9.75). A small portion of the
existing Santa Maria Valley viticultural area lies outside of the
Central Coast area's boundary within the Los Padres National Forest
where no grape-growing takes place. In the Geographical Evidence
section, T.D. ATF-89 stated that prevailing ocean winds blow west to
east, into and through the Santa Maria Valley. The winds create a
climate where air temperatures are cooler in summer and winter, but
warmer in fall, than the surrounding areas.
In March 2006, Sara Schorske of Compliance Service of America,
Inc., on behalf of a group of local winery and vineyard owners,
submitted a petition proposing an expansion of the southern and western
boundaries of the current Santa Maria Valley viticultural area. The
petition presented evidence and documentation in recognition of the
geographical name of the proposed southern expansion area and in
support of the similarities of its climate, soils, terrain, and
watershed with those of the original viticultural area. The petition
also documented significant commercial viticulture to the south of the
original southern boundary line. TTB returned the March 2006 petition
to expand the Santa Maria Valley viticultural area with a letter urging
the petitioner to delete the western expansion portion, about which
sufficient evidence was not presented.
Ms. Schorske then submitted the current petition, which requests
only a southern expansion (consisting of 18,790 acres) of the original
Santa Maria Valley viticultural area. The expansion area lies in
northern Santa Barbara County, according to the boundary description
and USGS maps, and is entirely within the Central Coast viticultural
area. The expansion area includes 9 vineyards, 255 acres of commercial
viticulture, and 60 to 200 acres under viticultural development,
according to the petition.
Name Evidence
The current petition explains that the original petition supporting
the establishment of the Santa Maria Valley viticultural area in 1981
documented the ``Santa Maria Valley'' name for the geographical area.
Hence, T.D. ATF-89, in establishing the Santa Maria Valley viticultural
area, determined that the most appropriate name for the geographical
area was Santa Maria Valley.
The current petition states that the southern expansion of the
Santa Maria Valley viticultural area follows the watershed boundary
line between the Santa Maria Valley to the north and the Los Alamos
Valley to the south. The current petition relies on the Santa Maria
River watershed for name recognition of the expansion area.
Boundary Evidence
The original southern boundary line of the Santa Maria Valley
viticultural area follows Foxen Canyon Road and Clark Avenue, at
Sisquoc, for 4.2 miles inside the southern perimeter of the Santa Maria
River watershed, according to the current boundary description and USGS
maps. On the south side of the Santa Maria Valley watershed, the creeks
drain northward to lower elevations, through the valley, and into the
Santa Maria River, as shown on USGS maps. Computer-generated watershed
maps show that the expansion of the southern boundary line conforms to
the Santa Maria River watershed, according to the petition.
The boundary line of the southern expansion of the Santa Maria
Valley viticultural area, going clockwise, starts at the southeast
corner of the current viticultural area boundary and travels in a
straight line west-northwest, over the Solomon Hills to its
intersection with U.S. Route 101, according to the boundary description
and USGS maps. Following U.S. 101, the boundary line continues north to
Clark Avenue in Orcutt, rejoining the original boundary line of the
Santa Maria Valley viticultural area.
Distinguishing Features
Santa Maria Valley Viticultural Area as Established by T.D. ATF-89
TTB notes that in establishing the Santa Maria Valley viticultural
area, T.D. ATF-89 cited terrain, soils, and climate as distinguishing
features.
Terrain: According to T.D. ATF-89, the boundary line of the Santa
Maria Valley viticultural area surrounds the Santa Maria Valley floor,
adjacent canyons, and sloping terraces. Elevations vary from a low of
200 feet at the Santa Maria River to a high of 3,200 feet at Tepusquet
Peak. As shown on the USGS Foxen Canyon map, a westward projection of
the San Rafael Mountains, peaking at 1,801 feet in elevation, extends
about 4 miles into the southeast portion of the original Santa Maria
Valley viticultural area. According to USGS maps, the original southern
boundary line varies from 600 to 1,000 feet in elevation. Vineyards
within the original viticultural area were planted between elevations
of 300 feet on the valley floor and 800 feet on the slopes of the
rolling hillsides.
Soils and Climate: According to T.D. ATF-89, the soils of the Santa
Maria Valley viticultural area are well drained and fertile, and range
in texture from sandy loam to clay loam. The prevailing, cooling,
marine-influenced ocean winds are also important to the viticultural
area.
Current Petition to Expand the Santa Maria Valley Viticultural Area
Terrain: The petition states that the geography of the southern
expansion of the Santa Maria Valley viticultural area is similar to
that inside the original southern boundary line. The valley lies along
an east-southeast axis, and is about 16 miles long within the existing
viticultural area and the expansion area (``Locations of Weather
Stations and Selected Vineyards and Wineries,'' map, undated). In the
southern expansion area, gently rolling hills give way to a more rugged
terrain of canyons and steep slopes, as shown on USGS maps. Elevations
in the southern expansion area vary between around 440 feet near
Sisquoc to 1,360 feet at the southeast corner of the original Santa
Maria Valley viticultural area, and are similar to those in areas on or
surrounding the Santa Maria Valley floor.
The petition includes the table below, which shows the elevations
of commercial vineyards in the southern portion of the original Santa
Maria Valley viticultural area and in the southern expansion area.
Elevations of vineyards within the southern portion of the original
Santa Maria Valley
[[Page 81848]]
viticultural area range from 600 to 950 feet; likewise, those of
vineyards in the southern expansion area range from 600 to 930 feet.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Approximate
Vineyard Location elevation in
feet
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Rancho Ontiveros.................. Within the AVA...... 650
Solomon Hills..................... Within the AVA...... 700
Good Child........................ Within the AVA...... 750-800
Riverbench........................ Within the AVA...... 950
Rancho Sisquoc.................... Within the AVA...... 600-750
Foxen............................. Within the AVA...... 720
Addamo Estate..................... Within the proposed 760-840
expansion.
Solomon Hills..................... Within the proposed 640-840
expansion.
Casa Torres....................... Within the proposed 720-800
expansion.
Le Bon Climate.................... Within the proposed 600
expansion.
Lucas Lewellan.................... Within the proposed 700
expansion.
Foxen............................. Within the proposed 800-900
expansion.
Rancho Real....................... Within the proposed 650-930
expansion.
Murphy............................ Within the proposed 750-880
expansion.
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Climate: The petition explains that the Santa Maria Valley has a
``maritime fringe'' climate (``The Climate of Southern California,''
Harry P. Bailey, University of California Press, 1966). The maritime
fringe climate derives from the Pacific Ocean, causing foggy and windy
conditions in the Santa Maria Valley. In contrast, some other inland,
high-elevation areas nearby have either less or no marine influence,
according to the petition.
The petition states that during the summer growing season, the
marine air moves onshore, passing through low-elevation passes in the
Coast Range, inland to the Santa Maria Valley. (T.D. ATF-89 describes
the Santa Maria Valley as a ``natural funnel-shaped'' valley.)
Temperatures are consistent throughout the gentle west-to-east rise in
elevations in the Santa Maria Valley. The petition states that the
cooling wind and fog encounter little resistance in any direction until
they meet the Sierra Madre Mountains on the north side of the valley
and the Solomon Hills on the south side, where the valley terminates.
The boundary of the southern expansion extends to the Solomon Hills,
where the cooling wind and fog encounter resistance, according to the
petition.
The petition includes a map that shows the broad, westerly opening
between these mountains and hills and how they funnel cooling wind and
fog in an east-southeast direction, into the valley. T.D. ATF-89 states
that ``* * * the prevailing winds from the ocean [cause] the valley to
have a generally cooler summer, warmer fall, and cooler winter than
surrounding areas.''
The current petition provides data from two weather stations, one
within the original Santa Maria Valley viticultural area and one within
the expansion area. Both stations are nestled along foothills, slightly
above the valley floor. A graph in the petition presents heat
accumulation data recorded in 2004 at the two stations. The graph shows
that growing season totals for 2004 in the original viticultural area
and in the expansion area were both just below 3,000 growing degree
days.
As a measurement of heat accumulation during the growing season, 1
growing degree day accumulates for each degree Fahrenheit that a day's
mean temperature is above 50 degrees, the minimum temperature required
for grapevine growth (``General Viticulture,'' Albert J. Winkler,
University of California Press, 1975, pages 61-64).
Soils: According to the petition, the original Santa Maria Valley
viticultural area consists of a wide variety of soils, without a single
dominant type. The petition provides a table listing the soil map units
in the original Santa Maria Valley viticultural area and in the
expansion area. The table is divided into four general areas. Three
areas are within the original Santa Maria Valley viticultural area: (1)
Valley floor, (2) hills (the Solomon Hills), and (3) mountains (the
foothills of the Sierra Madre Mountains, northeast of the Santa Maria
River). The fourth is the southern expansion area.
As shown in the table, the soils are mainly sand, sandy loam, and
loam on the valley floor, but are mixed sandy loam, clay loam, shaly
loam, and silt loam on mountains. However, the soils in the expansion
area are also found in the original Santa Maria Valley viticultural
area. In both the expansion area and on hills in the original
viticultural area, the soils are sand, sandy loam, clay loam, and shaly
clay loam, but are mostly loam and shaly loam.
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and Comments Received
TTB published Notice No. 103 regarding the proposed expansion of
the Santa Maria Valley viticultural area in the Federal Register at 75
FR 9827 (March 4, 2010). In that notice, TTB invited comments by May 3,
2010, from all interested persons. We solicited comments from
interested members of the public on whether we should expand the Santa
Maria Valley viticultural area as described above. We expressed
particular interest in receiving comments concerning the similarity of
the proposed expansion area to the current Santa Maria Valley
viticultural area, the geographical features that distinguish the
viticultural features of the proposed expansion area from the area
beyond it to the south, and the use of the Santa Maria River watershed
to justify the proposed expansion of the southern boundary line.
We received two comments in response to the notice, both supporting
the expansion of the Santa Maria Valley viticultural area. An
agricultural property appraiser supports the expansion and states the
boundaries are reasonably defined by geographic features. A Farm
Advisor employed with the Cooperative Extension-San Luis Obispo County,
University of California, Agriculture and Natural Resources, supports
the expansion based on similarities in temperature conditions within
the existing Santa Maria Valley viticultural area and the expansion
area. The Advisor included temperature data, an aerial picture of the
area, and a 2008 and 2009 overview of the average growing degree days
for
[[Page 81849]]
the Santa Maria Valley viticultural area that includes the expansion
area.
TTB Finding
After careful review of the petition and the comments received, TTB
finds that the evidence submitted supports the expansion of the Santa
Maria Valley viticultural area. Accordingly, under the authority of the
Federal Alcohol Administration Act and part 4 of our regulations, we
expand the Santa Maria Valley American viticultural area in Santa
Barbara and San Luis Obispo Counties, California, effective 30 days
from the publication date of this document.
Boundary Description
See the narrative boundary description of the viticultural area in
the regulatory text published at the end of this document.
Maps
The maps for determining the boundary of the viticultural area are
listed below in the regulatory text.
Impact on Current Wine Labels
The expansion of the Santa Maria Valley viticultural area will not
affect currently approved wine labels. The approval of this expansion
may allow additional vintners to use ``Santa Maria Valley'' as an
appellation of origin on their wine labels. Part 4 of the TTB
regulations prohibits any label reference on a wine that indicates or
implies an origin other than the wine's true place of origin. For a
wine to be labeled with a viticultural area name or with a brand name
that includes a viticultural area name or other term identified as
viticulturally significant in part 9 of the TTB regulations, at least
85 percent of the wine must be derived from grapes grown within the
area represented by that name or other term, and the wine must meet the
other conditions listed in 27 CFR 4.25(e)(3). Different rules apply if
a wine has a brand name containing a viticultural area name or other
viticulturally significant term that was used as a brand name on a
label approved before July 7, 1986. See 27 CFR 4.39(i)(2) for details.
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, recordkeeping, or other
administrative requirement. Any benefit derived from the use of a
viticultural area name is the result of a proprietor's efforts and
consumer acceptance of wines from that area. Therefore, no regulatory
flexibility analysis is required.
Executive Order 12866
This rule is not a significant regulatory action as defined by
Executive Order 12866. Therefore, it requires no regulatory assessment.
Drafting Information
N.A. Sutton of the Regulations and Rulings Division drafted this
notice.
List of Subjects in 27 CFR Part 9
Wine.
The Regulatory Amendment
0
For the reasons discussed in the preamble, we amend title 27 CFR,
chapter 1, part 9, 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 9.28 is revised to read as follows:
Sec. 9.28 Santa Maria Valley.
(a) Name. The name of the viticultural area described in this
section is ``Santa Maria Valley''. For purposes of part 4 of this
chapter, ``Santa Maria Valley'' is a term of viticultural significance.
(b) Approved maps. The six United States Geological Survey maps
used to determine the boundary of the Santa Maria Valley viticultural
area are titled:
(1) Orcutt Quadrangle, California-Santa Barbara Co., 7.5 minute
series, 1959, photorevised 1967 and 1974, photoinspected 1978;
(2) Santa Maria Quadrangle, California, 7.5 minute series, 1959,
photorevised 1982;
(3) ``San Luis Obispo'', N.I. 10-3, series V 502, scale 1: 250,000;
(4) ``Santa Maria'', N.I. 10-6, 9, series V 502, scale 1: 250,000;
(5) Foxen Canyon Quadrangle, California-Santa Barbara Co., 7.5-
minute series, 1995; and
(6) Sisquoc Quadrangle, California-Santa Barbara Co., 7.5 minute
series, 1959, photoinspected 1974.
(c) Boundary. The Santa Maria Valley viticultural area is located
in Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo Counties, California. The boundary
of the Santa Maria Valley viticultural area is as follows:
(1) Begin on the Orcutt quadrangle map at the intersection of U.S.
Route 101 and Clark Avenue, section 18 north boundary line, T9N/R33W,
then proceed generally north along U.S. Route 101 approximately 10
miles onto the Santa Maria quadrangle map to U.S. Route 101's
intersection with State Route 166 (east), T10N/R34W; then
(2) Proceed generally northeast along State Route 166 (east) onto
the San Luis Obispo N.I. 10-3 map to State Route 166's intersection
with the section line southwest of Chimney Canyon, T11N/R32W; then
(3) Proceed south in a straight line onto the Santa Maria N.I. 10-6
map to the 3,016-foot summit of Los Coches Mountain; then
(4) Proceed southeast in a straight line onto the Foxen Canyon
quadrangle map to the 2,822-foot summit of Bone Mountain, T9N/R32W;
then
(5) Proceed south-southwest in a straight line approximately 6
miles to the line's intersection with secondary highways Foxen Canyon
Road and Alisos Canyon Road and a marked 1,116-foot elevation point,
T8N/R32W; then
(6) Proceed west-northwest in a straight line approximately 6 miles
onto the Sisquoc quadrangle map to the southeast corner of section 4,
T8N/R32W; then
(7) Proceed west-northwest in a straight line approximately 6.2
miles, crossing over the Solomon Hills, to the line's intersection with
U.S. Route 101 and a private, unnamed light-duty road that meanders
east into the Cat Canyon Oil Field, T9N/R33W; then
(8) Proceed north 3.75 miles along U.S. Route 101 onto the Orcutt
quadrangle map and return to the point of beginning.
Signed: August 24, 2010.
John J. Manfreda,
Administrator.
Approved: September 21, 2010.
Timothy E. Skud,
Deputy Assistant Secretary (Tax, Trade, and Tariff Policy).
[FR Doc. 2010-32873 Filed 12-28-10; 8:45 am]
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