[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 115 (Thursday, June 15, 2006)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 34522-34525]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-9364]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau

27 CFR Part 9

[T.D. TTB-48; Re: Notice No. 44]
RIN 1513-AA55


Expansion of San Francisco Bay and Central Coast Viticultural 
Areas (2002R-202P)

AGENCY: Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, Treasury.

ACTION: Final rule; Treasury decision.

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SUMMARY: This Treasury decision expands by approximately 20,000 acres 
the San Francisco Bay viticultural area and the Central Coast 
viticultural area in California to conform to the expanded boundary of 
the Livermore Valley viticultural area. 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: July 17, 2006.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: N.A. Sutton, Regulations and Rulings 
Division, Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, 925 Lakeville St., 
No. 158, Petaluma, California 94952; telephone 415-271-1254.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background on Viticultural Areas

TTB Authority

    Section 105(e) of the Federal Alcohol Administration Act (the FAA 
Act, 27 U.S.C. 201 et seq.) requires that alcohol

[[Page 34523]]

beverage labels provide consumers with adequate information regarding 
product identity and prohibits the use of misleading information on 
those labels. The FAA Act also authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury 
to issue regulations to carry out its provisions. The Alcohol and 
Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) administers these regulations.
    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. Petitioners may use the same procedure to 
request changes involving existing viticultural areas. 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;
     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.

San Francisco Bay and Central Coast Viticultural Areas Expansion 
Petition and Rulemaking

Background

    TTB received a petition from the Livermore Valley Winegrowers 
Association proposing to expand both the existing San Francisco Bay 
viticultural area (27 CFR 9.157) and the existing Central Coast 
viticultural area (27 CFR 9.75). The association made this request in 
conjunction with, and as a consequence of, its proposed expansion of 
the Livermore Valley viticultural area (27 CFR 9.46), which is the 
subject of another final rule document published in this issue of the 
Federal Register. The petitioner represents most of the vineyards and 
wineries impacted by these expansions.
    The original Livermore Valley viticultural area is entirely within 
the San Francisco Bay viticultural area, which is, in turn, entirely 
within the Central Coast viticultural area. To retain this 
configuration, expansion of the Livermore Valley viticultural area 
would require the minor expansions of the San Francisco Bay and Central 
Coast viticultural areas that are the subject of this document.
    Below, we summarize the evidence presented in the petition to 
justify the expansions of the San Francisco Bay and Central Coast 
viticultural areas.

Rationale and Evidence for the Proposed Expansion

    In the years since the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms 
(ATF), TTB's predecessor agency, established the current Livermore 
Valley viticultural area in 1982, ATF also established the Central 
Coast and San Francisco Bay viticultural areas. Both of these 
viticultural areas currently encompass the Livermore Valley 
viticultural area in its entirety and incorporate some of the Livermore 
Valley area's eastern boundary line as part of their own boundaries. 
(See: Livermore Valley Viticultural Area, Treasury Decision [T.D] ATF-
112, 47 FR 38520, September 1, 1982; Central Coast Viticultural Area, 
T.D. ATF-216, 50 FR 43130, October 24, 1985, as amended by T.D. ATF-407 
64 FR 3023, January 20, 1999; and San Francisco Bay Viticultural Area, 
T.D. ATF-407, 64 FR 3015, January 20, 1999.)
    When ATF established the San Francisco Bay viticultural area and 
amended the Central Coast viticultural area boundary in 1999, no 
changes were made to the established boundary line of the Livermore 
Valley viticultural area. As a result, the Central Coast viticultural 
area and the San Francisco Bay viticultural area currently share a 
common boundary line in Alameda County, while the Livermore Valley 
viticultural area does not share the same boundary line.
    The central portion of the Livermore Valley viticultural area's 
eastern boundary line sits to the west of the current San Francisco Bay 
and Central Coast viticultural areas' eastern boundary line. This 
portion of the Livermore Valley viticultural area boundary line is west 
of the Diablo Range foothills, as noted on the USGS Altamont, Byron Hot 
Springs, and Mendenhall Springs Quadrangle maps. The common eastern 
boundary line of the San Francisco Bay and Central Coast viticultural 
areas is east of the Livermore Valley viticultural area boundary line, 
along the western foothills and mountains of the Diablo Range, as 
defined on the USGS Midway and Cedar Mtn. Quadrangle maps.
    The preamble of T.D. ATF-407, which established the San Francisco 
Bay viticultural area, explains that the Diablo Range elevations block 
the Pacific Ocean's marine air from continuing eastward and inland. 
Also, the region east of the Diablo Range and the Livermore Valley has 
higher temperatures, lower humidity, and decreased rainfall typical of 
an inland, continental climate.
    The concurrent petition to expand the Livermore Valley viticultural 
area provides an opportunity to align the boundaries of all three 
viticultural areas--Livermore Valley, San Francisco Bay, and Central 
Coast--into one common boundary line in this region. The proposed 
expansions of the San Francisco Bay and Central Coast viticultural 
areas would result in eastern boundaries for these two areas that 
coincide with the proposed boundary expansion of the Livermore Valley 
viticultural area. These proposed expansions remain consistent with the 
essential elements currently recognized by TTB, such as name, regional 
identity, and distinguishing geographical features, of viticultural 
areas. Also, they serve consumers by providing clear, unambiguous 
boundaries that would aid, rather than complicate, their wine buying 
decisions.

Name and Boundary Evidence

    T.D. ATF-407, which established the San Francisco Bay viticultural 
area and expanded the Central Coast viticultural

[[Page 34524]]

area to the north, details evidence for name recognition and regional 
identity for the San Francisco Bay viticultural area and the Central 
Coast viticultural area. It explains that the counties of San 
Francisco, Contra Costa, Alameda, Santa Clara, and San Mateo all border 
the San Francisco Bay body of water and are consistently considered to 
be part of the San Francisco Bay region. All, or portions of, the five 
counties listed above are within the established boundary lines of the 
San Francisco Bay and Central Coast viticultural areas.
    To support the expansion of the boundary of the Central Coast 
viticultural area, the petitioner cited T.D. ATF-407, which maintains 
that the general marine climate extends north and northwest beyond the 
originally established boundary of the Central Coast viticultural area. 
Also, the name recognition of Central Coast, as used by wine writers 
and in the California State legislature, extends north and west into 
the five counties surrounding the San Francisco Bay body of water. The 
names of both the San Francisco Bay and Central Coast viticultural 
areas are unaffected by the proposed boundary expansions, and therefore 
the evidence cited in T.D. ATF-407 remains accurate.
    The proposed alignment of the San Francisco Bay and Central Coast 
boundaries with the expanded Livermore Valley boundary is limited to 
Alameda and Contra Costa Counties. These counties encompass the Central 
Coast's northeastern region and the San Francisco Bay's eastern region, 
as noted on the USGS maps and by the written boundary descriptions. 
While the aligned boundaries for both the San Francisco Bay and Central 
Coast viticultural areas would expand eastward, they would do so in a 
limited manner, and the boundaries remain true to the 1999 T.D. ATF-407 
regional definitions for both viticultural areas.
    In sum, the name recognition for the affected portions of Alameda 
and Contra Costa Counties continues as the San Francisco Bay area and 
the larger Central Coast area, as documented in T.D. ATF-407. Also, the 
distinguishing boundary and climatic characteristics, as described in 
T.D. ATF-407, including the cooling marine influences from the Pacific 
Ocean and San Francisco Bay and the natural boundary of the Diablo 
Range, apply equally to the proposed expansion area.

Notice of Proposed Rulemaking

    On May 19, 2005, TTB published a notice of proposed rulemaking 
regarding the proposed expansion of the San Francisco Bay and Central 
Coast viticultural areas in the Federal Register (70 FR 28870) as 
Notice No. 44. In that notice, TTB requested comments by July 18, 2005, 
from all interested persons. We received no comments in response to 
that notice.

TTB Finding

    After careful review of the petition, TTB finds that the evidence 
submitted supports the expansion of the two proposed viticultural areas 
as requested in the petition. Therefore, under the authority of the 
Federal Alcohol Administration Act and part 4 of our regulations, we 
amend our regulations to expand the boundaries of the San Francisco Bay 
and Central Coast viticultural areas in Alameda and Contra Costa 
Counties, California, effective 30 days from the publication date of 
this document.

Boundary Description

    See the narrative boundary descriptions of the expanded 
viticultural areas in the amended regulatory texts published at the end 
of this document.

Maps

    The petitioner provided the required maps, and we list them below 
in the proposed regulatory text.

Impact on Current Wine Labels

    The expansion of the San Francisco Bay and Central Coast 
viticultural areas does not affect currently approved wine labels. The 
expansions may allow additional vintners to use ``San Francisco Bay'' 
and ``Central Coast'' as appellations 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 eligible to use as an appellation of origin 
the name of a viticultural area specified in part 9 of the TTB 
regulations, at least 85 percent of the grapes used to make the wine 
must have been grown within the area represented by that name, 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 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 these regulations will not have a significant 
economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. These 
regulations impose 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, 58 FR 51735. 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 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 9.75 is amended by revising the introductory text of 
paragraph (b), removing the word ``and'' at the end of paragraph 
(b)(40), replacing the period with a semicolon at the end of paragraph 
(b)(41), adding new paragraphs (b)(42) and (b)(43), and revising 
paragraphs (c)(10) through (c)(16) to read as follows:


Sec.  9.75  Central Coast.

* * * * *
    (b) Approved maps. The approved maps for determining the boundary 
of the Central Coast viticultural area are the following 43 United 
States Geological Survey topographic maps:
* * * * *
    (42) Midway, California, scale 1:24,000, dated 1953, Photorevised 
1980; and
    (43) Cedar Mtn., California, scale 1:24,000, dated 1956, 
Photorevised 1971; minor revision 1994.
    (c) * * *
* * * * *
    (10) Then proceed southeast in a straight line approximately 1.8 
miles to BM 720 in Section 21, Township 2 South, Range 3 East. 
(Altamont Quadrangle)
    (11) Then proceed south-southeast approximately 1 mile to an 
unnamed 1,147-foot peak in Section 28, Township

[[Page 34525]]

2 South, Range 3 East. (Altamont Quadrangle)
    (12) Then proceed south-southwest in a straight line approximately 
1.1 miles to the intersection of the eastern boundary of Section 32 
with Highway 580, Township 2 South, Range 3 East. (Altamont Quadrangle)
    (13) Then proceed south-southeast in a straight line approximately 
2.7 miles to BM 1602 in Patterson Pass in Section 10, Township 3 South, 
Range 3 East. (Altamont Quadrangle)
    (14) Then proceed south-southeast in a straight line approximately 
2.8 miles to BM 1600, adjacent to Tesla Road in Section 26. (Midway 
Quadrangle)
    (15) Then proceed south in a straight line approximately 4.2 miles 
to BM 1878, 40 feet north of Mines Road, in Section 14, Township 4 
South, Range 3 East. (Cedar Mtn. Quadrangle)
    (16) Then proceed west-southwest in a straight line approximately 
4.2 miles to the southeast corner of Section 19, Township 4 South, 
Range 3 East. (Mendenhall Springs Quadrangle)
* * * * *

0
3. Section 9.157 is amended by revising the introductory text of 
paragraph (b), removing the word ``and'' at the end of paragraph 
(b)(41), replacing the period with a semicolon followed by the word 
``and'' at the end of paragraph (b)(42), adding a new paragraph 
(b)(43), and revising paragraphs (c)(13) through (c)(18) to read as 
follows:


Sec.  9.157  San Francisco Bay.

* * * * *
    (b) Approved maps. The appropriate maps for determining the 
boundary of the San Francisco Bay viticultural area are 43 United 
States Geological Survey topographic maps. They are titled:
* * * * *
    (43) Cedar Mtn., California, scale 1:24,000, dated 1956, 
Photorevised 1971; Minor Revision 1994.
    (c) * * *
* * * * *
    (13) Then proceed northeast in a straight line approximately 3.2 
miles to BM 1878 in Section 14 on the Cedar Mtn. Quadrangle.
    (14) Then proceed north in a straight line approximately 4.2 miles 
to BM 1600 adjacent to Tesla Road in Section 26, Township 3 South, 
Range 3 East on the Midway Quadrangle.
    (15) Then proceed north-northwest in a straight line approximately 
2.8 miles to Patterson Pass, BM 1602, in Section 10, Township 3 South, 
Range 3 East, on the Altamont Quadrangle.
    (16) Then proceed north-northwest in a straight line approximately 
2.7 miles to the intersection of the eastern boundary of Section 32 
with Highway 580 in Township 2 South, Range 3 East.
    (17) Then proceed north-northeast in a straight line approximately 
1.1 miles to an unnamed peak, elevation 1147, in Section 28, Township 2 
South, Range 3 East.
    (18) Then proceed north-northwest in a straight line approximately 
1 mile to BM 720 in Section 21, Township 2 South, Range 3 East, and 
proceed northwest in a straight line approximately 1.8 miles to the 
northeast corner of Section 18 on the Byron Hot Springs Quadrangle, 
Township 2 South, Range 3 East.
* * * * *

    Dated: April 25, 2006.
John J. Manfreda,
Administrator.
    Approved: May 25, 2006.
Timothy E. Skud,
Deputy Assistant Secretary (Tax, Trade, and Tariff Policy).
[FR Doc. E6-9364 Filed 6-14-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4810-31-P