[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 38 (Monday, February 26, 2001)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 11540-11542]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-4646]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms
27 CFR Part 9
[T.D. ATF-441; RE: Notice No. 898]
RIN: 1512-AA07
Realignment of the Boundary of the Walla Walla Valley
Viticultural Area and the Eastern Boundary of the Columbia Valley
Viticultural Area (99R-141P)
AGENCY: Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF), Department of
the Treasury.
ACTION: Final rule, Treasury decision.
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SUMMARY: This final rule extends the boundary of the Walla Walla Valley
viticultural area. This action is the result of petitions filed by
growers and winemakers located within the existing area and in the new
area being added. This final rule also extends the boundary of the
Columbia Valley viticultural area so that it coincides with the
boundary of Walla Walla Valley viticultural area.
The establishment of viticultural areas and the subsequent use of
viticultural area names as appellations of origin in wine labeling and
advertising allow wineries to designate the specific areas where the
grapes used to make the wine were grown and enable consumers to better
identify the wines they purchase.
EFFECTIVE DATE: April 27, 2001.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lisa M. Gesser, Regulations Division,
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, 650 Massachusetts Avenue, NW.,
Washington, DC 20226 (202-927-9347).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
On August 23, 1978, ATF published Treasury Decision ATF-53 (43 FR
37672, 54624) revising regulations in 27 CFR part 4. These regulations
allow the establishment of defined American viticultural areas. The
regulations also allow the name of an approved viticultural area to be
used as an appellation of origin in the labeling and advertising of
wine.
On October 2, 1979, ATF published Treasury Decision ATF-60 (44 FR
56692) which added a new part 9 to 27 CFR, providing for the listing of
approved American viticultural areas. Section 4.25a(e)(1), title 27,
CFR, defines an American viticultural area as a delimited grape-growing
region distinguishable by geographical features, the boundaries of
which have been delineated in subpart C of part 9. Section 4.25a(e)(2)
outlines the procedure for proposing an American viticultural area. Any
interested person may petition ATF to establish a grape-growing region
as a viticultural area. The petition should include:
(a) Evidence that the name of the proposed viticultural area is
locally and/or nationally known as referring to the area specified in
the petition;
(b) Historical or current evidence that the boundaries of the
viticultural area are as specified in the petition;
(c) Evidence relating to the geographical features (climate, soil,
elevation, physical features, etc.) which distinguish the viticultural
features of the proposed area from surrounding areas;
(d) A description of the specific boundaries of the viticultural
area, based on features which can be found on United States Geological
Survey (U.S.G.S.) maps of the largest applicable scale; and
(e) A copy of the appropriate U.S.G.S. map(s) with the boundaries
prominently marked.
Original Designation of the Walla Walla Valley and Columbia Valley
Viticultural Areas
The Walla Walla Valley viticultural area was established by
Treasury Decision (T.D.) ATF-165 on February 6, 1984 (49 FR 4374). The
original petition, filed by the Walla Walla Valley Wine Growers
Association, had requested designation of an area of approximately
300,000 acres. At the time of the original petition, ATF had been
concerned that the total area to be designated was very large in
proportion to the area used for viticulture. ATF and the petitioner
agreed to reduce the size of the proposed area to encompass only the
locations where grapes were being commercially grown. As approved, the
Walla Walla Valley viticultural area consisted of approximately 260,000
acres, and had two wine producers and 60 acres of grapes. The area was
within the counties of Walla Walla in Washington State and Umatilla in
Oregon.
Later, when the Columbia Valley viticultural area was designated
(T.D. ATF-190, November 13, 1984, [49 FR 44895-44899]), the Walla Walla
Valley viticultural area was thought to be entirely within the Columbia
Valley viticultural area. In preparation for the current rulemaking, we
reviewed the maps in question and discovered that there is an area
approximately 3 miles long where the eastern boundary of the Walla
Walla Valley viticultural area extends beyond the eastern boundary of
the Columbia Valley viticultural area.
[[Page 11541]]
See our further discussion under ``Extension of the Columbia Valley
viticultural area.''
Petitions for Extension of the Boundaries of Walla Walla Valley
ATF received a petition from Mr. Gaynor S. Derby of Spring Valley
Vineyards, requesting that the northern boundary of the existing Walla
Walla Valley viticultural area be extended to add approximately 3500
acres to the northeastern part of the approved area. Later, we received
a petition from the Walla Walla Valley Winegrowers, a group
representing 20 wineries and vineyards located within the existing area
or within the area they propose to add. Mr. Norm McKibben of Pepper
Bridge Winery submitted the petition on behalf of the group. The Walla
Walla Valley Winegrowers petitioned to expand the Walla Walla Valley
viticultural area to include all the area requested in the original
petition and additional land to the north. The petitioners referred to
the evidence submitted with the original petition to show geographic
distinctiveness and name recognition. The petitioners also provided
supplemental information. Mr. Derby, who petitioned for a smaller
extension of the existing area, agreed to support the larger extension
proposed by the Walla Walla Valley Winegrowers.
Extension of the Columbia Valley Viticultural Area
This final rule also adjusts the boundary of the Columbia Valley
viticultural area. In the original designation of the Columbia Valley
viticultural area, ATF stated that the Walla Walla Valley viticultural
area was entirely within the Columbia Valley viticultural area. As
noted above, our recent review of the maps disclosed that there is a
small area near Dixie, Washington, where the Walla Walla Valley
viticultural area lies outside the boundaries of the Columbia Valley
viticultural area. This overlap occurs in a place where the official
boundary of the Columbia Valley moves from the 2000 foot contour line
to a state highway. Therefore, we have amended the boundary so it
follows the 2000 foot contour line for an additional 3 miles north, and
then shifts to the state highway as before. This change extends the
common boundary between the two viticultural areas and eliminates the
area of overlap and any resulting confusion.
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking
In response to the petitions, ATF published a notice of proposed
rulemaking, Notice No. 898, in the Federal Register on June 6, 2000 (65
FR 35871), proposing to revise the boundary of the Walla Walla Valley
viticultural area and the eastern boundary of the Columbia Valley
viticultural area. The notice requested comments from all interested
persons by August 7, 2000. ATF received no comments concerning these
proposals.
Evidence of Name
Based on historical materials supplied by petitioners in their
original petition, there is substantial evidence indicating that the
extension to the Walla Walla Valley viticultural area was locally and/
or nationally known as Walla Walla Valley:
(a) The original petition stated that Walla Walla Valley ``has been
known as such since the time of settlement in the 1850's, even prior to
the creation of the states of Oregon and Washington.''
(b) The Walla Walla Winegrowers noted the U.S.G.S. map of Walla
Walla uses the name ``Walla Walla Valley'' to label an area that
corresponds to the original viticultural area and places the name in a
second location to the north of the original boundary, in the extended
area being added.
(c) Mr. Derby quoted Professor W. D. Lyman's History of Walla Walla
County, published in 1901. Professor Lyman described the Walla Walla
Valley as ``a large belt of agricultural land lying south of the Snake
River and west of the Blue Mountains, extending across the Oregon Line
on the south''--a description which fits the expanded area.
Evidence of Boundaries
The boundary of the original Walla Walla Valley viticultural area
was limited to existing grape-growing areas for administrative reasons.
In response to the new petitions, we reconsidered the evidence
submitted in support of the original boundaries. Evidence provided in
the original petition and in the new petitions show that the revised
Walla Walla Valley viticultural area is delineated by boundaries
corresponding to the following natural features:
On the southeast, by the point where the north and south
branches of the Walla Walla River emerge from the mountainous Umatilla
National Forest and join to form the Walla Walla River;
On the north, by the drainage divide between the Walla
Walla River and the Touchet River; and
On the west, where the Walla Walla River empties into the
Columbia River.
Distinguishing Features
According to the original petitioners and the petitioners in the
current rulemaking, the entire Walla Walla Valley shares
characteristics of topography, soil composition and climate that set it
apart from the surrounding area. The evidence in the original petition
was presented as applying to the entire valley, and not just to the
area that ATF originally proposed for designation as the Walla Walla
Valley viticultural area. Therefore, we will summarize the material
that was originally published for comment in ATF Notice No. 471 on June
27, 1983 (48 FR 29541-29543), with the understanding that it applies
equally to the extension of the Walla Walla Valley viticultural area.
We will supplement this information with material supplied by the two
petitions for extension.
In his petition to extend the Walla Walla Valley viticultural area,
Mr. Gaynor S. Derby quoted from an article titled ``Washington Wine and
Dining'' published in the November 15, 1998, issue of Wine Spectator:
Washington state straddles one of the world's great geological
divides: the Cascade Range. To the west of its summits, the maritime
influence of the Pacific is supreme, and copious rains produce lush
evergreen forests. * * * To the east, the damp sea breezes are
blocked, the air warms and vineyards flourish with water provided by
the Columbia River. The result is a growing and dynamic wine region.
* * *
Topography
The original petition quoted the State of Washington's Geology and
Groundwater Resources of the Walla Walla River Basin, Washington-
Oregon, published in 1965, to describe the topography of the area:
``In the Walla Walla River Basin, the main topographic unit is the
valley plain, commonly called the Walla Walla Valley, which de[s]cends
from about 1,500' at the foot of the mountain slopes to about 500'
where the river cuts through the bedrock ridge near Divide. It lies
astride the Oregon/Washington border.''
Like the original approved area, the extension to the Walla Walla
Valley viticultural area ranges from 250 to 600 meters (820 to 1,968
feet) in elevation. It is drained by creeks that generally flow south
and east into the Walla Walla River. North of the new boundary, the
streams and creeks generally drain into the Touchet River, further to
the north.
Soil
The original petition stated that the soils of the valley ``are
classified by the Soil Conservation Service as Soils of Bottom Lands
and Low Terraces, Soils of Loessal Uplands, Soils of Loessal and
[[Page 11542]]
Basaltic Uplands and Soils of Loessal and Lake-Laid Terraces, basically
all loess derived soils.'' Most of these soils are classed as I or II
irrigated capability units by the Soil Conservation Service. By
contrast, the soils west of the Touchet River and along the Snake and
Columbia Rivers are classified as Class IV and VI. Soils to the east in
the Blue Mountains are considered not suitable for cultivation. We note
the areas chosen for soil contrast are outside the expansion to the
area.
Climate
As noted in the original petition, the climate of the Walla Walla
Valley is distinctive because it has a growing season between 190 and
220 days, the longest within the surrounding six counties. The original
petition contrasted places within the Walla Walla Valley with places
outside of the valley. The places chosen for contrast included Dayton,
Prescott, and Eltopia, Washington, all to the north of the northern
extension to the viticultural area.
The Walla Walla Valley receives an average of 12.5 inches of
precipitation a year, light in the summer, increasing and peaking in
the winter. The Columbia Basin to the west and north receives less than
10 inches of precipitation in a year, and the Blue Mountains to the
east and southeast receive 25-45 inches. Again, the places chosen for
contrast are outside the extension of the viticultural area.
Boundaries
This final rule revises the boundary of the Columbia Valley
viticultural area (described in Sec. 9.74) and revises the boundary of
the Walla Walla viticultural area (described in Sec. 9.91).
U.S.G.S. Maps
The Walla Walla Winegrowers provided appropriate U.S.G.S. maps with
their proposed boundaries prominently marked.
Executive Order 12866
It has been determined that this final rule is not a significant
regulatory action as defined in Executive Order 12866. Accordingly,
this final rule is not subject to the analysis required by this
Executive Order.
Regulatory Flexibility Act
It is hereby certified that this regulation will not have a
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities.
Any benefit derived from the use of a viticultural area name is the
result of the proprietor's own efforts and consumer acceptance of wines
from a particular area. No new recordkeeping or reporting requirements
are imposed. Accordingly, a regulatory flexibility analysis is not
required.
Paperwork Reduction Act
The provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C.
3507) and its implementing regulations, 5 CFR part 1320, do not apply
to this final rule because no requirement to collect information is
imposed.
Drafting Information
The principal author of this document is Lisa M. Gesser,
Regulations Division, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.
List of Subjects in 27 CFR Part 9
Administrative practices and procedures, Consumer protection,
Viticultural areas, and Wine.
Authority and Issuance
Title 27, Code of Federal Regulations, part 9, American
Viticultural Areas, is amended as follows:
PART 9--AMERICAN VITICULTURAL AREAS
Paragraph 1. The authority citation for part 9 continues to read as
follows:
Authority: 27 U.S.C. 205.
Par. 2. Section 9.74 is amended by revising paragraphs (c)(43) and
(c)(44) to read as follows:
Sec. 9.74 Columbia Valley.
* * * * *
(c) * * *
(43) Then southwest following Washington Highway 126 and U.S.
Highway 12 through Marengo, Dayton, and Waitsburg to a point where an
unnamed light-duty road leaves Highway 12 in an easterly direction in
Minnick Station, Washington;
(44) Then east following the unnamed light-duty road for
approximately 250 feet until it reaches the 2000' contour line;
* * * * *
Par. 3. Section 9.91 is revised to read as follows:
Sec. 9.91 Walla Walla Valley.
(a) Name. The name of the viticultural area described in this
section is ``Walla Walla Valley.''
(b) Approved maps. The appropriate maps for determining the
boundaries of the Walla Walla Valley viticultural area are two U.S.G.S.
maps, in the scale 1:100,000. They are entitled:
(1) ``Walla Walla,'' Washington-Oregon, 1980
(2) ``Pendleton,'' Oregon-Washington, 1983
(c) Boundaries. The Walla Walla Valley viticultural area is located
within Walla Walla County in Washington State and Umatilla County in
Oregon. It is entirely within the Columbia Valley viticultural area.
The boundaries are as follows:
(1) The beginning point is on the Walla Walla quadrangle map, in
T8N/37E, at the point where the 2,000 foot contour line intersects with
an unnamed light duty road approximately 250 feet east of U.S. Highway
12 in Minnick, Washington (on maps measured in metric units, this
elevation is between the 600 and 650 meter contour lines),
(2) Then the boundary goes northwest in a straight line for 7
kilometers (km), until it intersects with a power line that runs
between T8N and T9N,
(3) Then the boundary follows the power line west for 8 km, where
it diverges from the power line and goes west-southwest in a straight
line for approximately 33 km to the intersection of 2 unnamed light
duty roads in the area marked Ninemile Canyon in the southwest corner
of T8N/R33E,
(4) Then the boundary goes south-southwest in a straight line
approximately 8 km, until it reaches U.S. Highway 12, about 2.5 km east
of Reese, Washington,
(5) Then the boundary goes south in a straight line for
approximately 8 km, crossing the Washington-Oregon state line and
moving onto the Pendleton U.S.G.S. map, where it meets the 450 m
contour line in T6N/R32E, near an unnamed peak with an elevation of 461
m,
(6) Then the boundary follows the 450 m contour line in a generally
southeasterly direction until it intersects Dry Creek in T4N/R35E,
(7) Then the boundary goes southeast along Dry Creek (Oregon) until
it reaches the 2000 foot contour line,
(8) Then the boundary follows the 2000 foot contour line in a
generally northeasterly direction, crossing the Oregon-Washington state
line and returning to the Walla Walla U.S.G.S map, until it reaches the
point of beginning.
Signed: October 31, 2000.
Bradley A. Buckles,
Director .
Approved: November 14, 2000.
Timothy E. Skud,
Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary, Regulatory, Tariff and Trade
Enforcement.
[FR Doc. 01-4646 Filed 2-23-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4810-31-P