Source: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2015/02/09/2015-02552/use-of-american-viticultural-area-names-as-appellations-of-origin-on-wine-labels
Timestamp: 2019-10-14 08:05:22
Document Index: 452445005

Matched Legal Cases: ['§\u20094', '§\u20094', '§\u20094', '§\u20094', '§\u20094', '§\u20094', '§\u20094', '§\u20094']

Federal Register :: Use of American Viticultural Area Names as Appellations of Origin on Wine Labels
A Proposed Rule by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau on 02/09/2015
6931-6934 (4 pages)
1513-AC13
TTB-2015-0003
https://www.federalregister.gov/d/2015-02552 https://www.federalregister.gov/d/2015-02552
You may view copies of this proposed rule and any comments that TTB receives about this proposal at http://www.regulations.gov within Docket No. TTB-2015-0003. A link to that docket is posted on the TTB Web site at http://www.ttb.gov/​wine/​wine-rulemaking.shtml under Notice No. 147. You also may view copies of this proposed rule and any comments that TTB receives about this proposal by appointment at the TTB Information Resource Center, 1310 G Street NW., Washington, DC 20005. Please call 202-453-2270 to make an appointment.
Section 4.25(b)(1) of the TTB regulations (27 CFR 4.52(b)(1)), in part, sets forth the requirements for labeling an American wine with a State name as an appellation of origin. For a wine labeled with a State appellation of origin, at least 75 percent of the wine must be derived from fruit or agricultural products grown in the State used as the appellation, and the wine must be fully finished in either the Start Printed Page 6932labeled State or in an adjacent State. In the case of multi-State appellations of origin, which may consist of two or three contiguous States, § 4.25(d)(1) requires that all the fruit or other agricultural products used in the wine be grown in the States indicated in the appellation and that the wine must be fully finished within one of those States. Wine is considered to be “fully finished” if it is ready to be bottled, except that cellar treatment and blending that does not result in an alteration of class and type is still permitted.
TTB has determined that the concerns raised in the comments on Notice No. 142 have merit. TTB acknowledges that the current regulations would allow wine that is fully finished in Washington and made primarily from grapes grown within The Rocks District of Milton-Freewater AVA to be labeled only with the less specific “Walla Walla Valley,” “Columbia Valley,” or “Oregon” appellations of origin. TTB notes that the purpose of the AVA program is to provide consumers with additional information on the wines they may purchase by allowing vintners to describe more accurately the origin of the grapes used in the wine. Therefore, TTB is proposing to amend its regulations at § 4.25(e)(3)(iv) to allow wines that meet the requirements of § 4.25(e)(3)(i) and (ii) to be labeled with a single-State AVA name as an appellation of origin if the wine was fully finished either within the State in which the AVA is located or within an adjacent State.
TTB believes that vintners, grape growers, and consumers would benefit from the removal of the requirement in § 4.25(e)(3)(iv) that wines labeled with an AVA appellation of origin be fully finished within the same State as the AVA. Vintners would have a greater choice in both where they fully finish their wines and what appellation of origin they use. Grape growers within a single-State AVA may have more buyers for their grapes if vintners in adjacent States are allowed to label their wines with the AVA name. Finally, consumers would have a more accurate idea of the origin of the grapes in their wine if vintners who fully finish their wine in a State adjacent to the State where the AVA is located were able to label their wines with a more specific single-State AVA appellation of origin, such as The Start Printed Page 6933Rocks District of Milton-Freewater, rather than a less specific State appellation of origin, such as Oregon, or even a broader multi-State appellation of origin, such as Columbia Valley.
TTB does not believe that the proposed amendment will cause consumer confusion. Section 4.25(b)(1)(ii) allows wines eligible for labeling with a State appellation of origin to be fully finished in an adjacent State. Section 4.25(e)(3)(iv) only requires wine labeled with any AVA appellation of origin to have been fully finished somewhere within the State in which the AVA is located, not within the AVA itself. Additionally, § 4.25(e)(3)(iv) currently allows wines eligible for labeling with a multi-State appellation of origin to be fully finished within any one of the States in which the AVA is located, not just within the State in which the grapes were grown. Since the promulgation of the appellation of origin regulations, TTB is not aware of any reported instances in which the regulations regarding the fully finishing of wine in an adjacent State resulted in consumer confusion relating to the origin of the wine or grapes. Therefore, TTB believes consumers are aware that the appellation of origin on a wine label is a statement of the origin of the grapes used to make the wine, and it would not be misleading or confusing to consumers if a wine labeled with a single-State AVA appellation of origin was actually fully finished in an adjacent State.
Therefore, for the reasons discussed above, TTB is proposing to amend its regulations to allow wines that meet the requirements of § 4.25(e)(3)(i) and (ii) to be labeled with a single-State AVA appellation of origin if the wine is fully finished either within the State in which the AVA is located or an adjacent State. If adopted, this amendment would bring the requirements for using a single-State AVA appellation of origin more in line with the requirements for using a State appellation of origin. This change would give grape growers and wine makers within a single-State AVA greater flexibility and more options in producing and marketing their products, options that are currently available to growers and wine makers within multi-State AVAs and those who use State appellations of origin. Additionally, the amendment would enable wine producers to provide consumers with more specific information on the origin of the grapes used to make the wine.
Federal e-Rulemaking Portal: You may send comments via the online comment form posted with this proposed rule within Docket No. TTB-2015-0003 on “Regulations.gov,” the Federal e-rulemaking portal, at http://www.regulations.gov. A direct link to that docket is available under Notice No. 147 on the TTB Web site at http://www.ttb.gov/​wine/​wine-rulemaking.shtml. Supplemental files may be attached to comments submitted via Regulations.gov. For complete instructions on how to use Regulations.gov, visit the site and click on the “Help” tab.
All submitted comments and attachments are part of the public record and subject to disclosure. Do not Start Printed Page 6934enclose any material in your comments that you consider to be confidential or inappropriate for public disclosure.
TTB will post, and you may view, copies of this proposed rule and any online or mailed comments received about this proposal within Docket No. TTB-2015-0003 on the Federal e-rulemaking portal, Regulations.gov, at http://www.regulations.gov. A direct link to that docket is available on the TTB Web site at http://www.ttb.gov/​wine/​wine-rulemaking.shtml under Notice No. 147. You may also reach the relevant docket through the Regulations.gov search page at http://www.regulations.gov. For information on how to use Regulations.gov, click on the site's “Help” tab.
2. Section 4.25 is amended by revising paragraph (e)(3)(iv) to read as follows:
(iv) In the case of American wine, it has been fully finished (except for cellar treatment pursuant to § 4.22(c), and blending which does not result in an alteration of class and type under § 4.22(b)) within the State the viticultural area is located in or an adjacent State, or, for a viticultural area located in two or more contiguous States, within one of the States in which the viticultural area is located.