On Wednesday, February 24th, TTB issued a final rule in the Federal Register establishing a new American Viticultural Area (AVA) called Lamorinda Viticultural Area. The new AVA contains 29,369 acres in Contra Costa County, California and is entirely within the established (and larger) San Francisco Bay and Central Coast AVAs. The original petition was submitted to TTB by Patrick L. Shabram, on behalf of the Lamorinda Wine Growers Association, and proposed the establishment of the “Lamorinda” AVA. The proposed AVA contains 46 commercial vineyards. The final rule is effective March 25, 2016.
The petition submitted by Mr. Shabram noted the distinguishing features include topography, geology, soil, and climate, such as the following:
- The terrain of the Lamorinda is composed of moderate-to-steep hills with narrow valleys. Such steep hills prevent the use of machinery for vineyard work and instead require work to be done by hand.
- The hilly terrain results in disparate levels of sunlight at different elevations, which makes Lamorinda suitable for both cool- and warm-climate varietals.
- Lamorinda contains steeper and more rugged terrain than areas to the south and west and lower and flatter plains than areas to the north and east. Lamorinda also appears to be more suburban, which contrasts to the urban areas to the east and west.
- The dominant geological formation in Lamorinda is the Orinda Formation, which attributes the clay-rich soils.
- Climate in the Lamorinda AVA is warmer than that of surrounding areas.
The proposed rule was published by TTB in the Federal Register on April 14, 2015 and received a total of 12 comments. All 12 comments were in support of establishing this proposed AVA, and many comments emphasized the strong community awareness and support in the establishment of the Lamorinda AVA. See comments here.
Establishing new AVAs is just one of the many authorities of TTB. 27 CFR Part 4 empowers TTB to create and establish viticultural areas, as well as regulate the use of their names as appellations of origin. 27 CFR Part 9 talks specifically about the process required to establish new AVAs, such as the preparation and submissions of petitions for establishing new or modifying current AVAs.
For more information on wine or alcohol law, AVAs, or TTB matters, please contact Lindsey Zahn.
DISCLAIMER: This blog post is for general information purposes only, is not intended to constitute legal advice, and no attorney-client relationship results. Please consult your own attorney for legal advice.