EATS

These are proposed changes to the ways American Viticulture Appellations, or AVAs, are granted through the U.S. Treasury's Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB for short).

An AVA is a grape-growing area with unique features. Carneros. Napa Valley. Texas Hill Country. Bell Mountain. There are just under 200 nationwide, with more than 100 in California.

Rule No. 77 (briefly): Let's say a winery calls itself a geographic name. (The case that brings this up concerns Calistoga Cellars.) Then the winemakers and growers in the area apply for an AVA. (Say, a Calistoga AVA.) Even though neither Calistoga Cellars' grapes nor its wine come from Calistoga, rule No. 77 would grandfather the winery's name after the AVA was established.

This, opponents say, would undermine the AVA and the public's right to know where the grapes and wine really come from. There could be a disclaimer on the label, one more thing you'd have to look for.

Rule No. 78 (briefly): This one's even more troubling. It could, in effect, eliminate the practice of "nesting" AVAs. How's that? Within the Napa Valley AVA, there are a bunch of smaller AVAs, such as Rutherford, Howell Mountain and Atlas Peak.

Under the new rule, a winery could be forced to use only the more specific AVA. So you'd see only Rutherford, no Napa Valley, or only Bell Mountain, no Texas Hill Country. I don't know about you, but I don't know where every appellation in America is. This would make it harder to understand grape- and wine-sourcing, especially for people just learning. This rule could also require that a certain percentage of acres be devoted to grape cultivation before an area could apply to become an AVA, a hardship for developing AVAs.

The Napa Valley Vintners wine trade organization understably opposes both proposed rules. The members also note that No. 78 would be at odds with international appellation practices as well as California law. They want the federal government to withdraw the rules; they say the TTB already has the authority to deal with these issues. (The California Senate recently passed a measure opposing the rules.)

That's the bare-bones synopsis. If you're interested in learning more, read Wine Spectator and Alan Goldfarb's stories on appellationamerica.com. Beyond that, Google will guide you.

The feds are looking for up-down comments on the rules themselves as well as the details. They've heard from the industry. Now they need to hear from consumers. Add you views for No. 77 and No. 78 before March 20.