Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/590181
w w w. v w m m e d i a . c o m N o v - D e c 2 015 | V I N E YA R D & W I N E RY M A N A G E M E N T 8 7 Livermore and Monterey for over a century. Losing precious poten- tial vineyard land to development was not in their best interest, nor in the interest of the resurgent wine industry. ENTER THE SOUTH LIVERMORE PLAN And so, the South Livermore Plan came to be. It was champi- oned in large part by the Wente family, and rolled out in 1993. The plan essentially was a mitiga- tion against suburban density. It required one acre of agricultural land to be cultivated with vineyards or orchards for each acre urbanized. Also, one acre of new crop must be planted for every new home con- structed. So, for every five houses built on an acre, six acres of land must be preserved. The plan, which encompasses approximately 8,000 acres, had a stated goal of increasing Liver- m o r e 's v i n e y a r d a c r e a g e f r o m 2,100 acres to a minimum of 5,000. Key to the plan was the require- ment that all newly developed acre- age be placed under permanent agricultural easement. SIDE EFFECTS Most of the mitigation land took the form of back- or front-yard vine- yards, and most of these were installed and managed by the Wen- tes. They chose the rootstocks, the varieties (primarily Merlot), the clones, the trellising and the irriga- As a result, the Tri-Valley Con- servancy (TVC) currently has more than 4,000 vineyard acres in con- servation easements on 100 differ- ent properties. The TVC protects natural resources and helps sup- port the agricultural economy of the Tri-Valley area. + Livermore Valley has avoid- ed overdevelopment with judicious land use policies, including the South Liver- more Plan. + Critics of the plan say the planting of "mitigation vineyards" by homeowners created a false economy. + Driven by input from a new crop of forward-thinking winemakers, viticulture practices are changing to enhance wine quality. + Livermore Valley grape prices are not keeping pace with the increase in bottle prices for acclaimed Liver- more wines. AT A GLANCE The winemaker and the tin capsule maker share a similar aspiration: to transform a raw element into a refined and elegant product. The worlds of these artisans merge when you choose PURE TIN® to crown your most valued bottles. Pure tin capsules dress exceptional wines with precision and elegance, providing a powerful statement of quality at every level. recious resources to brands of distinction P