Bottled in bond

Bottled in bond refers to American-made whiskey that has been aged and bottled according to a set of legal stipulations contained in the United States government's Standards of Identity for Distilled Spirits (27 C.F.R. 5.21, et. seq.), as originally laid out in the Bottled-in-Bond Act of 1897

To be labeled as "Bottled-in-Bond" or "Bonded," the whiskey must be straight whiskey that is the product of one distillation season and one distiller at one distillery. It must have been stored (i.e., aged) in a federally bonded warehouse under U.S. government supervision for at least four years and bottled at 100 (U.S.) proof (50% alcohol by volume). The bottled product's label must identify the distillery (by DSP number) where it was distilled and, if different, where it was bottled.

The Bottled-in-Bond Act made the United States government the guarantor of the whiskey's authenticity. Although without assurance of quality, "bottled-in-bond" whiskey came to be regarded as "the good stuff."

History of the Bottled-in-Bond Act

The primary purpose of the Bottled-in-Bond Act of 1897 was to guarantee that the product the consumer was buying was really whiskey, according to a standardized definition. To ensure compliance, Treasury agents were assigned to control access to so-called bonded warehouses at the distilleries.

Prior to the Act's passage, much of the whiskey sold as "straight whiskey" was anything but. So much of it was adulterated in the name of greed - flavored and colored with iodine, tobacco, and other substances - that a group of reputable whiskey distillers, led by Colonel Edmund Haynes Taylor, Jr. (creator of Old Taylor bourbon), joined with then Secretary of the Treasury John G. Carlisle to fight for the Bottled-in-Bond Act.

To this day, some consumers consider the term as an endorsement of quality, but many producers consider it archaic and do not use it, even on products that qualify for the designation. However, since bottled-in-bond whiskey must be the product of one distillation season, one distillery and one distiller, whereas ordinary straight whiskey may be a product of the mingling of straight whiskeys of differing ages and producers, it can be regarded as a better indication of the distiller's skill.

The types of American whiskey typically labeled as "Bonds" are Bourbon whiskey, rye whiskey, and corn whiskey.

References

Carson, Gerald. "The Social History of Bourbon", (The University Press of Kentucky, 1984)