legal
Bottled in bond
A US labelling term for spirits of one class and type, distilled by one distiller at one distillery in a single distilling season, stored at least four years in wood, reduced only with pure water, and bottled at exactly 50% ABV. The label must show the distillery's name and the DSP numbers of the distilling and bottling plants.
Where it is defined
27 CFR 5.88; 'distilling season' defined at 27 CFR 5.1
Often confused with 'in bond' in the UK sense
US bottled-in-bond is a standard of composition and strength. UK 'in bond' means only that duty has not yet been paid.
Worth knowing
Nothing in §5.88 requires bourbon — rye, wheat, malt and even gin and vodka can be bottled in bond. Government supervision of bonded warehouses ended in 1980; the term survives purely as a labelling standard.
Related terms
Last reviewed 2026-07-30 · All glossary terms