commerce
Official bottling (OB)
No legal definition
A release by the distillery or its brand owner, as opposed to an independent bottling; usually the core range plus limited and distillery-exclusive editions.
Not a legal term
No whisky regulation in Scotland, Ireland, the United States, the EU or Japan defines this. It is a trade or marketing term, so it is only actionable if its use is actively misleading.
Worth knowing
OBs are typically consistent by design — vatted from many casks, often coloured and chill filtered, frequently reduced to 40–46% ABV — while independents more often bottle single casks at cask strength. Neither status implies quality, only who made the bottling decision.
Related terms
Last reviewed 2026-07-30 · All glossary terms