bottled in bond is a term that indicates a spirit (typically whisky) meets certain US legal requirements, originally established by the Bottled-in-Bond Act of 1897, which protected consumers against inferior and adulterated products made by rectifiers and other purveyors. Although the legislation has since undergone some revisions, it still guarantees that any spirit labeled as “bottled in bond” is made up of a single type of liquor, produced in a single distilling season by a single distiller, aged in wood for at least four years, and unadulterated except for the addition of pure water to lower the alcohol volume to the required bottling strength of 100 proof.
See also bottles, labeling, and packaging.
US National Archives and Records Administration. Code of Federal Regulations, Title 27. Alcohol, Tobacco Products and Firearms. 2015.
By: David Mahoney