🥃What does Bottled-In-Bond Whiskey mean and Why do we Love it So Much?

As detailed in the Bottled-in-Bond Act of 1897, the term "bonded" means that an American-produced distilled meets a number of quality requirements. Such a liquid must:

Be the product of one distillation season (January-June or July-December) and one Distillery
Be aged in a federally bonded warehouse for AT LEAST 4 years
Be at least 50% alcohol, 100 proof

Additionally, the label must identify the distillery where it was distilled and, if different, where bottled.

At the time, there was a significant need for quality control over bourbon. Much of the whiskey sold at the time as adulterated by tobacco, iodine, or other substances to influence both taste and color. The Bottled-In-Bond act created a tax incentive for producers to meat these requirements by allowing them to delay the payment of excise taxes.

You can view the current regulation text here: Title 27

Comparison to Straight Whiskey

The term "Straight Whiskey" is also regulated by law and has the following requirements:

Distilled from fermented grain mash to a concentration not exceeding 80% alcohol by volume
Aged in new charred oak barrels for at least two years at no greater than 62.5% entry concentration
Bottled at 80 proof or higher

Manufactures are only allowed batch whiskies from different barrels/distilleries, chill filtering, and adding water to reduce the proof. If aged for less than four years, the label must state the actual age of the product. Lastly, if an age is presented on the label, it must be the youngest vintage in the bottle.

Coloring of straight whiskey is forbidden. Blended whiskeys can have coloring or gain alcohol components but must still be at least 20% straight whiskey.

A horse makes whiskey at a still in the workshop

Applied to Bourbon

Believe it or not, the term "Bourbon" also has legal requirements:

Must be produced in the US or is Territories
Made from a grain mix of at least 51% corn distilled to no more than 80% AB. It'
Aged in new charred oak barrels for at least two years at no greater than 62.5% entry concentration
Bottled at 80 proof or higher

Note that there is no minimum age for bourbon but it must be all of the conditions of straight whiskey to be called "Straight Bourbon". Also, it does not have to be distilled or aged in Kentucky, though most bourbon is.

Bottled-in-Bond Today

Two Whiskey Glasses glimmer in the light on a hardwood table

While some consider the "Bonded" moniker archaic as many producers meet and exceed all but the bonded warehouse requirement, Bottled-In-Bond offerings remain a favorite of Whiskey enjoyers everywhere. Much like the German beer purity laws, bonded whiskey is part of the cultural tapestry of the US. Many bonded bourbons are priced aggressively as everyman's drinks due to their traditional market fits and branding. For the money, consumers get a relatively strong pour with assurances as to minimum age and quality. It is my suspicion that producers also are reluctant to significantly tamper with the quality of offerings going back more than 100 years with the upside that many of these budget friendly offerings retain their historic quality.

A few Good Bottles

Evan Williams Bottled-in-Bond - My favorite daily driver. One of the stores near me has 1.75L bottles for $26, truly unbeatable. This may be the best cost to quality indexed bottle of whiskey in the world. Check out our Evan Williams Bottled-In-Bond review here.
Heaven Hill Bottled-in-Bond - Formerly a six year old budget bottle, Heaven Hill now releases this bonded whiskey at 7 years age statement for around $45. A favorite of many! I'm just sad to see the extra year costing us more than double versus the legacy offering.
Mellow Corn - Corn Whiskey with a meme culture following. It won't be the best thing you've ever tasted but it's solid and there are few things like it on the market. Nostalgic branding to boot.
Old Fitzgerald - Heaven Hill puts out this premium offering a few times per year and people seek them out for the fancy decanter bottle. Expect to pay for this super premium bonded offering.

🥃Review #15 Costco's Kirkland Small Batch Bourbon

Costco's liquor store is a thing of beauty. While not every Kirkland edition is a hit, there are enough standouts on a fun per dollar ratio to always merit a look. Almost all of the house brands are less than $30, and I'm always excited to take a long shot when the new seasonal releases come around. 📚 Background: Distilled by Barton 1792 in Bardstown Kentucky, Kirkland Small Batch Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey hits the shelves a few times a year. Mine was from batch 1124. The bottle presentation is supposed to evoke the same feel as other small batch whiskeys and there is a decorative purity seal that is reminiscent of the ever reliable bottled in bond green filigree, albeit in a meaningless red. Unlike its bonded brethren, this edition comes in under 100 proof and does not have any age statement. There's not a whole lot of additional information provided by Costco or the distiller, but we can reasonably assume that it shares a similar pedigree as the entry level 1792...

🥃Review #53: Costco's Kirkland 15YR Highland Single Malt Scotch - 2025

The 2025 release of Costco's Kirkland 15-year Highland Scotch hit shelves in late January and is a recurring installment on an annual cadence. The first pallet to hit my local store sold out almost immediately. Thankfully, we got two more shipments at one pallet each that hung around a bit longer and I was able to snag a bottle. Like in previous years, this Highland Scotch is finished in sherry casks. Alexander Murray & Co. is the bottler with MISA imports out of Texas bringing it to the States for consumption (Costco's standard sourcing pattern for Scotch). The bottle has a nice heft to it and there is an ensconced Alexander Murray Lion adding some nice texture to the front of the bottle. Steve Lipp, CEO of Alexander Murray, calls it "Perfect for after dinner drinking." All-in-all, this shows an attempt to elevate the product and presentation from the ubiquitous blends and non-age stated iterations you'll sometimes find under the Kirkland label. Neither Alex...

☕ All Java Monster Flavors Tasted & Ranked

As a habitual caffeine abuser, I have a soft spot for Monster, both for their expansive lineup of flavors as well as their support for Sports and E-sports. Coffee is my standard caffeination vector, so the Java Monster suite of products is the perfect mix of bean flavor and energy boost. In this post, I'll provide my personal rankings and rationale for what is a very strong lineup. Note that I have not been compensated in any way for this write-up... I just like them. Currently, Monster Energy 's Java Monster lineup has five available flavors: Mean Bean - Vanilla Irish Crème Loca Mocha - Chocolate Salted Caramel Café Latte There are two "triple shot" versions of the Vanilla and Mocha which contain 300mg of caffeine though their flavors are very similar to the base versions above. At this point, we should also take a moment of silence for the two cold brew flavors, sweet black and nitro latte. The nitro latte was a personal favorite and I quite liked the sweet black,...

🥃Review #29: Costco's Kirkland Blended Canadian Whisky - Is it Crown Royal?

Awarded 91 points and a gold medal by the Beverage Tasting Institute, Kirkland Canadian Whisky is known a great value and many in the popular culture have alleged that it is repackaged Crown Royal due to its relative quality for the price. But is it? 📚 Background: Kirkland first introduced their line of spirits in the 1990s and has expanded their offerings over time. While I wasn't able to find a first release date for this product, the first TTB label in the COLA database is from 2016. The whisky is imported for Costco by Wide World Importers in Louisville Kentucky. Digging a bit further reveals that Wide World Importers is an alternative name for SAZERAC . For me, this conclusively busts the popular myth that Kirkland Canadian is made by Crown Royal (a Diageo property). Sazerac has a number of Canadian Whisky brands in-house, including: Rich & Rare Reserve ($19.99 for 1.75L - No Age Statement), Seagram's VO ($22.99 for 1.75L - Aged Six Years),...

🍺 Definitive Light Beer Tier List: Meta-Analysis & Ranking

Trends come and go: Craft Beer, Hard Seltzer, Canned Cocktails, and more. In the world of beverage, the currents are constantly shifting, but one drink has an irrevocable grip on America: Light Beer. Good old beer flavored beer may take a hit from new competition, but brands like Miller Lite and Michelob Ultra constantly sit at the top of sales volume lists, even with the fall of Bud Light and rise of Modelo's Flagship. But which light beer is best? Let's find out. Methodology - Light Beer Ranking Taste preferences vary significantly between consumers, but across a large sample we should be able to get a somewhat representative picture of the populations preferences. For this ranking, we will combine data sourced from multiple beer rating sites with an internal Castle & Cairn house ranking to create an overall beer quality score. The starting population of beer brands will be those that are explicitly branded as "flagship light" or beers with less than 100 calor...

Castle & Cairn

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