Bourbon Whiskey - Legal Requirements

Legal Requirements

Bourbon's legal definition varies somewhat from country to country, but many trade agreements require the name bourbon to be reserved for products made in the United States. The U.S. regulations for labeling and advertising bourbon apply only to products made for consumption within the United States; they do not apply to distilled spirits made for export. Canadian law requires products labeled bourbon to be made in the United States and to also conform to the requirements that apply within the United States. But in countries other than the United States and Canada, products labeled bourbon may not adhere to the same standards. European Union regulations require bourbon-labeled products to be made in the United States, but do not require them to conform to all of the requirements that apply within the United States.

The Federal Standards of Identity for Distilled Spirits (27 C.F.R. 5) state that bourbon made for U.S. consumption must be:

• made from a grain mixture that is at least 51% corn;
• aged in new, charred-oak barrels;
• distilled to no more than 160 (U.S.) proof (80% alcohol by volume);
• entered into the barrel for aging at no more than 125 proof (62.5% alcohol by volume); and be
• bottled (like other whiskeys) at 80 proof or more (40% alcohol by volume).

Bourbon has no minimum specified duration for its aging period. Products aged for as little as three months are sold as bourbon.

Bourbon that meets the above requirements, has been aged for a minimum of two years, and does not have added coloring, flavoring, or other spirits may (but is not required to) be called straight bourbon.

• Bourbon that is labeled as straight that has been aged under four years must be labeled with the duration of its aging.
• Bourbon that has an age stated on its label must be labeled with the age of the youngest whiskey in the bottle (not counting the age of any added neutral grain spirits in a bourbon that is labeled as blended, as neutral-grain spirits are not considered whiskey under the regulations and are not required to be aged at all).

Bourbon that is labeled blended (or as ‘a blend’) may contain added coloring, flavoring, and other spirits (such as un-aged neutral grain spirits); but at least 51% of the product must be straight bourbon.

Whiskey sold as Tennessee whiskey is also defined as bourbon under NAFTA and at least one other international trade agreement, and is required to meet the legal definition of bourbon under Canadian law, but some Tennessee whiskey makers do not label their product as bourbon and insist that it is a different type of whiskey when marketing their product.