TTB Adds Additional Standards of Fill for Wine and Distilled Spirits

POSTED BY Theresa Barton Cray

On January 10, 2025, the U.S. Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) published a final rule in the Federal Register approving new standards of fill (i.e., permitted container sizes) for wine and distilled spirits products.

In its latest round of rulemaking, TTB considered eliminating the standards of fill for wine and distilled spirits entirely (as it did back in 2020). However, TTB ultimately declined to eliminate the standards of fill, citing industry concern for consumer confusion and market disruption, and opted instead to add substantially to the list of expressly approved standards of fill.

In fact, the final rule more than doubled the number of authorized standards of fill for both wine and distilled spirits, adding 13 new standards of fill for wine and 15 for distilled spirits. As a result, wine and distilled spirits products may now be sold in 25 different container sizes (new sizes in bold):

Wine:
3 L, 2.25 L, 1.8 L, 1.5 L, 1 L, 750 mL, 720 mL, 700 mL, 620 mL, 600 mL, 568 mL, 550 mL, 500 mL, 473 mL, 375 mL, 360 mL, 355 mL, 330 mL, 300 mL, 250 mL, 200 mL, 187 mL, 180 mL, 100 mL, and 50 mL.

Distilled Spirits:
3.75 L, 3 L, 2 L, 1.8 L, 1.75 L, 1.5 L, 1 L, 945 mL, 900 mL, 750 mL, 720 mL, 710 mL, 700 mL, 570 mL, 500 mL, 475 mL, 375 mL, 355 mL, 350 mL, 331 mL, 250 mL, 200 mL, 187 mL, 100 mL, and 50 mL

In addition to the specific standards of fill listed above, wine can continue to be bottled in containers larger than 4 L if such containers are filled and labeled in quantities of whole liters (e.g., 4 L, 5 L, 6 L).

The final rule also eliminated the distinction between standards of fill for distilled spirits in cans and those for distilled spirits in containers other than cans, thereby approving the standards of fill listed above for all distilled spirits products, regardless of packaging.

A wider range of container sizes (and packaging materials for distilled spirits) provides manufacturers, bottlers, and importers with additional flexibility in production and sourcing, and results in greater purchasing options for consumers. We expect this rule to have a notable impact in the increasingly popular ready-to-drink (RTD) cocktail space with the elimination of the distilled spirits packaging distinction and significant increase in the variety of available container sizes.

The final rule, which took effect immediately upon publication, can be read in its entirety here.

For any specific questions, please reach out to Bahaneh Hobel or Theresa Barton Cray.