Consumers these days are looking for whiskey that has an authentic backstory. It doesn’t matter whether a brand produces its own whiskey or not, as long as they are transparent about it. However, when the craft whiskey boom first began in the United States about 15 years ago, some brands weren’t exactly forthcoming about where their whiskey came from.

For example, a new brand would start up and immediately have aged whiskey on the shelf, somehow claiming they had “produced” it themselves. The most famous example of this was Templeton Rye, which stated on the label that it was made in Iowa when it was actually sourced from MGP in Indiana (which later became the subject of a lawsuit that was settled in 2015).

This reignited a passion for bottled-in-bond whiskeys, which have to be produced at a single distillery during a single distilling season (among a few other stipulations). But most importantly the label has to indicate which distillery actually distilled the whiskey, and where it was bottled if that location is different. Buying bottled-in-bond whiskey became a shortcut to ensure you were buying something of known origin.

The Past and Present of Bottled-in-Bond

The Bottled-in-Bond Act of 1897 was one of the first consumer protection laws in the United States. Before it was passed, it was common for “rectifiers” (people who would buy bulk whiskey to resell) to add things like prune juice, acid, caramelized sugar, oil of menthol, and even tobacco spit to unaged or very young whiskey to make it seem more like an aged whiskey. They did this because waiting around for a whiskey to mature before selling it was costly and they wanted to turn a quick profit.

The Bottled-in-Bond Act assured consumers that the product they had purchased was safe and had not been tampered with. As indicated by the name, bottled-in-bond whiskey had to be bottled, as opposed to being sold out of a barrel which was much easier to tamper with. Those bottles had to be sealed with a tax strip that clearly stated the distilling season and year, as well as when it was bottled. These claims were backed by the federal government, which had agents onsite at all federally bonded warehouses.

“It was purity law, that was one of the biggest things because the doctors wanted that,” says Bernie Lubbers, Heaven Hill brand ambassador emeritus. “The three big cornerstones of bottled-in-bond—you're guaranteed purity, a good age in the barrel (a minimum of four years), and a good strength at 100 proof. One of the laws of bottled-in-bond is transparency so you know exactly who made it. You have to put the name of the distillery or the trade name on the bottle. They're not only the most restricted, they're the rarest spirits on the planet.”

Lubbers started a program with Heaven Hill in recent years called “Certified Bonded Premises," which certifies bars and package stores that have a dedicated bottled-in-bond collection or section. Today there are more than 100 such certified establishments throughout the United States. Lubbers says it’s a way for consumers to ensure they purchase a quality whiskey, even if it’s not from Heaven Hill.

It has not traditionally been common for anyone other than the distilleries where whiskey is made to release a bottled-in-bond product, but sourced or contract distilled bottled-in-bond whiskey has now entered the modern market (something that was actually common during Prohibition). These include Milam & Greene’s bottled-in-bond bourbon (contract distilled in Kentucky and not at their Texas distillery) and Pursuit Spirits’ Mellwood Bourbon.

Estate Whiskey has Entered the Chat

Farmer-distillers were the founders of the spirits industry, and this category has slowly come back into the industrialized distilling landscape. Distilleries like Frey Ranch in Nevada, Hillrock Estate in New York, and Whiskey Acres in Illinois are all farmers who grow grain and distill whiskey from it. Even some of the larger more industrial distilleries like Heaven Hill, Maker’s Mark, and Michter’s have gotten into farming in an attempt to source more grains locally and have more control over farming practices. The theory is that better grains yield better whiskey.

Now there are various certifications for estate-grown whiskey. In Nevada, Frey Ranch worked with Minden Mill (under its former name, Bentley Heritage) to create an estate grown whiskey law in Nevada. Passed in 2019, this law requires that 85 percent of the raw materials that go into a distilled spirit must come from land owned or controlled by the distillery and every part of the process—mashing, fermenting, distilling, maturation, and bottling—must be done by that distillery.

In New York, there is a similar law that pertains to rye whiskey. The Empire Rye designation requires that 75 percent of the grain used must be grown in New York State and the whiskey must be mashed, fermented, distilled, barreled, and aged at a single distillery within the state. A blend of multiple Empire Rye whiskeys can also bear the Empire Rye label, ensuring the geographical authenticity of the spirit. Kings County Distillery and Hillrock Estate Distillery are two that have leaned into this category.

Now there’s a nationwide trade organization called the Estate Whiskey Alliance that certifies whiskeys that meet their criteria for estate whiskey. The official Estate Whiskey Alliance definition states that two-thirds of the grains in the mashbill are grown by the distillery or on land it controls and that the entire process from milling to bottling happens in-house. This certification ensures that the whiskey you buy is made, grain to bottle, by one company, ensuring the greatest possible level of authenticity.

What To Try Now

Kings County Barrel Strength Empire Rye: Named best rye whiskey at 2023 Tales of the Cocktail, this highly coveted Empire Rye has a mash bill of 80% New York-grown heirloom Danko rye and 20% English malted barley. It sells out in days after each yearly release.

Whiskey Acres Bottled-in-Bond Bourbon: This is both bottled-in-bond and estate grown. Distilled with a mash bill of 75% corn, 15% soft red winter wheat, and 10% malted barley, it took double gold at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition in 2021.

Minden Mill American Single Malt Whiskey: In addition to being made from 100% estate grown malted barley, this whiskey was also malted at Minden Mill, a task that very few American distilleries do onsite thanks to the technical difficulty of malting grains.

Frey Ranch Bottled-in-Bond Rye: Not only is this rye distilled from estate grown grains and bottled-in-bond, it’s also made from a 100% rye mash bill, a technically challenging feat of fermentation. It’s also a 2025 Ascot Awards Double Platinum winner.

Maker’s Mark’s Star Hill Farms Wheat Whiskey: Maker’s Mark has been making one mashbill for more than 60 years—until now. This wheat whiskey was the first whiskey Estate Whiskey Alliance-certified release. It’s also Regenified-certified, another trade organization that helps to educate farmers about the importance of good stewardship of the land.