27 CFR 5.235 – Prohibited practices
(a) Restrictions. An advertisement of distilled spirits shall not contain:
(1) Any statement that is false or untrue in any material particular, or that, irrespective of falsity, directly, or by ambiguity, omission, or inference, or by the addition of irrelevant, scientific or technical matter tends to create a misleading impression.
(2) Any false or misleading statement that explicitly or implicitly disparages a competitor’s product. This does not prevent truthful and accurate comparisons between products (such as, “Our liqueur contains more strawberries than Brand X”) or statements of opinion (such as, “We think our rum tastes better than any other distilled spirits on the market”).
(3) Any statement, design, device, or representation which is obscene or indecent.
(4) Any statement, design, device, or representation of or relating to analyses, standards or tests, irrespective of falsity, which the appropriate TTB officer finds to be likely to mislead the consumer.
(5) Any statement, design, device, or representation of or relating to any guarantee, irrespective of falsity, which the appropriate TTB officer finds to be likely to mislead the consumer. Money-back guarantees are not prohibited.
(6) The words “bond”, “bonded”, “bottled in bond”, “aged in bond”, or phrases containing these or synonymous terms, unless such words or phrases appear, pursuant to § 5.88, on labels of the distilled spirits advertised, and are stated in the advertisement in the manner and form in which they are permitted to appear on the label.
(7) The word “pure” unless:
(i) It refers to a particular ingredient used in the production of the distilled spirits, and is a truthful representation about the ingredient; or
(ii) It is part of the bona fide name of a permittee or retailer from whom the distilled spirits are bottled; or
(iii) It is part of the bona fide name of the permittee who bottled the distilled spirits.
(8) The words “double distilled” or “triple distilled” or any similar terms unless it is a truthful statement of fact. For purposes of this paragraph only, a distillation means a single run through a pot still or a single run through a column of a column (reflux) still. The number of distillations may be understated but may not be overstated.
(b) Statements inconsistent with labeling. (1) Advertisements shall not contain any statement concerning a brand or lot of distilled spirits that is inconsistent with any statement on the labeling thereof.
(2) Any label depicted on a container in an advertisement shall be a reproduction of an approved label.
(c) Statement of age. The advertisement shall not contain any statement, design, or device directly or by implication concerning age or maturity of any brand or lot of distilled spirits unless a statement of age appears on the label of the advertised product. When any such statement, design, or device concerning age or maturity is contained in any advertisement, it shall include (in direct conjunction therewith and with substantially equal conspicuousness) all parts of the statement, if any, concerning age and percentages required to be made on the label under the provisions of § 5.74. An advertisement for any whisky or brandy (except immature brandies, pomace brandy, marc brandy, Pisco brandy, Singani brandy, and grappa brandy) which is not required to bear a statement of age on the label or an advertisement for any rum or agave spirits, which has been aged for not less than 4 years may, however, contain inconspicuous, general representations as to age, maturity or other similar representations even though a specific age statement does not appear on the label of the advertised product and in the advertisement itself.
(d) Health-related statements—(1) Definitions. When used in this paragraph (d), terms are defined as follows:
(i) Health-related statement means any statement related to health and includes statements of a curative or therapeutic nature that, expressly or by implication, suggest a relationship between the consumption of alcohol, distilled spirits, or any substance found within the distilled spirits, and health benefits or effects on health. The term includes both specific health claims and general references to alleged health benefits or effects on health associated with the consumption of alcohol, distilled spirits, or any substance found within the distilled spirits, as well as health-related directional statements. The term also includes statements and claims that imply that a physical or psychological sensation results from consuming the distilled spirits, as well as statements and claims of nutritional value (e.g., statements of vitamin content). Statements concerning caloric, carbohydrate, protein, and fat content do not constitute nutritional claims about the product.
(ii) Specific health claim is a type of health-related statement that, expressly or by implication, characterizes the relationship of the distilled spirits, alcohol, or any substance found within the distilled spirits, to a disease or health-related condition. Implied specific health claims include statements, symbols, vignettes, or other forms of communication that suggest, within the context in which they are presented, that a relationship exists between distilled spirits, alcohol, or any substance found within the distilled spirits, and a disease or health-related condition.
(iii) Health-related directional statement is a type of health-related statement that directs or refers consumers to a third party or other source for information regarding the effects on health of distilled spirits or alcohol consumption.
(2) Rules for advertising—(i) Health-related statements. In general, advertisements may not contain any health-related statement that is untrue in any particular or tends to create a misleading impression as to the effects on health of alcohol consumption. TTB will evaluate such statements on a case-by-case basis and may require as part of the health-related statement a disclaimer or some other qualifying statement to dispel any misleading impression conveyed by the health-related statement. Such disclaimer or other qualifying statement must appear as prominent as the health-related statement.
(ii) Specific health claims. A specific health claim will not be considered misleading if it is truthful and adequately substantiated by scientific or medical evidence; sufficiently detailed and qualified with respect to the categories of individuals to whom the claim applies; adequately discloses the health risks associated with both moderate and heavier levels of alcohol consumption; and outlines the categories of individuals for whom any levels of alcohol consumption may cause health risks. This information must appear as part of the specific health claim and in a manner as prominent as the specific health claim.
(iii) Health-related directional statements. A statement that directs consumers to a third party or other source for information regarding the effects on health of distilled spirits or alcohol consumption is presumed misleading unless it—
(A) Directs consumers in a neutral or other non-misleading manner to a third party or other source for balanced information regarding the effects on health of distilled spirits or alcohol consumption; and
(B)(1) Includes as part of the health-related directional statement, and in a manner as prominent as the health-related directional statement, the following disclaimer: “This statement should not encourage you to drink or increase your alcohol consumption for health reasons;” or
(2) Includes as part of the health-related directional statement, and in a manner as prominent as the health-related directional statement, some other qualifying statement that the appropriate TTB officer finds is sufficient to dispel any misleading impression conveyed by the health-related directional statement.
(e) Place of origin. The advertisement shall not represent that the distilled spirits were manufactured in or imported from a place or country other than that of their actual origin, or were produced or processed by one who was not in fact the actual producer or processor.
(f) Confusion of brands. Two or more different brands or lots of distilled spirits shall not be advertised in one advertisement (or in two or more advertisements in one issue of a periodical or newspaper, or in one piece of other written, printed, or graphic matter) if the advertisement tends to create the impression that representations made as to one brand or lot apply to the other or others, and if as to such latter the representations contravene any provisions of this subpart or are in any respect untrue.
(g) Representations of the armed forces or flags. Advertisements may not show an image of any government’s flag or any representation related to the armed forces of the United States if the representation, standing alone or considered together with any additional language or symbols, creates a false or misleading impression that the product was endorsed by, made by, used by, or made under the supervision of, the government represented by that flag or by the armed forces of the United States. This section does not prohibit the use of a flag as part of a claim of American origin or another country of origin.
(h) Deceptive advertising techniques. Subliminal or similar techniques are prohibited. “Subliminal or similar techniques,” as used in this subpart, refers to any device or technique that is used to convey, or attempts to convey, a message to a person by means of images or sounds of a very brief nature that cannot be perceived at a normal level of awareness.
(i) Any use of the term “organic” in the advertising of distilled spirits must comply with the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Organic Program rules, 7 CFR part 205, as interpreted by the USDA.