What goes wrong

The label failed

On this page10

The alcohol content moved The warning was bolded throughout The warning was condensed to fit The type size was right for the wrong bottle The background was not contrasting The label lifted in an ice bucket And nobody looked at the bottle Why a proof is not the test Keep a labelled bottle from every print run References

Most of these are design decisions made for good reasons, which is why they keep happening.

The alcohol content moved

To the back or the side, to clean up the front. It has to be in the same field of vision as the brand name and the class and type, viewable without turning the bottle.

The warning was bolded throughout

For emphasis, which seems helpful. Only "GOVERNMENT WARNING" is bold; the remainder is not.

The warning was condensed to fit

A narrow face squeezed the statement into the space available. Characters may not be compressed, and the density limit runs from 40 per inch at 1 mm down to 12 at 3 mm.

The type size was right for the wrong bottle

Artwork built for a 200 mL bottle reused on a 250 mL one. The threshold is at 237 mL, so the minimum went from 1 mm to 2 mm and the label did not.

The background was not contrasting

Reversed out of a photograph or set in a tint close to the stock. The statement has to be readily legible under ordinary conditions on a contrasting background.

The label lifted in an ice bucket

A permanent adhesive that was not specified for wet conditions. It is a compliance failure as well as a presentation one, because the regulation requires the label to resist removal.

And nobody looked at the bottle

The common root. Every one of these is visible by printing the label, applying it to the real container, and looking at it from arm’s length in ordinary light before the print run is approved.

Why a proof is not the test

A flat proof shows the artwork and cannot show you the curve, the glass colour behind a clear stock, or what the liquid does to the back label read through the bottle. All three change what is legible and what is in one field of vision.

Keep a labelled bottle from every print run

Unopened, on a shelf. When a question arises two years later about what was on the label, a photograph of the artwork is not the same evidence as the bottle that shipped.

References

27 CFR 5.63, mandatory label information. Brand name, class and type designation and alcohol content appear in the same field of vision, so that "all of the pieces of information can be viewed simultaneously without the need to turn the container". Name and address and net contents may appear anywhere on the container, and the net contents "may be blown, embossed, or molded into the container". law.cornell.edu

27 CFR 16.21, the health warning statement, required verbatim: "GOVERNMENT WARNING: (1) According to the Surgeon General, women should not drink alcoholic beverages during pregnancy because of the risk of birth defects. (2) Consumption of alcoholic beverages impairs your ability to drive a car or operate machinery, and may cause health problems." law.cornell.edu

27 CFR 16.22, legibility of the health warning. Minimum type size of 1 mm for containers of 237 mL or less, 2 mm above that through 3 L, and 3 mm above 3 L; "GOVERNMENT WARNING" in capitals and bold with the remainder not bold; characters not compressed, at a maximum density of 40 characters per inch at 1 mm falling to 12 at 3 mm; readily legible under ordinary conditions on a contrasting background; and labels affixed "in such manner that they cannot be removed without thorough application of water or other solvents". law.cornell.edu

Written from 27 CFR 5.63, 5.203, 16.21 and 16.22, and from the catalog as it stood on 17 October 2026. Distilled spirits are federally permitted and separately regulated by every state; label approval, permits and formula approval are outside what these pages cover, and nothing here is a substitute for TTB guidance on a specific product.