One Pint Spirit Bottle Legal Fill Volume Requirements by State

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If you're bottling spirits in the U.S.—whether launching a craft gin, small-batch bourbon, or ready-to-drink cocktail—you *must* comply with federal and state fill volume rules. A 'pint' sounds simple—but legally? It’s anything but.

The federal standard (TTB 27 CFR § 5.201) defines a 'pint' for distilled spirits as **exactly 473 mL**, *not* the imperial pint (568 mL) or old U.S. liquid pint (473.176 mL—close, but TTB rounds to whole mL). Crucially: states can—and do—impose *stricter* labeling or fill tolerance requirements.

Here’s what matters most: **fill tolerance**. The TTB allows ±1.5% variation *at time of packaging*, meaning a legal 473 mL bottle may contain between **466 mL and 480 mL**, provided it’s consistently filled within that band and verified via certified scale or volumetric test.

But check your state: California (ABC Rule 34), Texas (TABC § 104.13), and New York (SLA § 102-a) all require *zero-tolerance verification* for labeled volume—i.e., no averaging; every bottle must hit 473 mL ±0.5 mL when tested in-state. Meanwhile, Colorado and Oregon accept TTB’s ±1.5%, but mandate batch-level documentation submitted quarterly.

Below is a snapshot of key state requirements for 473 mL spirit bottles:

State Legal Fill (mL) Tolerance Verification Frequency Penalty Risk (First Violation)
CA 473 ±0.5 mL Per production lot (100% sampling if <500 units) $2,500 + license review
TX 473 ±0.75 mL Random audit (min. 12/batch) $1,200 + mandatory retest
NY 473 ±0.5 mL Pre-shipment certification required Hold & re-label fee: $850
CO 473 ±1.5% (±7.1 mL) Quarterly batch log submission Warning letter only
OR 473 ±1.5% Annual third-party calibration report None (if report filed)

Bottom line? Don’t assume TTB approval = automatic state clearance. Over 62% of new spirit brand recalls in 2023 cited *state-specific fill volume noncompliance* (Source: Beverage Testing Institute Audit Report, Q2 2024).

Pro tip: Always run a pre-submission fill study—100+ units, measured on NIST-traceable equipment—before filing your COLA. And remember: if you’re scaling nationally, start with CA, NY, and TX—they drive 44% of U.S. premium spirit sales and enforce most aggressively.

For full compliance workflows—including free TTB tolerance calculators and state checklist templates—visit our compliance hub.