American food and wine is sometimes criticized by Old World Europeans for its tendency to blend techniques and tastes to create unique variations on established themes.

But when it comes to whiskey, especially bourbon, we’re positively priggish when it comes to standards, rules and inviolable regulations. And no American standard is tighter and tougher than Bottled-in-Bond.

The term is tied to the Bottled-In-Bond Act of 1897, a piece of legislation originated by distillers to reduce the marketing tomfoolery of unscrupulous distributors, rectifiers, and hucksters who made upscale claims about downscale liquors. Knowing such a law could increase tax revenue…