(a) General. A bottler or importer of distilled spirits in distinctive liquor bottles may apply for a distinctive liquor bottle approval from the appropriate TTB officer. The distinctive liquor bottle approval will provide an exemption only from those requirements that are specified in paragraph (b) of this section. A distinctive liquor bottle is a container that is not the customary shape and that may obscure the net contents of the distilled spirits.

(b) Exemptions provided by the distinctive liquor bottle approval. The distinctive liquor bottle approval issued pursuant to this section will provide that:

(1) The provisions of § 5.202(b) and (c) do not apply to the liquor containers for which the distinctive liquor bottle approval has been issued; and

(2) The information required to appear in the same field of vision pursuant to § 5.63(a) may appear elsewhere on a distinctive liquor bottle for which the distinctive liquor bottle approval has been issued, if the design of the container precludes the presentation of all mandatory information in the same field of vision.

(c) How to apply. A bottler or importer of distilled spirits in distinctive liquor bottles may apply for a distinctive liquor bottle approval as part of the application for a certificate of label approval (COLA).