Title 26 — Internal Revenue CodeRelease 119-73
§5391 Exemption from distilled spirits taxes
Title 26 › Subtitle Subtitle E— - Alcohol, Tobacco, and Certain Other Excise Taxes › Chapter CHAPTER 51— - DISTILLED SPIRITS, WINES, AND BEER › Subchapter Subchapter F— - Bonded and Taxpaid Wine Premises › Part PART IV— - GENERAL › § 5391
Summary
Owners of bonded wine cellars aren’t taxed for wine spirits used to make wine, unless this part of the law says otherwise. If those spirits are used in violation, the tax applies unless the owner proves they didn’t know.
Full Legal Text
Title 26, §5391
Internal Revenue Code — Source: USLM XML via OLRC
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the tax imposed by section 5001 on distilled spirits shall not, except as provided in this subchapter, be assessed, levied, or collected from the proprietor of any bonded wine cellar with respect to his use of wine spirits in wine production, in such premises; except that, whenever wine or wine spirits are used in violation of this subchapter, the applicable tax imposed by section 5001 shall be collected unless the proprietor satisfactorily shows that such wine or wine spirits were not knowingly used in violation of law.
Legislative History
Notes & Related Subsidiaries
Editorial Notes
Prior Provisions
A prior section 5391, act Aug. 16, 1954, ch. 736, 68A Stat. 672, consisted of provisions similar to those comprising this section, prior to the general revision of this chapter by Pub. L. 85–859.
Amendments
1979—Pub. L. 96–39 substituted “distilled” for “rectifying and” in section catchline and struck out provisions relating to exemption from taxes imposed on rectified spirits and wines and the status of any proprietor of a bonded wine cellar as a rectifier of such spirits in text.
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
Effective Date
of 1979 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 96–39 effective Jan. 1, 1980, see section 810 of Pub. L. 96–39, set out as a note under section 5001 of this title.
Effective Date
Section effective July 1, 1959, see section 210(a)(1) of Pub. L. 85–859, set out as a note under section 5001 of this title.
Reference
Citations & Metadata
Citation
26 U.S.C. § 5391
Title 26 — Internal Revenue Code
Last Updated
Apr 6, 2026
Release point: 119-73