Advertising of Intoxicating Liquor

PURPOSE: This rule allows manufacturers of intoxicating liquor to offer consumer rebate coupons and clarifies the advertising regulation as it applies to the advertising of sales price below cost. (1) No person engaged in business as a producer, manufacturer, brewer, bottler, importer, wholesaler, or retailer of intoxicating liquor, directly or indirectly, may publish or disseminate or cause to be published or disseminated any advertisement of intoxicating liquor unless the advertisement is in conformity with this regulation. (2) The term advertisement includes any dissemination of information by print, audio or video means, whether through the media or otherwise, including but not limited to radio, television, motion pictures, newspapers, Internet, email, texting, website, mobile applications, magazines or similar publications or other printed or graphic matter, or any electronic means, except that the term shall not include— (A) Any label affixed to any container of intoxicating liquor or any individual covering, carton, or other wrapper of a container; and (B) Any editorial in any periodical or publication or newspaper for the preparation or publication of which no money or other valuable consideration is paid or promised, directly or indirectly, by any person subject to these regulations. (3) Mandatory statements include— (A) The name and address of the producer, manufacturer, bottler, brewer, importer, wholesaler, or retailer responsible for its publication; (B) A conspicuous statement of the class and type or other designation of the product, corresponding with the complete designation which appears on the brand label of the product; (C) The alcoholic content stated in the manner and form in which it appears on the labels of intoxicating liquor advertised; (D) In the case of distilled spirits (other than cordials, liqueurs and specialties) produced by blending or rectification, if neutral spirits have been used in the production of distilled spirits, the percentage of neutral spirits so used and the name of the commodity from which the neutral spirits have been distilled in substantially the manner and form in which these statements appear on the labels of the distilled spirits advertised. In the case of neutral spirits or of gin produced by a process of continuous distillation, the name of the commodity from which the neutral spirits or gin have been distilled substantially in the manner and form in which this statement appears on the labels of the distilled spirits advertised; (E) Where an advertisement does not mention a specific product but merely refers to a class of intoxicating liquor (such as whiskey or beer) and the advertiser markets more than one (1) brand of intoxicating liquor of that class, or where the advertisement refers to several classes of intoxicating liquor (such as whiskey, brandy, rum, gin, liqueur, wine, beer, etc.) marketed under a single brand, the only mandatory information prescribed by section (1) applicable to advertisement would be the name and address of the responsible advertiser; and (F) Advertisements by retail establishments which merely refer to the availability of intoxicating liquor in these establishments, but which otherwise make no reference to a specific brand of intoxicating liquor are subject only to the prohibited statements provisions of section (5) of this rule. (4) Statements required by these regulations to be stated in any written, printed, or graphic advertisement should appear in lettering or type of a size, kind, and color sufficient to render them both conspicuous and readily legible. In particular— (A) Required information shall be stated against a contrasting background and in type or lettering which is at least the equivalent of eight- (8-) point type; (B) Mandated information should be so stated as to appear to be a part of the advertisement and not be separated in any manner from the remainder of the advertisement; (C) Where an advertisement relates to more than one (1) product, the necessary information is to appear in a manner as to clearly indicate the particular products to which it is applicable; and (D) No mandated information may be buried or concealed in unrequired descriptive matter or decorative designs. (5) No advertisements of intoxicating liquor may contain— (A) Any statement, design, device, or representation that is false or misleading, including any false or misleading statement that creates an impression about the effects of alcohol consumption on health, and any false or misleading statement that explicitly or implicitly disparages a competitor’s product. This does not prevent truthful and accurate comparisons AND TOBACCO CONTROL between products or statements of opinion; (B) Any statement, design, or device representing that the use of any intoxicating liquor has curative or therapeutic effects or tending to create an impression that it has curative or therapeutic effects; (C) Any statement, design, device, or representation which is obscene, indecent, or conveys a derogatory connotation; and (D) Any statement that the product is produced, blended, brewed, made, bottled, packaged, sold under or in accordance with any authorization, law, or regulation of any municipality, county, state, federal, or foreign government unless the statement is necessary or specifically authorized by the laws or regulations of the government and, if a municipality, county, state, or federal permit number is stated, the permit number shall not be accompanied by an additional statement relating to it. (6) No advertisement may contain any statement concerning a brand or lot of intoxicating liquor that is inconsistent with any statement on the labeling. (7) No advertisement may contain any statement, design, device, or pictorial representation of or relating to, or capable of being construed as relating to, the armed forces of the United States or of the American flag, any state flag, or of any emblem, seal, insignia, or decoration associated with any such flag or the armed forces of the United States; nor may any advertisement containing any statement device, design, or pictorial representation of or concerning any flag, seal, coat of arms, crest, or other insignia, likely to falsely lead the consumer to believe that the product has been endorsed, made or used by, or produced for or under the supervision of or in accordance with the specifications of the government, organization, family, or individual with whom the flag, seal, coat of arms, crest, or insignia is associated. (8) No advertisement for distilled spirits may contain— (A) The words bond, bottled in bond, aged in bond, or phrases containing these or synonymous terms unless these words or phrases appear upon the labels of the distilled spirits advertised and are stated in the advertisement in the manner and form in which they appear upon the label; and (B) Any statement, design, or device, directly or by implication concerning age or maturity of any brand or lot of distilled spirits unless a statement of age appears on the labels of the advertised product. When any statement, design, or device concerning age or maturity is contained in any advertisement, it shall include (in direct conjunction with the advertisement and with substantially equal conspicuousness) all parts of the statement concerning age and percentages, if any, which appear on the label. However, an advertisement for any whiskey or brandy that does not bear a statement of age on the label or an advertisement for rum which is four (4) years or more old may contain general inconspicuous age, maturity or other similar representations, for example aged in wood, mellowed in fine oak cask. (9) No advertisement for wine may contain— (A) Any statement of bonded winecellar or bonded winery numbers unless stated in direct conjunction with the name and address of the person operating the winery or storeroom. Statement of bonded winecellar and bonded winery numbers may be made in the following form: “Bonded Winecellar No...,” “Bonded Winery No...,” “B.W.C. No...,” or “B.W. No....” No additional reference to numbers shall be made, or any use be made of a statement that may convey the impression that the wine has been made or matured under United States government or any state government supervision or in accordance with United States government or any state government specifications or standards; and (B) Any statement, design, device, or representation which relates to alcoholic content or which tends to create the impression that a wine is unfortified or has been fortified or has intoxicating qualities or contains distilled spirits except for a reference to distilled spirits in a statement of composition where the statement is required by these regulations to appear as a part of the designation of the product. (10) No statement of age or representation relative to age (including words or devices in any brand name or mark) may be made, except that— (A) In the case of vintage wine, the year of vintage may be stated if it appears on the label; and (B) Truthful references of a general and informative nature relating to methods of production involving storage or aging, for example “This wine has been mellowed in oak casks,” “Stored in small barrels,” or “Matured at regulated temperatures in our cellars,” may be made. (11) The statement of any bottling date is not deemed to be a representation relative to age, if the statement appears without undue emphasis in the following form: “bottled in ....” (inserting the year in which the wine was bottled). (12) No date, except as provided in this section and section (11) of this rule with respect to statement of vintage year and bottling date, may be stated unless, in addition to the year and date and in direct conjunction with the year and date, in the same size and kind of printing, an explanation of the significance of the date is stated. If any date refers to the date of establishment of any business, this date is to be stated without undue emphasis and in direct conjunction with the name of the person to whom it refers. (13) No advertisement may represent that the wine was manufactured in, or imported from, a place or country other than that of the actual origin or produced or processed by one who was not in fact the actual producer or processor. (14) No retail licensee may advertise for sale any brand of intoxicating liquor unless s/he has the particular brand and size of container or package of intoxicating liquor in his/her licensed premises for sale. (15) No wholesale licensee may allow any sign owned by him/ her or advertising his/her product to be placed or allowed to remain on or upon any building unless the building has an occupant holding a license issued by the supervisor. AUTHORITY: section 311.660, RSMo Supp. 2024.* This version of rule filed Feb. 8, 1973, effective Feb. 18, 1973. Amended: Filed Dec. 12, 1986, effective Feb. 28, 1987. Amended: Filed Jan. 22, 1996, effective July 30, 1996. Amended: Filed Feb. 27, 1998, effective Aug. 30, 1998. Amended: Filed Jan. 17, 2019, effective Sept. 30, 2019. Amended: Filed Aug. 1, 2024, effective March 30, 2025. *Original authority: 311.660, RSMo 1939, amended 1989, 2021. State ex rel. Letz v. Riley, 559 SW2d 631 (Mo. App. 1977). Despite the issuance by the attorney general of a “no action” letter stating that certain games in theory were not violative of Chapter 563, RSMo, the doctrine of equitable estoppel was not available to support an injunction restraining the supervisor of the Division of Liquor Control from enforcing Liquor Control Regulation 15(k) (prohibiting any licensee from allowing any sort of gambling upon licensed premises) and 25II(c)(1)(g) (restricting advertisement of intoxicating liquor and nonintoxicating beer). Milgram Food Stores, Inc. v. Ketchum, 384 SW2d 510, (Mo. App. 1965) cert. denied, 382 U.S. 801. Regulation 15(f)(5) (now covered by 11 CSR 70-2.240(2) and (5)(G) and (H)) prohibiting the advertisement of intoxicating liquor which offers any coupon, premium, prize, rebate as an inducement to purchase such intoxicating liquor, did have a reasonable relation to and in accord with the provisions and purposes of the Liquor Control Law; and that rule is not unreasonable, arbitrary and capricious as claimed by the respondent, as to “free” Santa Claus covers offered in advertisement with purchase of certain liquors, this fell within prohibited practices and suspension of respondent’s license for twenty-five (25) days was not unreasonable.