威士忌的销售和营销有时包括“木桶强度”一词。这些文字被放在选定的瓶子上，使它们在酒吧订购饮料或在实体店或网上商店购物的消费者中脱颖而出。由于法律定义各不相同(或根本不存在)，将“木桶强度”一词放在瓶子上可能是一个肤浅的名称。在许多情况下，它意味着排他性，或者某种直接进入桶装威士忌品尝俱乐部。不过，它也可以指直接从陈酿的桶中装瓶的烈酒，不加水来调整证明——这通常也称为“桶证明”或“桶强度”。 “我认为大多数酿酒商都会同意，木桶强度的威士忌是成品瓶装产品与其来源木桶液体酒精含量完全相同的地方，”威士兰酿酒厂董事总经理兼联合创始人马修霍夫曼说。“或者更简单地说，它是未稀释的威士忌。” 影响威士忌强度（abv）和酒精度，以及内置风味因素：使用类型如新橡木与旧橡木，以及不同材质如欧洲橡木与日本特有的Mizunara。这些因素会影响特定材料对内部液体反应。与材料接触时间也有助于为烈酒带来香气、风味以及微妙琥珀色。当烤焦了，这些金属吸收蒸馏后留下的粗糙香气，就像过滤器对自来水所做的一样。而且，由于它可渗透，烈酒能够吸收氧气，并适应温度变化，从清澈到我们熟知棕色的烈性饮料，即我们称之为威士忌。大多数威士忌略微稀释并以40-45% abv（80-90 度）的价格出售，而wooden barrel strength whiskey则通常以50%（100 度）或更高浓度进行包装。此区别可以帮助展示品牌口碑或者蒸馏师技艺。 “凭借190万樽陈酿库存，我们防止了产品让消费者能以最纯净形式体验我们的 威斯尼克”，他说：“‘Bottle Proof’ is a testament to our mastery as distillers and the consistency of quality and craftsmanship in our product line.” 1977年ATF通过了一项裁决，将术语"bottle proof"定义；随后TTB其他裁决旨在扩大定义，以包括术语"wooden barrel strength"。英国等国家对于苏格兰单一麦芽发明标签上的某些短语也有自己的规定，但考虑到全球生产商广泛性及标签可能出现类似发音短语，普通消费者可能难以确定细节。“In my opinion, bottle-proof whiskey can give you an intimate understanding of how master distillers hone their craft,” Travel Bar Brooklyn bar owner Michael Vacheresse said. "It's like having a backstage pass to see what goes into making that spirit." Vacheresse also noted that higher-proof whiskeys can be beneficial for those who prefer drinking them neat, saying they offer "proof in your glass." However, he pointed out that terms like "bottle proof" may confuse some consumers because they don't necessarily indicate any specific ABV or proof level. Robin Robinson, author of The Complete Whiskey Course, shared similar thoughts on the term. "This is currently a trend in drinking," he said about the concept of wooden barrel strength whiskey. "In many ways, it's part of personalizing one's spirits experience effectively telling distillers we don't believe they can prove it meets our preferences." On the other hand, there is significant value in this term: if you tend to drink water when consuming whiskey, you essentially get more than what you paid for - 750mls worth," he said. But if you always drink straight up? You might need professional help."
