Rev. Rul. 54-591

Advice has been requested whether champagne which was removed free of tax and consigned to a collector of customs for delivery to a steamship company may be returned to the bonded winery since the steamship company refused to accept it as a result of a strike of dock workers.

The winemaker may be authorized by the Assistant Regional Commissioner, Alcohol and Tobacco Tax, to return such wine to the bonded winery where a steamship company has refused acceptance thereof because of a strike of dock workers. Upon receipt of the wine at the winery, the quantity returned should be taken into account in the monthly report by means of a special debit entry, followed by an explanatory notation of the transaction and citation of the letter from the Assistant Regional Commissioner authorizing such return.

All copies of the export application, Form 711-B, should be marked `Cancelled-Returned to the Winery,' followed by the date of the letter authorizing the return. Credit for the tax on the wine returned should be entered in the winemaker's export bond account, as provided in section 178.303 of Regulations 7.