Spirits abandoned to the United States may be sold, without payment of the tax, to a proprietor of a distilled spirits plant for denaturation or for redistillation and denaturation, provided that the plant is authorized to denature or redistill and denature spirits. The proprietor must gauge the spirits upon receipt and must keep the spirits apart from all other spirits or denatured spirits until denatured.

(26 U.S.C. 5243)