A hot-fill container, comprising: a finish portion adapted to receive a closure; a base portion adapted to rest on a surface, said base portion and said finish portion defining a central longitudinal axis extending therethrough; a body portion extending about said central longitudinal axis and intermediate said finish portion and said base portion, said body portion defining a cavity therein and having a bulbous portion nearest the finish portion and a label portion disposed between the bulbous portion and the base portion; said finish portion, said base portion, and said body portion forming the container's wall; said label portion comprising a plurality of vacuum absorption sections peripherally-located and protruding inwardly into said cavity; wherein said body portion has a generally circular periphery about said central longitudinal axis at each location along said central longitudinal axis in the vicinity of said vacuum absorption sections; wherein said vacuum absorption sections are arranged to substantially form respective sides of a polygon inscribed within the generally circular periphery of said body portion; wherein each vacuum absorption section has a panel portion and an edge portion extending around the perimeter of the panel portion and joining the panel portion to the surrounding portion of the container's wall; wherein the edge portion defines the extent of the panel portion and has a substantially linear part and a curvilinear part; characterized in that the label portion has a generally concave shape relative to the container's central longitudinal axis; and the vacuum absorption sections are arranged about the container's central longitudinal axis with their edge portion's linear and curvilinear parts (138, 140) oriented such that the curvilinear part of each section's edge portion is angularly adjacent about the central longitudinal axis to the curvilinear part of another section's edge portion; and the container's wall extends between the angularly adjacent vacuum absorption sections and forms an hourglass-shaped column therebetween. a finish portion adapted to receive a closure; a base portion adapted to rest on a surface, said base portion and said finish portion defining a central longitudinal axis extending therethrough; a body portion extending about said central longitudinal axis and intermediate said finish portion and said base portion, said body portion defining a cavity therein and having a bulbous portion nearest the finish portion and a label portion disposed between the bulbous portion and the base portion; said finish portion, said base portion, and said body portion forming the container's wall; said label portion comprising a plurality of vacuum absorption sections peripherally-located and protruding inwardly into said cavity; wherein said body portion has a generally circular periphery about said central longitudinal axis at each location along said central longitudinal axis in the vicinity of said vacuum absorption sections; wherein said vacuum absorption sections are arranged to substantially form respective sides of a polygon inscribed within the generally circular periphery of said body portion; wherein each vacuum absorption section has a panel portion and an edge portion extending around the perimeter of the panel portion and joining the panel portion to the surrounding portion of the container's wall; wherein the edge portion defines the extent of the panel portion and has a substantially linear part and a curvilinear part; characterized in that the label portion has a generally concave shape relative to the container's central longitudinal axis; and the vacuum absorption sections are arranged about the container's central longitudinal axis with their edge portion's linear and curvilinear parts (138, 140) oriented such that the curvilinear part of each section's edge portion is angularly adjacent about the central longitudinal axis to the curvilinear part of another section's edge portion; and the container's wall extends between the angularly adjacent vacuum absorption sections and forms an hourglass-shaped column therebetween.