Bad Ideas in Brewing – Palcohol

Okay, we get that this isn’t actually a brewed product. But this idea is so massively misguided that we felt it earned its own right to be included in our Bad Ideas in Brewing Series. We recently learned via BevLog that a product called Palcohol, a new powdered booze creation, had been approved by the U.S. Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau and that its makers are hoping to get it into the marketplace this fall.

Why Palcohol?

Basically a powdered form of alcohol, Palcohol was originally pitched as a solution to all kinds of pressing drinking problems. The product’s website (which has now been scrubbed – an equally concerning development) had described their new product as a possible option for things such as sporting events:

What’s worse than going to a concert, sporting event, etc. and having to pay $10, $15, $20 for a mixed drink with tax and tip? Are you kidding me?! Take Palcohol into the venue and enjoy a mixed drink for a fraction of the cost.

Palcohol’s makers also see their powdered product as a beneficial food additive that can amp up everything from your party’s guacamole to your morning eggs… but cautioned:

Remember, you have to add Palcohol AFTER a dish is cooked as the alcohol will burn off if you cook with it…and that defeats the whole purpose.

Are We Really Sure That This Is a Good Idea?

Finally, the product we’ve been waiting for… a powdered alcohol derivative that can be overtly or covertly unleashed on the public in a salad or a BBQ sandwich. Students will clearly gravitate to something like this – yet another addition to their already heady mixture of pre-class bong hits and Ritalin. With the advent of Palcohol, bringing in an apple for the teacher might potentially take on a whole new meaning and we’re not sure that’s a good thing.

Oh Great, You Can Snort It.

For those in a hurry, Palcohol couldn’t be any more efficient. Why even bother with recipes and food pairing considerations when you can just chop up a line and snort it? Think how popular you’ll be when you arrive at a party with a powdered alcohol that can be mainlined into your bloodstream with the same calculation and immediacy of other ageless classics such as cocaine, methamphetamine, and heroin. Good times…

Bottom Line.

We’re pretty open here at American Craft Beer about why we feel people enjoy drinking. We think that a primary and undeniable reason that people engage in this activity is for the high that comes with it. But the drinking experience is so much richer and so much more than just about the buzz – and Palcohol is only about it. And we were blown away that the Federal Government had signed off on a product that in the wrong hands, as Gawker so astutely put it, “could make the darkest days of the Four Loko era look tame.”

Update: Talk about a backlash! The AP is now reporting that the TTB is saying that this approval was a mistake (sure it was) and that Palcohol is now on hold. We’d desperately like you to think we had something to do with this – but we’re pretty sure you wouldn’t buy it.