Powdered alcohol may hit markets in September

​Powdered alcohol is made by binding alcohol molecules to sugars. Although Lipsmark has not released their recipe for Palcohol, powdered alcohol molecules have been in existence since the 1970s.​

​Powdered alcohol is made by binding alcohol molecules to sugars. Although Lipsmark has not released their recipe for Palcohol, powdered alcohol molecules have been in existence since the 1970s.​

Palcohol, or powdered alcohol, was invented by wine educator Mark Phillips, who says he created it so that it would be easier to carry alcohol on the go. The company that owns Palcohol, Lipsmark, plans to release packets of six different flavors that, when mixed with five ounces of liquid, make a shot’s worth of alcohol.

Although The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) approved Palcohol on April 8, the statement was withdrawn thirteen days later. The TTB claims the original approval was an error, but Lipsmark stated that the withdrawal was due to differences in the fill-levels of each packet.

In the meantime, some people have raised concerns about Palcohol being snorted and concealed by minors.

“It just seems very dangerous in that you can control how much alcohol you’re consuming,” said Nephele Troullinos (11).

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According to palcohol.com, snorting is unlikely because “it takes approximately 60 minutes to snort the equivalent of one shot of vodka.” The site also dismisses the idea of concealing it, as “the package Palcohol comes in is 4″ x 6″….almost five times bigger than a 50ml bottle of liquid alcohol.”

The company claims that the use of Palcohol can expand beyond its intended use as an inebriant. Their website alleges that Palcohol could be developed to save money by the airline industry, or to use as an antiseptic.

Despite its theoretical applications, not everyone shares the opinion that Palcohol will become a useful product.

“I think it’s completely stupid,” said Andrew Irvine, Harker chemistry teacher. “The way I understand it, they’re making a complex of sugars around the ethanol so that it can be in a dry form. However, that powder will have a greater mass and volume than just pure ethanol by itself.”

He also pointed out that alternative ways to carry portable quantities of alcohol already exist. “You could just buy grain alcohol and add that to water. People do that all the time. At the end of the day, it’s a nice gimmick, but […] there’s a bunch of chemistry behind it that doesn’t make sense from my perspective.”

If powdered alcohol succeeds in being re-approved by the TTB, it could either change the American liquor market or fade into obscurity. For now, it sits at a crossroads between fame and failure.

This piece was originally published in the pages of The Winged Post on May 16, 2014.