Powdered Alcohol?!?

[coalyard]

But what about "the children"? They have fruity flavors for it. It presumably looks like Kool-Aid. Where is the outcry to ban this garbage?

Get Ready for Powdered Alcohol to Hit Liquor Stores This Fall | Mediaite

 

[NorthOfAtlanta]

I can think of so much just wrong about this having had employees over the last 30 years who thought it was a good idea to sip a little at work. Schools are removing soda machines and installing healthy juice machines, powdered vodka and OJ or v8 and no bottle to get rid of. I have to wonder who thought this was a good idea.

 

[AgentAnia]

I'm not a drinker, so I can't really appreciate the various pros and cons of this new product for adults. However, I can see kids' eyes lighting up everywhere at the prospect and all that's implied for curious but undeveloped minds...

According to the article:

Palcohol has officially been approved by the U.S. Alcohol and tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, so expect this alcoholic version of the Kool-Aid powder to be in liquor stores soon enough!

No mention of FDA approval... ???

ff to research this Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, which I've never heard of:

Relating this to ecigs, do you think the ecig antis or general-purpose nannies will raise a hue and cry...? Nah, nicotine is the great satan, but alcohol is great!

 

[coalyard]

I no longer drink alcohol myself, and I certainly don't begrudge anyone who does. I don't even wish for anyone to ban powdered alcohol; I honestly just wonder where all of the folks concerned with the well being of "the children" are instead of flooding the media about how dangerous this stuff potentially is for the kids?

Stuffing their pockets with money, I would guess...

 

[skoony]

i dont know if they will allow the consumer market to last long.
it is here to stay though.
all the big distillers will be looking at this as just the cost saving in shipping
would make it irresistible.
in a few years the very people that are opposing vaping will be demanding
that all adult beverages be shipped this way so to get all those fossil fuel
guzzling trucks,ships and trains stopped thus saving the chillin' from pollution.

regards
mike

 

[aikanae1]

Alcohol will never get threatened with prohibition again. Besides there's too many alchies in the gov't. But your right, teens eyes will light up with this. It's surprising how little they know about teens (or the general population) in the first place. I can't think of better advertising than saying "you can't have it" to make everyone want it.

 

[AgentAnia]

Excellent points made in all posts.

I would hazard a guess that most players in Tobacco Control, Big Govt., and Big Pharma are drinkers, so no, I don't see the likelihood of any outrage at this new product.

BTW, from my research earlier, the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau is under the Dept of Treasury, whereas the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms is under the Dept of Justice. I wonder if these two are going to get involved w/ ecigs as well, once FDA deems... :sigh: Or will each agency have to "deem" independently?

 

[AgentAnia]

Alcohol will never get threatened with prohibition again. Besides there's too many alchies in the gov't. But your right, teens eyes will light up with this. It's surprising how little they know about teens (or the general population) in the first place. I can't think of better advertising than saying "you can't have it" to make everyone want it.

I will say this, from my personal observations during years on Capitol Hill: A large number of elected legislators in Congress come from wealth (one of the primary ways to finance their campaigns), and once in Congress, they have large staffs to filter their contacts w/ constituents and the public. I have personally heard several of them say that they need their staffs to "protect" them from the public.

It shouldn't surprise you how little they know/understand people. Mostly, they don't want to, IMO. Academics have their ivory tower; public health has its champagne tower; I propose that Congress has its marble tower...

 

[aikanae1]

Absolutely. The greatest divide is between average people and 'the washington dc bubble'. The additional influx of unfiltered funds now allowed won't help anything. 90% of donations came from less than 1,000 people and they are projecting that's been knocked down to 500. It they can get what they want through spending / marketing / ads, then they don't need to appeal to voters. It's just like it's more cost effective for corporations to lobby / write their own laws than it is to compete in a fair or free market. Every industry is on a race to become "too big to fail" now.

 

[Anjaffm]

Powdered alcohol??? WTH???

Somehow, this reminds me of the story about the blonde who had hot water left over and said "Oh, I'll freeze that! Hot water will always come in handy!"

Makes no sense.... no sense whatsoever. Except when you think about kids buying this stuff on the black market / from older kids and - bingo: instant booze!

In addition, alcohol itself is a liquid. What kind of chemical process would it require to pulverize a liquid? And I am supposed to ingest that powder, with a bunch of the chemicals used to make a powder out of a liquid? Naaw... I think I'll take a rain check.

But do give me a call when they make powdered water.
You know, the stuff that you put in a jug, add some water and bingo: water

 

[coalyard]

Hi, Anja! I was wondering about the chemistry aspect of this myself. I wonder if perhaps some of our fellow members who see this might shed some light on how that works?

I will say this, from my personal observations during years on Capitol Hill: A large number of elected legislators in Congress come from wealth (one of the primary ways to finance their campaigns), and once in Congress, they have large staffs to filter their contacts w/ constituents and the public. I have personally heard several of them say that they need their staffs to "protect" them from the public.

I was very involved in politics at one time, including running for a State Senate seat. (NH, not NY) The experience left me with a new found suspicion of politicians and how the system really works. The saying, "you don't want to see how the sausage is made" is very, very true...

 

[aikanae1]

I haven't read the article but I think I've seen it on the market already. There were packets of daguri's and margarita's hanging down clips in the grocery store and I took a double take because they said alcohol included and seemed weird. I wasn't curious enough to buy them.

The alcohol aisle is already full of flavors, vodka, pre-mixed fuzzy navels, coolers, hard lemonade - fruit juice type drinks that are brightly colored and "spring-break" festival / mardi gras packaging. I'm pretty sure they weren't designed for the "mature" market. I wouldn't be surprised to see alcoholic juice packs with little straws - and what toddler wouldn't be tempted by that?

Come to think of it, I've never looked up the harm done / illness / death done by alcohol and I'm sure someone has them.

But then I think nic gums and lozenges are more attractive to kids, esp toddlers who get into mommy's purse. Those are also sold in candy / fruit type flavors and I know for a fact there's been a string of accidents in e.r.'s including deaths. At least eliquid tastes nasty.

Do I dare mention YouTube videos of really stupid teens putting nic patches all over their body until they get dizzy and sick? I've seen one and didn't look if there were more.

Someone said a person can't use comparisons to change regulations, etc. but how else can someone present a case for HARM REDUCTION? This doesn't happen in a vacuum and not smoking isn't an option or I would have quit a long, long time ago. I think I was one of the first to use nicotine gum when it still tasted nasty - and I smoked as if it was nothing. Just got a little dizzy at first and then my body adjusted. But nothing has slowed me down - except pregnancy and that was mother nature. That wasn't my choice (TG that BP can't duplicate that).

I don't know what's going to get through to them. Right now I think it's just doing what we are doing, getting as many vapers as possible involved and swell organization efforts. A membership drive and reaching out to smokers. Word is there is a vaper holding state office and that's protected Az. For now anyway. But that's not a bad plan to duplicate as much as possible. All things said, we're preaching to the choir here and what counts is getting out there and doing it.

I find it odd that no celebrity has come forward to stick up for Calif or NYC. I wonder if Variety accepts non-profit ads (if that would make a difference). I think a celebrity spokeperson with a real mod would definatley help.

 

[Anjaffm]

Hi, Anja! I was wondering about the chemistry aspect of this myself. I wonder if perhaps some of our fellow members who see this might shed some light on how that works?

Yes, that would be interesting indeed.
I know there are freeze-dried spices etc. But you cannot freeze-dry (or freeze or dry, for that matter) alcohol.
That leaves a chemical process.

I inhaled enough chemically altered (through burning) substances in my life. By inhaling the smoke of burning plants - and a bunch of additives. And no, I do not want to ingest any chemically altered substances if I can help it, thank you very much.

The whole thing makes absolutely no sense.
You take an alcoholic beverage (say: beer. Which is pretty much natural, at least in my home country with its very strict beer purity laws). You process it to turn it into a powder. Then the buyer purchases that processed stuff, adds water - and has a "wonderful", processed, chemically altered drink. And the buyer drinks that stuff and puts it into his / her body.

1. Ewwwww......
2. Is the current trend not thankfully away from processed this, processed that and processed the other?
3. There are no long-term studies

I was very involved in politics at one time, including running for a State Senate seat. (NH, not NY) The experience left me with a new found suspicion of politicians and how the system really works. The saying, "you don't want to see how the sausage is made" is very, very true...

Oh yes, I bet!
I am a normal consumer, and I often shake my head at the things that the press discloses to us normal mortals.
But to be in the thick of it? Oh wow!

 

[aikanae1]

I think the "trend" is towards natural appearing products, which doesn't mean the products are more natural or less processed. Meat glue? GMO labeling? All sorts of yuck. The market for natural and organic alcohol is not the target market for powdered alcohol. Or most of the other flavored alcoholic coolers and drinks. Most kids don't have the funds for micro brews which would be the natural stuff.

I felt the bags but I don't remember if they were crunchy like freeze dried. If I remember right, a person added water to the bag because I thought they might be good for camping / backpacking. That's why I did the double take.

 

[Anjaffm]

I think the "trend" is towards natural appearing products, which doesn't mean the products are more natural or less processed. Meat glue? GMO labeling? All sorts of yuck. The market for natural and organic alcohol is not the target market for powdered alcohol. Or most of the other flavored alcoholic coolers and drinks. Most kids don't have the funds for micro brews which would be the natural stuff.

Oh sorry to hear that
I thought the trend was finally going away from "processed" everything. Maybe that is only in my home region
I am most certainly not a health nut, but if I have the choice between chemically and industrially processed XYZ and normal, natural YXZ, I will go for the second choice. No, and not "all natural" on the package. But simply fresh and natural.

I felt the bags but I don't remember if they were crunchy like freeze dried. If I remember right, a person added water to the bag because I thought they might be good for camping / backpacking. That's why I did the double take.

Uhm... if you go camping / backpacking, and you buy the water to put into the powdered booze, why not buy booze? Or do you trust the tap water in any location enough to actually drink it?

Questions, questions...... Well, never mind. I would not touch that crap with a ten-foot pole

Edit:
In my home country, Germany, we have a strict beer purity law . Some foreigners laugh about it. Yeah, until they have tasted German beer
So, I think that my country may not be the best market for powdered alcohol. Thankfully.
Ewwww.........

 

[AndriaD]

I was very involved in politics at one time, including running for a State Senate seat. (NH, not NY) The experience left me with a new found suspicion of politicians and how the system really works. The saying, "you don't want to see how the sausage is made" is very, very true...

I can believe it. The simple answer to "why would anyone want to be an elected official?" is: they want to get rich quick, from the PACs, and everyone else trying to buy the laws they want. Every single one of them is a crook of the first order, looking ONLY to line their own pockets, and perhaps the pockets of their personal cronies. Not one actually gives a rat's patootie about "representing their constituents." Not one.

The only way to try to choose who to vote for, is to try and see which candidate is least crooked -- but that's hard to determine, when they all have LEAGUES of flunkies trying to squelch any bad or mediocre press about them.

I really think it's time for a new revolution. Let's invite the brits to come back and burn washington again, when there's a joint session of congress.

Andria

 

[AndriaD]

Someone said a person can't use comparisons to change regulations, etc. but how else can someone present a case for HARM REDUCTION? This doesn't happen in a vacuum and not smoking isn't an option or I would have quit a long, long time ago. I think I was one of the first to use nicotine gum when it still tasted nasty - and I smoked as if it was nothing. Just got a little dizzy at first and then my body adjusted. But nothing has slowed me down - except pregnancy and that was mother nature. That wasn't my choice (TG that BP can't duplicate that).

Even pregnancy didn't stop me; I had to cut down drastically, because smoking made me nauseous in my first trimester, but I still didn't quit; in the middle of hormonal hell, no way was I going to cut out the only thing that kinda settled me, even while unsettling my stomach. But I went from 2 pks a day to 3 or 4 cigs a day, strictly because of the nausea. By the end of the pregnancy, I was back to about half a pk a day. And no, my son wasn't premature, as they always throw at you to scare you into quitting; in fact he was 4 days past the projected delivery date, and weighed a hefty 7 lbs 13 oz. I really think that most of the crap they throw out to try and scare you into quitting, is just that, crap -- that's the ANTZ for you. They'll lie like a dog to try and get their way. Fascists.

Andria

 

[Anjaffm]

I really think that most of the crap they throw out to try and scare you into quitting, is just that, crap -- that's the ANTZ for you. They'll lie like a dog to try and get their way.

Of course it is.

"Third hand smoke" will kill ya. Yeah sure....
But powdered alcohol is just fine and dandy. With lots of wonderful flavors - which would be "appealing to kids" if they were e-liquid flavors .......
But of course, you see, there is no big huge filthy rich industry marketing drugs to get people off the booze.

 

[coalyard]

Let's invite the brits to come back and burn washington again, when there's a joint session of congress.

*swoon* They aren't all corrupt at first, but they surely end up that way. Serving as a legislator was never intended to be a career. I could think of many improvements; term limits and repealing the 17th amendment to name just 2.

Right now I think it's just doing what we are doing, getting as many vapers as possible involved and swell organization efforts. A membership drive and reaching out to smokers. Word is there is a vaper holding state office and that's protected Az. For now anyway. But that's not a bad plan to duplicate as much as possible. All things said, we're preaching to the choir here and what counts is getting out there and doing it.

I agree 100%. Griping on a forum is one thing, and it is therapeutic and useful to an extent. There is however, no substitute for being active and calling your elected critters, as well as writing.

In my home country, Germany, we have a strict beer purity law . Some foreigners laugh about it. Yeah, until they have tasted German beer

I have never had a "true" German beer from Germany, although I suspect some of the craft brewed stuff I was getting in Vermont might be close to it. I still love the smell of a good beer or a single malt Scotch. I used to consume probably too much Bowmore 18yr old with really large cigars at one time. If I ever find myself in Germany, I might just make an exception and enjoy a proper beer.

 

[Kent C]

In my home country, Germany, we have a strict beer purity law . Some foreigners laugh about it. Yeah, until they have tasted German beer

Somewhat OT but shows how some regulations can detract from a product.

Italian Tuscan wines were just the opposite... from wiki:

The origin of Super Tuscans is rooted in the restrictive DOC (gov't regulations) practices of the Chianti zone prior to the 1990s. During this time Chianti could be composed of no more than 70% Sangiovese and had to include at least 10% of one of the local white wine grapes. Producers who deviated from these regulations could not use the Chianti name on their wine labels and would be classified as vino da tavola- Italy's lowest wine designation. By the 1970s, the consumer market for Chianti wines was suffering and the wines were widely perceived to be lacking quality. Many Tuscan wine producers thought they could produce a better quality wine if they were not hindered by the DOC regulations.

Some of the best vintners in the area - said "Ok, we'll just make the best 'vino da tavola' (table wine) ever." And the 'Super Tuscans' were born.

The marchese Piero Antinori was one of the first to create a "Chianti-style" wine that ignored the DOC regulations, releasing a 1971 Sangiovese-Cabernet Sauvignon blend known as Tignanello in 1978. Other producers followed suit and soon the prices for these Super Tuscans were consistently beating the prices of some of most well known Chianti. Rather than rely on name recognition of the Chianti region, the Super Tuscan producers sought to create a wine brand that would be recognizable on its own merits by consumers.

Some Premier Super Tuscans:
Antinori (Solaia & Tignanello)
Castello Banfi (Summus & Excelsus)
Col d’Orcia (Olmaia)
Tenuta dell Ornellaia (Ornellaia)
Tenuta San ..... (Sassicaia)