Would you ever seriously consider a powdered form of alcohol as a decent tipple?
Apparently this isn’t a new thing, and powdered alcohol has been around as early as the ‘70s, when it was sold as a food processing additive.
But the idea is firmly back again in the spotlight, though not necessarily for the right reasons. Palcohol, the product in question, had its label approval by the US Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau revoked after it was initially approved. The media picked up on it, and eventually Lipsmark, the company behind Palcohol, found itself under intense scrutiny.
The primary concerns were about the potential of Palcohol being abused, as well as doubts about its safety, to which Lipsmark founder Mark Phillips posted a youtube video to address the issues:
The Palcohol website also claims that there’s plenty of potential – aside from drinking – for it to be used for medical and manufacturing purposes. As for how it’s made, Lipsmark has declined to comment, stating that they are in the process of applying for a patent.
Lipsmark had planned to release six versions of their product in the latter half of this year: a premium vodka, a premium Puerto Rican rum, Cosmopolitan, Mojito, Powderita (tastes like Margarita), and Lemon Drop. But given the controversy it has stirred up, we might have to wait a little longer to see what the fuss is all about, if at all.
Additional sources: Scientific American, cover photo from Huffington Post
