Powdered Alcohol - Who Would Have Thunk It?

While Palcohol's possible, eventual existence is throwing everyone for a loop, it appears powdered alcohol has existed, at least in theory, on the fringes of the substance world for a while. The first US patent (3,436,224) for powdered alcohol was filed in 1964 by Harold E. Bode of Cleveland, Ohio, and granted in 1969. It describes a number of water-soluble substances for creating alcoholic beverages.

According to the patent, the process involved dehydrating a "starch-based polysaccharide material until the moisture con ten [sic] is less than 0.75%," cooling that material to a "food flavor vapor-sorbing temperature." The next step is "exposing the said dehydrated material to anhydrous ethanol," and, if desired, to "one or more anhydrous food/beverage flavors from the group comprising carbon dioxide, and aroma volatiles from cereals, fruits or vegetables." In short, dehydrate some carbs, cool them, expose them to anhydrous ethanol and, if you want, add some flavorings, and voila—alcohol in Kool-Aid form.