(NaturalNews) Just when you think everything has been done to contribute toward alcohol consumption, such as drive-through liquor stores and miniature bottles such as those in hotel rooms and on commercial airliners, along comes a bizarre invention called Palcahol. It's a powdered alcoholic beverage in a packet, some are vodka, some are rum, and some are ready-mixed cocktails.

The packet is water-proof and contains a capped opening that will allow water to be poured into it and also be used to drink directly from the packet after the recommended five ounces of water have been thoroughly mixed by sealing and shaking the packet. The inventor, Mark Phillips, claims he came up with idea so he could enjoy a cocktail upon completing a long hike or kayaking adventure.

Hmmm -- how about before making your first skydiving attempt -- oh, never mind. Save it for after skydiving or hang gliding. Phillips liked the idea he came up with because one doesn't need to waste his carried bottle of plain water by mixing the powder into the water. Instead, mixing the water into the packet's powder saves the rest of one's drinking water after drinking a "stiff one" for the road, er, trail.

Not so quick to market, however

The Arizona-based company that's set to produce and market the powdered booze, Lipsmark, LLC, is having its share of obstacles on the way to its projected marketplace target of the 2015 spring season -- just in time for college spring breaks.

Some of Lipsmark's current issues most likely stem from some of their own website's statements, such as, "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."

Do you think maybe the various manufacturers and distributors and various venues for various events and restaurants and bars, most of whom are merged under various trade organizations that can lobby politicians may have managed to have an effect on the five states that have banned it and the others considering a ban? Could be. Could really, really be.

What goes into politicians' pockets and what they publicly say about the actions they take rarely match. So far, Alaska, Delaware, Louisiana, South Carolina and Vermont already have banned powdered alcohol, and Minnesota, Ohio and New York also are considering bans. Colorado is looking at a bill drafted by Republican Representative JoAnn Windholz to ban it in that state.

Then there was that intended-as-humorous costly quip on the product's website about "snorting it" for a quick buzz. A costly quip because some state legislators that want to ban it are expressing those exact concerns: Some may try that method to take in alcohol, which is an accepted method of abusing two illegal substances: meth and cocaine.

Mark Phillips says that's silly, because the amount of powder needed to snort from a packet that mimics a shot of liquid booze is prohibitive and painful. Now they're not making jokes on their website anymore. But their lighthearted bar-talk rhetoric has already been taken and twisted politically and economically.

Here's another bullet from their gun and into their feet: Lipsmark put on their website hints about sprinkling it on your food after cooking to ensure that the alcohol isn't burned off, because that would spoil the point of it all.

So, along came Chris Johnson, executive director of the County Sheriffs of Colorado, where a "ban the Palcahol" bill was introduced. Johnson expressed concern about kids sprinkling it on their breakfast Wheaties before running off to school.

An arduous road to nowhere

The whole thing is a bit crazy on both sides of the issue, but the economics will trump all these social concerns which can be ameliorated with strict legal guidelines, like 30 years in a federal prison for sneaking a Palcahol pouch into a sports event or restaurant maybe? Just kidding. But that is an exaggeration of reality.

That leaves it up to alcohol distributors who won't want to upset their normal liquid alcohol clients. It appears that after five years of wrangling with first the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) and now state legislation bans, this kooky invention may not survive economically.

Sources:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk

http://www.bevlaw.com

http://www.grubstreet.com