Alcohol has many more uses than livening up a party. It can be made from grains or fruits. However, you need to ensure you follow all the safety rules. Fermenting a product is not illegal, but distilling without a license is illegal in most states and countries. It is definitely illegal to sell any alcoholic products without a license.

When making alcohol, any contamination at any step can be catastrophic. Make sure you invest in quality tools. You need a controlled environment and sanitized equipment to produce a safe product for consumption.

When fermenting a fruit wine product, use perfectly ripe fruit. Make sure all of the stems are removed. The product is usually crushed and mixed with yeast to encourage fermentation. There are many resources to learn how to ferment any type of fruit. Here are a couple of quality sites to help you navigate the fermenting process: https://advancedmixology.com/blogs/art-of-mixology/how-to-make-alcohol-at-homeor https://liquorlaboratory.com/how-do-you-make-brandy/

You should also learn to make a vodka product or a quality grain alcohol. To get the product to this stage, you will need to distill the product. https://www.distilling-spirits.com/tools/still-constructions/is a great place to learn about distilling. As a beginner, I honed in on the tips. The article suggests having a stem thermometer located at the highest point of the still. There are four stages to the liquid that is released from the still. The first stage is called the foreshots. This liquid is toxic and should not be consumed, but it can be used for cleaning, etc. The second liquid that comes out is the heads. This smells more palpable but is usually still thrown out.

 The hearts is the liquid that you want to drink. When the liquid turns dull, it is called the tails. Having a stem thermometer helps to identify the stages.

The stem of the still should have a diameter that directly relates to the still’s volume. It shouldn’t be too small. No materials used to make the still should react with the still. For example, rubber or plastic will dissolve and give the alcohol a poor flavor. The materials should be made of heat-resistant glass, stainless steel, or copper. If you have clumps in the liquid you pour into the still, the heat will scorch it. Alcohol evaporates at a lower temperature than water.

Alcohol is essential to stock and know how to produce in a grid-down situation.

· Disinfect wounds

· Disinfect equipment – make sure you submerge them

· Disinfect surfaces – wipe it down and let them air dry.

· Remove odors – You can mix with water and spray in the air.

· Deodorize – use it on your pits and smelly places

· Start a fire

· Cook an egg

· Clean a gun

· Soothe mouth pain

· Clean your teeth- swish for 30 seconds

· Fuel a lamp

· Fuel a stove

· Relieve poison ivy, oak, or bug bites - it dries them out

· Repel bugs – mix with olive oil and rub on skin

· Kill weeds

· Kill mold and save your bleach for cleaning water

· Suppress a cough with a hot drink mixed with honey, lemon, or hot water. The vapor from the drink also dilates blood vessels.

· Barter

· Remove frost

· Eliminate fungus on the feet

· Clean stains

· Clean jewelry

· Reduce anxiety

· Boost morale and alleviate boredom

· Sleep aid

· Make Molotov cocktails

· Disinfect water – use your still to make distilled water

· Make herbal tinctures and elixirs

· Facial astringent or toner

· Fuel for vehicles

· Clean optic glass

· Numbing agent

· Starter fluid for Internal combustion engines.

· Make perfume

· Muscle relaxer

· Help repopulate, lol

A discussion that needs to be had is expectations for having an alcoholic in your survival group. Alcoholics can have extreme withdrawal symptoms. You need to know how to help people through these trials. The other thing that you need to consider is what an alcoholic will do to get a fix. They may raid your alcohol stash or give information to another group to get a drink.