Wasted beer and alcohol to produce what?

Hello permie community,

I am currently in college and as happens at almost all colleges, there is a significant amount of drinking that happens. Party after party, I've seen hundred of half finished cups, bottles, and cans of beer, sugary cocktails, and wine been left to be poured down the drain by the poor hosts of the party. My question is, what can I do with this leftover alcohol? I love the idea of composting (regular, vermi-, and with black soldier fly larvae); using waste product to grow or feed something else. Beer and the aforementioned drinks have a ton of sugar and other carbs that could be used to grow something productive, I just do not know what. I've done a little research and haven't found much. The idea of using it as a starter for a compost pile is interesting but there is a loooootttttt of wasted beer on campus, enough to start hundreds of compost piles I do not have.

Looking for any suggestions...thanks!

Add it to wet composting barrels a la David the Good's Fetid Swamp Water:  

Vinegar.

Feed it to the pigs!
Makes them happy, calm, and fat.

William Bronson wrote:Vinegar.

I'm curious to know what would happen if it all was just poured onto the ground. Would the alcohol be bad for the soil life, or would they like it?

If not good, and the person dealing with all this leftover alcohol is not permie-minded enough to make plant-based fertilizer out of it and/or doesn't have enough applications for it, would letting it sit in a bucket for a while, then pouring it out on the lawn, be a possible solution?

I came across this link with details of what you can do with leftover beer: http://allaboutbeer.com/article/beer-around-the-house-and-garden/

Briefly:
- make traps for flying bugs
- use beer to polish metals, or to soak rusty nails or other metal parts
- slug bait (probably the best-known use of leftover beer)
- composting
- use to water plants (adds nutrients too) - so yes, in answer to your question, it's fine to pour the leftovers onto the ground
- may be used for cooking (base for sauces, liquids in crockpot, etc. - perhaps best used for dregs in poured bottles, rather than cups people have been drinking from!)
- cleaning bathtubs and other surfaces, mixed with some salt and/or baking soda
- pale beer may work as stain lifter for fabric
- hair rinse (another classic use)

Andrea Locke wrote:I came across this link with details of what you can do with leftover beer: http://allaboutbeer.com/article/beer-around-the-house-and-garden/

Briefly:
- make traps for flying bugs
- use beer to polish metals, or to soak rusty nails or other metal parts
- slug bait (probably the best-known use of leftover beer)
- composting
- use to water plants (adds nutrients too) - so yes, in answer to your question, it's fine to pour the leftovers onto the ground
- may be used for cooking (base for sauces, liquids in crockpot, etc. - perhaps best used for dregs in poured bottles, rather than cups people have been drinking from!)
- cleaning bathtubs and other surfaces, mixed with some salt and/or baking soda
- pale beer may work as stain lifter for fabric
- hair rinse (another classic use)

Wow. Who knew?

You could put it all in a big pot and boil off the alcohol. Then it could be used to keep a compost pile moist

And to add to the list of uses for wine...

- same as beer, you can use it for cleaning - wine is maybe a bit more versatile as it can be used for cleaning fruits and veggies, or as a glass cleaner
- white wine, stain remover (for the spilled red wine on the carpet, maybe!?)
- red wine, dye fabric
- make jelly

So, good for helping you clean up after the party :)  but also some other things that I hadn't thought about but am keen to try now (dye fabric and make jelly).

Here's a link with more details: https://www.sheknows.com/food-and-recipes/articles/952079/top-10-things-to-do-with-wine-besides-drink-it/

Especially with the stronger sources....say wine strength or better, I'd put it into a still and get strong alcohol off of it.  This is valuable (as in expensive to buy) and has many uses....tincturing medicinals comes first to mind.

I read an article years ago about using stale beer to de-thatch a lawn. The premise of the article was that the nutrients in the beer stimulated the growth of organisms that broke down thatch.  
I had the good fortune to work for a church with leftover beer from a picnic. As good employees we tried to personally decrease the waste.  I have always been what my husband always called a cheap date, so I carried home a few gallons for lawn care.  Said beer delivered the desired result with many happy earthworms.

Well around here I use old beer to let slugs die a happy death. I  use a empty clean cottage cheese, yogurt quart plastic container with a lid cut a hole half way down the side fill with old beer and put out where slugs are feasting on my lettuce, cabbages etc.  They like beer better they fall in and drown.  if you are not in a slug area you can make beer bread.  The beer helps feed the yeast. If you know a pig farmer it makes great pig food also.  Good Luck it seems too good to throw out!