Best alcohol brands for barter, cooking, etc?

[drs]

As a chef and gardener, I also reccomend everclear. Easiest to store, most uses including medical and fuel, and can be mixed heavily to make drinks. Beer is pointless, brew it fresh if at all. Wine is for high level preppers, preferably with a cave and $$$ for stocking it.

I disagree about distilling being too hard post SHTF. Spirits can be made from many easy to grow crops. It may be a cooperative venture, but I bet helpers would be easy to find. Growing and producing *things* will be quite lucrative in general. Unfortunately, intoxicants will probably be the most lucrative.

 

[Jerry]

Everclear. Most concentrated potable alcohol readily available. Sold in Oregon liquor stores. I buy the pint bottles.

You can cut it up to five-to-one with almost anything and still have something tradeable. It's also good for medicinal uses or even burning for heat in a pinch.

Alcohol, along with tobacco, will be among the highest-value trading items in a grid-down situation.

Just remember....Everclear is 190 proof or 95% alcohol & is flammable. Just sayin'.
Huh..this reminds me, I've got a fifth of the stuff in the cupboard. Time to make some apple hooch!!! Hehehe......

 

[DirtyBird]

Heretic, I think you're on to something. If and when things go pear-shaped, a bottle of liquor is likely to be a popular item for sale, trade, or as a palm-greaser. At any rate, stocking up on hootch has been on my list for awhile. The problem is, I keep drinking it...

I think the sweet spot would be a case of 750ml bottles of Jack Daniels or Jim Beam, and a case of 750ml bottles of a cheaper vodka, like Gordon's or Popov. The 750ml size is a "fifth" more or less. These days, Jack and Jim both come in plastic bottles, which'd probably be the way to go. I think that liquor depot kind of place, just across the California border on I-5, still does case discounts. Hang on - yep, just checked. All Star Liquors, right on the border. They'll pack your order and have it waiting for you.

The advantage of the fifth size bottles is it's a known quantity, and is generally enough to get a few folks liquored up. The advantage of name brands is someone else has already helped you advertise it. The advantages of many bottles, versus siphoning off an agreed amount, is that someone can't steal all your liquor at once.

If your personal convictions so allow, keeping some liquor, cigarettes, and condoms on hand would likely serve you very well during whatever difficulties might be in the offing. In this, as in so many things, we can consider the (paraphrased) words of HL Mencken: "No one ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American people." Just remember another quote as well: "Don't get high on your own supply."

 

[Cortes]

Do you know if it is possible to store tobacco long term? I have been using sealed Mylar bags with O2 absorbers for most long term bulk items. Thoughts?

I have cigars in my humidor that have been there 13 years and they are still good. I do keep them at a constant 68 degrees humidity. I wouldn't try the mylar bags and O2 absorbers for tobacco. I think cigarettes would be fine just on the shelf for a long time. A quick and dirty humidor is an ice chest with a small dish of water in it. That will keep the humidity just about right.

 

[gemihur]

Hooch, snooch , and burn.
Those'll be the commodities that'll be worth their weight in gold once the 'lights go out'
Stock up up on any and all and you can't go wrong, my man!

 

[Liberty97045]

 

[gemihur]

Loved that.
Gonna stock up using Rick's recommendations.

 

[Nick Burkhardt]

 

[Jerry]

Prices in Vancouver, WA are much lower.

No...prices are NOT lower in WA, not close. Most stores do not include the 30% in taxes in the shelf price. You will pay the extra at checkout. I live in Vancouver & buy my booze in PDX

 

[AlbcAlbrr]

I am interested in stocking up only for barter or cooking or medicinal uses.

For barter, pint bottles of Jack Daniels or Jim Beam. You can make change on large bottles of Vodka.

 

[The Heretic]

No...prices are NOT lower in WA, not close. Most stores do not include the 30% in taxes in the shelf price. You will pay the extra at checkout. I live in Vancouver & buy my booze in PDX

30% !

I was thinking the standard 10%

Okay. Now I know.





Thanks

 

[The Heretic]

Hit a Costco in California if you want cheap booze prices.

That's a little too far to drive. Vancouver would be a half hour drive from my workplace.

Oh well. I will just go to the local OLCC store.

 

[The Heretic]

I have a bit of coffee and tea too - I don't drink those either; I never cared for their taste.

I used to smoke a pipe - which is one of the reasons I have throat problems, that and GERD.

If you want to stock up on tobacco - I won't - then I would recommend the tobacco that comes in tins and other sealed containers. In my experience it does keep until you open it.

Ahhh - the smell of pipe tobacco.

 

[Certaindeaf]

Everclear. Most concentrated potable alcohol readily available. Sold in Oregon liquor stores. I buy the pint bottles.

You can cut it up to five-to-one with almost anything and still have something tradeable. It's also good for medicinal uses or even burning for heat in a pinch.

Alcohol, along with tobacco, will be among the highest-value trading items in a grid-down situation.

 

[P7M13]

Heretic, good thinking!

Obviously you've never had Pliny The Elder or you one of those weenies that drinks Coors Light.

Ritz, IMO, Pliny is overrated. (I know, to each their own...) Everyone I know foams at the mouth, saying "it's the s__t", and I find there are so many more that are better flavored, more balance, and more readily available, Pfreem for one, Ninkasi Tricerahops too if you like a strong double.
Barley wine variations keep exceptionally well, the oldest one I've had was 10 years old. It's best to bury them, though - they turn to garbage if you let them get too hot or warm in the sun.

Brandy?

My best friend's grandpop made his own brandy during prohibition. Two mason jars, proper
length tubes & siphons between them. Water, apricots, & sugar was all they used. My brother used to make a remarkably tasty hard cider.

I for one, say forget Everclear, unless you want it for yourself. I'm a believer that when SHTF, there will be some who will really get into a trade for luxuries they miss: The Macallan, Laphroaig, JW Blue, or other high end stuff. IMO, it will command a premium, many times more than what it does now. The added bonus, if that apocalypse never happens, you have some remarkable sipping whisky to share with your buddies. Though I wouldn't call it a "tradition", tossin' down a shot with friends is a favorite holiday activity.

Friends used to ask me why I always brought Jim Beam with me camping. I never liked Jack, I'd point out how heavy their canned beers were, how much bang for the buck weight wise Beam was, and the greatest - nothing like sipping whiskey around a campfire.

As far as cheap vodka, I have preferred Chopin for my "refined" drinking, using Smirnoff for the mixed stuff like blackberries and habanero. However, I just tried Tanqueray vodka, it's about the same price as Smirnoff, yet much smoother.

 

[MrNatural]

Do you know if it is possible to store tobacco long term?

If you don't smoke, then storing bulk tobacco long-term is pricey and tricky. Growing and curing your own is doable but curing it properly takes expertise that most folks don't have outside of tobacco-growing country.

For bartering, I recommend storing cigarette papers.

History teaches us that in a grid-down situation, smokers will ALWAYS find SOMETHING to smoke. You would be amazed (and probably disgusted) at some of the substitutes that have been found in prison camps, cities under siege, countries under embargo, etc.

It's the rolling papers that have very few substitutes.

Cigarette papers are available thru the mail very cheaply in bulk, very compact and simple to store. Invest in a variety of well-known brands like Tops, Bugler and Zig-Zag and you'll cover most tastes.

BONUS IDEA: Buy one or two cigarette-rolling machines (they're pretty cheap too) compatible with your brand of papers (not all are). Then, in grid-down, if you do find a source of tobacco, you can roll your own finished cigarettes which will trade for significantly more than either papers or tobacco. That way you're effectively profiting by selling a service, rather than just by bartering away your stash.

Bartering stuff is essentially a zero-sum game. Services can be sold over and over and never diminish your original stock.

 

[Doc In UPlace]

Yep, 190 proof Everclear.
It'll sterilize, preserve, set anything on fire and get people REALLY drunk. Nothing I know of packs more punch in less space when it comes to alky-booze.

 

[bgdawgrr]

Now, one of my favorite prep subject!
For cheap, bang for buck bulk storage-Everclear. As others have pointed out, you can cut 1 190 proof bottle into 3-4 for trade as a drink. Plus all its other uses. At $12-14 a bottle, I keep a case just for SHTF purposes.
Next I'd say basic Jack D and Crown Royal would be a Super Premium and universal barter item you can stock fairly cheap. (IMHO i don't think my Pappy Van Winkle would have any more value than Crown or JD in a barter situation, just like a collector Luger vs a Glock 17 would be.)
All proof alcohol will store indefinantly. Beer only a few months. Wine- get cork vs screw top, but it's bulky vs high proof spirits. I try to stay stocked. Lol
My current fav sip right now is Blantons for personal use.

 

[tionico]

Red wine for cooking, go to a quality wholesaler open to the public (Cash and Carry) and buy gallon jugs of cooking wine. Flavour for cooking is excellent, it does have alcohol, which goes away with the heat of cooking, but also has salt... making it undrinkable, and thus exempt the booze tax. I've used excellent quality rice and grape based cooking wines for under ten bucks the gallon. If the alcohol dissipates so what? It ain't gonna end up on the plate anyway.

As to hard booze.. Costco's Kirland brand of vodka the 1.75 litre size, is quite drinkable neat, good in mixed stuff, and relatively cheap. DON"T buy any hard booze in Washington, though, the insane new liquor taxes make it a ripoff. If you are planning a trip into California or Nevada, stock up there. The identical bottle of Kirkland Vodka in Washington costs $28 or so, same UPC/Item Number in California is out the door for sixteen. Stock up there and get twice as much bank for your buck. And yes, vodka IS useful for lots of things.... skin cleansing, fire starting, local anaesthetic, systemic anaesthetic, diluent for some harsher natural oils on the skin, etc.

 

[Poseidon]

Having worked in the industry I do have a few thoughts and recommendations. There are a few options. My experience is Oregon so most of this info leans that way but booze is sometimes cheaper over the border into California or Nevada but not always!
In Oregon the prices are set by the state agency the OLCC. Only bars get a discount and it isn't very much. Sale prices on any items are also done by the state so any bottle will have the exact same price at any liquor store anywhere in the state. You can even go on their website and check the inventory of any product. Also strangely enough bars in Oregon get their alcohol from the same liquor stores you use.
Both vodka(80-100 proof) and neutral grain spirit(everclear types, 190 proof) are a mostly flavorless and colorless ethanol and water combination. The proof of a liquor is alcohol%x2 so a standard vodka labelled 80 proof is 40% alcohol(ethanol) and 60% water. Everclear is a recognized brand name but Clearsprings is the cheaper discount brand in Oregon. In many Oregon liquor stores it is kept in back and not on the shelves so you simply have to ask a clerk. If you purchase Grain spirits and want to make it more drinkable you can simply add clean water to cut it down to the % you like, kinda making vodka.
Flammability is based on temperature and proof of the liquid, the warmer it is the easier it is to get it to burn. You will find to get a sustained burn(stay lit) you need to get over 120proof(60%), unless it cold and they it needs to be stronger or warmed up before it gets going. That is why Barcardi 151(proof) is popular for flaming drinks, but there is a knock off that is a lower proof and you just need to hold the match there for a few seconds more and it will get going.
If I was looking for something to store for personal consumption, flame, and medical uses I would buy clear springs in the 1.75 bottles. You can always cut it with water for "vodka" or just use half as much in a mixed drink. For backpacking I have always been a big fan of a small bottle filled with clear springs, my water filter and a baggie with powdered lemonade.
For trading I would think that buying by the case(12 bottles) of cheep vodka in 750ml bottles would be best because they are individually sealed and a decent size/value. I like McCormicks for the cheep stuff but usually if you ask your OLCC clerk what the bars use for "well drinks" they can show you the best of the cheeps stuff. If you want a whole case still in the box with the dividers for easy storage and transport the clerk will gladly get it for you too.
If you wanted top shelf stuff for trading I would recommend getting easily recognized top brands in the pint, half pint, or even mini(50ml/1.5oz sometimes called airline bottles). My thinking on this is that these luxury drinks would be sealed to help prove they have not been adulterated, not set you back too much, and not so high a value they are harder to trade. They would still provide a welcome taste of the good old days. Minis make great little gifts too. If the grown ups still get Christmas stalking in your house the smiles are big! In Oregon if you ask the clerk they often have the fuzzy purple bags for minis of Crown Royal in the back if they aren't on the bottles already.

Stay thirsty my friends!