LAST CALL FOR GRAIN ALCOHOL

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: MONDAY, March 15, 1993                   TAG: 9303150079
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: C2   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: CHARLOTTESVILLE                                LENGTH: Short
LAST CALL FOR GRAIN ALCOHOL
Last call for grain alcohol in Virginia is July 1.
A state law passed last month by the General Assembly bans sales of grain alcohol effective in July. The law will bring to an end decades of spiking college punches with the clear, tasteless alcohol.
Grain alcohol is colorless, odorless and virtually tasteless. It is a highly potent liquid that is 75 percent pure alcohol, and because of its strength, small amounts can be highly toxic.
The proposal to ban sales came from a task force that was formed in the wake of a drug raid on three University of Virginia fraternities in 1991.
College administrators said in 1991 that grain alcohol mixed in punch is a dangerous drink. And they pointed out that most grain alcohol sales in the state took place near the Virginia and Virginia Tech campuses. The state has 245 liquor stores, but the 15 closest to college campuses accounted for 15 percent of the grain alcohol sold last year, according to Alcohol Beverage Control Board statistics.
Tops among all stores in grain alcohol sales was one not far from most University of Virginia fraternities. A close second was the ABC store in Blacksburg near Virginia Tech.

by Archana Subramaniam by CNB