I was reading the following thread and was confused about the mufti saying it is permissible to consume products with small amounts of non date/grape derived alcohol as long as the product does not intoxicate: http://www.sunniforum.com/forum/show...-allow-Alcohol

1 year ago I was reading a fatwa on askimam.org in which he said that food that contains alcohol that is not derived from grapes or dates are permissible to consume as long as the food does not intoxicate and the alcohol is not used in vain. I was confused since ethyl alcohol is the same regardless of where it's derived. So I emailed the Mujlisul Ulama of S.A. about my confusion about askimam's stance on the permissibility of small amounts of alcohol not derived from grapes or dates. I even sent them the fatwas from askimam that I was referring to.

This was their exact reply:

All forms of alcohol are haraam regardless of the source from which
it is derived. Whether it is grape alcohol, barley alcohol, date
alcohol, etc., etc. it is haraam. Foods containing alcohol of any type
are not permissible.

Those who are of the view that foods with non-grape alcohol are halaal
are in error. Whisky, Gin, Vodka and numerous, in fact most, types of
liquor are not grape alcohol. If someone drinks a spoon of
whisky/vodka just as a tonic, it will be wrong to say that it is
halaal simply because the whisky is not grape alcohol and the spoonful
does not intoxicate.

The view of non-grape alcohol being permissible in small quantity is
paving the way for the legalization of liquor. This is sure to happen
because Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) said that in later
times liquor will be made halaal by giving it fanciful names.

Furthermore, even great Ulama err. Those who contend permissibility in
this regard are in error. And Allah knows best.

Was-salaam

A.S. Desai

For

Mujlisul Ulama of S.A.
Apparently their view is very different from Mufti Ebrahim Desai. I'm just wondering how other brothers here are approaching this issue. Personally, I abstain from any product with alcohol regardless of where its been derived from.