[tophat9000]

ethyl alcohol... I thought that was a byproduct of yeast (life) fermentation digesting sugar not a naturally occurring substance...?

[exDemMom]

Ethyl alcohol, more commonly known as “ethanol” is a small, simple molecule: H3C-CH2OH. Simple molecules can form spontaneously, as long as the proper elements and some energy are present.

[BipolarBob]

yeast digesting sugars is a natural process. Now how did the sugars get there and what kind of fermentation process took place are my questions.

[Fred Nerks]

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-10-24/sugar-alcohol-on-comet-lovejoy/6881794

Scientists have identified two complex organic molecules, or building blocks of life, on a comet for the first time, shedding new light on the cosmic origins of planets like Earth.

Ethyl alcohol and a simple sugar known as glycolaldehyde were detected in Comet Lovejoy, according to the study in the journal Science Advances.

“These complex organic molecules may be part of the rocky material from which planets are formed,” the study’s authors said.

[alexander_busek]

ethyl alcohol... I thought that was a byproduct of yeast (life) fermentation digesting sugar not a naturally occurring substance...?

You are committing a logical fallacy.

Fermentation is ONE possible cause of the formation of alcohol.

Other chemical reactions having nothing to do with "life" have likewise been observed to produce alcohol.

Regards,