For me, rather than being powerless over alcohol, it was more a matter of being powerless over the thoughts that popped into my head.
Thoughts like:
go on have a drink, it will be alright
just have one
this time it will be different
so what if I drink
no one will know
etc. etc. etc...
Thoughts have no power of their own. I have no power over the myriad of thoughts that will pop into my head on a daily basis. Experts say that number for the average person is around 60,000-80,000.
I do have power over which thoughts I decide to act upon. With the number of thoughts being that high, I can afford to be somewhat selective.