All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah, and that Muhammad is His Slave and Messenger.
First of all, not everything which chemists call “alcohol” is considered intoxicating just because it is classified under the alcohol compound, but some alcoholic compounds are intoxicating and other types are non-intoxicating. The ones that are intoxicating are Islamically regarded as impure.
According to our view, if the intoxicating alcohol is transformed into another non-intoxicating substance during the manufacturing process, then it is permissible to use the resulting products which contain that substance, such as creams, lotions and the like. This view is based on the preponderant opinion which states that an impure substance can become pure by transforming it into another substance (which is pure). This is also the case if the amount of the intoxicating alcohol substance is so insignificant that it has no noticeable effect on the product's color, taste or odor.
However, if the intoxicating substance remains in the same state during the manufacturing process and is not transformed into another substance, then it is not permissible to use the product that contains it if its effect is noticeable in the taste, color or smell of the product.
Allah Knows best.