On numerous threads in the CR, there is intense discussion and debate about the entire subject of ad delo yoda. From the appearance of it, there is far more noise about being “machmir” on this than on the true mitzvos of the day spelled out in the Megillah, which are reading the Megillah, mishloach manos, seuda, and matanos lo’evyonim. The ad delo yoda appears as a statement in the gemora, and is included in Shulchan Aruch. I am not minimizing its importance. But it is NOT one the main 4 mitzvos of the day. Rather, it is to be viewed as a subset of the existing mitzvos, not one of its own. So the concept of being “machmir” is misapplied.
The fact that something becomes commonplace is not grounds to call it a minhag nor a mitzvah. There is no halachic source (if you find one, please share it) for imbibing any other form of alcohol besides wine on Purim.
Observing the “chumros” about getting drunk paired with extreme “kulos” in many other areas of Yiddishkeit, the contrast is remarkable, and one must question whether the drinking is being made into a goal of its own.
The wild behavior observed in the streets on Purim night (after megillah) is completely antithetical to the true simcha of Purim. It seems that there is a controlled desire to reach intoxication, behave loudly and wildly, without regard to the chilul Hashem factor, nor the disturbance it creates for people who are forced to tolerate it, Purim simply lifts these rules of decency. Sorry, but I have yet to find a Torah source that makes such behavior virtuous. It defies the midos that a Yid is expected to follow.