Drinking and writing
Massimo's comment reminded me of the old adage, "drink when you want to, not when you need to", and I think those are useful words to remember.

However, I also agree with what rnrstopstraffic said, and if you have no general problem with consuming alcohol, try it and see what happens.

I don't suggest going out with your friends, drinking 6 pints of beer and 3 shots of tequila before stumbling home at 2am and scribbling nonsense, however. One glass of wine or beer with dinner would, I expect, be enough to get the creative juices flowing (if alcohol is going to get them flowing at all). I also recommend that you wait until the following day to edit and submit.

I've personally never written academic work after drinking alcohol, but I have written fiction after doing so. For me, it definitely doesn't improve the quality of my writing, but it does help me put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard) and just write. As Inkblot says, it's a lot easier to rewrite and edit when you have something on the page, even if it is total garbage.