[techmind (OP)]

Another alcohol question 

There is a perception that (shaven) men have a more prominent stubble the morning after a night of heavy drinking (alcohol). It's widely portrayed in cartoons and things too.

Is the effect real?

What causes it?
Does the hair really grow faster due to alcohol, or is it that the sleep pattern is affected which in turn affects the growth, or perhaps it's just that a heavy night usually leads to a lie-in and thus more time for the hair to grow?

[RD]

Alcohol does cause dehydration ... http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2012/02/28/3441707.htm

Dehydration does make hair look like it has grown after death ...

the skin around the hair and fingernails will desiccate (i.e., lose water) and thereby shrink. When the skin shrinks, it retracts, making hair and fingernails look longer, as if they'd grown.

 
http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/1944/do-hair-and-nails-continue-to-grow-after-death

[Sprool]

I'll go for the extra lie-in and general unkept appearance that accompanies a night on the booze

[PamelaParker]

Probably there is no evidence that hair grow faster for alcohol consumption. Rather heavy alcohol use can lead to damage to the health of your hair. Consuming excessive alcohol can leave hair dry and brittle which leaves the hair fall symptoms and damage of hair.

[alancalverd]

Beard growth is accelerated by the expectation of sex. Oddly, this research was carried out in the 1960s with monks as subjects, so the details are to say the least bizarre, but well founded.

Every redblooded male knows that each pint makes him more desirable, so by the time you are legless, the entire female population is just yelling for it, if only you could get your trousers off without falling over or falling asleep. Funny things, beer goggles - they work both ways!