A lower alcohol, for example, ethyl alcohol, is recovered from a reaction mixture resulted from a reaction of catechol with a lower alcohol in such a manner that the reaction mixture is distilled and separated into a distilled light vapor fraction comprising non-reacted lower alcohol and water and a residual fraction comprising a reaction product and non-reacted catechol; the distilled light vapor fraction is further distilled and separated into a distilled vapor fraction comprising the lower alcohol in an increased concentration and a residual water fraction; the distilled vapor fraction is fed to a gas-separating membrane module which allows water vapor to selectively permeate therethrough, and separated into a non-permeated fraction which comprises the lower alcohol in a high concentration, which is left in the feed side of the membrane, and a permeated fraction which comprises water in a high concentration, which is returned from the delivery side of the membrane to the further distilling step, and the non-permeated fraction is cooled and recovered.