Neither technique is better than the other. it is just that both have different outcomes.
Why are they different?
In chemistry, we say "like attracts like". Sugars are polar molecules that absorb (also polar) water molecules from the peel. This breaks the oil sacs on the peel, leaking the citrus oils.
Alcohol is both a polar and non-polar mixture (unles you have 99% abv) so it is a brute force solvent that draws out everything.
Sometimes we want the everything from the citrus. Particularly grapefruit oil from its peel not characteristic of grapefruit. an oleo saccrum of grapefruit is rare.
Sometimes we want sweet citrus oil. Then we would use saccrum