Science you can use: Fixing Cheap Vodka with a Water Filter

I am sure someone will point to a certain inevitability to a writer on a tight deadline choosing the topic of this post...I think I'll call it channeling my inner Hemingway and leave it at that.

A while back, an online community I belong to was talking about the purported effect of a standard water filter on cheap vodka. The theory was that, since vodka is supposed to be tasteless — or is it tastefree? — then the problem with cheap vodka was that it tasted like...well, cheap vodka. Hence, removing the harsh flavors would leave the desired nontaste and render a palatable drink. The tool of choice seemed to be a standard water filter pitcher, something that a lot of us have shoved in the back of a cabinet somewhere, and also available at thrift stores for a few dollars.