Does filtering cheap vodka help?

[creditoria]

I don't drink hard alcohol, except for the ordinary glass of red wine each evening with my meal and an occasional sip of brandy once or twice a month. You should be doing the same - otherwise you can be sure it is killing you.

If you have gotten as far as to look for cheap ways of supplying yourself with booze then you should ask yourself if you can stop taking it at any moment for good.

If the answer is no, you are in trouble.

[supercheap]

Originally Posted by creditoria

I don't drink hard alcohol, except for the ordinary glass of red wine each evening with my meal and an occasional sip of brandy once or twice a month. You should be doing the same - otherwise you can be sure it is killing you.

If you have gotten as far as to look for cheap ways of supplying yourself with booze then you should ask yourself if you can stop taking it at any moment for good.

If the answer is no, you are in trouble.

Good for you. You don't drink except when you feel like it. Everyone draws their own line in a different place, besides this thread is about saving money.

[Marikam]

I saw a program on TV where they asked 16 participants who swore by the vodka they used in their martinis to pick out which one was theirs. Only one person got it right and all the others selected the "cheapest" as the best tasting. So go filter.

[disneysteve]

Originally Posted by Marikam

I saw a program on TV where they asked 16 participants who swore by the vodka they used in their martinis to pick out which one was theirs. Only one person got it right and all the others selected the "cheapest" as the best tasting. So go filter.

I've seen ones like that, too, especially with wine. They gather a bunch of "experts" and give them cheap wine and very expensive wine and the majority can't tell the difference. I even saw one test where most of the people couldn't tell the difference between white wine and red wine. Really makes you wonder how much marketing influences everything.

That said, I think I can tell the difference between cheap vodka and good vodka, but I'm sure I couldn't distinguish one premium brand from another.

[Joan.of.the.Arch]

I doubt if I could tell the difference between cheap vodka and expensive vodka because it all just burns my mouth and throat and tastes like poison unless I hide it in a sweet drink. But I am no sort of expert at all on wines, but I can sure as heck tell the difference between wines.

I wonder about the cost effectiveness of filtering vodka at home. Surely it is cheaper for the maker to buy the filtering materials in bulk and take care of it for you, tagging on extra expense to the product. When you buy the more expensive, better filtered stuff, perhaps you are saving yourself money over buying the cheap stuff plus the charcoal in small batches.

[GREENBACK]

I know that when vodka is in a mixed drink it's hard to tell the difference to me. I think marketing and pricing play a huge role in this. I've heard of these tests and It's amazing that a so called expert is fooled on the difference between a $60 bottle and a $10 bottle when it's in a mixed drink. I think it's part of our consumer culture to automatically assume that higher price means higher quality.

[disneysteve]

Originally Posted by GREENBACK

I've heard of these tests and It's amazing that a so called expert is fooled on the difference between a $60 bottle and a $10 bottle when it's in a mixed drink. I think it's part of our consumer culture to automatically assume that higher price means higher quality.

I would agree with that. Once it gets mixed with juice, soda, etc., the difference is much less noticeable. The difference is really noticeable when the vodka is being used straight.

Of course, by the same token, the quality of the mixers matters a lot, too. I like a screwdriver (vodka and orange juice) but if the bar isn't using Tropicana OJ, I won't order that drink. Bad OJ ruins it a lot more than cheap vodka.

When we were buying the liquor for DD's Bat Mitzvah reception last year, the caterer recommended Gray Goose. We told him that we actually don't like Gray Goose. We prefer Skyy, which happens to be cheaper. We ended up buying some of each, since Gray Goose is more popular. So it isn't all about price. It really is about taste and personal preferences.

[GREENBACK]

I rarely, if ever, drink Vodka straight so I generally buy the midrange stuff like Smirnoff. We have a friend that likes it on the rocks with a twist of lime so I keep the gray goose around for that. I may try to fool him with my new found knowledge. I may not even tell him if he doesn't notice the difference

[disneysteve]

Originally Posted by GREENBACK

I rarely, if ever, drink Vodka straight

It depends what vodka is being served. If it is cheap stuff, I mix it. If it is good stuff, I'll have it straight, but it needs to be ice cold - not with ice, but kept on ice or in the freezer. At home, the Smirnoff is in the cabinet but the Skyy is in the freezer.

[scfr]

Originally Posted by GREENBACK

I rarely, if ever, drink Vodka straight so I generally buy the midrange stuff like Smirnoff. We have a friend that likes it on the rocks with a twist of lime so I keep the gray goose around for that. I may try to fool him with my new found knowledge. I may not even tell him if he doesn't notice the difference

I'd suggest keeping the Grey Goose bottle and pouring the filtered vodka in to it, but I wouldn't dream of suggesting something so devious.

[disneysteve]

Originally Posted by GREENBACK

I generally buy the midrange stuff like Smirnoff.

My college parties were always the favorites because I didn't believe in cheap alcohol. Everyone else was serving Fleishmann's or Banker's Club and I was serving Smirnoffs. I think that is a very good all around choice. Not super premium expensive stuff but not firewater that burns your throat. It is perfectly fine mixed and smooth enough to drink straight (though once I could afford to do so, I graduated to Stoli or Absolut).

[GREENBACK]

Originally Posted by scfr

I'd suggest keeping the Grey Goose bottle and pouring the filtered vodka in to it, but I wouldn't dream of suggesting something so devious.

I, of course, would never view this as devious advice but merely an observation of the ways one might place their newly processed medium into a suitable container

[GREENBACK]

Originally Posted by disneysteve

(though once I could afford to do so, I graduated to Stoli or Absolut).

I pretty much did the same. If you came to my party in college you got the cheapest hooch crap we could lay our hands on. A bit of fruit juice and some limes and lemons was all you needed to keep everyone satisfied....lol.

[disneysteve]

Originally Posted by GREENBACK

If you came to my party in college you got the cheapest hooch crap we could lay our hands on.

That's why my parties were different. We never served the cheap "hooch crap". I was a strange one. I never drank simply to get drunk. I wanted to enjoy what I was drinking. I'd pass on the cheap garbage. It was decent stuff or Coke for me.

[GREENBACK]

Originally Posted by disneysteve

That's why my parties were different. We never served the cheap "hooch crap". I was a strange one. I never drank simply to get drunk. I wanted to enjoy what I was drinking. I'd pass on the cheap garbage. It was decent stuff or Coke for me.

The "hooch" was mainly for those who really didn't care what was in the funny tasting kool-aid as long as it was free...lol. I usually just stuck with something consistent like beer.

[bjl584]

Yes, filtering cheap vodka will make it better. But, the time and effort you spend doing it, plus the money for the filters, makes it more expensive than just buying a good bottle in the first place.

[georgealan]

I have the Brita water filters and I am very pleased, but I think water is just doubt that will happen and vodka

[supercheap]

Originally Posted by georgealan

I have the Brita water filters and I am very pleased, but I think water is just doubt that will happen and vodka

georgealan

Brita will work, give it a shot.