Cheap Vodka + Brita Filter =! Good Idea
Last night I conducted an experiment in thrift with miliardo and, non-LJ friend, Brad. Inspired by this article that was on slashdot last week and bored, we purchased a Brita water filter in a attempt to perform a Christ-like miracle- and looking for a good party trick- turning five buck crap into expensive tasty goodness. We used a .75L of Relska vodka, eight dollars, and a .5L of Gilbey's vodka, six dollars. Though it must be kept in mind we bought these at eleven o’clock on Thanksgiving at a notoriously over priced package store; so effectively we paid twice as much for our cheap vodka as would have at a ABC. I want to stress this, as a five-dollar .5L might otherwise seem too high quality for this experiment. Linearly the procedure went as follows:
We open the Brita water filter pitcher combo, soak the filter and run two liters of water though the filer, as the instruction direct, to remove any excess carbon in the filer.
Convincing ourselves it was for science and the good of mankind (For what is good for man-kind, if not cheap liquor?) we (we meaning me) take a half shot of both cheap vodkas pre-filtered.
Now sure in the knowledge the stuff was so bad we could fail to insult it, we run the Relska twice through the Brita filter. Here I know you will interject, ‘If we took the experiment seriously we should have tasted the vodka after the first run tough the filter.’ I can only reply, 'You didn’t have to taste how bad the stuff was, ok.’
Using a funnel we put the Relska back into its bottle and pour ourselves three half shots. There is a noticeable improvement; the bite is considerably smoother and lessened, but the vodka taste is almost completely gone. The only taste left is a mild after taste of potato.
We subject the Relska to another run though the filter.
After the third run though the Relska seems a bit smoother, but the potato taste is now very distinct. The taste of vodka is usually over looked, but when you find it gone you really realize its importance. I know your not going to believe me here, I thought the same before trying this experiment, but the taste of vodka does matter.
All ready left with potato flavored alcohol water, we decide to try a forth run through and detect little change. Except for the strongness of the potato taste our results match those of the experimenters linked to above.
We pore the Relska back in it’s own bottle and move on to try the Gilbey’s, after running a rinse of water through the filter.
We complete two runs though the filter with the Gilbey’s, which now takes considerably longer, and find it little changed from the taste with which we started. We decide the .75L Relska was all the filter could take.
The conclusion: not so thrifty with only a liter of vodka per filter and the taste is not excatly tasty goodness, well unless you really like potato.
We open the Brita water filter pitcher combo, soak the filter and run two liters of water though the filer, as the instruction direct, to remove any excess carbon in the filer.
Convincing ourselves it was for science and the good of mankind (For what is good for man-kind, if not cheap liquor?) we (we meaning me) take a half shot of both cheap vodkas pre-filtered.
Now sure in the knowledge the stuff was so bad we could fail to insult it, we run the Relska twice through the Brita filter. Here I know you will interject, ‘If we took the experiment seriously we should have tasted the vodka after the first run tough the filter.’ I can only reply, 'You didn’t have to taste how bad the stuff was, ok.’
Using a funnel we put the Relska back into its bottle and pour ourselves three half shots. There is a noticeable improvement; the bite is considerably smoother and lessened, but the vodka taste is almost completely gone. The only taste left is a mild after taste of potato.
We subject the Relska to another run though the filter.
After the third run though the Relska seems a bit smoother, but the potato taste is now very distinct. The taste of vodka is usually over looked, but when you find it gone you really realize its importance. I know your not going to believe me here, I thought the same before trying this experiment, but the taste of vodka does matter.
All ready left with potato flavored alcohol water, we decide to try a forth run through and detect little change. Except for the strongness of the potato taste our results match those of the experimenters linked to above.
We pore the Relska back in it’s own bottle and move on to try the Gilbey’s, after running a rinse of water through the filter.
We complete two runs though the filter with the Gilbey’s, which now takes considerably longer, and find it little changed from the taste with which we started. We decide the .75L Relska was all the filter could take.
The conclusion: not so thrifty with only a liter of vodka per filter and the taste is not excatly tasty goodness, well unless you really like potato.