I'm not so skeptical, since Vodka is not generally added for the flavour or aromas (which get clouded by almost any other ingredient anyway) but more likely to

I'm not so skeptical, since Vodka is not generally added for the flavour or aromas (which get clouded by almost any other ingredient anyway) but more likely to add texture, to tone down the flavour profile of another spirit without having to water it down, and sometimes even for economy when using more expensive spirits. Any decent brand of Vodka will generally do the job. I'm now in an "americana" gin phase (st. george, distillery 209, etc) since they're not as commonplace here in Europe and I've been known to mix them with just commercial Vodkas whilst experimenting with a few cocktail recipes. I do that more with barrel aged gins -- the flavours of oily or smoky spirits don't easily work in cocktails so toning them down tends to produce some more interesting results.