Well duh! Vodka is in essence, grain alcohol and water with a completely neutral flavor. It can have other flavorings added (the Russians used to enjoy paper-flavored vodka...look it up...), while bourbons and whiskeys by their very nature and because of the presence of these “congeners” have a distinct flavor.
In addition, most of the unfavorable elements found in raw whiskey are reduced by absorption in the charcoal that lines the barrels the liquor is aged in. A lot of commercial whiskey is also filtered through more charcoal before bottling.
Grain alcohol is one of the first “value added” products that man came up with, and is an excellent way to concentrate the value of a bushel of grain in a valuable and useful product. Brewed beer was once a medicinal substance, and was even considered to be blessed in ancient times, because it was Monks who figured out how to brew, and since they boiled their mash, the product was much cleaner (and therefore healthier) for drinking than the local water...
The author can badmouth demon alcohol all he wants but the basic concept that the products he is complaining about are either largely absent from the final modern product, or are there deliberately to provide flavor.
Brew science is a very complex subject, and anyone who practices that hobby would be glad to discuss the subject with this egghead, and at least try to convert him with a proper beverage or two...
The cogeners come FROM the charred lining of the barrel, as does the color, as does the flavor. When you consider that barrels and paper are both wood products, it becomes (somewhat) more believable that the Russians like paper vodka.
Wood Flavored Alcohol: Good.
Wood Alcohol: Bad, very bad.