Does water matter?

I saw this in the news the other week google.co.uk/amp/s/…

@RikS It is very interesting but if I understand it correctly, I suppose the nose would improve more than the taste since, if you stretch their theory, if you would gulp the best part of your dram in your first sips, then the bottom of your glass should become dull. Of course, the swirling of the liquid makes things more complicated. I am always skeptical of those far fetch effects. I am not disputing what they are saying, I am arguing that there is many other phenomenon that will probably counterbalanced this fragile effect.

The other point I want to make is that they are viewing the alcohol like a simple carrier who does not have its own merit. I know that some people love the burn of it. And even as a carrier, I suppose that with a more complex liquid, like whisky is, it would play all kind of role with different flavor molecules of different weights. I would like them to pursue their research with a more complex liquid.