Customer Reviews

Scotch Whisky

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Let me start by stating that I am an avid reader of anything and everything. I mention this because this book is, for the most part, a pictorial record where the story is told through the captions. But I nevertheless find this book engrossing and throroughly enjoy its unromanticized, historical view of the distilling of my favourite drink. Don't get this book looking for colour photos of sunsets or highland cattle. This is page after page of B&W photos: now silent stills, bottles from the 1920's, share certificates for the Glenlossie Distillery c. 1985, original drawing for the pagoda roofs of the Dailluaine distillery, ads for bygone brands. These pictures bring the people of the whisky industry to life, with the silent distilleries opening their doors and firing up the stills. Even the animals contributing to the story of scotch are included in this retrospective with a photo of Towser, the Glenturret watch cat, and a border terrier standing with the workmen at the Banffshire Copper Works. If your taste in whisky books runs to colour photos, a famed reviewer's opinion of each malt and a glorified history of the origins of scotch, there are lots of books out there for you but this isn't one of them. However, if you are fascinated by the minutae and historical trivia of the distilling of scotch whisky, I can't recommend this book highly enough.

I first encountered this book at a wee B&B in Tarbert, just after the 2010 Feis Ile. It made my bucket list of books to purchase. Anyone who is interested in the history of whisky needs a copy of this book. It is a not a "rating" book; it's about the distilleries, some gone, and a treasure trove of pictures. It is immediately one of my favorite books.