Just a minute - hasn't that been written already, by Compton Mackenzie in 1947?
It was about a ship running aground off a Scottish island and the locals helping themselves to the whisky it was carrying. Wasn't it made into a film in 1949?
And haven't they just remade it in 2017?
Well actually no, if you look closely you'll see the book is actually called Whiskies (plural) Galore. OK so it's about more than one ship running aground with whisky from more than one distillery? Well actually no, you'll also notice from the cover that it's missing the exclamation mark. So does that mean it's not funny?
Well some parts are but some parts aren't, confused? Shall I tell you what the book is actually about?
If you have read any of Bill Bryson's books you'll understand exactly where Ian is coming from with this one - it's a personal travel log of Ian's (and his long suffering? wife's) visits over the last 50 years to all the Scottish islands which have distilleries. Ian tells us a little of his visits as a small boy holidaying with his family, his more recent ones in a working capacity and the most recent with his wife. Included are stories about the islands themselves, the people that live on them and their distilleries (including Whisky, Gin and Rum!)
The journey starts in Arran and makes it away around the Scottish coast to Jura, Mull, Islay, Harris and Lewis, Raasay, Skye and Orkney - taking in a small industrial unit, just off the M62, on the way!
Whilst there is no "detailed information on equipment, still sizes, barley varieties, output, capacities and so on" or "exhaustively documented lists of 1001 different whiskies with lengthy and baroque tasting notes" for the dedicated whisky nerd, there are lots of interesting stories including the time Ian nearly bought a distillery; the time he tried to find a blue pipe in a field in the pouring rain; the time he went fishing with his father and a grenade; how he can tell us which cave the Ardbeg Distillery manager lives in and how Ronnie Lee keeps most of the distilleries in Scotland (and possibly the world) running!
There is a lot of history in the book - life in and around the distilleries; when and how the distilleries were built; the 'Clearances' during the 18th and 19th centuries; explaining how tourist visits to distilleries first started in the early 1900's but really took off with Glenfiddich in 1969; a couple of amusing stories from when Bruichladdich was re-opened in 2000 including Mark Reynier's 'personnel changes' and where their Yellow Submarine came from!
One of the 'strange' things about the book is Ian's own experiences of being a collector, not of whisky, but of pens and inks! He wrote this book by hand and tells us during each chapter which particular pen and shade of ink he used! For example the Jura chapter was written with Iroshizuku Momiji Red ink from Pilot in Japan! I can't remember Bill Bryson doing that!
Throughout the book Ian gives us a number of recommendations, as well as the pens and inks there are wayside cafe's to visit, log burning stoves to buy and of course which distilleries to visit!
I really enjoyed this book, I love travel and whisky so it ticked all the boxes! I was actually on holiday in Rhodes whilst I read it - getting the travel but unfortunately not a lot of whisky!
The book is in places very funny and in others very sad but is full of interest for whisky lovers and non-lovers alike - apart from the funny stories its full of obscure nerdy information from an expert in the field.
Ian doesn't hold and punches and I'm sure there are a few distilleries he talks about who probably wouldn't welcome him back with open arms! Two of the key takeaways for me from the book were Ian's thoughts on whisky scores and prices:
- A tasting note is only one person's opinion and an unreliable guide to the probability of your pleasure. Above all, avoid the absurdly spurious accuracy of a tasting score of 94.5 points or similar nonsense. trust your own judgement; enjoy what you enjoy and don't let anyone else tell you otherwise.
- Some people collect whiskies but never drink them. Some people - may they get help soon - even promote whisky as an 'investment', a trend upon which certain distillers have happily capitalised, leading to ever more elaborately packaged special bottles of increasing cost and vulgarity and a general drift upwards in the price of whisky. All this is to be deplored by the genuine and righteous student of whisk who understands instinctively that whisky is made to be drunk and has no meaning until the moment of its consumption.
You can buy Whiskies Galore (without the exclamation mark) from Amazon!
Many thanks to Ian and the publisher Birlinn for the copy of the book.
