The Whisky Men

By (author) Gavin D. Smith

There is geographical diversity, reflecting the whisky heartlands of Speyside and Islay, as well as many other locations, and diversity, too, in the subjects who have participated in this project. Warehousemen, mashmen, stillmen, coopers, coppersmiths, excisemen, managers, owners and even the occasional illicit distiller give us a unique insight into what the whisky industry has been like to work in during the past half century or so, and how it has changed during that time. Their stories make fascinating reading, and also serve as an invaluable contribution to Scottish social and industrial history. The text is accompanied by a wide range of intriguing black & white photographs. Some are contemporary, but many are borrowed from the personal albums of the subjects themselves, and serve to reinforce the intimacy and sense of personality at the core of this book.