Visiting Distilleries

Rating:
Summary: Fantastic for Making Choices
Review: I bought the book to help me choose how to make the best of my limited time visiting Speyside. How do you choose between visiting Macallan, Glenlivet, Glenfiddich, Glen Grant, Aberlour, etc.? Well this book breaks down each experience in detail giving descriptions on everything from the tour format, to the friendliness and helpfulness of staff, to tasting notes for the included samples. Even the cleanliness of the washrooms and the breadth of items available in the gift shop are covered. Where can you bottle and label your own bottle for a one-of-a-kind souvenir? What's the prettiest distillery? Is the tour better directed to the novice or the connoisseur? How much does it cost? What makes the distillery unique? Where is the malting, bottling, coopering done? Where does the water come from? What parts of the process are we allowed to see on the tour? All is covered. My only complaint is the apparant absence of a recommended amount of time to allocate for a visit to each distillery. A couple of hours seemed like plenty for most, but some are much quicker and some make you want to stay and enjoy the grounds (or the tasting room) for hours...