A slim volume (72 pages) but a unique one in the annals of Scotch whisky, in that it tackles the subject purely from the perspective of the role of water and the rock formations over which it flows - as regards the rivers used for cooling - and from whence it seeps - as regards the spring and well water used in distilling. The geology of Scotland and its affects on the country's oldest industry are explained in suitable laymen's terms, made all the easier to understand by the sympathetic illustrations supporting the text. Stephen Cribb is the scientist in the team of three who put this tome together, and is an acknowledged expert in the sourcing of water for whisky production. His wife Julie provided the non-geologist input, which no doubt accounts for the well-balanced end product (rather like one of the better blends), and Richard Bell brought the colour and his art to round it all off. There is more information tucked away in this little book about the role which natural physical factors play in Scotch whisky making than you will find in much heftier volumes. It is a gem, and a pretty one at that, and British Geological Survey, which is clearly not the dull agency of Government that its name suggests, is to be congratulated for this initiative. It was first published in 1998, but that is not a problem since the subject matter is timeless!
