Whisky

1878 · 182885 — London: printed by Sutton Sharpe and Co. 1878. A diatribe against disruptive distilling from the "Big Four" First edition an attack on Scottish whisky by the four great Dublin distilleries: John and William Jameson John Power and George Roe. They were the world's largest distilleries at the time and were threatened by the rise of cheap blended scotch. The first edition is rare in commerce. The book attempts to discredit the use of the revolutionary Coffey still which could produce alcohol faster and more cheaply than the huge copper pot stills used by Irish distilleries. The Dublin distilleries had joined forces to campaign for a strict legal definition of whisky but finding government unresponsive to their plight they published this book to appeal directly to the consumer. By 1908 60 per cent of all whisky produced in Britain and Ireland was made in Coffey stills. While the Irish distilleries' failure to account for changing times was one reason for their decline there were a myriad of other reasons: the First World War the Anglo-Irish War and prohibition in the United States. By the early 20th century Scotland surpassed Ireland to become the world's largest whisky producer. Octavo. With four folding plates illustrating each of the contributing Dublin distilleries. Original green cloth boards lettered in gilt and bordered with decorations in black yellow endpapers. Contemporary pencil ownership signature on front pastedown. A touch of wear at foot of spine extremities a little bumped and rubbed slight soiling and a few spots of foxing to contents a few gutters cracked pp. 55-58 loose: a very good copy. hardcover