From the Editors

Michael Jackson is renowned for his pithy wisdom and a remarkable ability to evoke aromas and flavors. This fully revised and expanded edition of MICHAEL JACKSON'S COMPLETE GUIDE TO SINGLE MALT SCOTCH is the definitive guide to single malt whisky and its producers worldwide. The completely new introduction incorporates Jackson's most recent research on the origins and evolution of the water of life, the nature of aromas and flavors, and regional differences. The book's core is the comprehensive A-to-Z of single malts, arranged by distillery. Each entry offers a new introduction and key information, and features Jackson's evocative, highly regarded tasting notes and ratings. This edition features a refreshed design, specially commissioned photographs of distilleries, and more than 1,000 tasting notes.
Product Description

Customer Response

An Outstanding Resource
I've been researching Scotch Whisky as I've been exploring the flavors and profiles of my new favorite libation, and this book (and a previous edition) has been invaluable in helping me select a bottle for myself or as a gift when I've not had the opportunity to sample a scotch.

As an example, I dislike too much "peat" flavor in my scotch, so the tasting notes on (virtually EVERY!) currently available bottling has really helped me make better choices. The last thing you want is to spend $60 or $100 on a bottle, only to open it and find out you'd rather use it to clean windows. This book really helps narrow me searching, informs my decisions, and is fun, accessible, and easy to read and understand as well.

A must for any scotch enthusiast or novice.

great book, but becoming obsolete
I can't say many positive things about this book that haven't already been covered by other reviewers. This book proved to be a great introduction to whisky for me. It allowed me to understand how it was made, taught me about the different regions and, to a certain extent, the styles that are generally associated with these regions. I also found Jackson's tasting notes and distillery descriptions beneficial when trying to choose a diverse set of whiskies for my cabinet. The book is well laid out, easy to read, has a solid construction and contains a lot of valueable information on whisky.

That said, the book is unfortunately becoming outdated since Jackson's passing. It's creeping up on half a decade without an update, and not only are whiskies (an ever-evolving spirit) not the same as they were when it was written, but there are many new lines that are not included in the book and some distilleries have completely revamped their lineups since it was written. So while the information on how whisky is made will still prove helpful, and the distillery history will still be interesting, as time goes on the tasting notes - which comprise 90% of the book - are becoming more and more obsolete.

At this point in the game, I wouldn't recommend purchasing this book without taking this into consideration. Perhaps one of the other annually updated books, such as the Whisky Bible or the Malt Whisky Yearbook would be a good, up to date alternative, but I haven't personally read either.

Overall a very good book with a lot of good information, that's unfortunately starting to gather a bit of dust.

Interesting and useful; ratings are of course subjective
This book is a great read and contains a huge amount of useful information. I have really enjoyed reading all the history of Scotch whisky, the details of how it's been made and matured, and the nuances of they many aspects of Scotch.

I find that some of my very favorite single malts are not among those that Jackson rates most highly, but that doesn't make the book less useful to me for anything except for using the ratings as a guide when browsing the Scotch sections of my local stores. I can garner enough from his descriptions of the characteristics of the many rated Scotch whiskies to make good decisions in terms of trying bottlings that are new to me.

Great book--I can see that I will need to keep up with new editions going forward, so I can read about Jackson's take on the latest bottlings along my Scotch journey.

Single Malt Treker
Each of Jackson's Guides to Single Malt have been extremely informative and useful as well as a good read.

A Gift Hard to Part With!
Jackson approaches his subject with equal measures of knowledgeability and love--and both are abundantly reflected in this latest edition of a now standard guide. After perusing the work, I relinquished it for the purpose of my purchase: as a birthday gift for a good friend. He reports that he was in no way disappointed. I doubt that many readers would be.

Others also Liked

Whiskey: The Definitive World Guide
The Instant Expert's Guide to Single Malt Scotch (2nd Edition)
Jim Murray's Whiskey Bible: The World's Leading Whiskey Guide from the World's Foremost Whiskey Authority
Scotland and its Whiskies: The Great Whiskies, the Distilleries and Their Landscapes
Riedel Vinum Single Malt Whiskey Glasses, Set of 2