Mitchell Beazley bags Broom's book on Scotch whisky's links to people and place
Mitchell Beazley has bagged Dave Broom’s A Sense of Place, which examines Scotch whisky’s links to landscape, agriculture, culture and community.
Group publisher Denise Bates acquired world rights in all languages to the “beautifully crafted narrative” from agent Tom Williams. The book features specially commissioned photography by Christina Kernohan and will be published in September 2022 at £40.
The publisher explained: “Starting in Orkney, he travels south via the north-east coast and Spey Valley to the westerly peninsulas and Hebridean islands before his journey finishes, via the blenders of the central belt, on the island of Islay. The trip also follows Scotch’s history from Neolithic brewers to today’s innovators, a tale told by distillers but also musicians, writers and poets. Broom considers what it means to make whisky in these places, how a distillery reflects place in its flavour, and what its role is within its community.”
Broom has written 13 books, including The World Atlas of Whisky, now in its second edition. He has won two Glenfiddich prizes, the Spirited Award for Best Cocktail & Spirits writer in 2015 and, in 2018, The Way of Whisky (Mitchell Beazley) won an André Simon prize. In 2020 he was awarded Best Drinks Writer at the Fortnum & Mason Awards.
Broom said: "Over the years, I have become fascinated by the untold stories of Scotch whisky and specifically the ways in which it has always been inextricably linked to people, community, and place. I believe whisky doesn’t sit apart from life but is part of it. This is a book about whisky but also about Scotland itself."
Bates added: “This is surely the book that Dave was born to write. Alongside his unparalleled knowledge of whisky, A Sense of Place shows just what a beautiful and skilled writer he is. The warmth of his encounters with distillers, craftspeople and others as he travels through his native Scotland and the quality of his insight shine through every page.”
