Book excerpt: This is a directory of more than 100 single malt whiskies, featuring expert tasting notes on each. There are photographs of labels and bottles, plus detailed maps of the area they originate from. There is information on every major Scottish distillery, in addition to selective coverage of the best whiskies from countries relatively new to single malt whisky production, such as Japan and New Zealand. Helen Arthur also discusses the differences between malts, grains and blends and how to identify them, and how to buy, serve and store single malt whisky.