Barnard, Alfred (1837–1918), was an English journalist who is regarded as the first “whisky writer”; his work forms the template for numerous books.
In 1885, he was commissioned by Harper’s Weekly Gazette, a London journal “devoted to the interests of the wine, spirit, and brewing trade,” to conduct an epic tour of all of the whisky distilleries in Britain. His reports, gathered in The Whisky Distilleries of the United Kingdom, were published two years later. They form the earliest and most accurate account of the industry at what was a major turning point in the fortunes of scotch and Irish whiskies.
His writing is notable for its precision in detailing the minutiae of much of the equipment within each of the distilleries. The virtual absence of any mention of casks gives an indication of how unimportant they were considered at that time in the creation of a whisky’s character.
In addition to the technical information, Barnard peppers his accounts with evocative descriptions of his journey. For all his persnickety love of detail, these descriptive passages reveal him to be a gregarious man of not inconsiderable humor. The book can also therefore be read as a fascinating travelogue through the industrial and rural parts of Britain. His descriptions of Ireland, for example, speak at length about the rising nationalist movement.
Between 1889 and 1891, Barnard embarked upon a similarly grandiose endeavor, completing a tour resulting in The Noted Breweries of Britain and Ireland.
Barnard was ultimately a jobbing freelance journalist, and he also wrote numerous smaller publications for individual distilleries including Highland Distillers, Craigellachie, Glenfarclas, and Dalmore. He also wrote a short account of blending scotch with a focus on Lagavulin and profiles of blending houses such as John Walker & Son, Pattison, and George Morton of Dundee. These shorter works, which also offer invaluable insights into the industry at a pivotal moment in its evolution, are now being reprinted.
Barnard, Alfred, The Whisky Distilleries of the United Kingdom. 1889; repr., Edinburgh: Mainstream, 1987.
By: Dave Broom