Buy the ultimate Scotch whisky guide for £5k

Rare first edition 19th century book on 'everything there is to know about Scotland's national drink' for sale in Glasgow

The ultimate guide to Scotch whisky is going on sale next week in Glasgow, for £5,000, according to the Edinburgh Evening News.

The rare book 'Whisky distilleries of the United Kingdom' includes everything there is to know about Scotland's national drink... if you were reading it back in 1887.

Between 1885-87, Arthur Barnard, then-secretary of the famous Harper's Weekly Gazette, dedicated two years to visiting every working distillery in the UK.

Barnard visited 162 sites; 129 in Scotland, 29 in Ireland and four in England in a period when the distilleries were shifting towards blended whisky.

The book provides a detailed catalogue of the day-to-day life at each distillery - and Barnard's experience in sampling their whiskies.

"It's the first time we have come across the original edition," said Alex Dove, books expert at auction house Lyon & Turnbull.

"There are very few copies of the original publication around today."

There are only four first editions of the book known to experts: three in British libraries and another one in Trinity College, Dublin.

www.paulfrasercollectibles.com