Sandy enjoyed much in life: wine, opera, books, painting and, above all, people. He found each to be a source of interest and he was, himself, a most unusual man. I learned, through his vast store of anecdotes, of the young Sandy who loved and participated in golf and rugby and rowing - whilst towards the end of his life, he carried a stick and had a rigid, bent back from a long-standing problem endured with great fortitude. He had evidently much enjoyed his student days in Glasgow and those political connections resulting from the time that he was President of the Scottish Union of Students. Sandy had a remarkable range of interests and knowledge and a formidable memory. On our wine tasting evenings and trips the rest of us kept notes and scored the wines. When subsequently discussing them, Sandy knew exactly which he had favoured and why, and all without notes. And once, invited to address a group of Fife doctors on the dry subject of Differing Health Care Systems, he spoke for an hour with neither notes nor slides and kept his audience enthralled. He often talked of his time in Australia and in Cambridge as being happy times of great stimulation and satisfaction. From the former stemmed his huge knowledge of Australian wines and from the latter an enduring delight in scholarship. I could go on but suffice it to say that he will be much missed as a man of many parts who gave his friends a lot of pleasure and much to think about. Hugh Morris, St Andrews

Sandy must be the only local Scottish wine merchant in history to have published a paper in the prestigious scientific journal Nature [1]. The collaborative work that he developed with his Cambridge colleagues Ken Prandy and Bob Blackburn, continues to inform the measurement of social inequalities in sociological research. Sandy, Bob and Ken set up the Social Stratification Research Seminar (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_Stratification_Research_Seminar). Over fifty years later there is still an annual meeting and many generations of postgraduate students and early career researchers have benefited from the experience of presenting work at the seminar and receiving critical and insightful feedback. In 2008 I organised a residential course on data analysis for postgraduate students. I was able to invite Sandy to combine his two talents; teaching students and talking about wine! Sandy chose higher end wines from varietals and blends that he imagined nobody had previously tried. Sandy interleaved social science insights and thoughts, and discussions of participant’s PhD topics, between topping up glasses and discussing grape varieties. The evening went down a storm with the students! I have posted a copy of my tasting notes from that fantastic evening, which should appear on this site later. We will remember Sandy at the next Stratification Meeting with a glass (or two) of Minervois. Vernon Professor Vernon Gayle, University of Edinburgh. 1. Stewart, A., Prandy, K. and Blackburn, R.M., 1973. Measuring the class structure. Nature, 245(5426), pp.415-417.

Sandy was a kind and lovely man. He was a truly original thinker, yet he always had time to talk to students and was incredibly generous with his time (and wine). He was an enormous inspiration to me, and a wonderful role model. I will raise a toast in his honour (but not laphroig).

Sandy was a great friend to me over many years, always kind and generous and great company. I first got to know Sandy through his visits to our local wine group, the Stirling Wine Society, where Sandy’s wealth of knowledge and personal contacts in the wine trade made him a wonderful speaker. On these occasions Sandy would stay overnight with Aisla and I and entertain us into the small hours with his wit and repartee. More recently Sandy invited me to join his rather select (we like to think!) group of wine enthusiasts in the Fife (Peat Inn) wine tasting group, meeting monthly to taste fine wines blindly and enjoy each other’s company. We also enjoyed an annual wine tasting trip, to different wine growing areas of Europe, arranged by Sandy, whose encyclopaedic knowledge and wide circle of friends in the trade always ensured a convivial week of wine tasting and gastronomy. I was fortunate to enjoy Sandy’s hospitality at his home above the shop in Markinch, after our monthly get togethers, when we would chat over another glass or a dram, or both, into the wee small hours, on wine, politics, economics, Scottish independence, and every other subject under the sun, on all of which Sandy had an exhaustive (and sometimes exhausting!) knowledge, and often provocative opinions. Sandy was a one off, a singular and wonderful man. I shall miss him greatly. RIP Sandy. Bill Ruddell

Sandy, I will miss your friendship, your warmth and your generosity. I will miss our chats on politics, music, the arts, sociology and even women. Mostly Sandy, I will miss you. Salute, old friend.

I was so sorry to hear of Sandy’s passing and send my condolences to his family. I owe my academic career to Sandy because he was a steady and inspiring mentor during my PhD at Cambridge. His encouragement and support were crucial to my completion of that work. I have fond memories of the time I spent with him both in Cambridge and subsequently in the Department of Sociology at the University of Edinburgh. I am forever thankful for his guidance and friendship.

This is a time of great sadness but also warm and special memories. To me, Sandy was teacher, mentor, colleague and friend over many years. I first met him as an undergraduate student and I came under the spell of his rigorous academic mind and his personal charm. We argued and wrote together in periods of intensity but also warm hospitality – food, drink and good company were ever present (and, over the years, his son David grew up, finding his future wife Tracy next door and escaping my frequent visits)`. In the 1980s, the first serious cuts to higher education fractured universities. Sandy left the academy, I remained. But his integrity and intellectual honesty remained as an inspiration and will continue to be so.