SINKING DRINKS

160-Year-Old Bottle of Guinness Recovered From Shipwreck

Scientists are using the sample to see if they can recreate the taste of 1860s stout.

A glass bottle of Guinness dating back to the Mindoro shipwreck of 1864 has been found off the coast of Dover, South-East United Kingdom. Diver Stefan Panis discovered the bottle while accompanied by friend Eddie Huzzey, and didn’t immediately recognize the object while underwater. “We lifted the artefact, and then on the surface a quick rinse revealed ‘Guinness,’” he said. According to Panis, the bottle may not have been alone. “Seeing the size of the case, I think it is definitely a case of 24 bottles. But there might be more cases,” he said. Samples from the bottle have been sent to KU Leuven University in Belgium, with hopes that the 19th-century recipe could be recreated. Panis shared: “There is always a chance that we can recover the complete DNA, and then we can do a small re-brew of the exact beer that was found in the 1860s.” Or, if that doesn’t work out, they may crack open the bottle itself. “There is a possibility that it’s still drinkable. The question is if the sea water has come into the bottles through the corks.”