Scientists from the VTT Technical Research Centre said they analyzed two bottles of beer discovered in 2010 that came from a ship believed to have sunk in the 1840s off the Aland Islands in the Baltic Sea, Reuters reported.
The researchers said they found living bacteria in the bottles that helped them retain a pale golden color and could originally have had hints of rose, almond and cloves. They said its possible that a smoky flavour in beer was appreciated at the timeLeave it to the Finns to find and analyze 170 year old beer. I do have to wonder, though, what it tastes like... I'm guessing from the line about "smoky flavor" that there were more than two bottles recovered and that a few were downed in the name of science.
Yeah, drinking 170 year old beer - we love science!
That is all.
11 comments:
I remember seeing something on TV a while ago about recovering wine bottles from an old shipwreck. Once they verified the corks and bottles were intact and sealed, and tested the pH, they had to do a "taste test" to see if it was still drinkable and decent quality. After some pro forma hand-wringing about the ship's "no alcohol" rule, everybody on the team got a glass. For "scientific research purposes", you understand. After all, one person could be wrong, they had to make sure there was a consensus.
Of course, the first guy to try a sip was understandably hesitant, but once he assured them that it was good everybody drank up. They figured it would sell at auction for a couple of hundred dollars a bottle, so it was a nice little perk.
I'm not sure what the mystery is all about? There are plenty of breweries still in existence that have been around since before that ship sunk. Heck, even Yuengling brewed in the good ol' USA was around back then. Spaten goes back over 600yrs and the Trappist breweries date back to the 1600s. We pretty much know exactly how beer was made 170 yrs ago, and there are many beers that are still made much the same way with the same ingredients.
The beer itself is 170 years old, not made from a process dating back 170 years.
It's the reason a Colt Peacemaker from the late 1800s sells for multiple thousands of dollars whereas a New Frontier fresh off the line is only $750...
I understand the value of the 5 actual bottles, but they seem to be making a big deal out of what the beer might have tasted like and possibly even market it. To use your example, it's like finding an rusty 1800's Colt Peacemaker and analyzing it so you can create a copy of it, then making a big deal about it. We already know what 1800's Colt looks like, and like 200yr old beer, it's even made almost the same way today.
And as far as the "smoky" flavor goes, my wife brought me back a couple of bottles of beer from Germany that were from a brewery that specializes in imparting a smoky flavor to their beer. Kinda tasted like drinking a hambone to me, but everyone's tastes are different.
Walrilla, sounds like you had a style of beer called rauchbier. That's a perfect example of a beer that dates back hundreds of years and yet is still made today, often the exact same way it was done 200yrs ago.
There's 'science' and then there's hic... schiense... :-)
"I'm not sure what the mystery is all about? There are plenty of breweries still in existence that have been around since before that ship sunk."
Yes, some of thoise breweries have their records and others do not but I do not believe many, if any, have the actual yeast that made those beers. While the yeast cells in the 170 year old bottles of beer certainly have gone through changes, they are the originals and still should retain a lot of the same characteristics they had 170 years ago. So I have heard anyhow.
You might wonder how did they knew how old it was.
They checked the "borne on" date on the label. :D
Like others mentioned, my first thought was a rausch-style possibility. I've had a few ranging from a slight smokey to full-on-drinking-bacon flavor.
As an aside, Dogfish Head's Midas Touch is brewed based on what was found in a 2700 year old drinking vessel from King Midas' tomb. Pretty tasty, IMNSHO.
Gilly, Dogfish Head actually has a whole series of beers called "Ancient Ales" that are all made from recipes that are thousands of years old.
http://www.dogfish.com/ancientales/
One of my fave local restaurants specializes in craft beer, bourbon, and burgers ( http://www.planbburger.com ). A few days ago they had the Dogfish Theobroma on tap, which dates back to 1,200 BC. I'm afraid I didn't get a chance to try it, one can only manage to drink so many different beers in an evening (I managed 5 or 6 that night, heh).
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