Divers exploring a shipwreck off the UK coast have uncovered a 162-year-old bottle of Guinness — and experts say there is a chance the historic stout may still be drinkable.
Belgian underwater photographer Stefan Panis made the surprising find last year while examining the wreck of the Mindoro in the English Channel.
“I resurfaced and the top of the bottle was super clear, and I was really amazed to see ‘Guinness Extra Stout London,’” Panis, 47, told Inc.
“I was like, ‘Wow this is amazing.’”
The bottle was discovered among the vessel’s cargo. Panis and fellow diver Eddie Huzzie, 68, later sent samples from the 19th-century bottle to microbiologists at KU Leuven, a research university in Belgium.
“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,” he told the BBC.
Panis, who acknowledged he is not especially fond of stout, said the beer inside could potentially be safe to drink, though he is waiting for the scientific analysis before drawing any conclusions.
“There is a possibility that it’s still drinkable,” he said.
“The question is if the sea water has come into the bottles through the corks.
“If not, most likely the beer will still be drinkable.”
He revealed that he would take a sip of the stout if he’s given the green light to taste it.
He suspects there may be more than one bottle hiding within the wreckage of the barque, which sank three miles off the coast of Dover, England, on Nov. 27 1864 after colliding with the Khersonese, a sailing ship.
“Seeing the size of the case, I think it is definitely a case of 24 bottles,” he told the BBC.
“But there might be more cases.”
Panis also contacted Diageo – the company which makes Guinness – and a spokesperson for the organization said, “Discoveries like this provide a fascinating window into our past and help build a deeper understanding of our heritage.
“Currently, our Guinness Archive team is liaising with the divers to gather more information and evaluate the find.”
