Beer in the news: Bartender, give me the ‘old’ stuff … and more
The discovery of a shipwreck south of the Aland Islands in the Baltic Sea has led to the recovery of the world’s ‘oldest’ beer.
Divers found a small collection of bottled beer, as well as dozens of bottles of champagne, in the wreckage. The bottles are believed to date between 1800 and 1830 and may have been en route from Denmark to Russia, possibly as a gift of France’s King Louis XVI to the Russian Imperial Court.
“At the moment, we believe that these are by far the world’s oldest bottles of beer,” Rainer Juslin, permanent secretary of the island’s ministry of education, science and culture, told CNN.
“It seems that we have not only salvaged the oldest champagne in the world, but also the oldest still drinkable beer. The culture in the beer is still living.”
Wonder what the “freshness” date is.
And does chilling under the ocean for two centuries prevent skunking? I somehow doubt it.
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Meanwhile, in Britain, going to the pub for a pint is less of a pastime these days. Instead, more beer drinkers in the United Kingdom are enjoying their pints at home.
The reason, according to Business Week, is economics.
Unemployment among 18- to 24-year-olds has hit 20 percent, and more than 600 nightclubs in the U.K. have closed their doors since 2006. Meanwhile, supermarket beer sales are up.
At least they can drown their sorrows in a fresh Newcastle.
