Connoisseurs of ales and wines are often bewildered as experts discover very old bottles of their preferred beverage that have deep historical value because they tell the story of how people in that day and age ate and drank - and that includes the recent discovery of the Arctic beer bottle.
A few months back, Food World News reported that there had been a tasting of a red wine found in a shipwreck from the time of the Civil War, which had turned out to taste like, well, it had been undersea for a century and a half - will the Arctic beer bottle have the same problem?
According to The Telegraph, the Arctic beer bottle in question was recently found in a garage, and it's a whopping 140 years of age, brewed specifically for those going on a British arctic expedition in 1875 - it was made in Burton-upon-Trent for an expedition led by sir George Nares, as he and his team attempted to reach the North Pole, although scurvy and poor equipment ultimately forced explorers to back down from their goal.
BBC reports that this Arctic beer bottle, originally named Allsopp's Arctic Ale, was discovered in a box inside a garage in Gobowen, Shropshire, and it's unclear how exactly it got there.
In any case, the Arctic beer bottle's set to be auctioned later this month, on June 13, in Whitchurch, by auctioneers Trevanion and Dean - in fact, it's expected to go up to about £600 ($923).
"What's incredible is that this bottle of beer made it all the way to the Arctic and all the way back again without being drunk," said the auction house spokesman who found the Arctic beer bottle to Express. "The expedition failed in its ultimate goal to reach the North Pole so presumably it was shorter than expected. We can only assume this bottle was surplus stock that was brought back to England. The vendors inherited it through their family."
