In July 2010, divers salvaged 168 bottles of Champagne from a shipwreck at the bottom of the Baltic Sea between Sweden and Finland. Experts believe the wine to date back to the early nineteenth century and to be older than Pernod Ricard 1825 which was believed to be the oldest Champagne in the world. One of the two bottles opened has been identified as a Veuve Clicquot, the Champagne House which was founded in 1722.
The Champagne is thought to have been preserved by the consistent temperature of the water; low light levels and pressure from the gas used in the bottles which prevented sea water from seeping into the bottles. Most of the bottles were recovered intact and are expected to fetch GDP40,000 when they are auctioned.
An archaeologist used white gloves to present the wines to twenty specialist wine critics some of whom have commented on the video here.
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