Overview
- Belgian underwater photographer Stefan Panis recovered an intact bottle labeled Guinness dated 1864 from a wreck off Dover and says it may have come from a full case with more bottles at the site.
- Samples from the bottle have been forwarded to microbiologists at KU Leuven University for testing to see if any yeast cells or DNA remain that could guide a historic re-brew.
- Diageo’s Guinness Archive team is liaising with the divers to verify the find and gather information while the scientific analysis continues.
- Experts say bottles found upside down can trap an air pocket that may have blocked seawater, which creates a possibility the stout is preserved though its drinkability remains unknown pending tests.
- The wreck’s reported link to the 1864 ship Mindora is not independently verified and the discovery raises heritage, conservation and salvage questions if more cargo is recovered.