This wine was produced in Madeira more than 300 years ago and was recently unearthed in an archaeological dig in London.
If anyone still doubted Madeira Wine’s longevity, a bottle recently unearthed by a team of archaeologists near the Tower of London should clear the air. The bottle remains sealed, the wine inside it preserved. It was produced around 1679 and belonged to a senior military officer.
This discovery sets the new world record. Before it, the wine thought to be the oldest in the world was a sweet Tokay from Hungary from about 1680. The oldest Madeira wine before this discovery was from 1790.
The bottle found in London has the peculiarity of being a wine from before Madeira became a fortified wine. It is not a quality wine, nor even is it close to possessing the attributes which have made Madeira Wine famous round the world, through the addition of spirits, as is done nowadays to fortify it. Tests suggest it is a very dry wine which with the passing of time had its volume of alcohol drop from 10 to 12 per cent to six per cent. Its flavour and texture though, have remained the same.
The bottle was thrown away intact and found next to another one which was open. Archaeologists speculate that its owner may not have enjoyed this wine’s dry flavour.
