1 00:00:00,560 --> 00:00:03,760 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff you Missed in History Class from how 2 00:00:03,800 --> 00:00:13,040 Speaker 1: Stuff Works dot com. Hello, and welcome to the podcast. 3 00:00:13,080 --> 00:00:15,960 Speaker 1: I'm Deblane and Chocolate Barding and I'm fair And we 4 00:00:16,200 --> 00:00:19,560 Speaker 1: just did an episode on that was a sampling of 5 00:00:19,680 --> 00:00:23,479 Speaker 1: historic spirits, and we mostly focused on that episode on 6 00:00:23,720 --> 00:00:28,440 Speaker 1: ancient alcohols. So the truly old finds that were found, 7 00:00:28,800 --> 00:00:31,880 Speaker 1: as Sarah put it, gunk, the gunky alcohol, the gunky 8 00:00:31,920 --> 00:00:35,320 Speaker 1: alcohols that were found as residues some might say, on 9 00:00:36,080 --> 00:00:40,120 Speaker 1: old pottery, things that were found in two vessels. Yes, 10 00:00:40,240 --> 00:00:43,360 Speaker 1: so not really stuff that you can drink. And in 11 00:00:43,600 --> 00:00:47,080 Speaker 1: this portion of the episode, the second part, we're going 12 00:00:47,120 --> 00:00:50,920 Speaker 1: to focus on older alcohols that you could taste if 13 00:00:50,920 --> 00:00:55,120 Speaker 1: you came across one exactly, So things that are still drinkable, 14 00:00:55,200 --> 00:01:00,320 Speaker 1: maybe not necessarily delicious alcohol, not all alcohol ages well, 15 00:01:00,600 --> 00:01:04,399 Speaker 1: but something that does still have a liquid property to it. 16 00:01:04,760 --> 00:01:07,319 Speaker 1: Most of these are hundreds of years old or even 17 00:01:07,400 --> 00:01:09,720 Speaker 1: less than a hundred years old, whereas in the last 18 00:01:09,760 --> 00:01:12,959 Speaker 1: episode we were talking about alcohol residues that were thousands 19 00:01:13,040 --> 00:01:17,120 Speaker 1: of years old. But in this case researchers can still 20 00:01:17,280 --> 00:01:21,360 Speaker 1: study what's in the bottle chemically analyze it, but they 21 00:01:21,360 --> 00:01:23,880 Speaker 1: can also sample it we're not going to just talk 22 00:01:23,920 --> 00:01:26,360 Speaker 1: about old alcohol though. We're going to talk about some 23 00:01:26,440 --> 00:01:30,160 Speaker 1: finds that aren't really that old. After all. They're just 24 00:01:30,319 --> 00:01:35,040 Speaker 1: really interesting historically, they're connected to an important historical event 25 00:01:35,280 --> 00:01:38,000 Speaker 1: or an important historical figure, and we thought they were 26 00:01:38,040 --> 00:01:40,479 Speaker 1: worth including. Yeah, they're just cool stories in a lot 27 00:01:40,480 --> 00:01:42,640 Speaker 1: of cases. And this first one that we're going to 28 00:01:42,760 --> 00:01:45,959 Speaker 1: start with is a story that I think a lot 29 00:01:45,959 --> 00:01:48,920 Speaker 1: of people have probably heard about because it was so 30 00:01:49,040 --> 00:01:52,080 Speaker 1: recent it made the news. In July two thousand ten, 31 00:01:52,200 --> 00:01:55,440 Speaker 1: Swedish divers were exploring a wreck in the Baltic just 32 00:01:55,520 --> 00:01:59,360 Speaker 1: south of the Oland Islands between Sweden and Finland. At 33 00:01:59,440 --> 00:02:03,440 Speaker 1: two feet visibility was really bad. They couldn't see any 34 00:02:03,520 --> 00:02:06,920 Speaker 1: identifying info on the ship or locate the bell, but 35 00:02:07,000 --> 00:02:10,200 Speaker 1: they did find some bottles, most of them undamaged, and 36 00:02:10,240 --> 00:02:12,399 Speaker 1: they decided to take some up and try to date 37 00:02:12,440 --> 00:02:15,079 Speaker 1: the wreck that way. It turned out that they were 38 00:02:15,120 --> 00:02:19,120 Speaker 1: about one hundred and forty five bottles of champagne on 39 00:02:19,120 --> 00:02:22,400 Speaker 1: this ship, very likely the oldest champagne in the world, 40 00:02:22,560 --> 00:02:26,120 Speaker 1: and the dates in this really interested me, kind of 41 00:02:26,160 --> 00:02:29,680 Speaker 1: perplexed me a little. Almost every article we came across 42 00:02:30,120 --> 00:02:34,760 Speaker 1: puts the shipwreck at eighteen hundred to eighteen thirty, and 43 00:02:34,960 --> 00:02:38,799 Speaker 1: the alcohol obviously around that same period. I did find 44 00:02:39,200 --> 00:02:42,840 Speaker 1: one outlier, though, one date that is significantly before that, 45 00:02:42,880 --> 00:02:44,760 Speaker 1: and it kind of made some of the points that 46 00:02:44,800 --> 00:02:48,040 Speaker 1: the articles made, mentioning that perhaps this alcohol was a 47 00:02:48,080 --> 00:02:52,040 Speaker 1: shipment from Louis the sixteenth of France to the Imperial 48 00:02:52,080 --> 00:02:55,560 Speaker 1: Court of Russia, which if we're talking eight hundred eighteen thirty, 49 00:02:55,600 --> 00:02:58,520 Speaker 1: that doesn't make sense because Louis was dead. These dates 50 00:02:58,560 --> 00:03:03,320 Speaker 1: make it seem a little more natural. The Champagne included 51 00:03:03,400 --> 00:03:06,480 Speaker 1: bottles of of Cluko, which is one of the finest 52 00:03:06,520 --> 00:03:09,760 Speaker 1: brands of Champagne even today, and that brand was first 53 00:03:09,880 --> 00:03:13,440 Speaker 1: made in seventeen seventy two, but those bottles were laid 54 00:03:13,440 --> 00:03:16,519 Speaker 1: down for at least ten years, so using that day, 55 00:03:16,680 --> 00:03:19,040 Speaker 1: it seemed like the wreck couldn't be older than seventeen 56 00:03:19,120 --> 00:03:23,160 Speaker 1: eighty two, but couldn't be after eight or eighty nine 57 00:03:23,200 --> 00:03:28,160 Speaker 1: because the Champagne houses production was disrupted obviously during the 58 00:03:28,200 --> 00:03:33,560 Speaker 1: French Revolution, so a little discrepancy. They're not entirely sure 59 00:03:33,600 --> 00:03:36,560 Speaker 1: about when this wreck really happened, judging by the articles 60 00:03:36,560 --> 00:03:38,800 Speaker 1: written on it, and once they figure out more details 61 00:03:38,840 --> 00:03:41,080 Speaker 1: about the wreck, that may become more clear. So the 62 00:03:41,120 --> 00:03:45,240 Speaker 1: story they're still developing, But what about the champagne itself? 63 00:03:45,320 --> 00:03:49,240 Speaker 1: Does it really last that long? And apparently we find that, yes, 64 00:03:49,320 --> 00:03:52,320 Speaker 1: it does. I love the story. I love when you're 65 00:03:52,320 --> 00:03:54,680 Speaker 1: reading the stories about when they brought the champagne up 66 00:03:54,680 --> 00:03:56,960 Speaker 1: and it's like that. Some stories say that the divers 67 00:03:57,040 --> 00:03:59,160 Speaker 1: that when they brought it up the pressure of coming 68 00:03:59,160 --> 00:04:01,400 Speaker 1: to the surface the cork, or maybe they popped the 69 00:04:01,440 --> 00:04:05,800 Speaker 1: cork themselves, but they tasted it expecting to taste seawater 70 00:04:06,360 --> 00:04:09,400 Speaker 1: and found that no, in fact, it actually tasted good. 71 00:04:09,440 --> 00:04:12,360 Speaker 1: It tasted just like champagne, and an old and wine 72 00:04:12,360 --> 00:04:15,840 Speaker 1: expert who sampled the bottle described it as absolutely fabulous. 73 00:04:15,880 --> 00:04:18,640 Speaker 1: She even described looking at the samples in her fridge 74 00:04:18,680 --> 00:04:21,640 Speaker 1: after they weren't being consumed anymore and just thinking it 75 00:04:21,720 --> 00:04:25,359 Speaker 1: was absolutely miraculous that she had these. So it turns 76 00:04:25,400 --> 00:04:28,680 Speaker 1: out that the Baltic made a pretty great storage spot 77 00:04:28,880 --> 00:04:32,680 Speaker 1: for champagne for really long term storage. It's got a 78 00:04:32,760 --> 00:04:35,800 Speaker 1: constant cold temperature, but it's never going to freeze and 79 00:04:35,839 --> 00:04:39,160 Speaker 1: there's no light which can quickly degrade champagne. So even 80 00:04:39,200 --> 00:04:42,719 Speaker 1: though some of these champagne bottles may have been cracked 81 00:04:42,839 --> 00:04:46,240 Speaker 1: or the corks had corroded and maybe ruined the taste. 82 00:04:46,480 --> 00:04:48,640 Speaker 1: A lot of them were still intact, and they were 83 00:04:48,680 --> 00:04:51,520 Speaker 1: available in November for a taste when there were two 84 00:04:51,560 --> 00:04:55,200 Speaker 1: bottles were cracked open. A Bloomberg writer named Richard Vines 85 00:04:55,240 --> 00:04:57,800 Speaker 1: described it thus. He said that the jugular was quote 86 00:04:57,839 --> 00:05:00,800 Speaker 1: remarkably fresh, the fist had all almost gone, and it 87 00:05:00,880 --> 00:05:03,640 Speaker 1: was too sweet for today's palette. Yet it retained a 88 00:05:03,720 --> 00:05:06,560 Speaker 1: distinctive smell of orange and raisins, like a Christmas cake. 89 00:05:06,920 --> 00:05:09,280 Speaker 1: It might still be served as a dessert wine. Well, 90 00:05:09,320 --> 00:05:14,040 Speaker 1: So that description must have been pretty tantalizing to some people, apparently, 91 00:05:14,120 --> 00:05:17,880 Speaker 1: because two bottles of the champagne, one of two different kinds, 92 00:05:17,920 --> 00:05:22,400 Speaker 1: sold for fifty four thousand euros, which is the equivalent 93 00:05:22,480 --> 00:05:26,119 Speaker 1: to seventy eight thousand, nine hundred and seventy five dollars 94 00:05:26,200 --> 00:05:30,560 Speaker 1: to an anonymous buyer from Singapore just this summer. So 95 00:05:31,160 --> 00:05:35,320 Speaker 1: I'm curious, like, who would that person be spending seventy 96 00:05:35,320 --> 00:05:39,039 Speaker 1: eight thousand, almost seventy nine thousand dollars on champagne? Somebody 97 00:05:39,080 --> 00:05:41,039 Speaker 1: like me who like sweet wine. I guess it was 98 00:05:41,120 --> 00:05:46,279 Speaker 1: to Blaine at everybody it was was exposed here I 99 00:05:46,360 --> 00:05:50,120 Speaker 1: did not buy the champagne, so don't start any rumors 100 00:05:50,160 --> 00:05:53,039 Speaker 1: with that, Sarah, But I will say that there is 101 00:05:53,080 --> 00:05:54,960 Speaker 1: a point of interest here for people who don't like 102 00:05:55,080 --> 00:05:58,880 Speaker 1: champagne or wine. Even there was also beer found in 103 00:05:58,920 --> 00:06:02,479 Speaker 1: the shipwreck. Through the champagne, they found the world's oldest 104 00:06:02,560 --> 00:06:05,960 Speaker 1: drinkable beer, also a hundred sixty ft under the water well. 105 00:06:06,000 --> 00:06:07,840 Speaker 1: And the way they realized it was beer is kind 106 00:06:07,839 --> 00:06:10,080 Speaker 1: of interesting. They were bringing up one of the bottles 107 00:06:10,080 --> 00:06:13,400 Speaker 1: of the champagne when it exploded, because it's the pressure, 108 00:06:13,839 --> 00:06:17,000 Speaker 1: and instead of expelling something that looked like champagne, it 109 00:06:17,040 --> 00:06:20,239 Speaker 1: was this dark liquid and it was pretty clear that's 110 00:06:20,360 --> 00:06:24,520 Speaker 1: not champagne, it's beer. So five bottles total were recovered 111 00:06:24,920 --> 00:06:28,120 Speaker 1: and they're currently being studied by the Technical Research Center 112 00:06:28,240 --> 00:06:32,039 Speaker 1: of Finland, and just this June they reported back that 113 00:06:32,160 --> 00:06:36,600 Speaker 1: the first bottle that was open had unfortunately been contaminated 114 00:06:36,640 --> 00:06:41,080 Speaker 1: by saltwater, so not so lucky as the champagne. Unfortunately, 115 00:06:41,120 --> 00:06:43,720 Speaker 1: also the YE cells had been killed, and they were 116 00:06:43,760 --> 00:06:47,560 Speaker 1: hoping that maybe they could reculture those those Z cells 117 00:06:47,600 --> 00:06:50,520 Speaker 1: from old even though they were able to detect live 118 00:06:50,640 --> 00:06:53,800 Speaker 1: lactic acid bacteria, which that's kind of fascinating to me 119 00:06:53,920 --> 00:06:57,760 Speaker 1: that the specteria has been growing in this bottle for 120 00:06:57,920 --> 00:07:00,880 Speaker 1: centuries now. Yeah, so maybe not something that you'll want 121 00:07:00,920 --> 00:07:03,240 Speaker 1: to bid on right away, but it is interesting to 122 00:07:03,320 --> 00:07:05,920 Speaker 1: see what the beer was made of back in the day. 123 00:07:06,040 --> 00:07:08,800 Speaker 1: And there's still those other bottles left to study, so 124 00:07:09,000 --> 00:07:12,480 Speaker 1: it's hoped that perhaps some of them weren't contaminated by 125 00:07:12,760 --> 00:07:16,800 Speaker 1: saltwater and still have something semi drinkable, or at least 126 00:07:16,800 --> 00:07:19,520 Speaker 1: maybe some cells that they can start growing. So our 127 00:07:19,720 --> 00:07:23,920 Speaker 1: next entry takes us away from champagne and beer to 128 00:07:24,200 --> 00:07:27,240 Speaker 1: something a little bit harder. In nineteen o seven, Sir 129 00:07:27,320 --> 00:07:29,760 Speaker 1: Ernest Shackleton made a push for the South Pole with 130 00:07:29,880 --> 00:07:34,080 Speaker 1: his Endurance expedition. He got close about a hundred miles away, 131 00:07:34,080 --> 00:07:36,080 Speaker 1: but he decided to turn back and save his men, 132 00:07:36,680 --> 00:07:39,640 Speaker 1: unlike some other polar explorers that we won't mention here. 133 00:07:40,200 --> 00:07:42,960 Speaker 1: When Shackleton left though, in nineteen o nine, in March 134 00:07:42,960 --> 00:07:45,640 Speaker 1: of that year, winter ice was forming, so he got 135 00:07:45,640 --> 00:07:48,040 Speaker 1: out really fast and he had to leave some cases 136 00:07:48,080 --> 00:07:51,160 Speaker 1: of whiskey behind. The trip in general had kind of 137 00:07:51,160 --> 00:07:54,600 Speaker 1: a strange packing list. It had ponies, a motor car, 138 00:07:55,240 --> 00:08:00,880 Speaker 1: man pulled sledges, a cocaine forced march pills, but also 139 00:08:01,000 --> 00:08:06,320 Speaker 1: tons of booze, cases of whiskey, twelve cases of brandy, 140 00:08:06,440 --> 00:08:09,800 Speaker 1: and six cases of port. That's a lot to bring. 141 00:08:09,840 --> 00:08:12,480 Speaker 1: There were not that many guys going on this trip either, 142 00:08:12,640 --> 00:08:16,600 Speaker 1: so that unconsumed whiskey was found buried under two feet 143 00:08:16,680 --> 00:08:19,520 Speaker 1: of ice, and Shackleton's hut, again, like the Champagne's, is 144 00:08:19,560 --> 00:08:22,320 Speaker 1: going to prove to be a really great storage condition. 145 00:08:22,800 --> 00:08:27,640 Speaker 1: But researchers. Researchers have wondered why exactly Shackleton left it 146 00:08:27,680 --> 00:08:31,400 Speaker 1: behind besides that impending march ice. Some think that he 147 00:08:31,520 --> 00:08:34,040 Speaker 1: might have intended to return, and in which case it 148 00:08:34,080 --> 00:08:36,400 Speaker 1: would be nice to already have a little store of 149 00:08:36,440 --> 00:08:39,680 Speaker 1: whiskey waiting for you. But others think that it was 150 00:08:39,880 --> 00:08:43,840 Speaker 1: the secret stash of another expedition member, somebody who had 151 00:08:44,160 --> 00:08:47,400 Speaker 1: pocketed a few bottles or cases. I mean that seems 152 00:08:47,400 --> 00:08:50,120 Speaker 1: like it would be difficult to do, but had created 153 00:08:50,240 --> 00:08:54,560 Speaker 1: his own secret store of whiskey. Regardless, the store was 154 00:08:54,720 --> 00:08:58,000 Speaker 1: lost until two thousand six, nobody really remembered it was there. 155 00:08:58,400 --> 00:09:01,319 Speaker 1: That's when Explores local it to the bottles and later 156 00:09:01,559 --> 00:09:06,280 Speaker 1: came back with special drills to extract them. But it's 157 00:09:06,360 --> 00:09:10,479 Speaker 1: interesting the modern connection here because there is a company 158 00:09:10,520 --> 00:09:14,000 Speaker 1: that still manufactures this brand of whiskey, and it got 159 00:09:14,000 --> 00:09:18,240 Speaker 1: pretty interested. Yeah. Once the whiskey was identified as rare 160 00:09:18,320 --> 00:09:21,920 Speaker 1: old brand by McKinley and Company Whiskey, the company that 161 00:09:21,960 --> 00:09:25,560 Speaker 1: now owns McKinley and Company, White and Mackey was very 162 00:09:25,600 --> 00:09:29,719 Speaker 1: interested in obtaining samples and recreating the Scotch So in 163 00:09:29,840 --> 00:09:32,920 Speaker 1: January two thousand eleven, a case finally returned to Scotland 164 00:09:32,960 --> 00:09:35,800 Speaker 1: where it was analyzed before they had to return the bottles. 165 00:09:36,480 --> 00:09:40,200 Speaker 1: Everyone expected something really heavy and petty, fitting with the 166 00:09:40,240 --> 00:09:43,160 Speaker 1: taste of the times, but instead it was really light. 167 00:09:43,280 --> 00:09:47,400 Speaker 1: People were pleasantly surprised, and the chemical analysis they were 168 00:09:47,400 --> 00:09:50,280 Speaker 1: able to do prove that this was a pretty high 169 00:09:50,360 --> 00:09:52,920 Speaker 1: end whiskey, or at least it seems now they the 170 00:09:53,000 --> 00:09:55,080 Speaker 1: people who made it, clearly went to some trouble to 171 00:09:55,080 --> 00:09:57,800 Speaker 1: do so. The water was from lock nests and the 172 00:09:57,840 --> 00:10:00,800 Speaker 1: peat was from the Orkney Islands and that was used 173 00:10:00,840 --> 00:10:04,559 Speaker 1: to smoke the barley. So White and Mackie tried to 174 00:10:04,600 --> 00:10:07,880 Speaker 1: recreate the taste. They couldn't just wait years and years 175 00:10:07,880 --> 00:10:10,640 Speaker 1: and let it age. They had to create a blend. 176 00:10:10,720 --> 00:10:14,760 Speaker 1: But they're now selling Shackson's Whiskey for a pretty hefty sum, 177 00:10:14,840 --> 00:10:17,200 Speaker 1: not as much as those bottles of champagne, but still 178 00:10:17,240 --> 00:10:21,320 Speaker 1: a hundred and sixty dollars a bottle. So an interesting 179 00:10:21,440 --> 00:10:24,680 Speaker 1: resurrected alcohol. They're kind of akin to the beers we 180 00:10:24,720 --> 00:10:27,280 Speaker 1: talked about in the last podcast. Yeah, and actually, when 181 00:10:27,280 --> 00:10:30,000 Speaker 1: you think about some of the prices price tags we've 182 00:10:30,000 --> 00:10:32,880 Speaker 1: been throwing around, that's a pretty affordable sum with the 183 00:10:32,960 --> 00:10:34,800 Speaker 1: next entry on our list that we're going to move 184 00:10:34,840 --> 00:10:37,319 Speaker 1: back to one of those heftier price tags. And also 185 00:10:37,440 --> 00:10:40,240 Speaker 1: a historical event that I think everyone's probably heard of. 186 00:10:40,760 --> 00:10:43,880 Speaker 1: On November two thousand nine, a bottle of lower Brow 187 00:10:43,960 --> 00:10:46,800 Speaker 1: Lagger broke the world record for price paid for a 188 00:10:46,800 --> 00:10:50,400 Speaker 1: bottle of beer when it's sold for more than sixteen thousand, 189 00:10:50,559 --> 00:10:54,080 Speaker 1: six hundred and eighty dollars or ten thousand pounds. So 190 00:10:54,160 --> 00:10:55,960 Speaker 1: you have to think it must be a really good 191 00:10:56,000 --> 00:10:59,240 Speaker 1: bottle of beer, right, Actually not, yeah, not at all. 192 00:10:59,360 --> 00:11:01,360 Speaker 1: It just has a really good story behind it. That 193 00:11:01,440 --> 00:11:04,679 Speaker 1: beer was actually on the Hindenburg when the German airship 194 00:11:04,720 --> 00:11:08,440 Speaker 1: exploded as it landed in New Jersey in seven So 195 00:11:08,480 --> 00:11:11,440 Speaker 1: the Zeppelin as we know, was engulfed in flames killing 196 00:11:11,480 --> 00:11:15,080 Speaker 1: thirty eight people and injuring sixty and while cleaning up 197 00:11:15,120 --> 00:11:18,600 Speaker 1: the airfield later, a New Jersey firefighter named Leroy Smith 198 00:11:18,800 --> 00:11:22,479 Speaker 1: stumbled across a few items that survived the crash, intact 199 00:11:22,960 --> 00:11:26,120 Speaker 1: six bottles of lower Brow beer and a picture. All right, 200 00:11:26,200 --> 00:11:29,920 Speaker 1: So this firefighter buried the item so he could come 201 00:11:29,920 --> 00:11:32,439 Speaker 1: back and get them later, because at that point the 202 00:11:32,480 --> 00:11:35,319 Speaker 1: area had been sealed off by the authorities. Once he 203 00:11:35,440 --> 00:11:37,960 Speaker 1: retrieved them, he kept one for himself and gave the 204 00:11:38,040 --> 00:11:41,120 Speaker 1: other five to his colleagues, the sort of mementos of 205 00:11:41,160 --> 00:11:44,800 Speaker 1: this crash. Most of the others ended up being lost, 206 00:11:44,960 --> 00:11:48,440 Speaker 1: but one was donated to the Lower Brow company after 207 00:11:48,559 --> 00:11:53,040 Speaker 1: Smith's friend who had had it died, and Smith's bottle 208 00:11:53,160 --> 00:11:55,880 Speaker 1: and the picture passed on to his niece in nineteen 209 00:11:55,960 --> 00:11:58,240 Speaker 1: sixty six, and they were put on sale in two 210 00:11:58,280 --> 00:12:01,840 Speaker 1: thousand nine. By the years that Henry Aldrich and son. 211 00:12:02,000 --> 00:12:05,160 Speaker 1: So we have these two bottles kind of coming through 212 00:12:05,160 --> 00:12:10,480 Speaker 1: a plus the picture, which all managed to survive the crash, 213 00:12:10,800 --> 00:12:13,640 Speaker 1: and there was fierce competition for that bottle of beer 214 00:12:13,720 --> 00:12:16,840 Speaker 1: that was auctioned off, including telephone bitters, mostly from the 215 00:12:16,960 --> 00:12:20,640 Speaker 1: US before it's sold. And the picture, which is silver plated, 216 00:12:20,720 --> 00:12:23,400 Speaker 1: and there's the logo of the Zeppelin Airline Company sold 217 00:12:23,400 --> 00:12:26,559 Speaker 1: for almost as much. Prices paid for these items were 218 00:12:26,600 --> 00:12:29,760 Speaker 1: actually greater than those paid for items connected to Elvis, 219 00:12:29,800 --> 00:12:32,640 Speaker 1: Diana Ross and Paul McCartney, which were auctioned off on 220 00:12:32,679 --> 00:12:35,440 Speaker 1: the same day. Well, there's a survivor element to it 221 00:12:35,480 --> 00:12:39,200 Speaker 1: that it did manage to survive a crash like this. 222 00:12:39,400 --> 00:12:42,960 Speaker 1: But there's a catch. We didn't say it was good. 223 00:12:43,720 --> 00:12:47,439 Speaker 1: You can't actually drink the beer. Auctioneer Andrew Aldrich told 224 00:12:47,480 --> 00:12:52,000 Speaker 1: BBC News quote, it is probably quite putrid to taste, 225 00:12:52,800 --> 00:12:55,600 Speaker 1: So I don't know, maybe that would be a relief 226 00:12:55,640 --> 00:12:58,600 Speaker 1: if you spent that much money on alcohol if you 227 00:12:58,720 --> 00:13:02,000 Speaker 1: couldn't go ahead, didn't drink it. Well, you're obviously just 228 00:13:02,000 --> 00:13:04,800 Speaker 1: buying it for its historical value, but even for that, 229 00:13:04,880 --> 00:13:07,040 Speaker 1: I think it's it's probably worth it to a lot 230 00:13:07,040 --> 00:13:10,920 Speaker 1: of people. Our next entry, though, didn't involve just keeping 231 00:13:11,040 --> 00:13:14,040 Speaker 1: an expensive bottle on the shelf as some sort of 232 00:13:14,120 --> 00:13:19,880 Speaker 1: historical artifact. This amoutumous buyer actually consumed the drink we're 233 00:13:19,880 --> 00:13:21,959 Speaker 1: going to talk about next. Okay, so we'll just tell 234 00:13:22,000 --> 00:13:23,520 Speaker 1: you the story straight out and then give you a 235 00:13:23,559 --> 00:13:26,800 Speaker 1: little background on the alcohol involved. In two thousand five, 236 00:13:26,920 --> 00:13:30,520 Speaker 1: an anonymous guests anonymous to us, that is, at Pennyhill 237 00:13:30,559 --> 00:13:34,559 Speaker 1: Park Hotel in Bagshot, Surrey made headlines when he bought 238 00:13:34,559 --> 00:13:37,959 Speaker 1: a bottle of Dalmore sixty two whiskey for thirty two 239 00:13:38,040 --> 00:13:41,880 Speaker 1: thousand pounds or fifty eight thousand dollars and then proceeded 240 00:13:41,920 --> 00:13:43,840 Speaker 1: to drink it with a group of his friends like 241 00:13:43,920 --> 00:13:46,760 Speaker 1: right away to right, yeah, pretty much right there in 242 00:13:46,760 --> 00:13:50,640 Speaker 1: the hotel. And this wasn't just any fancy whiskey. Dal Moore, 243 00:13:50,760 --> 00:13:53,760 Speaker 1: which is a tiny Scottish distillery, created it by combining 244 00:13:53,840 --> 00:13:57,880 Speaker 1: casks of malt from eighteen sixty eight, eighteen seventy eight, 245 00:13:58,040 --> 00:14:02,240 Speaker 1: ninety six and nineteen third nine to make the single malt, 246 00:14:02,559 --> 00:14:05,640 Speaker 1: which made the youngest of the ingredients sixty two years old, 247 00:14:05,760 --> 00:14:08,440 Speaker 1: hence the name. When it was bottled, so it was 248 00:14:08,520 --> 00:14:11,679 Speaker 1: one of only twelve of these bottles ever made, and 249 00:14:11,720 --> 00:14:15,640 Speaker 1: each of the twelve bottles is named after different characters 250 00:14:15,679 --> 00:14:18,240 Speaker 1: and events in the distilleries history, so they kind of 251 00:14:18,280 --> 00:14:20,960 Speaker 1: added their own historical twist to it. The one that 252 00:14:21,080 --> 00:14:23,840 Speaker 1: was consumed at the hotel was called the maths And 253 00:14:23,920 --> 00:14:27,720 Speaker 1: after Alexander maths And who founded the distillery in eighteen 254 00:14:27,840 --> 00:14:31,680 Speaker 1: thirty nine. One bottle is still left at the distillery. 255 00:14:31,800 --> 00:14:35,360 Speaker 1: Others were sold to private collectors. But it's not like 256 00:14:35,400 --> 00:14:38,440 Speaker 1: you could just go up to a bar and order 257 00:14:38,520 --> 00:14:41,640 Speaker 1: one of these remaining bottles and put down your thirty 258 00:14:41,680 --> 00:14:45,000 Speaker 1: two pounds and walk away. According to an article in 259 00:14:45,000 --> 00:14:48,160 Speaker 1: the Telegraph, the hotel bought its bottle from dealers for 260 00:14:48,240 --> 00:14:52,200 Speaker 1: around thirty one thousand pounds quote, little expecting it to 261 00:14:52,240 --> 00:14:55,200 Speaker 1: be drunk. Another one of these bottles, for instance, has 262 00:14:55,240 --> 00:14:58,200 Speaker 1: sold an auction in two thousand two for twenty five thousand, 263 00:14:58,240 --> 00:15:01,040 Speaker 1: eight hundred and seventy seven pounds in fifty pence. So 264 00:15:01,480 --> 00:15:03,640 Speaker 1: it seems like there's a little range here for what 265 00:15:03,720 --> 00:15:06,440 Speaker 1: you'll pay for one of these bottles. But the price 266 00:15:06,520 --> 00:15:10,120 Speaker 1: paid by the hotel guests ended up being the world 267 00:15:10,160 --> 00:15:13,720 Speaker 1: record for a single mold. Nobody seemed too upset though, 268 00:15:13,760 --> 00:15:16,520 Speaker 1: about the fact that he drank it. An employee who 269 00:15:16,520 --> 00:15:18,680 Speaker 1: looks after the hotel's v I P guests got to 270 00:15:18,760 --> 00:15:20,680 Speaker 1: taste it. He was offered to taste, and he said 271 00:15:20,720 --> 00:15:23,720 Speaker 1: that the flavor was quote exquisite, and he said that 272 00:15:23,760 --> 00:15:26,720 Speaker 1: the buyer, the person who bought it quote has the 273 00:15:26,720 --> 00:15:29,920 Speaker 1: philosophy that there's no point in buying these fine whiskeys 274 00:15:29,920 --> 00:15:32,760 Speaker 1: and never drinking them. I can I can get behind 275 00:15:32,760 --> 00:15:34,960 Speaker 1: that idea. I can too. I kind of like that. 276 00:15:35,240 --> 00:15:37,760 Speaker 1: The hotel manager wouldn't identify the buyer, but he said 277 00:15:37,800 --> 00:15:40,200 Speaker 1: that he was a quote regular hotel guest and a 278 00:15:40,240 --> 00:15:44,840 Speaker 1: private collector of fine spirits. Clearly this The distilleries master 279 00:15:44,920 --> 00:15:47,640 Speaker 1: blender Richard Patterson was also quoted as saying that he 280 00:15:47,680 --> 00:15:50,440 Speaker 1: was happy the bottle had been open, shared and enjoyed. 281 00:15:50,880 --> 00:15:53,800 Speaker 1: And the buyer, you know, obviously doesn't have that whiskey anymore, 282 00:15:53,840 --> 00:15:56,560 Speaker 1: but he has the memories of drinking it, and he 283 00:15:56,640 --> 00:15:58,640 Speaker 1: still has the bottle to save. I don't know if 284 00:15:58,680 --> 00:16:00,320 Speaker 1: he did save it, but he would have that and 285 00:16:00,360 --> 00:16:03,119 Speaker 1: the presentation case. So maybe he saved those the souvenirs, 286 00:16:03,520 --> 00:16:07,240 Speaker 1: and maybe they'll be recreating this one too and issuing 287 00:16:07,360 --> 00:16:09,960 Speaker 1: some more, although I'm sure that wouldn't help those high 288 00:16:09,960 --> 00:16:15,600 Speaker 1: auction prices. So that concludes our tour of historic spirits 289 00:16:15,640 --> 00:16:21,000 Speaker 1: through the ages. We've started with the Chinese Neolithic grog 290 00:16:21,040 --> 00:16:24,640 Speaker 1: and gone all the way to this hotel guest who 291 00:16:24,920 --> 00:16:28,440 Speaker 1: was willing to spend quite a pretty tense on a 292 00:16:28,480 --> 00:16:31,000 Speaker 1: bottle of Scotch, and I like ending on that note. 293 00:16:31,040 --> 00:16:34,080 Speaker 1: I like ending on the the aged alcohol that could 294 00:16:34,080 --> 00:16:37,800 Speaker 1: be enjoyed. It's like almost a different way of appreciating history. 295 00:16:38,040 --> 00:16:41,160 Speaker 1: It certainly is. So if you have any more cool 296 00:16:41,760 --> 00:16:44,240 Speaker 1: alcohol fines you want to suggest to it, I mean, 297 00:16:44,240 --> 00:16:46,680 Speaker 1: there are so many out there. This was a very 298 00:16:46,840 --> 00:16:50,359 Speaker 1: edited list. You can email us where a history podcast 299 00:16:50,440 --> 00:16:52,920 Speaker 1: at how stuff works dot com. You can also find 300 00:16:52,960 --> 00:16:55,440 Speaker 1: us on Twitter at mist in History, and we are 301 00:16:55,480 --> 00:16:57,920 Speaker 1: on Facebook. And if you want to learn a little 302 00:16:57,920 --> 00:17:01,400 Speaker 1: bit more about spirits, I know, I for one am 303 00:17:01,400 --> 00:17:04,280 Speaker 1: no expert in the area, I have to admit, but 304 00:17:04,840 --> 00:17:07,040 Speaker 1: wine making in particular, we have an article on our 305 00:17:07,040 --> 00:17:09,320 Speaker 1: website called how Wine Making Works, and you can look 306 00:17:09,320 --> 00:17:12,360 Speaker 1: it up by visiting our homepage at www dot how 307 00:17:12,440 --> 00:17:17,959 Speaker 1: stuff works dot com. Be sure to check out our 308 00:17:17,960 --> 00:17:21,320 Speaker 1: new video podcast, Stuff from the Future. Join how Stuff 309 00:17:21,320 --> 00:17:24,240 Speaker 1: Work staff as we explore the most promising and perplexing 310 00:17:24,359 --> 00:17:29,000 Speaker 1: possibilities of tomorrow. The house Stuff Works iPhone app has arrived. 311 00:17:29,119 --> 00:17:31,000 Speaker 1: Download it today on iTunes.