Analysis of Beers from an 1840s' Shipwreck

Two bottles of beer from an about 170-year-old shipwreck (M1 Fo 403.3) near the Aland Islands in the Baltic Sea were analyzed. Hop components and their degradation compounds showed that the bottles contained two different beers, one more strongly hopped than the other. The hops used contained higher levels of beta-acids than modern varieties and were added before the worts were boiled, converting alpha-acids to iso-alpha-acids and beta-acids to hulupones. High levels of organic acids, carbonyl compounds, and glucose indicated extensive bacterial and enzyme activity during aging. However, concentrations of yeast-derived flavor compounds were similar to those of modern beers, except that 3-methylbutyl acetate was unusually low in both beers and 2-phenylethanol and possibly 2-phenylethyl acetate were unusually high in one beer. Concentrations of phenolic compounds were similar to those in modern lagers and ales.