Reddish-brown liquid found in untouched 2,000-year-old Roman tomb is a local, sherry-like wine

Reddish-brown liquid found in untouched 2,000-year-old Roman tomb is a local, sherry-like wine

The oldest wine ever to have been discovered in its original liquid form is reddish-brown and, quite conceivably, full-bodied. Reddish-brown because of the chemical reactions that have taken place in the 2,000 years since the white wine was poured into a funeral urn in southern Spain – and potentially full-bodied because the urn also contained, among other things, the cremated bones of a Roman man.

Analysis by experts at the University of Córdoba has established that the ancient tawny liquid inside the urn – which was found in a rare, untouched Roman tomb that was accidentally discovered in the Andalucían town of Carmona five years ago – is a local, sherry-like wine.

Prior to the discovery, which is reported in the Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, the oldest wine preserved in a liquid state was the Speyer wine bottle, which was excavated from a Roman tomb near the German city of Speyer in 1867 and dated to about AD 325.

The Spanish urn was recovered in 2019 after a family having some work done on their house in Carmona stumbled across a sunken tomb on their property.

  • Flying SquidMEnglish
    34•14 days ago

    All of which raises a rather indelicate question. Was none of them tempted – even fleetingly – to sample this remarkable, historic wine?

    Ruiz Arrebola admits he half-jokingly suggested to the lead archaeologist, Juan Manuel Román, that they have “a tiny little glass” to celebrate the discovery.

    What’s with this half-jokingly shit? Give me the glass, I’ll drink it.

    • NataliePortlandEnglish
      23•14 days ago

      I bet they were remembering the story of the Egyptian Archaeologists who discovered a jar of honey and they all had a taste. Then they found a fetus in the jar.

      Oh you know what- Snopes says it didn’t happen! It’s maybe just an urban legend.

    • JJROKCZEnglish
      9•13 days ago

      You’d die of some horrible malady surely

      • donEnglish
        7•13 days ago

        “It’s not in the least bit toxic – we’ve done the microbiological analysis,” he said.

        They’d be just fine.

    • donEnglish
      8•13 days ago

      “But I’d have qualms about that because this wine has spent 2,000 years in contact with the cremated body of a dead Roman. The liquid is a bit murky because of the bone remains. But I guess you could filter it and try it. I’d rather someone else tried it first, though.”

      You might wanna rethink that, but without knowing you, maybe not. Nope, you said you’re cool with it, so bottoms up.