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The bottles were discovered by divers in 2010 in the wreck of a two-masted Scandinavian schooner between Sweden and Finland

Chemical and sensory analysis of 170-year-old champagnes previously recovered from the Baltic Sea provides hints of 19th-century wine making practices, according to a study.

Strewn amid the wreckage of a schooner 50 metres below the surface of the Baltic Sea off the coast of Finland, 168 bottles of champagne were dredged up in 2010 by divers who spotted them in the shipwreck.  

Philippe Jeandet and his colleagues at the University of Reims used analytical techniques to determine the wines' properties and work out their destination.  

Compared with modern champagnes, the Baltic samples contained less alcohol but more iron, copper, sodium, and chlorine, hinting at wine making practices in the 19th century. 

Traces of 5-carboxyvanillic acid, castalin, and oak lactones suggested that wine production occurred in wooden barrels, and the presence of ribose pointed to the likely use of grape syrup, an ingredient uncommon in modern champagnes, for liquor preparation.

Low levels of acetic acid suggested the wines were largely unspoiled. 

Aroma analysis agreed with the verdicts of wine-tasting experts, whose sensory descriptors such as 'spicy,' 'grilled,' and 'leathery' matched detected compounds.

They were no labels on the bottles, raised from the sea in 2010, off the coast of Finland by divers

Champagne experts tried the 200-year-old bottle in 2010 and were surprised at the quality of the wine 

Before the discovery of the underwater cellar, the oldest drinkable champagne in existence was thought to be an 1825 vintage which is still in the cellar of the Perrier-Jouet house

Before the discovery of the underwater cellar, the oldest drinkable champagne in existence was thought to be an 1825 vintage which is still in the cellar of the Perrier-Jouet house. 

The ship the champagne was discovered on appeared to have been built in the early 1800s and to have been on a voyage from Germany to Finland, a Russian province at the time. 

The relative sweetness of the champagne has prompted speculation that it could have been destined for Russia, which then, as now, shunned the drier varieties. 

According to the authors of the study, the merits of marine environments with still waters at stable temperatures for wine preservation warrant further study.  

The findings were published in the PNAS Online Early Edition.