A 42-year-old bottle of beer celebrating the wedding of the then Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer has been discovered in a pub in Cirencester.
The bottle of Royal Wedding Ale was produced by Wiltshire brewery Arkell’s. It was found at the brewer’s Bees Knees pub, in Cirencester’s Watermoor area, where new tenants Neil Johnson and Julie Godley have been doing some renovations to accommodate their Cheeky Swine Smokehouse and Grill concept.
The bottle, in excellent condition, is one of only a few left from the original batch. Instead of an ABV per centage, it displays an OG (original gravity) reading of 1081, making it about 9% in strength. OG indicates the number of dissolved sugars in the beer that can be converted into alcohol.
Neil, chef and proprietor, said: “It is hard to believe it has sat there alone for all of this time. It is fascinating to think why it was left. It now sits in a pride of place behind our bar.
“Not many have a 42-year-old bottle of beer with a royal connection in their pub. I hope we don’t pop it open by mistake for a customer, or to put into one of my own barbecue sauces.”
