Aland islands brewery to make ’shipwreck beer’

(AP) HELSINKI - Local authorities on the Aland Islands in the Baltic Sea say a local brewer will begin producing a beer inspired by bottles found in a 19th century shipwreck three years ago.

Five bottles of beer, along with 168 bottles of champagne, were pulled from a submerged schooner that experts believe sank in the 1840s.

Aland authorities say Finnish scientists studied the beer and devised a formula for a recreation that the local Stallhagen brewery will produce.

Stallhagen CEO Jan Wennstrom said in a statement Thursday that he hopes the vintage beer will help the company reach new markets.

Production of the "shipwreck beer" is expected to start in mid-2014.