The cocktail expert Amanda Schuster said it was unlikely that the spirits would be safe to drink.

But David Wondrich, a senior drinks columnist at the Daily Beast, said the cold water might have preserved them, and that water pressure could have kept corks in place and bottles sealed. Spirits, he said, “tend to keep far better than most wines over very long periods. I’ve tasted numerous not just drinkable, but delicious bottles from the 1910s and before.”

The world’s oldest known booze is in the Speyer wine bottle, which dates back nearly 1,700 years and is in a German museum. Scientists say drinking it probably wouldn’t kill you — but it would taste terrible.

That’s it for this briefing. See you next time. — Melina and Victoria

Thank you

To Mark Josephson and Eleanor Stanford for the break from the news. The Back Story is based on a report by Mihir Zaveri, on our Express desk. You can reach the team at briefing@nytimes.com.

P.S.

• We’re listening to “The Daily.” Our latest episode explains 50 years of economic policies that have culminated in mass protests in Chile.

• Here’s today’s Mini Crossword puzzle, and a clue: Moray or conger (three letters). You can find all our puzzles here.

• The Times’s wine critic recently reflected on his series examining climate change through the lens of wine and agriculture. “I’ve always felt that one of the least interesting things for a wine writer to do is to try to describe how a wine tastes,” he said. “I feel that even more strongly now.”