When Michigan couple Cheryl and John Borchert decided to revamp their century-old house, they never imagined they’d strike gold – liquid gold, that is.
The house, which was built in 1890 and originally used as a boarding house for loggers, contained “old crockery, porcelain doll faces, and old dishes,” as well as some weaponry. But the greatest find was located inside the actual foundation of the house. While the couple was on vacation, the man renovating their house found bottles of whiskey stamped around the time of American Prohibition hidden inside the walls. He left the whiskey – rather kindly, we think – for the homeowners to enjoy. The bottles were swaddled in a 1921 newspaper, presumably hidden away from the government’s prying eyes. However, fortunately for the Borcherts, the original owner never got around to reclaiming his booze, so the whiskey now belongs to them.
Notice how the bottle says “medicinal” whiskey – as that was the only “legal” whiskey allowed during Prohibition. “I imagine there were suddenly some pretty sick people back then,” Cheryl jokes.
There’s quite a fuss around the aging statements of dark spirits, with many consumers willing to pay outlandish prices for whiskey that’s been aged a decade or two. Certain distilleries have even turned to cutting edge technology to get their spirits to taste older than they actually are. However, since whiskey doesn’t age in the bottle – it only ages in the barrel – it’s unclear how mature the juice actually tastes, despite being “old.” Regardless, what the Borcherts have stumbled upon might not be worthless. In fact, certain appraisers have told them that their find could be worth at least $700 – for that amount though, we’d rather keep the artifacts to display on the home bar.
And it seems the Borcherts agree with us, as of right now the couple has no intention of selling the antique booze. They also, surprisingly, don’t want to drink it. They say, “It’s just a cool thing to have.” Well, we can all agree to that, but aren’t they just a little curious? Maybe we can drink it for them…
H/t WZZM13
Interior photo courtesy of WZZM13
