Decades-old sealed bottle of gin worth hundreds of pounds discovered in Flying Horse Hotel cellar during improvement works

The decades-old bottle – which is only missing its paper label – was discovered on Tuesday 30 January

A 70-year-old intact bottle of gin is to be raffled off after being discovered behind some shelves in the cellar of the Flying Horse Hotel in Rochdale town centre.

The decades-old bottle – which is only missing its paper label – was discovered on Tuesday 30 January during refurbishment work at the Packer Street pub.

Having first opened in 1691, Rochdale’s oldest free house is currently closed while work is completed on a few projects, including the addition of an on-site brewery with 37 brew lines. The windows will also be restored back to their original standards, and new original-style guttering will be installed. The pub will reopen on Thursday 1 February.

Landlord Ben Boothman said: “We’re polishing what needs polishing; it’s been 10 years since we made any changes or improvements. It won’t change much because I love old pubs, but we’re updating the bar offer and adding a proper barista coffee machine.

“We’re renting the space in the back to Wakey Wakey [a nano brewery in Rochdale] who will have a permanent beer on the bar. We’ve put a substantial amount of money in and we will have more beer lines than anywhere else in Rochdale.”

He laughed: “We’ve always been famous for our beer but we’re going to shout about it a lot more.

“We love beer!”

The cellar has been gutted as part of the works, leading to the discovery of the long-forgotten bottle of Gordon’s.

“Fred was smashing out the cellar,” Ben explained, “and found it behind some wooden shelving in the walls.”

After posting a snap of the unusual find, gin lovers quickly dated the 75cl bottle to the 1950s – with an expected value of £300-£500.

Ben has decided to raffle off the vintage find, and hopes it will raise £1,000 for Springhill Hospice.

Tickets will cost £5 and will be available from the Flying Horse from 1 February.

The raffle will be drawn on Thursday 29 February following a week’s worth of birthday celebrations for the Flyer, which turns 333 this year. The pub was rebuilt in 1923 before reopening in 1926.