Chianti may be the secret to long life

Theelixir of life may be a concoction of honey, cherries and secret herbsinfused in a full Chianti wine, according to a centuries-old recipediscovered in one of Italy's oldest pharmacies.

The18th century-old recipe was discovered in an old manuscript found amongthe shelves of a pharmacy in Asciano near Sienna dating back to 1715.

"Myancestors left several manuscripts with formulas for digestive drinks,but this one struck me because of its ingredients. I knew it had strongscientific basis," says pharmacist Giovanni De Munari, who found theold recipe from behind a small shelf in his Tuscany pharmacy.

Uponfinding the recipe, De Munari brewed the beverage, and came up with a"low-calorie, highly digestive alcoholic infusion which tasteddelicious."

Themain ingredient in the elixir is the Sangiovese grape, which is thesoul of Chianti wine. Until the middle of the 19th century, Chianti wasbased uniquely on Sangiovese grapes.