The recent severe rainstorms that swept through the Sharon region of Israel have led to the discovery of a 1,500-year-old winepress, The Jerusalem Post reported Monday.

Archaeologist Alla Nagorski said that the site was discovered several weeks ago when excavation at a site for for natural gas lines was halted by flooding.

When water was pumped from the site, Nagorski said the well-preserved winery was found, which she described as impressive and rare.

“It is evident that great thought was invested in the engineering and construction,” she said. “The winepress is huge – 3 meters in diameter and 2 meters deep, and could accommodate 20 cubic meters of wine.”

Nagorski said numerous other winepresses have been exposed in the Sharon area, where the wine industry once thrived. In addition to the winepress a warehouse was discovered housing jars, Nagorski added.

Earlier this year, 5,000-year old Egyptian pottery used to make beer was found at a Tel Aviv construction site.

[Photo: Gili Yaari / FLASH90 ]