it is probably the oldest family business, dating back to 1806 when the first Bermuda Gosling, Ambrose, set up shop in St. George's.

Now in its sixth generation, the firm is technically "Gosling Brothers and Sisters'', the female being Mal's daughter Nancy who was appointed president of the company last year. The "brothers'', Mal Jr. and Charles, are actually cousins. The young partners, all in their 30's, are three of Ambrose's 112 fifth generation descendants.

"We've been with the company since birth'' jokes Charles who is vice president/advertising & marketing and overseer of their real estate holdings.

Make that their `teens: Nancy in the main office; brother Mal Jr. as a messenger boy and Charles in the bond office. And as with all family-owned businesses, the youngsters worked during school holidays in various other capacities.

As president, Nancy is responsible for the overall function of the company.

She has a keen business acumen "and is the best-trained'' adds her mother citing her Dalhousie degree in commerce, her C.P.A. and long internship with Gray & Kempe. "I also gained 18 months experience as a supervisor at American International before returning full-time in 1981,'' says Nancy.

There was no question of Mal Jr. following in his father's footsteps. At age 21, he was already crushing grapes, pumping tanks and topping cellar barrells at the Dry Creek Winery in California's Sonoma Valley. "It was a great education for me'' he says. He is a graduate of Boston College several years with a degree in business administration.

Since 1984, he has been vice president in charge of local sales and exports.

He also covers the warehouse and bottling plant which cousin Teddy manages.

This generation has seen rapid growth and changing trends, particularly on the sales side. Since Mal Jr. has taken over, there has been a surge in awareness of American wines, for instances. "My father was the first (family member) to study wines and had built up a solid network of European wineries,'' says Mal Jr. "But when tourists began demanding domestic wines, we increased our California line and carry a fine selection from Washington State.'' As for spirits, Gosling's had a major setback five years ago with the loss of Hiram Walker, their prime account. They bounced back by acquiring Seagrams.

Mal said: "We picked up the exclusive rights to all of Seagrams' products and IDV (International Distillers & Vintners) which includes Smirnoff, now the Island's No. 2 best-seller.'' But the emphasis is on Gosling's Black Seal Rum, which they began exporting to the US some 15 years ago. Their distributor, Barton Brands of Chicago, has a quality control department of trained scientists. "We've been very fortunate to have them'' says Mal, adding that their monitoring expertise led Gosling's to invest thousands of dollars in equipment to perfect their blending techniques.

"Our recipe hasn't changed, but we can now accurately pinpoint the proof, fill and clarity of our rums -- as well as test the ultimate quality of our competitors!'' Mal also reveals that he is "very close'' to exporting to the UK -- "traditionally a tough market'' -- and Germany.

Sales promotions have also increased -- a joint effort by Mal and Charles.

They sponsor local events like the World Rugby Classic -- "They're dark and stormy crazy,'' Charles laughs -- and in North America they conduct rum tastings in tourism's regional areas and sponsor regattas, golf tournaments and events like the Annapolis and Newport Boat Shows.

Charles' forte is acting -- he has an honours degree in theatre -- but he came on board 10 years ago because he felt an obligation as a shareholder to "live up to my responsibilities''.

The firm's first national US magazine ad appears this month in Yachting. The full-page advettisement includes a 1-800 Rum Hotline to guide consumers to their nearest Black Seal merchandiser.

So what is it like to be in a family business? "It makes us more conservative in our outlook,'' answers Charles. "We are close-knit and therefore more honest with each other'' says Mal. Additionally, their acute sense of family tradition forces them to look at business in the long term.

THE destruction of Gosling's old Dundonald Street warehouse, above, in the 1977 riots was in some ways a blessing in disguise, enabling the company to build a state of the art building and bottling plant in its place.