Bermudian beer drinkers have not been switching to the Island's first locally-brewed beer, concedes a top official with Bermuda Triangle Brewing.

"I hope it gets easier,'' said company president Mr. Paul Mason.

Bermuda Triangle, which hit the market with two bottled brands last December, lost money in its first year, Mr. Mason said.

"We'll be real lucky to break even in the second year,'' he said. "But hopefully there will be smiles on everybody's faces in the third year, including the bank.'' While he had hoped to do better, Mr. Mason, 37, said he cannot be too unhappy with his company's first-year results.

In the United States, micro-breweries have just 1.3 percent of the beer market, he said.

In Bermuda, where about five million litres of beer are sold each year, Bermuda Triangle has captured more than one percent, but less than ten percent, Mr. Mason said. "I'd be thrilled to get ten percent.'' The bottled beers are Spinnaker and Wilde Hogge, both German style brews. Full Moon Pale Ale, more of an English-style beer, is sold only on tap. Mr. Mason said Spinnaker sells better in summer and Wild Hogge sells better in winter.

For the year, "Wilde Hogge might just out-sell the Spinnaker.'' A new winter beer, Hammerhead Stout, will also be English style, and is expected to be on tap soon.

In the second year, a 50 to 60 percent increase in sales would "not be unreasonable,'' Mr. Mason said.

"I still think that both segments of the market we've really only touched,'' he said. "We can do a lot more in getting it out to tourists. And with locals, we have a fairly small share of the market.'' He hoped Bermudians would take to the new winter beer. If so, "We'll keep it as a year-round selection.'' Saturday tours of the brewery near SAL in Southampton might also stir more interest among local beer drinkers.

Mr. Mason did not want to tip his competitors to how much beer he was selling.

But based on what he said, Bermuda Triangle likely sold about 10,000 litres of beer in its first year.

At Lines Food and Liquor Mart in Warwick, manager Mr. Richard Powell described sales of the beer as "spasmodic''.

"You'll get a couple of weeks where somebody gets on it, and then it dies, and then it picks up again,'' Mr. Powell said. "It hasn't been steady.'' At The Supermart, customer service manager Mrs. Virginia Williams estimated the store sold about five cases of Triangle beer a week in winter and eight cases a week in summer.

And at Harrington Hundreds, owner Mr. Anthony Aguiar said he had seen "a modest growth'' in sales of the beer.

"It may be a slow growth curve, but we're going to give it every opportunity to succeed,'' Mr. Aguiar said.

Mr. Mason said he was not discouraged. "I'm Bermudian, but I know Bermudians generally aren't the most adventurous people,'' he said. "They're going to sit and wait. They're pretty conservative. They're going to see how you do.'' Beyond that, Mr. Mason said he had no hopes of cutting further into the market share controlled by brewers like Beck's, Amstel and Heineken.

"That's not really the market we're appealing to,'' he said. "We're not after Joe Six Pack. We're really appealing to little niches within that market -- people who like to have a full-flavoured beer and drink one, two, or maybe three beers.'' While the brand loyalties of Bermudian beer drinkers has been hard to crack, "the tourist market is a little easier to break into,'' Mr. Mason said. When on vacation, "you're away from your regular beer anyway''.

Most of the Island's bars and restaurants carry the beer, and so do most major supermarkets. But the smaller "mom and pop'' stores have been slower to stock the beer.

And distribution has been achieved without a major advertising push and without ties to one of the major liquor dealers, like Gosling's or Frith's.

"Ideally, I would have liked to have teamed up with one of the established people in the business, because of their knowledge of the market,'' Mr. Mason said. "It didn't work out that way.'' On the other hand, Triangle has been forced to get out and meet and cultivate its customers. Mr. Mason saw that as a positive.

Triangle, which is 75 percent Bermudian-owned, did not seek a price advantage over the big breweries. "People think that just because it's made here it's going to be cheaper,'' he said. "But we have to bring our grains in from southern Germany.

"All our bottles have to be shipped in, mainly from the UK. Our cardboard packaging and labels come from the States. We import our hops from a supplier in London and one in Washington State. Then there's the duty.'' And the capital costs in setting up a micro-brewery were "tremendous'' with a 22.5 percent tariff slapped on incoming equipment.

Bermuda Triangle has only three employees. Mr. Mason's brother Philip is involved, as well as brewmaster Mr. Marko Saager and Mr. Basil Gibbons, Jr.

Mr. Mason said it would actually be cheaper for Triangle to send its recipe and label to the United States and have the beer brewed there, but "then it wouldn't be Bermuda beer''.

While visitors have liked the beer, there are no immediate plans for export.

With no preservatives, "our beer won't travel,'' he said.

However, Triangle is looking at expansion possibilities, both at its Bermuda plant near SAL and in co-operation with a brewer overseas.

Other changes that might come in year two: "We're seriously considering putting the Full Moon into a bottle,'' Mr. Mason said. However, "It's a pretty significant capital investment in terms of all the packaging involved.'' A brew pub is "something we're seriously considering,'' Mr. Mason said.

"Sooner or later, somebody's going to do it.'' Triangle might take the company public on the Bermuda Stock Exchange and/or a foreign exchange.

MR. PAUL MASON -- Bermuda Triangle president.