HAND-BREWED MAINE ROOT BEER LAUNCHES INNOVATIVE WEB SITE: LIMITED EDITION COMIC BOOK AND 4-PACKS OF CAPT'N ELI'S ROOT BEER DISTRIBUTED STATEWIDE AT HANNAFORD
 
Portland, Maine (March 16, 2004) -- Capt'n Eli's Root Beer announces the launch of an innovative Web site and marketing platform for this premium Maine-brewed soda. Capt'n Eli's Root Beer is one of only a handful of root beers brewed and bottled in Maine. It is the only root beer in the nation to distribute a comic book, The Undersea Adventures of Capt'n Eli, which was inspired by the brand. Most notably, the companion Web site, www.captneli.com, is the first daily Web comic to hail from Maine.
 
"A lot of people are putting comics on the Web but only a small group is doing so in a major way," noted Maine artist and writer Jay Piscopo, the creator of The Undersea Adventures of Capt'n Eli. "It's exciting to be a part of developing this new frontier of entertainment on the Web."

Captneli.com is a Monday - Friday daily Web comic that revives the spirit of the daily adventure comic strip -- updating classic themes for a new audience.

"The stories bring back the feeling of childhood adventure when comics were a nickel, you could buy root beer floats at the corner drug store soda fountain, and your imagination could propel you anywhere," said Piscopo.
This story is designed to appeal to all ages and the Web comic is free. People can sign up for the daily story page to be emailed directly to them. As word has spread, subscribers have signed up from Maine, Iowa, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Florida, and California.

The Undersea Adventures of Capt'n Eli features the adventures of a highly resourceful 11 year-old boy inventor with unique nautical abilities. He builds his own submarine, invents a root beer machine, teaches his dog Barney how to tie maritime knots, and has a 200 year old parrot who speaks 70 languages. Eli and his companions travel the world solving maritime mysteries and meeting new friends along the way, including: The Seasearchers, Mondo the Blue Whale, and the mysterious Commander X.

The first 21 days of story featured on the Web site are also available in a limited edition, high gloss, full color, comic book. This comic book is being sold at more than 40 Hannaford stores throughout Maine. Capt'n Eli's Root Beer is also premiering its 4-packs statewide at Hannaford. Both the root beer and the comic books can be found on special display racks in each store.

"We've been brewing Capt'n Eli's for years," remarked Fred Forsley, president of The Shipyard Brewing Company. "This is the first time this product has been available at Hannaford. Eli's is a well-known and respected brand that was recently honored with a 5-star rating by BevNet. It was a rush to see this product referred to as 'One of the best root beers to come our way in a long time' on this prestigious soda industry review Web site. It's a great root beer that's just fun to drink. The Web site and comic book are a way to share the fun."

This tried-and-true old fashioned addition to the Shipyard family is named after Fred Forsley's father, who loved root beer, and his son who he named after his father.

The Undersea Adventures of Capt'n Eli comic book and Web site feature 2D characters combined with 3D backgrounds using Piscopo's unique signature style.

"The production values are great and the story moves right along," noted Rick Lowell, owner of Casablanca Comics, the exclusive comic shop carrying this book. "The 3D artwork is crisp and the story is told in a very direct style. It reminds me of Johnny Quest from when I was growing up. The storyline combines science fiction with fantasy in a really cool and engaging way."
Piscopo teaches cartooning to high school students at the Maine College of Art and was the co-creator of the internationally distributed comic book series, The Scrap City Pack Rats, which he created in partnership with Goodwill Industries. Together, between 1990 and 1993 they published a 6 issue series that received national media attention for its groundbreaking approach and subject matter.

Piscopo finds that root beer and adventure comics are a natural fit. "Coincidently, they were both developed in the United States during the late 1800's. Root beer is the original American soft drink and the daily comic strip is a uniquely American art form."

In 1876, America's first commercial root beer made its debut at the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia. During this same time, the first cartoon weeklies made their appearance in American magazines and, by the early 1900's, the daily comic strip was a true American convention.

"Aligning an adventure character with a product is a tie-in that harkens back to the old days of radio advertising," continued Piscopo. "A good example is the association of Captain Midnight with Ovaltine. With Capt'n Eli, we create a certain amount of fun by having our character create a root beer machine as part of the story line. By including this fantasy element, I believe we give people the opportunity to use their own imagination. When you drink a root beer you're in that sub with Eli. It becomes your doorway into that world." Capt'n Eli's Root Beer is a traditional root beer with the essence of wintergreen oil, anise, and vanilla. It's sweetened with natural cane and brown sugars, not corn syrup.

"The use of sugar versus corn syrup in our recipe makes Eli's taste more subtle and less sweet than mass-produced commercial brands," stated Alan Pugsley, master brewer. "Sugar is more expensive than corn syrup - about three times as much - but it's worth it."

Root beer is a great fit for a craft-brewery like Shipyard. "Soda was a fairly logical step for us," Pugsley explained. "The process uses pretty much the same equipment and some of the same techniques."

"We see soda as an emerging market for us and are very encouraged by the demand we've experienced for this brand in Maine and from around the country," said Forsley. "We can't bring back the neighborhood drug store soda fountain, but we can bring consumers a world-class root beer and, using modern technology, good old fashioned entertainment."

Discover more at www.captneli.com.

Product samples, artwork, photographs, and artist bio available on request.

For distribution information about the root beer, contact Scott Doyle, Sales Representative - sdoyle@shipyard.com - 207-761-0807 x7167