“SINGAPORE’S CRAFT BREWERY”
In 2006, Archipelago gained some fuss, and it is now managed by the late fantastic Andrea Teo of Under One Roof and Phua Chu Kang Pte Ltd.
Its brewmaster, however, was Fal Allen, who brought with him about two decades of experience in the US craft beer field.
However, it was more of a reboot than an entry. In 1931, the initial Archipelago Brewery Company, which was then known as Batavia, opened its doors in Singapore and launched functions there in 1933. That’s where the” ABC” in ABC Stout comes from and the beer also created Anchor.
Malayan Breweries purchased the authentic version of Archipelago in the early 1940s, which led to the rebranding as Asia Pacific Breweries in 1990.
Archipelago, which describes itself as” Singapore’s craft brewery”, was also not Singapore’s first craft brewery – Brewerkz, for example, has been in business since 1997.
However, it was a fresh, well-known name with APB support. And it started producing beer when Singapore’s demand for ship ale was actually growing as customers looked beyond the traditional lagers.
Its beers were inventive and featured distinct Eastern ingredients like fruit, lemon, and gula melaka. And it had a fantastic location to display them, a club at a special wedge-shaped building along Circular Road.
Mr. Tan recalls this Circular Road table, and how “raw” the Singapore craft beverage scene was at the moment.
He claimed that the beer opened his eyes to how distinctive craft beers may be, calling Archipelago “one of the first few forward runners” of the scene.
” To me, Archipelago is one of the explorers that truly pushed the tale of making art liquor in Singapore,” he said.
Over the years, Archipelago’s beers shifted towards offerings with broader elegance, and they settled on a firm that included quick- having ales, a lager and a Flemish- style witbier.
They even released “limited” brews frequently, using them as a cloth for more empirical and out- of- the- field beers that linked them up to their roots.
” Archipelago paved the way for the idea of “local craft ale” in Singapore, and it did so with friendly styles like golden ale, exotic pale ale, and summer IPA,” Mr. Utama said.
The Tuckshop Assembly Ale was more exciting because it was made with gula malacca and calamansi.
When asked about their recollections of Archipelago, both Mr Tan and Mr Utama, brought up its manufacturers.
” The brewers – old and present, like Fal, Rob ( Beck ) and Hayman ( Tin )– are kind, affable and passionate people who truly care about their craft. And like most create brewers, they’re usually an absolute joy to stand out with”, Mr Utama said.
” The folks made the beer, so I will definitely lose the camaraderie”, he added.
Mr. Tan praised the attention the factory took in making his restaurant’s signature beer.
When Mr. Tan joined the Tuckshop team in 2018, he felt like an upgrade was in order. Archipelago first brewed a brew for the club. Archipelago’s brewmaster at the time sat along with him to come up with the new taste.
” I told him, look, ( the ) beer is great, but you guys brew lager for a living right? You people have He and Tiger Beer, both of which are beers. So I said: ‘ What if I can do something a little lighter that matches the conditions of Singapore?'” he said.
He continued,” You want everything that’s wonderful and tastes good, so I said. Is there a way to keep the core of what it is but make it a unique kind of taste”?
The baker complied with his recommendations and returned with the Tuckshop Assembly Ale, which was used as part of the restaurant’s marketing that time.
Mr. Tan described it as unusual because it is uncommon in the Singaporean environment to have a conversation with a brewer.