'An end of an era' with Singapore's Archipelago Brewery set to close

SINGAPORE: After 18 years in the craft beer business Singapore's Archipelago Brewery will close its doors at the end of the month.

News of the brewery's impending closure first broke at the end of March, with the Asia Brewers Network reporting that Heineken – the owner of Archipelago's parent company Asia Pacific Breweries Singapore (APBS) – had decided that its time was up.

In response to queries from CNA, an APBS spokesperson confirmed the closure.

"In line with evolving market realities in the craft beer industry in Singapore, and after careful consideration on various divestment options over the past months, APBS has made the decision to exit from the craft brewing business and will close Archipelago Brewery at the end of June 2024," the spokesperson said in May.

"While we are proud, and remain grateful of the Archipelago brand journey, unfortunately declining craft beer market realities and high operational costs puts it in an untenable situation," the spokesperson added.

"This move is in line with our efforts to streamline our portfolio of beers, maximise value, improve productivity and re-invest in growing our core business to ensure a sustainable business that is fit for the future."

Mr Joe Tan, the director of the Tuckshop Assembly, told CNA that he felt "genuine sadness" when he heard the news.

"It's like an end of an era not only because of Archipelago's position in Singapore's craft beer scene, but also how Tuckshop has (had) such (a) close identity with it over the past 11 years of our operations," he said, adding that the bar on Guillemard Road had carried a full suite of its beers on tap since it opened in 2013.

Archipelago even brewed a signature beer for it – the Tuckshop Assembly Ale.

Mr Roland Utama, the founder "beer chief" of Thirsty Beer Shop, was also saddened by the news, and told CNA that his thoughts went straight to the fate of Archipelago's brewers.

"My first immediate thought was what would happen to the Archipelago team. I had hoped they took care of them," he said.

The APBS spokesperson said that four of the company's employees had been laid off as a result of the closure.

"APBS is grateful to the contribution of the four affected employees and has provided all necessary support as aligned with Food, Drinks and Allied Workers Union and the tripartite guidelines on responsible retrenchment," the spokesperson said.

"On top of ensuring fair compensation in line with industry practice and above market practices as per the company and union's collective agreement, APBS has also worked closely with National Trades Union Congress' Employment and Employability Institute to extend placement support and career guidance to affected staff."

"SINGAPORE'S CRAFT BREWERY"

Archipelago arrived on the scene with some fanfare in 2006, boasting the late, great Andrea Teo of Under One Roof and Phua Chu Kang Pte Ltd fame as its managing director.

Its brewmaster, meanwhile, was Fal Allen, who brought with him about two decades of experience in the US craft beer scene.

It was more of a relaunch than an introduction though. The original Archipelago Brewery Company was established in Jakarta – then known as Batavia – back in 1931 and started operations in Singapore in 1933. That's where the "ABC" in ABC Stout comes from and the brewery also created Anchor.

The original incarnation of Archipelago was acquired by Malayan Breweries in the early 1940s and in turn the company was rebranded 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.

But it was a new, prominent name that had the backing of APB. And it started making beer at a time when the gears were really starting to turn for craft beer in Singapore as consumers looked beyond mainstream lagers.

Its beers were creative and had distinctly Asian ingredients like gula melaka, tamarind and lemongrass. And it had a great spot to showcase them – a bar at a distinctive wedge-shaped building at an intersection along Circular Road.

Mr Tan remembers this Circular Road bar, and he recalled how "raw" the Singapore craft beer scene was at the time.

Describing Archipelago as "one of the first few front-runners" of the scene, he said that the brewery opened his eyes to how unique craft beers could be.

"To me, Archipelago is one of the pioneers that really pushed the whole conversation and the narrative of making craft beer in Singapore," he said.

Over the years, Archipelago's beers shifted towards offerings with broader appeal, and it settled on a stable that included easy-drinking ales, a lager and a Belgian-style witbier.

It also released "limited" brews regularly, using them as a canvas for more experimental and out-of-the-box beers that linked it back to its roots.

"Archipelago helped promote and popularise the idea of craft beer, with approachable styles such as blonde ale, tropical pale ale and summer IPA, and also paved the way for the idea of 'local craft beer' in Singapore," Mr Utama said.

The Tuckshop Assembly Ale was on the more adventurous side – it was brewed with calamansi and gula melaka.

When asked about their memories of Archipelago, both Mr Tan and Mr Utama, brought up its brewers.

"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 craft brewers, they're always an absolute pleasure to hang out with," Mr Utama said.

"The people made the brewery, so I will certainly miss the camaraderie," he added.

Mr Tan spoke of the care the brewery put in when creating his bar's signature beer.

Archipelago initially brewed a lager for the bar, but when Mr Tan joined the Tuckshop crew in 2018, he felt like an update was in order. Archipelago's brewmaster at the time sat down with him to come up with the new brew.

"I told him, look, (the) beer is great, but you guys brew lager for a living right? You guys have Tiger Beer and Heineken and they're all lagers. So I said: 'What if I can do something a bit lighter that matches the weather of Singapore?'" he said.

He added: "You want something that's refreshing and that tastes good, so I said, is there a way to keep the essence of what it is but make it a different type of brew?"

The brewer took his suggestions and returned with the Tuckshop Assembly Ale, and it served as part of the bar's rebranding that year.

Mr Tan said that was special as it is rare in the Singapore context to be able to have such a discussion with a brewmaster.

CHANGING TASTES?

When asked about the evolving and declining "craft beer market realities" cited by APBS as part of the reason for Archipelago's closure, Mr Utama said: "The market has and will always evolve. But beer remains highly popular, and as younger beer consumers mature and become more affluent, many upgrade to craft beer as they decide to choose quality over quantity."

He shared how Thirsty has rolled with the punches in recent years.

"With the high cost of going out now, we see more home and office consumption trending," he said.

"During COVID, we pivoted to online-only and since then we've added more convenience services like ice-box and one-hour beer delivery to cater for and better serve this at-home and at-office segment."

Mr Tan said that there is more local competition in the brewing scene today, with most bars having craft beers on their menus.

However, he has also noticed a decline in interest in craft beer, with some consumers "wanting to go for the regular stuff" or staying away because of high costs or because they're more health conscious.

LOOKING AHEAD

APBS told CNA that it "remains committed to providing full service to all Archipelago customers during this transition period and to exciting (its) customers and consumers with new products and experiences", but the exit of Archipelago has nonetheless proved to be a challenge for the Tuckshop Assembly.

With the bar being synonymous with craft beer, particularly with Archipelago's beers, its team had to mull over what would replace them.

Looking for options that would enable them to keep working with APBS and also set them apart from nearby competitors, they settled on Erdinger Weissbier, Heineken Silver and Kirin Ichiban as initial replacements.

The bar has kept Archipelago's Summer IPA and the Tuckshop Assembly Ale on tap for a last hurrah, but plans are in place to replace them once the last kegs of the brews have been tapped.

"As we move forward, we'll still continue to carry craft. We're working with another local brewery (to) curate something similar to the Tuckshop Assembly Ale, or rather, something that's still exclusive to us," Mr Tan said.

While the taps will soon run dry for Archipelago, it leaves behind a Singaporean craft beer scene that would have been unimaginable 20 years ago.

Mr Utama described it as "dynamic and fast-evolving".

"It's important to note that, while APB has decided to close Archipelago, no less than 20 homegrown, local craft (breweries) have emerged, putting out great quality beers, often with (a) uniquely Singaporean take," he said.

Mr Tan said the closure was concerning, but he hopes that other local breweries will step into Archipelago's shoes.

"Because APB manages Archipelago, the loss of it is a worrying sign that we might have lost a big player in the Singapore craft beer market that is hard to replace," he said.

"I do hope that their exit won't deter other craft breweries from continuing to do what they do, and hopefully we can see one or two bigger local breweries scale, go regional and fly our flag high in the regional or even global craft beer scene."