Craft beers are quickly gaining popularity in Singapore, with more cafes and restaurants beginning to offer a wide range of flavourful and aromatic beers. Hand-brewed by passionate craft brewers across Europe, Asia and Australia, craft beers are produced in small quantities with a strong focus on flavour and quality, often with unique ingredients such as chocolate or fruits.

Thirsty Beer Shop, one of the pioneers of the craft beer movement in Singapore, offers a wide range of craft beers at its Anchorpoint outlet.

Amidst the preparation for Beerfest Asia 2018, the largest and only beer festival in Southeast Asia, Roland Utama, founder of Thirsty Beer Shop spared some time to talk to us about its business concept and the motivation behind the establishment.

1. Tell us more about Thirsty Beer Shop

    

   Like most good stories, ours started over a beer. We had the privilege of tasting many delicious craft beers during our travels, but found it was hard to come by in Singapore. Six years ago, the beer selection in Singapore was very much limited to the mass-market brands found in grocery and convenience stores.

1. We decided to open our first store to share our love of craft beers and make them available to local consumers. As time went by and our business grew, our motivation continues to be the same - to offer Singaporeans access to the widest range of craft beers at the lowest prices possible so everyone can enjoy the wonderful world of craft beers. Our store at Anchorpoint has been catering to beer enthusiasts and shoppers for two years now!

    

2. Where does Thirsty Beer Shop sources its products from?

    

   Most of our products are from the USA as it was the birthplace of the craft beer movement, and we are spoilt for choice of beers from over 6,000 breweries. Recently, more craft breweries have opened in Europe, Asia and Australia so we have begun to stock more options from those countries too.

    

3. How many varieties of craft beers do you carry in store?

    

1. Over two hundred and still counting! Part of the selection also rotates frequently, so customers can always find something new to try at our shop.

    

   We are also the only store in Singapore that offers a beer subscription service. Customers can choose to receive cases of 6,12 or 24 of our latest, most delicious and exceptional beers delivered to their doorstep every month! So far, it has been very popular, especially as gifts. Most customers purchase our subscription as birthday and corporate gifts.

    

2. What are some of your most popular products?

1. A golden ale from Hawaii, the Kona Big Wave, is our best-seller because it is a light beer with a hint of fruitiness, which is perfect for the tropical weather in Singapore. Our Pabst Blue Ribbon lager is also a hit as consumers love the smoothness of this extremely popular American beer. For India Pale Ales, some crowd favourites include our Lost Coast Indica and Green Flash Soul Style.

    

2. What do you think of the craft beer scene in Singapore?

    

   It’s definitely bigger than ever! Back when we first started in 2012, it was almost non-existent, but now you can find craft beers in most good stores and bars in Singapore. Today, craft beers have moved from a niche product to a more mainstream offering.

    

   We’ve even had customers from America coming into our store and commenting that they can’t find some of the beers we carry in their local shops.

    

   We are truly proud to have pioneered and contributed to the flourishing craft beer scene in Singapore, yet humbled at the opportunity to continue developing interest in craft beers.

    

3. For those who don't know much about craft beers, what would you recommend or what should one look out for when selecting a craft beer?

Don’t think too much, it’s just beer, not rocket science! When it comes to beer, there is no right or wrong. You could simply like the name, the label, the story, or even the price.

Just grab a bottle, chill, pop it open and enjoy your beer. It’s as simple as that. If you ever need help, ask our friendly staff and they will be more than happy to recommend you something good.

Roland couldn’t have said it any better. The next time you’re feeling thirsty, drop by Anchorpoint and try something new from the Thirsty Beer Shop or visit them at www.thirsty.com.sg to order yourself some.