PUBLISHED March 17th, 2017 06:00 am | UPDATED July 22nd, 2024 03:02 pm
It’s always fascinating to learn the story behind a bottle of beer. Take the Yellow Van for one, its name derived from the yellow goods van owned by the founders’ grandfather. Or the Small Monster, titled after the nickname given to their uncle.
The former is a slightly sweet, malty golden pale ale, malty with a sweet hint, while the latter is more robust – a session IPA that leaves a long hoppy trail. That’s just two of the five delicious beers brewed by The 1925 Brewing Co. (formerly The 1925 Microbrewery & Restaurant) in its chic two-storey shophouse, where four 600-litre beer tanks reside.
It makes sense then that the microbrewery and restaurant is a family venture, managed by three members of the Yeo family: head chef Ivan, drinks director Eng Kuang, and the aforementioned uncle and brewmaster King Joey. This makes their brews a truly Singaporean craft beer.
It’s impressed upon us that the beers play an equally important role in the food as it does, well, itself. The divide which we so often see in many a bar between bites and drinks are blurred here, as derivatives from the brewing process are incorporated in the menu. And we don’t mean stuff like beer-can chicken or beer-battered fish and chips.
Amongst the new beer-inspired items on 1925’s menu are the Skewers series, where we see an assortment of meats, seasonal vegetables, and seafood grilled on the smoker and then dressed in a roast-y beer reduction glaze that’s caramel-like, concocted with the microbrewery’s own BLK 622 Dark Ale. Most items – from chicken thighs and sirloin strips to Brussels sprouts and giant portobellos – are priced at an affordable $3 or $5, while a premium foie gras skewer goes for $12. But boy, does it just melt in the mouth.
If you’ve ever wondered what happens to the residual grains used in beer brewing, the Smoked Duck Paddle ($24) is where it goes. Duck meat is smoked with oak and mesquite, and most critically, with the extracted spent wort – developing a darn flavourful and unique sweet taste reminiscent of, you know it, beer. In fact, why not take it one step further with the Smoked Duck Fettuccine ($22), where the pasta is handmade using the same wheat or barley grains used in their brewing and incorporating the same wort-smoked meat.
The next break on the menu, and our first choice, is the Seasonal Clams Fettuccine ($24). More than just flour made from beer grains, the pasta is taken through an additional step of drying with semolina and hop flowers for extra (if only a subtle) depth, before being tossed in smoked cream and a savoury Teochew fermented bean sauce to create a sort of mod-sin delicacy. This is accompanied with some of the largest clams we’ve laid eyes on, courtesy of Ah Hua Kelong.
Though, being a brewery first and foremost, it’d be a shame if the signature beer cocktails failed to live up to the standards of the beers themselves. To our delight, they passed effortlessly, again making craft beer an integral component of each creation.
Set to change the game for microbreweries and the F&B industry, The 1925’s efforts towards bridging the divide between food and brewed beers is its unique selling point, and might even make it one of Singapore’s craftiest brewery to date. With a glass of beer in hand, let us toast to food experimentation and the evolution of craft.
The 1925 Brewing Co. Restaurant is located at 369 Jln Besar, Singapore 208997, p. +65 6294 9215. Open Mon-Sat 10am – 12am, Sun 10am – 10pm.