Have you wondered what ingredients go into that perfect brew? Or how cold your Tiger beer should be served?
Well, you can join the Tiger Brewery Tour for an intoxicating insight! Thanks to Asia Pacific Breweries (APB), my colleagues and I from the Association of Singapore Attractions had a chance to learn how the world famous Tiger beer is being made on a daily basis. Stimulating the five senses – sight, sound, scent, taste and touch – the tour allowed one to experience the Tiger brand in a holistic fashion.
Held at the APB plant itself at Jalan Ahmad Ibrahim, the tour takes one through a visitor’s centre with an orientation video, the Brew House where one learnt how the various ingredients come together, the Packaging Gallery enlightening one on the bottling and canning process, as well as the Tiger Den and Tiger Tavern. You can book a tour by signing up here (note that they’re only open from Mondays to Fridays from 10 am to 5 pm).
Touted as “The Ultimate Tiger Brewery Experience”, the tour was both educational and entertaining (especially towards the end).
At the visitor centre, one can play a game of beer trivia. I’m sure you have no problems recognising the brands made, bottled or distributed by APB.
Tiger Beer memorabilia through the ages. These are certainly collector’s items for Tiger beer fans through the years.
A delivery “truck” awaited us as we walked through the grounds of the premises.
Before we entered the Brew House, we were given a briefing by our rather sober guide on the step by step process of beer making.
Can you name the four ingredients that goes into a beer? Give up? Well, they are malts, hops, yeast and water. A sample of these were availabel for visitors to see (unfortunately we couldn’t taste them).
We next walked into a huge plant where the process of milling, mashing and boiling, fermentation, storage and filtration are done. Unfortunately photos are not allowed. However, you can see some photos of the boiling and fermentation tanks and pipes here.
The old trucks carrying barrels of beer were quite a sight to behold. Compare this to the more modern version seen earlier.
“Tiger tiger burning bright, in the forests of the night…” Guess who penned those words?
The Packaging Gallery enlightened us on the process of how beer was bottled or canned with an “interactive” movie starring local actor Gerald Chew. Following that introduction, we were whisked to a room full of equipment. Here you can see how beer bottles are electronically scanned for defects.
Its probably every man’s dream to have one of these at home or in the office…
Apparently, the Tiger beer taps at pubs and clubs have evolved over the years. Not that anybody quaffing a draft would have noticed anyway…
These rather antiquated looking cylinders, tanks and jugs help to explain the various steps involved in beer brewing back in the good old days. I guess beer making is both an art and a science.
Meanwhile, Underwater World GM Peter Chew shows us how to pour the perfect glass of beer with the right amount of head (foam) at the top.
Another interactive game where kids (or adults) could occupy themselves while learning a thing or two about the bottling process.
For the beer geek (eg Daniel Goh of The Good Beer Company), these little factoids should slake their thirst for knowledge. Of course the biggest news now is that global brewing giant Heineken is offering to buy APB with a $5.1 billion takeover offer.
More yeasty blasts from the past with these heritage beer trays over the ages.
The Tiger Den offers lots of merchandise for aficionados and collectors alike.
I’m sure many of us would have seen a Tiger beer glass (or 3 or 10).
Finally, the most important stop for the afternoon was the Tiger Tavern. Decked in warm hues of dark wood and leather, it brought back an old world charm.
We were more than surprised by the generous buffet spread which awaited us that day. The food certainly filled our stomachs.
My choice of beer that evening was an Erdinger, flanked by two glasses of cider ordered by my other colleagues. Cheers, Yam Seng and Kanpai!
