“We believe that beer can be a powerful storytelling platform, and the story we wanted to tell with these particular beers was very obvious to us,” says Ren Min Founder Manbeer Singh.
The Future Now! series is the Singapore brewery’s response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the fundamental joys in life that it has temporarily taken from us.
Each Future Now! beer represents one such joy:
- Cloud Chasing New England IPA (6.8%) represents travel
- Crowdsurfing Hazy Session IPA (4.5%) represents mass gatherings
- Kiss Kiss Mango Smoothie IPA (6.9%) represents physical contact
- Family Ties Chocolate Porter (5.6%) represents family
“This series celebrates and reclaims things we all love that haven’t been the same ever since COVID hit,” says Ren Min Brand Director Brian Spencer. “It’s our way of facing these challenging times head on, but most importantly of also looking forward with positivity and hope.
Things like worry-free travel and mass gatherings will come back—and when they do, perhaps we’ll all feel more appreciative of them, and not take them for granted.”
Brewed in Vietnam under Ren Min’s direction, the Future Now! Series features bright, surrealist artwork by Esh Asathamby, who runs the Taco Mantra kitchen at Sixteen Ounces Craft Beer Bistro. Spencer explains how they wanted the art for their beers to be bold, colourful, and evocative and they were drawn to the distinctive look and feel of Esh’s work on Instagram and felt it would perfectly illustrative the message they wanted to convey.
Local Singapore artist Esh Asathamby designed the distinctive bottle labels for the Future Now! series
The Future Now! Series is available at Ren Min’s two hawker bars – Welcome Ren Min (in Maxwell Food Centre) and Hello Ren Min (Old Airport Road Food Centre) – and at select beer bars, restaurants, bottle shops, and other venues across Singapore.
Ren Min, originally known as the 3rd Culture Brewing Co., was founded in 2016 by Manbeer Singh who set up his first taproom in the popular Maxwell Food Centre. In December 2020 the company re-launched as Ren Min (“人们” meaning “people”) and announced the launch of its own brewery. Until the brewery’s construction in Singapore finishes, Ren Min brews its recipes at host facilities around the world.
