Today we’re interviewing Edwin Yang, brewmaster and supply chain manager for Vattanac, a brewery in Cambodia!
This interview isn’t about mental trauma or how the world is about to end, let’s have a refresher, or a refreshment and learn about the wonderful world of beer!
Edwin is a world traveler and has honed his brewery skills by learning other countries’ skillset and cultures Sound familiar? He’s a Singaporean native but has been all over the world from the United States, to Germany, to Hong Kong, improving his skill set in the world of beer.
Edwin gives us a snapshot of Cambodia’s growing ecosystem and the wild west competitive atmosphere in the beer industry over here.
He also goes through the process of brewing three types of beer and also some cool tricks on how to market beer. Did you know if you crack open Cambodian beer, you have a chance to win a prize? Just look under the tab, and you might win a beer or a bike?
My personal favorite part of this interview is that we drink three beers live on air! And Edwin does a phenomenal job going through the experience of tasting beer.
What’s Up with Adam
Alright, if you’re going to Future Food Tech or Expo West, hit me up! It’s always a blast going to these shows and I’m so happy to be back in the country that really is the most innovative states when it comes to food. There’s no doubt about it, the food show circuit is just beginning which generally involves companies going full steam ahead on events like Expo West in LA, and South By Southwest in Austin Texas. Furture food tech is also slowly making a name for itself as the place to be when you are in food tech. How do you know if it’s a place to be? When all of your friends from around the world are going there, and a bunch of adjacent services are creating events around the conference! In general, Future Food Tech is super expensive and they know it! It’s because they target well-funded companies and the investors that fund them. Brilliant strategy. With the current turbulent year in food tech, one has to wonder the tone and feel of this year’s food conferences. It’s hard to say, but I don’t think anything shared, will be mind blowing.
Anyways, let me tell you about the gap between Malaysia and Edwin’s interview in Phom Penh. I didn’t plan this out well and my thought process was that I had a gap from Singapore to Japan and I had to fill it up with stuff. So I was like, you know? I’ll go to Thailand for a couple of days.
One of my regrets going to Thailand is not doing enough research or spending more days there. I found Thailand really interesting and really creative and the few people I talked to about Thailand has quoted that they are really innovative.
So things I was surprised about? Well, the train is surprisingly really nice. I also found the 7-11s there to be full of really innovative food products that are easily microwaveable. I also found that they really like to sell weed and sex toys out in open in the public!
Most importantly, every person in Thailand is an unashamed hustler. Every time I paid for something in Thailand, they wanted to do an additional service for free. This included taxi drivers who wanted you to be their go-to taxi guy for the trip and tour guides who would offer you on the spot to give you an impromptu tour of the King’s palace.
Overall, Bangkok itself is really rich in history and has fantastic temples that are just so colorful and unique. If you have to spend a day there, get an official tour to travel around and absorb the unique sites.
Next is the village of Siem Reap, which is the home of Angkor Wat, which has this beautiful and massive ancient temple that stretches for miles.
I stayed in a really cozy Airbnb off the beaten path. Lots of things about Angkor Wat. Some tips is that I highly suggest a tour guide. They are easy to find there as everyone is offering every service there. You also can get your own driver and like Thailand, they will always try to be your personal chauffer.
After Angkor Wat, I took a van to Phon Penh which is a four hour ride through the country. What I saw were oxen, villages, greener, and weirdly enough, an abnormal about of European beer signs. Beer is huge in Cambodia and I don’t know if it’s colonialism trying to get a young market, but it made me feel weird seeing so many of them in the middle of nowhere. Anyways, I’m glad Edwin’s kicking but at this Cambodian owned brewery.
Links
Kampot Pepper
Pizza in Cambodia
Gansburg
Singapore
Chicago
Minich Germany
Hong Kong
Palm Sugar
Rice in Beer
Krud
Garuda
Pilsner
Dragon
Vattanac
Institute of Brewing and Distilling
Standard Textbooks in Germany
European Brewer’s Guild
Brewery Conference Guild
Blue Moon
Soju
Royal Palace of Cambodia
Riel – Cambodia Currency
Masters of Brewing Science
University of Nottingham UK Masters of Brewing
Edwin Yang on LinkedIn
This is the End of the Episode
I was shocked by the news that Miyoko’s Creamery’s board ousted the CEO and founder Miyoko. Apparently, this happened way back in August (to be honest, this explains why Miyoko Schinner seems to be a bit more free in social media) but I do think it was kind of rude to have this sprung up as a news article when Miyoko’s was occupied at a charity event.
There was another article too, of the CEO of v2foods, Nick Hazell leaving. He had a 4 year stint which allowed him to build a factory (this factory is apparently going to sht down)
We could go on to believe what’s true, the article about an older woman who’s a minority is getting a lot more friction than a white dude but these types of discussions show a brutal fight versus a polished story.
The board is comprised of individuals who have the company’s best interest at heart and a good board has the ability to advise the founder or CEO to step down. I am not surprised that in both situations, it was the board who said to each to step down but we’ll never know in v2Food’s case if it was voluntary or recommended.
In especially hugely venture based companies, CEO changes are really quiet in a media point of view. I’ve seen a few but can only speculate how tough it is.
Anyways, in this current environment, investors are tightening their belts and are now scrutinizing any glaring issues that impede growth. During the growth phase where it was relatively easy to get money, most board members overlook mistakes because money was easy to get. Now it’s not the case. Money is harder to get and it affects every single person on the planet from investor to consumer.
At the end of the day, when you take money, people always want a return eventually and if you take enough money, they demand you make a return. What happened to both founders was a common tragedy in what all startups face when things don’t go well. Most of the time, the things that don’t go well aren’t your fault, but people will think it’s your problem anyways. That’s kind of the weight of being the leader. Though most founders who do get ousted disappear for a while, I know Miyoko Schinner will not go down without a fight. I’m rooting for her.