Hawker Hustlers: Tea crafting with “tea nerd” Calvin Ang of Danger Close Beverage Co.

Tucked in a quiet corner of Alexandra Village Food Centre, Danger Close Beverage Co. offers a uniquely surprising experience. Instead of pints of frothy beer, visitors here enjoy glasses of tea — handmade, artisanal, sparkling tea served straight from taps.

Golden-hued, ice-cold, with a thick tea-foam cap, these drinks bear an uncanny resemblance to craft beer. But make no mistake: This is tea, brewed with care and precision by Calvin Ang, the self-proclaimed “tea nerd” behind the operation.

Having stumbled upon this hidden gem while exploring the neighbourhood, I was immediately drawn to its novel concept. But despite its distinctive offerings, Danger Close Beverage Co. has remained largely off the radar and they rarely do interviews, which is exactly how Calvin prefers it.

“We’re known among our loyal supporters,” says Calvin, who is in his mid-thirties.

A tinkerer by nature, Calvin thrives on experimenting with his craft, blending traditional Chinese tea culture with modern brewing techniques to create one-of-a-kind beverages.

A journey from cigars to tea

Calvin’s path to tea-making is anything but conventional.

With a background in hospitality and marketing, he spent years at hotels such as the Ritz-Carlton Singapore and Furama Riverfront. His career then took an unexpected turn when he became a tobacconist for a luxury retail concept, curating cigar and pipe tobacco blends for discerning clients.

Though Calvin no longer smokes, the experience taught him the importance of an attention to detail and consistency — principles he has carried over into his tea venture.

The idea for Danger Close Beverage Co. was born during a trip to London seven years ago.

“I saw a bubble tea shop with a queue around the block and thought, ‘We need to do something like this, but with craft beer and tea,'” he recalls.

Calvin’s lifelong fascination with tea, which began with childhood visits to tea houses, finally had a creative outlet.

The process of crafting artisanal teas

Founded in 2017, Danger Close Beverage Co. centres its concept around artisanal tea, made from premium full-leaf Chinese tea — not the low-grade tea dust typically found in most bubble tea shops.

If you ever need proof of Danger Close’s quality, its Chinois, for example, is made of tea leaves that cost S$400/kg, says Calvin.

But first, he had to achieve the right flavour profile.

“We always start with a blank canvas,” Calvin adds. “There’s a concept in mind and we do our best to bring it to life.”

Calvin sources from Pek Sin Choon, which is among Singapore’s most reputable and oldest tea suppliers. It’s known for its Nanyang tea blends and for supplying tea leaves to many of the country’s premium bak kut teh shops.

“After a few weeks, the supplier presents their suggestions and we go back and forth, refining ideas until we find a tea base we like. From there, we begin sampling and conducting R&D to perfect the blend,” he says.

“Each tea can be brewed with different parameters and we make sure to brew them to their full potential. After that, we add our own touch of magic and it all comes together.”

Consistency is of utmost importance. If there is a slight deviation from batch to batch, it will affect everything, Calvin points out.

One of the most unique aspects of the stall is the sparkling teas.

Calvin was inspired by nitro cold-brew techniques that are common in specialty coffee joints, where cold brew is infused with nitrogen bubbles and dispensed through a pressurised valve to create a frothy texture, similar to draft beer. He applied this method to tea to offer a unique, bubbly experience.

The stall also operates a tea omakase-style menu. With its limited space, once it runs out of one tea, Calvin replaces it with something else.

Showcasing gourmet teas

They offer a total of 10 different types of tea, each with its own distinct flavour profile ranging from fruity and floral, to even Peranakan flavours.

The stall’s current menu includes blends such as the Chinois (S$5.40), a floral and fruity sparkling blend of lychee, honey and dried fruits.

Other popular options include the Lady Grey (S$5.40), a sparkling tea with citrus and smoky notes, the Iron Arhat (S$5.40) that is marketed for its benefits in weight loss and heart health, while the Ping Pong Tie Guan Ying (S$5.40) is billed for supporting heart health and anti-aging. 

Each tea is carefully brewed to perfection, served cold and on tap.

Danger Close’s efforts caught the attention of food guru KF Seetoh, who presented the stall with a Makansutra salutations 2021 certificate.

Calvin’s teas are quirkily named and have stories that beg to be told.

Ask him about the story behind Danger Close’s apple cranberry tea Little Lost Lamb, which got its name after the supplier lost part of the recipe. Like the proverbial lost lamb, it eventually came to light.

A focus on heritage is evident in many of his creations, such as the Renowned Unknown Fragrance (also known as Gung Fu tea, S$5.40), which uses a rare blend originally designed for the bak kut teh market. 

“We reinterpreted it to highlight more floral notes,” he says.

Another standout is its Peranakan-inspired tea called Unity In Diversity, a gold medal winner at the 2022 Nanyang Tea Challenge, featuring candied ginger and organic rose — an homage to Singapore’s rich cultural heritage.

His goal is to showcase authentic, true-to-style teas. 

He says: “We pay tribute to the original. While we may add our own interpretation, we try not to alter it too much. What we’re doing here is just the tip of a very large iceberg.”

Challenges

Running an artisanal tea stall in a hawker centre comes with its challenges. 

“When we first started, people didn’t understand why a cup of tea cost S$5. They’d ask, ‘Where’s the usual tea?'” Calvin says.

Over time, through word-of-mouth and walk-ins, his loyal customer base began to grow, attracting a diverse crowd from young adults to aunties.

Many of them now bulk-order his tea for private parties and he bottles them in cans or champagne bottles for customers to enjoy at home. Calvin also caters to corporate events, weddings, and roadshows.

When asked about his five year vision, he deadpans, “I want to take over the world.”

I’m caught off-guard by the statement, but I know he’s dead serious.

Despite the success, Calvin acknowledges the hurdles of scaling up.

Everything here is handmade and producing large quantities just isn’t feasible right now. 

Freshly brewed tea has to be consumed quickly— Danger Close’s cans and bottles have a shelf life of three years, but its kegs last only four days, so they must be consumed immediately. Even refrigerated, they keep for about four months only.

These challenges became even more evident when a friend asked Calvin to quote for a large pallet of tea to be sent overseas.

“I had to say, ‘Dude, I can’t make that much at once!’” he recalls. “Producing that volume would take up my entire two-week supply.”

His approach is to grow slowly and steadily, emphasising that everything is done in small batches and must be drunk fresh.

Calvin also juggles his busy schedule with fatherhood. “My calendar is blank because there’s so much to do. It just overflows,” he jokes.

His daily routine involves starting operations at the stall around 11:30 am, brewing tea at the central kitchen in Jalan Besar, then handling packaging, deliveries and marketing materials.

The tea market itself is always shifting. The demographics of Danger Close’s customers keep changing and there are factors beyond Calvin’s control — such as the Covid-19 pandemic and working from home.

Before the pandemic, the area was bustling with office crowds from places such as Mapletree Business Park and Alexandra Retail Centre. Now, the crowd is more unpredictable and there are no set busy days.

The dream

When it comes to innovation, Calvin is always on the lookout for new tea experiences. He does so by seeking out unique tea traditions on his travels.

In Japan, for example, everyone is familiar with matcha, but not many people know about gyokuro, a shade-grown tea that has a rich, umami flavour, which sometimes even tastes like soy sauce, says Calvin.

He’s also fascinated by teas from other cultures, like yak butter tea from China, which he once tried in Singapore. The tea is salty — like drinking salt water, he recalls.

When he first started, Calvin’s dream was to own a bar and he feels he’s getting closer to that goal. 

“This hawker stall isn’t the final destination — it’s a stepping stone,” he says, hinting at his ultimate vision of opening his own café and brewery, where customers can enjoy his handcrafted teas in a more immersive setting.

Calvin is optimistic about the future, despite the challenges. He’s received interest from investors, but isn’t ready to give up control just yet. He fears that if investors sell his recipe to others, there might be a loss of his original vision.

For now, though, he remains content with letting Danger Close Beverage Co. grow at its own pace, one handcrafted cup of tea at a time.

Exclusive GrabFood promo

Good news for our readers who scrolled all the way to the end! Here’s your exclusive GrabFood delivery promo for Danger Close Beverage Co – Bukit Merah Lane 1, valid from Oct 6 to Nov 6, 2024.

How it works:

• Use the promo code HGWDANGERCLOSE for S$3 off your basket (minimum spend of S$15) when you order from Danger Close Beverage Co – Bukit Merah Lane 1.
• Stackable with free Danger Close delivery (up to S$3 off) with a GrabUnlimited subscription.

While redemptions last, capped at one redemption per person.

For more stories on young hawkers, read about Style Palate’s European fusion fare at the new Woodleigh Village Hawker Centre. And for more ideas on what to eat, check out the newest openings around town.

Danger Close Beverage Co. is on the GrabFood delivery service and offers free delivery (up to S$3 off with GrabUnlimited).

Do explore the GrabFood Dine Out service for awesome deals.

You can also book a ride to try Danger Close Beverage Co. at Alexandra Village Food Centre.