The serial flash memory chip used on my board is a 25Q40BV. I couldn't find an exact datasheet for this part but similar parts from winbond operate from as low as 1.65V and the closest I could find was the W25Q40CL which has an operating voltage of 2.3 to 3.6V. Below is a link to the data.
https://www.winbond.com/hq/product/code ... o=W25Q40CL
It looks like the memory used on your module (ESP-12) does not have the same supply voltage range.