IPANEMA came to life during a United States road trip where the brewery crew became obsessed with the idea of crafting a German IPA. They got to cracking and developed flavor profiles and an unusual brewing process that included letting the beer mature in a rock cellar that lays below Stein, a castle owned by the Princess of Leuchtenberg, former Empress of Brazil. Her story is most known for her short-lived reign as Empress due to her husband, Emperor Pedro’s exile.

We’re pretty sure the Empress wasn’t slamming IPAs on the regular, but we still chatted it up with the Rodrigo Brod, designer and owner of Frente, to get the inside scoop on this insanely drinkable— and hummable—IPA.

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