Rupee Beer Expands Into Tennessee, Bringing Indian-Inspired Beer & Curry-and-Pint Culture to Nashville!

Multi-award-winning Indian-inspired beer brand partners with Ajax Turner to bring its global food-focused beers to the Tennessee market.

PORTLAND, MAINE — Rupee Beer, the multi-award-winning Indian-inspired beer brand named Best Beer to Pair with World Food, is expanding into Tennessee, bringing its distinctive Basmati Rice Lager and India Pale Ale to the Nashville area.

The Tennessee launch marks another major milestone in Rupee Beer’s national growth and expands the Portland, Maine-based brand’s footprint to 25 states nationwide. The company is partnering with Ajax Turner to bring Rupee Beer to restaurants, retailers, and consumers throughout the Nashville market and surrounding areas.

Rupee Beer was created with a simple idea: great beer should make all your favorite international cuisines taste even better.

With its distinctive Basmati Rice Lager at the heart of the portfolio, Rupee has built a loyal following among Indian restaurants, chefs, retailers, and beer drinkers looking for something specifically designed to complement bold, complex and world flavors.

From India-Inspired Flavors to Music City

Nashville has earned a reputation as one of America’s most dynamic food and beverage destinations, with a thriving restaurant scene, an increasingly adventurous culinary culture, and consumers who embrace new flavors and experiences.

For Rupee, it’s a natural fit.

The brand sees Nashville as an ideal market to introduce more consumers to the curry-and-pint pairing culture that has been part of British dining for generations and is now finding a growing audience across the United States.

A Purpose Built Beer Portfolio to Pair with Global Flavor & Spice!

Unlike traditional beer brands, Rupee Beer was developed from the beginning with food pairing in mind. Its portfolio brings together familiar beer styles with ingredients, flavors, and brewing traditions inspired by India and its global culinary influence.

Basmati Rice Lager: The flagship beer and foundation of the Rupee portfolio. Light, crisp, refreshing, and exceptionally food-friendly.

India Pale Ale: An IPA inspired by the historic connection between India and British brewing culture.

Mango Wheat Ale: A seasonal, fruit-forward beer designed to complement tropical, spicy, and aromatic dishes using India's national fruit.

Non-Alcoholic Beer: The Rupee pairing experience for consumers choosing not to drink alcohol.

Darjeeling Hard Tea: Extending the brand beyond traditional beer with an India-inspired hard tea rooted in the country's long-standing love of chai and tea culture.

Rupee Beer was developed by master brewer Alan Pugsley, a British-born brewing pioneer with more than 40 years of experience and a career spanning more than 100 beer brands around the world.

A Family Restaurant Legacy at the Heart of Rupee

Rupee Beer was founded by brothers Van and Sumit Sharma, sons of Indian restaurateurs whose family has spent more than 50 years in the restaurant business across the world.

Their understanding of Indian food and hospitality started at home and continued through their family’s restaurants across Europe and the United States. After spending years living in London and Australia, the brothers returned to their hometown of Portland, Maine, during the pandemic.

They saw an opportunity. As Indian cuisine continued to grow in popularity across the United States, the brothers noticed that the beer category had not kept pace. Indian restaurants were often limited to imported lagers that weren't necessarily designed for food pairing and weren't always consistently available year-round.

Rupee was created to change that.

From Portland, Maine to Nashville and Beyond

Since launching in 2020, Rupee Beer has evolved from a regional concept into a nationally distributed brand, now reaching 25 states with additional expansion planned across the country.

The Tennessee launch represents another step in the company's strategy to build a national distribution network while establishing Rupee as America's leading Indian-inspired beer brand.

The partnership with Ajax Turner adds an experienced distribution partner in one of the country's most exciting food and beverage markets, helping Rupee bring its unique approach to beer and food pairing to restaurants, retailers, and consumers throughout the Nashville area.

And while Nashville may be best known around the world for music, Rupee believes the city has another soundtrack worth exploring: the clink of a pint alongside a great plate of globally inspired food.

“Rupee is about discovery,” said Sharma. “It’s about showing people that beer doesn’t have to simply accompany food—it can actually elevate it. We’re excited to bring that experience to Nashville.”

From Portland, Maine to Music City, Rupee Beer is continuing its mission to introduce American consumers to a new way of experiencing beer, spice, and global cuisine.