About Wānaka’s first brewpub...

RxR is the brainchild of Jess Wolfgang and Simon Ross. Jess is a brewer, Simon an engineer - and the result is a small team brewing, packaging and distributing craft beers across New Zealand from our in-house production facility.

Simon designed and self-built our packaging lines, so it's pretty hands-on! The whole team helps to brew and pitch recipe ideas, and we’ve had some fantastic creations and collaborations from our bartenders, friends and neighbours over the years. We’re lucky to draw inspiration from the environment around us, as beautiful Wānaka is a gold mine of all the good stuff.

Brewing beer in Wanaka: Simon, Jess, Kate, Alex, Cal, Ben, Jonny, Beth, Jayson and another occasional wacky beetle or two.

The Start of Our Story.

This isn’t how it was meant to happen. Jess and Simon were going to move to Yamba, in New South Wales, and open Rhyme x Reason there. They both loved Wānaka, having spent many winters skiing the slopes and hanging out with family, but they had never spent a summer there. Luckily, before leaving for Australia, they did — and discovered there’s a lot more to Wānaka than its skifields, with the small town becoming a hive of activity under the glorious summer sun. And so NSW’s loss became Wānaka’s gain and they never really looked back.

  • Simon - Owner / Director / Engineer / Packaging Manager

    Desert Island Beer : Rhyme x Reason's Boomshakalaka IPA

  • Jess - Owner / Director / Head Brewer

    Desert Island Beer : Hunter Beer Co.'s Hunter Pale Ale

  • Alex - Jack of All Trades, but his name is Alex

    Desert Island Beer : Heyday Beer Co.'s Agua Fresca Guava Sour

  • Kate - Sales x Marketing

    Desert Island Beer : Rhyme X Reason's Mt. Alpha West Coast IPA

  • Cal - The Brewer

    Desert Island Beer :  Rhyme x Reason's Coconut X-mas

  • Ben - Brewer

    Desert Island Beer: Grifter Brewery's Acid Drop or Rhyme x Reason's Sun's Out, Sour's Out

  • Jonny - Bartender

    Desert Island Beer :  Voyage to Nectaron

  • Jayson - Bartender

    Desert Island Beer : Double Brown

  • Hazie

    Desert Island Beer :  Do not give a damn about that, throw the fn stick. 

  • Messi

    Desert Island Beer :  Does not give a damn about that, plz scratch my butt.

  • Max

    Desert Island Beer :  Steak