Corporate Governance

Mr. Stiefel is CEO and co-founder of Heritage Distilling. He is the driving force behind Heritage’s focus on consumer-friendly products and experiences and is the creator of the Tribal Beverage Network (TBN) concept, having worked in 2018 to secure in Congress the repeal of an 1834 statute that prohibited distilling in Indian country. Prior to co-founding Heritage, Mr. Stiefel spent 13 years in Washington D.C. working primarily in the United States Senate on taxation, economic development, banking and oil and gas policy, among other topics. He is a frequent contributor to policy discussions and legislative efforts on behalf of the craft spirits industry at both the federal and state level. Previously, Mr. Stiefel was Of Counsel at the international law firm of Dorsey and Whitney LLP.  He is licensed to practice law in Washington state, Alaska and Washington, D.C. Mr. Stiefel holds a BS in Chemical Engineering from the University of Idaho and a Juris Doctor from Catholic University of America. He has also completed coursework at the United States Naval War College.

Mrs. Stiefel is a co-founder of Heritage Distilling and has been President of the Company since 2011, overseeing the Heritage brand preservation and consumer experience, and plays an instrumental role in growing the Tribal Beverage Network (TBN). Prior to founding Heritage, Mrs. Stiefel worked as a staff assistant for the United States Senate committee on Appropriation and was a teacher at Fairfax County Public Schools. Mrs. Stiefel graduated from the University of Idaho with a Bachelors of Arts degree in Elementary Education before earning a Master’s in Instructional Education from Central Michigan University.  Mrs. Stiefel serves as a director for a number of non-profit organizations.

Troy Alstead joined the Heritage Board of Directors following the Company’s IPO in November 2024. Since 2017, Mr. Alstead has been the founder and proprietor of Ocean5 and Table.  Prior to this, he worked for Starbucks Corporation (Nasdaq: SBUX), for over 24 years, serving in the roles of Chief Operating Officer, Chief Financial Officer, Chief Administrative Officer and Group President. Mr. Alstead spent a decade in Starbucks’ international business, including roles as Senior Leader of Starbucks International, President Europe/Middle East/Africa headquartered in Amsterdam, and Chief Operating Officer of Starbucks Greater China, headquartered in Shanghai. Mr. Alstead is also a member of the Board of Directors of Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE: LEVI), Harley-Davidson, Inc. (NYSE: HOG), Array Technologies Inc. (Nasdaq: ARRY), OYO Global and RASA Indian Grill. Mr. Alstead earned a B.A. in business administration from the University of Washington.

Eric Trevan has been a director of Heritage Distilling since 2022. He has been an Assistant Professor at California State University San Marcos since 2020 and was previously a Visiting Scholar of Innovation, Business and Economic Policy for Tribal Nations at the Evergreen State College.  Dr. Trevan is an economist and regarded as a thought leader on Native economies and economic policy. Dr. Trevan has served as Chairman of Twelve Clans Inc., the sovereign wealth fund of the Ho-Chunk Nation and served on the Boards of Directors of Gun Lake Investments, the non-gaming investment arm of the Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish Band of Pottawatomi Indians; Northern Initiatives, a non-profit Community Development Financial Institution; Noo-Kayet Development Corporation, the economic development arm of the Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe; Cheyenne; and Arapaho Business Development Corporation of the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes. Dr. Trevan was formerly a Policy Advisor to the Treasury Tribal Advisory Committee in the U.S. Department of Treasury. Dr. Trevan has a PhD from Arizona State University Watts College of Public Solutions, Community Resources and Development (Local and Native Economies), a Master’s Degree in Administration (Public Administration) from Central Michigan University, and a Bachelor’s Degree in Public Administration/Economics from Western Michigan University. He is a Tribal citizen of the Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish Band of Pottawatomi Indians, Gun Lake Tribe in Michigan.

Andrew Varga was appointed strategic consultant and Chief Revenue Officer to Heritage Distilling in April 2023 and joined the Company’s Board of Directors following its IPO in November 2024. Mr. Varga is the founder and principal of AV Train Consulting. Previously, Varga was the President of Zimmerman Advertising, Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer of Papa John’s International, Inc. (Nasdaq: PZZA) and held various executive positions with Brown-Forman Corporation (NYSE: BF-A; BF-B), including Senior Vice President/Managing Director, Wines Marketing, Vice President/Director of Corporate Strategy,. While at Brown-Forman, he helped launch the Woodford Reserve and Old Forester brands. Mr. Varga received a BBA degree from University of Kentucky and an MBA degree from Queens College

Jeffrey Wensel, M.D., Ph.D. has been a director of Heritage Distilling since 2017. Dr. Wensel is a practicing neuroradiologist and inventor with multiple patents to his name since 1995. He earned his medical degree from the University of Iowa in 1990. Dr. Wensel completed his residency at the University of Arizona and his Neuroradiology Fellowship at the UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles. For more than the past five years, Dr. Wensel has engaged in the private practice in radiology in Eugene, Oregon and has consulted for other doctors around the U.S. 

Mr. Smith has been a director of Heritage Distilling since 2022.  He is an attorney and was a partner at the New York firm of Whitman & Ransom (now Winston & Strawn LLP). Later in his legal career he served as Counsel at Foley & Lardner LLP. Mr. Smith is licensed to practice law in New York, Connecticut 103 and Washington, D.C. He founded and, since February 1986, has been, an attorney at Alexander, Smith & Company, Inc. a Connecticut -based legal and financial advisory firm. Mr. Smith has served numerous public and private enterprises, nationally and internationally, as Executive Chairman of the Board, Lead Director, Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer, and General Counsel. Mr. Smith is a graduate of Williams College and the Yale Law School. His post-graduate work included clerkships on the United States Court of Appeals in Washington, D.C. and the Supreme Court of Connecticut. He also served as a Fellow of the Organization of American States and studied comparative law in Venezuela.