2025-2026 TXWA Board of Director Candidates
Rob Cordes
Member Distillery: Garrison Brothers
Position at Member Distillery: Head Marketing Guru
Rob Cordes is a driving force behind the Garrison Brothers brand—a creative strategist, storyteller, and marketing leader with over 30 years of experience across advertising, branding, e-commerce, and experiential marketing. Since joining Garrison Brothers, Rob has helped transform the small distillery in the Texas Hill Country into one of the most respected names in American bourbon.
As Head Marketing Dude, Rob leads everything from packaging and digital strategy to national campaigns, trade programs, and consumer engagement. His work has helped the brand win major industry awards, grow a fiercely loyal fanbase, and raise millions through purpose-driven marketing initiatives like Good Bourbon for a Good Cause.
Though his background spans industries—from tech to healthcare to lifestyle—Rob found his true calling in bourbon. His work is equal parts strategic and soulful, always grounded in storytelling and guided by a deep respect for craft.
When he’s not working, Rob works on his ranch in Bastrop County, where he paints, restores native habitats, and occasionally takes to the skies as a private pilot.
John Evans
Member Distillery: Wilson Valley Mercantile
Position at Member Distillery: Owner, Operator, Distiller, Farmer
John Evans is a fifth-generation farmer and the owner, founder, and distiller at Wilson Valley Mercantile, Bell County’s first legal distillery, located near Little River-Academy, Texas. Established in 2022, the distillery embodies a “seed-to-sip” philosophy, utilizing grains grown on the Evans Ranch to produce spirits.
The Evans family’s agricultural roots date back to 1867, with a legacy of farming corn, wheat, oats, and cattle. In 2018, John and his wife, Erica, began constructing the distillery, completing it amidst their ongoing farming and ranching operations. Wilson Valley Mercantile offers a range of whiskey, all distilled from grains cultivated on their farm.
Beyond distilling, John is actively involved in the broader spirits community, including the Texas Distilled Spirits Association. His dedication to preserving and innovating within the family’s farming traditions has positioned Wilson Valley Mercantile as a notable destination on the Texas Whiskey Trail.
Heather Greene
Member Distillery: Milam & Greene Whiskey
Position at Member Distillery: CEO
Since joining Milam & Greene in 2018, Heather has played a transformative role in shaping the company’s identity and success. As CEO and master blender, she rebranded the distillery, introduced innovative blending techniques such as combining whiskies from Texas, Kentucky, and Tennessee and led the creation of award-winning expressions like the Triple Cask Bourbon. Her leadership has earned the brand national recognition and rapid growth, including accolades like “Rising Spirits Company in America” and her own title as “Master Blender of the Year” at the Women of Whiskey Awards in 2023. Greene’s vision has positioned Milam & Greene as a standout in American craft whiskey.
Heather was the first American Woman on the Scotch Malt Whiskey Society tasting panel and is the author of the New York Times shortlisted "Whiskey Distilled." She has written for multiple publications such as Eater, Daily Beast, Town and Country, and the Oxford Companion to Distilled Spirits. She has been on Food Network, Bloomberg News, The Street, CBS Mornings, among multiple other outlets while living in NYC. She holds an AOC certificate in Cognac and Armagnac from France and is currently working on her second book on distilled spirits.
Her current passion is studying the effects of climate on barrels in Hill Country, and how the unique microclimates drive flavor into Bourbon. Her latest release, a 6-year study of Hill Country climate was recently featured in national media, called "The Answer." Alongside that, she loves Texas gardening, playing with her dog Franklin, and seeing movies at the Alamo Drafthouse with her Husband, Matt.
Jared Himstedt
Member Distillery: Balcones Distilling
Position at Member Distillery: Head Distiller
For Jared Himstedt, the craft of making whisky is a relational journey of discovery. Getting to know one's place and one's work are parts of a feedback loop through which we get to know ourselves. It's an ongoing, dynamic conversation with purpose, meaning and growth.
Jared's path wandered through social work, ceramic arts, punk bands, bicycle repair and homebrewing before arriving at distillation. In the early days of Balcones, he did a bit of everything--fabricating equipment, designing labels, making cuts at the stills, driving innovation concepts and blending expressions.
These days, his role is a mix of long-term planning and blending, all while keeping the company's creative and existential goals moving forward to "make it meaningful."
Outside of whisky-making, Jared enjoys time outdoors in the woods and building and riding bikes, in addition to making pots, sewing, playing music, and spending meaningful time with blood family and chosen family. Wherever the day takes him, he's always glad to find time for deep reflection around a fire with a neatpour of any Balcones single malt in hand.
Robert Likarish
Member Distillery: Ironroot Republic Distillery
Position at Member Distillery: President
Robert is a graduate of Austin College and St. Louis University Law School. Upon completing law school, he realized his passion was not in the law, but rather in whiskey. With his brother, he spent two years training around the world before finally settling and opening the distillery in Denison.