Keith Villa
Keith’s higher education began in 1986 with an undergraduate degree from the University of Colorado in Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology. Upon graduation, Keith began conducting research for the Coors brewery in Golden, Colorado and, in 1988, Keith and his wife, Jodi, traveled to Belgium where Coors sponsored his education at the University of Brussels. He received a Ph.D. in brewing science in 1995.
Keith created Blue Moon Brewing Company in 1995 as an operating unit of Coors Brewing Company. At Blue Moon, Keith created a new interpretation of the Belgian styles that he had become enamored with while studying abroad. Eventually, Keith’s Blue Moon Belgian White Ale became the number one craft beer in the U.S. and is currently sold worldwide.
When Keith retired from MillerCoors in January 2018 after 32 years at the company, he and his wife launched CERIA Brewing Company, dedicated to brewing the finest craft non-alcoholic beers. CERIA’s Grainwave Belgian-style White Ale was released in December 2018 and was an instant success. A year later, CERIA added a non-alcoholic IPA called Indiewave. Both brews are available nationwide, and,in Colorado, the beers are also available at dispensaries where they are infused with cannabis.
In his spare time, Keith plays golf, rides Harley Davidsons, and enjoys tinkering with several collectible cars.
Victoria Putsynsky
Victoria began her career as a sales & marketing professional in the wine & spirits industry, after a decade of working in restaurants and bars. Growing up amongst the Brooklyn diaspora in a Russian immigrant family led to deep rooted interest in international travel and exploring culture through food & drink. This passion for travel led her to study and later, work abroad throughout the former Soviet Union in Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Kiev, Ukraine.
Her fluency in the Russian language gave her access to the kitchens of Moscow, cognac distilleries in Armenia, a new wave of wineries in the Republic of Georgia, and a historic vodka distillery in the Altai Mountains of Siberia.
When she finally reached a threshold with vodka, pickled vegetables, and cured meats, she completed her MBA and went to work for a French wine & spirits importer, marketing and selling luxury spirits, champagne, and a global wine portfolio.
After several years leading a team in beverage sales in New York City restaurants, bars, hotels, and nightclubs, she sought a lifestyle change that was more fitting for a new mother. She left NYC for Portland, Oregon to work with the state’s rapidly expanding wine industry. In 2016, wine & weed were both blossoming in Oregon and Victoria was inspired by the entrepreneurial spirit and emerging recreational cannabis industries. A long time recreational cannabis user and beverage enthusiast, she was motivated to combine the two while applying refined sensibilities and savvy to elevate the category. Aurora Elixirs was created for an inspired ‘apéritif’ experience that evokes balance and restoration without intoxication.
Victoria is mother to a 9 year old boy with an enviable imagination, a pre-Covid yoga and fitness instructor on the weekends, and a lover of fancy clothes that she finds occasion to wear while cooking, baking, and entertaining at home.
Robert Jappie
Robert Jappie is a Partner at Ince in London, specialising in Cannabis Law and Regulation. Since he led the UK's first dedicated Cannabis Law department more than 3 years ago, Robert has become a well-respected legal expert within Europe s fast-growing cannabis industries. With the legalisation of medicinal cannabis and CBD supplements rolling out across Europe, Robert has become the leading legal authority on the developing regulatory environment both here in the UK and in Europe.
He currently acts for several established CBD brands, Licensed Producers, Medicinal Cannabis companies and distributors, advising on the full range of regulatory and commercial issues facing the sector.
Talia Bennick
Talia Bennick
Talia Bennick launched Sweet Crude in Austin last year. Realizing the growing need for alcohol alternatives that still inspire relaxation with each sip, Talia crafted a line of RTD non-alcoholic cocktails infused with botanical terpenes and hemp extract. She has worked in finance and hospitality tech, and earned her MBA from Yale School of Management. Talia, crowned "The Terpene Queen" is passionate about embracing the whole plant and educating consumers on how powerful it can be in lifting our spirits (the non-alcoholic kind).
Steve Van Lare
I bring 30+ years of unique experiences in creating product vision and technology roadmaps for enterprise software solutions and a deep knowledge of driving products through all stages of the life cycle, from concept and launch through multiple releases to next generation architecture. An expert in building scalable engineering teams across multi-global locations, my leadership experiences span early-stage start up, growth and large enterprise organizations.
I am highly passionate about delivering quality products that customers love. I spent the early part of my career as a System Engineer in government electronics, and believe in the philosophy of using the right technologies to solve a problem.
I have been invited to share technology expertise and leadership insights at worldwide forums: Oracle Open World – Beijing 2011, San Francisco 2009 – 2010; PowerCamp Leadership Forum at Cisco – 2011
Specialties: Product Development - Scalable Software Architecture - Product Roadmaps - Quality & Customer Support - Profit & Loss / Budget Planning - Contracts & Licenses - Merger & Acquisition Integration - Recruiting & Teambuilding - Cross-functional Leadership
