Tasting Notes
A creamy mouthfeel of exuberant nuttiness is met by an undercurrent of fresh lemon, tangerine and peach in this highly impressive coastal wine. Deliciously balanced, complex and layered, it exhibits length, breadth and tremendous beauty, exceptional in every way.
The 2020 vintage started with a mild winter and lighter than normal rainfall. During flowering, we saw some of that rain, resulting in a poorer “set” of berries. Lower yields concentrate flavors into fewer clusters and fewer berries, so what we lost in yield, we gained in quality. The year took a unique turn when our hospitality team was deployed to the vineyard, helping with shoot thinning and suckering in Springtime due to the pandemic-related Adobe closure. We were also able to make on-the-spot decisions regarding heat spikes later in the year; an absolute advantage of farming our own lands, we were able to take immediate, decisive actions with our vineyard team. With our constant collaboration between winemaking and farming teams, the resulting wines shine, exhibiting incredible concentration and complexity: a bright spot from an otherwise challenging year.
Wine Enthusiast 98 Points
Acquired by Bill Price in January of 2013, our 406-acre Gap’s Crown Vineyard has become one of the most iconic vineyards of the Sonoma Coast, consistently producing Pinot Noirs and Chardonnays of distinction. Located on the western slope of Sonoma Mountain known as the Petaluma Gap, this unique site allows for near-perfect ripening conditions with a combination of wind and fog that is almost always present.
About Three Sticks
Three Sticks Wines is a boutique, family-owned winery led by veteran winemaker Bob Cabral. Cabral’s commitment to crafting small-lot, artisanal wines from exceptional Sonoma Coast vineyards, including Durell Vineyard, Gap’s Crown Vineyard and Walala Vineyard, drives the winery’s focus of creating site specific wines. Founded in 2002, the winery is named for owner William S. Price III’s surfing nickname, “Billy Three Sticks,” assigned to him in his youth as reference to the Roman numeral that follows his name. Three Sticks has a down to earth approach to growing and winemaking, they believe in table fellowship as the power of wine to bring people together.
Bill and Eva Price are lovers of Sonoma’s grapes and rich history. The Vallejo-Castenada Adobe (built in 1842) was built by Captain Salvador Vallejo, brother of General Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo, the Commandante Generale of the northern territory of Mexico (modern day Sonoma). The Prices purchased the property in 2012 and embarked on a two-year preservation project. The Three Sticks team worked with Sonoma historians and the Sonoma League for Historic Preservation to restore and protect the fabric of the property. They commissioned San Francisco-based designer Ken Fulk and his team to design the ambience of the Adobe, as it is known locally. The historic landmark in downtown Sonoma is now home to the hospitality of Three Sticks.
