Three Twins
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2025}}
{{Infobox company
| name = Three Twins Ice Cream
| logo =
| logo_caption =
| type = Private
| industry = Ice cream shop and manufacturer
| fate = Closure as result of Covid-19 pandemic
| founded = {{Start date and age|2005}} in Terra Linda, San Rafael, California
| founder = Neal Gottlieb
| defunct = {{End date and age|2020|04|17}}
| hq_location_city = Petaluma, California
| hq_location_country = US
| area_served = California
| locations = 7 (at peak in 2017)
| products = Organic gourmet ice cream
| owner = Neal Gottlieb
| website = {{URL|https://web.archive.org/web/20201121175056/https://threetwinsicecream.com/|Archive of company's official website}}
}}
Three Twins Ice Cream was an American organic ice cream company based in California, established in 2005. Three Twins owned and operated three brick and mortar ice cream shops in Northern California and was a nationwide wholesaler of ice cream products.{{cite news |last=King |first=Rachael |url=https://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424127887324050304578410582233790700 |title=Three Twins to Return To the Lower Haight |work=The Wall Street Journal |date=April 10, 2013 |accessdate=April 30, 2014 }} It closed in April 2020.{{Cite web|url=https://www.sonomamag.com/petalumas-three-twins-ice-cream-closes-coronavirus-contributing-factor/|title=Petaluma's Three Twins Ice Cream Goes Out of Business|last=Irwin|first=Heather|date=2020-04-18|website=Sonoma Magazine|language=en-US|access-date=2020-04-20}}
History
Three Twins was established in 2005 in Terra Linda, San Rafael, California.{{cite news |url=http://www.northbaybusinessjournal.com/20581/organic-ice-cream-maker-three-twins-adds-production-plant/ |title=Organic ice cream maker Three Twins adds production plant|author1=Stevens, Loralee|date=April 26, 2010 |work=North Bay Business Journal}}{{cite news |url=http://www.marinij.com/fastsearchresults/ci_5635757 |title=Cuisine Scene: Marin to get its first Thai fusion restaurant |first=Leslie |last=Harlib |date=October 4, 2007 |newspaper=Marin Independent Journal |access-date=April 21, 2014 |archive-date=April 22, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140422232318/http://www.marinij.com/fastsearchresults/ci_5635757 |url-status=dead }} It was started by Cornell University graduate Neal Gottlieb{{cite news|last=Finz|first=Stacy|url=http://www.sfgate.com/business/ontherecord/article/Neal-Gottlieb-is-founder-of-Three-Twins-Ice-Cream-3603588.php|title=Neal Gottlieb is founder of Three Twins Ice Cream|date=June 2, 2012|work=San Francisco Chronicle|accessdate=April 23, 2014}} and was named for Gottlieb, his twin brother, and his brother's wife, who is also a twin.{{cite web|url=http://threetwinsicecream.com/about/|title=About|publisher=Three Twins Ice Cream|accessdate=February 22, 2016}} It was the first organic ice cream shop chain in the U.S.{{cite magazine |url=http://cornellalumnimagazine.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=641&Itemid=64&ed=15 |title=Eco-Chip: Neal Gottlieb '99 scoops his own organic ice cream |date=January 11, 2010 |magazine=Cornell Alumni Magazine|author1=Herzog, Brad}} The company began distributing its products nationally after Whole Foods found them selling their ice cream at the Berkeley Farmers Market.{{cite news|last=Borzykowski|first=Bryan|url=https://money.cnn.com/2014/03/27/smallbusiness/farmers-markets/|title=From farmers' markets to mass market|date=April 1, 2014|work=CNNMoney|accessdate=April 30, 2014}}
Three Twins opened a factory in Petaluma, California in 2010.{{cite web |url=http://www.7x7.com/eat-drink/best-san-francisco-2010-eat-drink-0 |title=Best Lick: Best of San Francisco 2010: Eat + Drink |first=Sara |last=Deseran |date=May 22, 2010 |website=7x7 SF }} In mid-2019 it moved all manufacturing operations to the former plant of Zurheide Ice Cream in Sheboygan, Wisconsin (which it had purchased in 2014); its corporate headquarters remained in Petaluma.{{Cite web|url=https://www.northbaybusinessjournal.com/northbay/sonomacounty/9738650-181/three-twins-ice-cream-sonoma|title=Three Twins shifts Petaluma production to Wisconsin|first=Houston|last=Porter|date=2019-06-25|website=The North Bay Business Journal|language=en|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200423211947/https://www.northbaybusinessjournal.com/northbay/sonomacounty/9738650-181/three-twins-ice-cream-sonoma|archive-date=2020-04-23|access-date=2020-04-17|df=mdy-all}}
On April 17, 2020, the company announced it was closing due to financial problems compounded by the coronavirus pandemic.{{cite news |first=Tara |last=Duggan |url=https://www.sfchronicle.com/food/article/Three-Twins-ice-cream-company-closes-citing-15208527.php |title=Three Twins ice cream company closes, citing coronavirus pandemic |newspaper=San Francisco Chronicle |date=April 17, 2020 }}
Locations
By November 2017, the company owned and operated four shops, in San Francisco, Larkspur, and Napa in addition to San Rafael, and licensed stores in Berkeley, Santa Monica, and at the San Francisco airport, and was exporting to South Korea.{{cite news |first=James |last=Dunn |url=http://www.northbaybusinessjournal.com/northbay/sonomacounty/7585167-181/three-twins-sonoma-ice-cream-manufacturing |title=Petaluma's Three Twins tastes success in hot ice cream market |newspaper=North Bay Business Journal |date=November 6, 2017 |access-date=March 12, 2018 |archive-date=March 12, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180312205241/http://www.northbaybusinessjournal.com/northbay/sonomacounty/7585167-181/three-twins-sonoma-ice-cream-manufacturing |url-status=dead }} A licensed location at Fisherman's Wharf had closed. The San Francisco shop, in the Lower Haight, closed in January 2018.{{cite news |url=https://hoodline.com/2018/01/scoop-three-twins-ice-cream-closing-in-lower-haight |title=Scoop: 'Three Twins Ice Cream' Closing In Lower Haight |date=January 27, 2018 |website=Hoodline| author1=Hammerl, Teresa}} By April 2020, the Santa Monica location had also closed and the company had licensed/franchise locations in Tokyo and Seoul.
Products
Three Twins' flavors rotated between core offerings such as Mint Confetti (mint ice cream with flecks of dark chocolate) and Strawberry Je Ne Sais Quoi (strawberry with a hint of balsamic vinegar), and specialty flavors such as Cookie Jar (vanilla with three types of cookies). Its original shop garnered attention with some offbeat offerings, such as Mutton Vindaloo and the"most expensive sundae in the world" (no takers yet) and a "Sergio Romo Mexican Chocolate" flavor with the motto "It only tastes illegal."{{cite news|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/17/sergio-romo-ice-cream_n_3455324.html|title=Sergio Romo Ice Cream With Pro-Immigration Reform Message To Be Launched|date=June 17, 2013|work=Huffington Post|accessdate=April 23, 2014}}{{cite news |first=Sandra |last=Hernandez |url=http://articles.latimes.com/2013/sep/17/news/la-ol-sergio-romos-illegal-immigration-20130917 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131027230006/http://articles.latimes.com/2013/sep/17/news/la-ol-sergio-romos-illegal-immigration-20130917 |url-status=dead |archive-date=October 27, 2013 |title=Giants' Sergio Romo pitches immigration reform, one pint at a time |work=Los Angeles Times |date=September 17, 2013 |accessdate=April 30, 2014 }} The expensive dessert was an Absurdity Sundae that cost $3,333.33 and included banana split drenched in syrups from rare dessert wines (German Trockenbeerenauslese, 1960s vintage port, and a Chateau D’Yquem).{{Cite web |url=https://thehumblerich.com/10-most-expensive-ice-creams-in-the-world/ |title=10 Most Expensive Ice Creams In The World|date=July 8, 2019 |website=TheHumbleRich |access-date=October 29, 2019 }}
References
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External links
- {{Official website|http://threetwinsicecream.com/}}
Category:Food and drink in the San Francisco Bay Area
Category:Ice cream parlors in California
Category:Companies based in Sonoma County, California
Category:2005 establishments in California
Category:2020 disestablishments in California