Lawrence E Townsend III

Winery Ambassador

Lawrence E Townsend III (aka Eddie) has worked in the beverage industry for many years. After visiting Sonoma in 2004 and experiencing a taste of what the wine country had to offer it was the beginning of a welcomed and dramatic change from his hometown of Baltimore.

Upon his arrival in Sonoma he began working for a small winery in Kenwood (VJB) that specialized in Italian varietals. Meanwhile, he initiated his journey towards the introductory level of the well-respected Court of Master Sommeliers guild. In his spare time, Lawrence studied for the Certified Level of the Court of Master Sommelier guild achieving the 2nd level of the Court of Master Sommeliers certification in Summer of 2010, and is currently pursuing the Advanced Level of the Court of MS.

His first experiences in wine production occurred under the direction of John Kelly, a twenty-five year winemaking veteran with a biochemistry background. Lawrence's inaugural harvest lead to a position working as Tasting Room Manager/Assistant Winemaker for John's winery, Westwood, located in Sonoma. Lawrence spent a total of three years at Westwood working with the grape varieties Pinot Noir and Syrah.

Due to his past experiences with the Court of MS, wine sales and production, we feel that he offers our guests an educational and memorable experience in our tasting room. We encourage you to come in and visit him during your next visit to Napa.