Why Stockwell Cellars is closing its Westside Santa Cruz tasting room

It’s last call for a popular wine spot on Santa Cruz’s Westside.

Since 2016, Stockwell Cellars has been a site for weekend food pop-ups, live music and bottles of Central Coast-grown varietals shared at upturned barrels and communal tables. On Sept. 1, owners Eric Stockwell and Suzanne Zeber-Stockwell will close the doors to the tasting room to pursue other kinds of sales. 

“The economics of our business have changed, and we’re choosing to pivot,” said Zeber-Stockwell. 

The couple plans to distribute their wine within the state and in Texas, where they live half the year. That’s a big change for Stockwell Cellars, which has sold the majority of its wine through the tasting room and its wine club since it opened a decade ago. It attracted guests with bands, food trucks and other entertainment multiple times a week, with the goal that they’d walk away with a few bottles or cases of wine. 

But the traditional tasting room model no longer works for them. Visitors used to taste wine to guide their purchases, but Zeber-Stockwell sees more people coming in just for the experience. 

“What used to be engaging and educating people about wines and selling wine has turned into just entertaining people,” she said. “You’re not selling wine to go. People are enjoying wine on site only. That’s a big shift.” 

The wine industry throughout California is experiencing a historic downturn, forcing many wineries to close or, like Stockwell, reevaluate their models. With competition from other beverages like craft beer and hard seltzers, Americans are drinking less wine. In 2025, alcohol consumption reached its lowest level ever, with just 54% of adults reporting they drink, citing health concerns. The statistics are even lower among young adults. Baby boomers, a demographic that traditionally preferred wine, are drinking and buying less as they age. 

Located in a busy and walkable neighborhood on the edge of the city, Stockwell Cellars faced competition from nearby breweries, wineries, bars, restaurants and cannabis dispensaries. Zeber-Stockwell also saw that people seemed to be going out less in general. She believes that economic pressures and rising costs are discouraging Santa Cruzans from going out as much as they used to before the pandemic. 

The couple compares the area to Dallas, Texas, where they spend half of their year, and think the high cost of living in Santa Cruz County could be contributing to decreased traffic and sales at their tasting room. “The economic climate [in Dallas] is entirely different than here,” said Zeber-Stockwell. “People are still spending. They’re still going out. You can’t get in a restaurant without a reservation, and Santa Cruz is not seeing that. People are not going out and eating like they used to.” 

These days, when people go to Stockwell, it’s occasional, and often the focus is on the experience, not the wines. Other areas of the business haven’t been able to grow because of the emphasis on the tasting room. “It’s hard to focus on other streams when you are putting so much energy into lining up bands or pop-ups,” said Zeber-Stockwell. 

Eric Stockwell started his namesake winery in the early 2000s. A metalworker by trade, he became fascinated with the science of winemaking in his 40s. His shop, Central Coast Welding and Fabrication, was located in the current tasting room at that time, and after contracting the wine bug, he started a wine division in his business. “He exchanged welding needs for the opportunity to learn how to make wine under various winemakers in the area, and use their facilities,” said Zeber-Stockwell. 

Stockwell also worked closely with Ryan Beauregard of Beauregard Vineyards in Bonny Doon, who allowed him to make about 60 barrels of wine in 2012, and a similar amount the following year. 

“That was really the birth of Stockwell Cellars — recognizing we have wine, it’s time to sell it,” said Zeber-Stockwell. The Beauregard family also hired her in their tasting room, and she later became Beauregard’s direct-to-consumer sales manager. 

In 2016, the couple opened the tasting room, which boasts hand-wrought metal details made by Stockwell — an intentional nod to his other passion. The towering, barrel-shaped back bar was designed by Zeber-Stockwell and crafted by Stockwell. 

At the time, Stockwell’s growing welding business moved to a larger warehouse behind the winery to make room for the tasting room. Central Coast Welding has continued to grow over the years, and once the tasting room closes, it will expand from the warehouse into the back of the winery. Wine production will move from the back to the former tasting room at the front of the building. 

“We’re staying in the building. We’re just not going to have a tasting room any longer,” said Zeber-Stockwell. 

Stockwell Cellars is preserving its wine club, and plans to create regular events for its members and allow them to participate in activities like bottling, blending and blind tastings. 

As the tasting room winds down during its final weeks, Zeber-Stockwell said she and her husband hope to spend time with guests rather than throw a big party. They’re proud that the tasting room became a gathering place for the community. 

“We’re incredibly grateful,” she said. “This isn’t about any kind of failure; it’s just about making a thoughtful decision for the next chapter of our business.”

While the change feels bittersweet, she’s confident in Stockwell Cellars’ future: “With every big move I’ve ever made in my life, I’ve been blessed by the next door that opened, and I know there are great things to still be had.” 

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