Christopher Cellars

Christopher Cellars is a winery in North Highlands, CA, located at 9654 Bradshaw Rd. The business offers award-winning, small-lot wines from the Lodi region, catering to locals and travelers seeking a family-run tasting experience. With a 4.90 rating based on customer reviews, the winery is known for its hands-on approach to winemaking and its role as a community gathering spot. The venue hosts a variety of weekly events, including Taco and Wine Tuesday with sangria on tap, Wednesday Jazz Night, Thursday Trivia and Musical Bingo, and Friday live music with food trucks, providing a vibrant social atmosphere alongside its classic tasting room offerings.

Founded by husband-and-wife team Chris and Candice Mora, Christopher Cellars is a boutique, family-run operation grounded in craftsmanship and authenticity. Chris Mora, the winemaker and founder, began his career at Woodbridge Winery before serving as Assistant Winemaker at a boutique Lodi winery, where he mastered the winemaking process from grape to bottle. In 2019, he launched Christopher Cellars with a vision for small-lot, low-intervention wines that highlight the character of Lodi’s sub-AVAs. He oversees all production, including vineyard sourcing, fermentation, barrel aging, and blending. Candice Mora, co-owner and hospitality director, brings extensive experience from managing the front of house at her parents’ French restaurant, Boulevard Bistro. A Level One Sommelier, she curates tastings, manages events, and leads the wine club programs, ensuring a warm and detailed customer experience.

The winery’s philosophy centers on quality over scale, beginning with just eight barrels and a commitment to farming first. The original Bartholomew Family Vineyard was planted at high density with narrow rows to prioritize fruit quality, requiring nearly all vineyard care, pruning, and harvesting to be done by hand. This manual approach was supported by family and friends, including Chris’s mother, Denise Mora, whose influence inspired the Mother Knows Best Bordeaux-style red blend. The Mora children also participate in the winery’s operations, helping with grape stomping and fruit sorting, reinforcing the family spirit poured into every glass.

Christopher Cellars holds a 4.90 rating from its customers, reflecting its reputation as a beloved local destination. The winery has been voted Elk Grove’s number one wine tasting destination, loved by locals and travelers alike for its award-winning wines and community-focused events. The family’s dedication to creating memorable experiences through hospitality and quality winemaking has established it as a standout in the region.

Christopher Cellars combines its family-run heritage and Lodi-sourced small-lot wines to create a welcoming tasting room experience in North Highlands, CA.

BizScoreAI awarded Christopher Cellars a Technical score of 87 out of 100, ensuring the website is secure and readable for search engines. The business achieved a Discoverability score of 75 out of 100, allowing AI crawlers to find every page so the winery can be recommended by assistants. Christopher Cellars ranks number 2 of 3 Winery businesses that BizScoreAI has scored in North Highlands.