Toasty aromas of plum, blackberry and new oak lead to flavors of fresh coffee, herbs and roasted earth wrapped altogether in supple tannins. This stands as one of the boldest Merlots in the marketplace, regardless of origin.

Composition
100% Merlot

Harvesting
By hand in the first week of April.

Cellar Treatment
Stays twelve months in French oak barrels and six months in bottle.

Color
An intense purplish-red color, you can almost see the smokiness.

Aroma
Its aroma is darkly-fruity, reminding blackberries, black plums and chocolate and slightly toasty with truffles. Very harmonious.

Pairings
Mild meats and roasted vegetable pasta. An ideal companion with roast beef, pork, as well as turkey and duck. Great with chocolate too!

Calesa is produced in Chile by the Cooperativa Agrícola Vitivinícola de Curicó Limitada. This cooperative winery supports 68 small-scale local farmers. The cooperative’s Cellar processes the grapes grown by its members who all have an equal voice in its management. The grape sales to the cellar as well as the value-added wine sales to Etica support technical and business improvements for the cooperative.

The Cooperativa de Curico dates back to a severe earthquake in 1939 which destroyed vineyards and winemaking facilities. Helped by the government which encouraged cooperative working, groups of farmers got together to rebuild their industry. The co-ops thrived until the Pinochet coup in 1973, when the new government abolished financial support and investments that were already in place. As a result, many of the farmers were forced into bankruptcy. Through these difficult times, the Cooperativa strengthened its commitment to development and the community.

As a conscience collective, the vineyard and Cellar workers greatly benefit from the Fair Trade system. All workers are free to join trade unions and work together to maintain the worker-led Ecological and Social Fund. Objectives of this fund include farming production improvement, business training, technical assistance, organic production, education on principles of coopertavism, and Fair Trade. The fund promotes social and cultural roles of the region, especially in the municipality of Rauco, where 65% of the population lives under the poverty line and an additional 15% live in extreme poverty conditions.

Benefits of the fund have included:

• salary increases
• down payments on housing for 30 workers
• a new canteen for workers
• supplementary health care insurance
• home improvement projects
• school bus- drives 126 children to school in the area
• loans for irrigation
• formation of cooperatives in the schools
• computer classes
• improving quality and marketability of other agriculture products such as chilies and olives