One of Aesop’s Fables tells the story of a farmer who owned a goose that laid golden eggs, which he then sold at a high price. He supposed that the goose must have a giant lump of gold on its inside. One day, the farmer decided to kill the goose, believing that he’d find the great lump of gold. But he was wrong; he discovered that his hen’s inside was no different than those of any other hens’.

He’d killed the goose with the golden eggs!

His ambition for great wealth made him loose the little that he had.

This fable mirrors the relationship we humans today have with the natural resources of our planet. Despicable greed has lead to its overexploitation, with no thought to the future generations who will depend on our environmental legacy.

We believe we should care for “the goose with the golden eggs”, in other works, our beloved Planet Earth, in our daily work.

This is why, in the face of the encroaching urban sprawl reaching into the countryside bulldozing all that comes in its way, we have chosen to preserve and maintain our vineyard, fruit and olive trees, thus protecting them from the threat of urbanization and subdivision.

This way, we are not only preserving green spaces, but also the traditions of caring for agriculture, in the harvest of fruits and the production of our wines and oils.

This is based on our deep attachment to the land and its traditions. It is an ethical decision. It’s founded on a sense of harmony for the present and for the future.

Currently, we are involved in an important social project in the desert areas of Lavalle, Mendoza, where we support the San José Residential School. We also provide strong support for a ‘fair trade’ project that is headed under “Soluna Wines of Solidarity”. This allows small producers of wine grapes to sell their harvest to market each year at a better and more ‘just’ price. With the understanding that education is a key tool in environmental preservation, we invite school aged children to visit our “finca” and to participate in the harvest. As well, our hotel guests, can participate in the harvest, gathering an authentic and unique local experience, if they so desire.

Our hotel’s waste management policy involves garbage separation, participating in the “Chacras Recycles” project. We take special precautions with the disposal of batteries and use low-consumption light bulbs. We follow the “Three Rs” – reduce, recycle, reuse. For example, we compost kitchen, gardening and vineyard waste.

As well, as children of the desert, we try to limit water consumption. In our gardens, we use waste water for maintenance, and avoid the use of pesticides and other chemicals in our fruit orchard, olive trees and vineyards as well as in our beautiful garden. Another important aspect of our water conservation is our invitation to our guests to reuse their towels, thus avoiding daily washing. For laundry, we use only biodegradable detergents and soaps. With respect to products and services we acquire from outside sources, we always give priority to local providers, professionals and artisans. For example, the goat cheese that accompanies our tastings is local. It’s also worth mentioning that our hotel’s logo, image design and web page have all been developed by Mendozans. We also avoid purchasing items that come with individual packaging.

To conserve energy, we have so far converted 80% of our light bulbs to low-consumption bulbs.

With sustainable development an essential part of our hotel’s philosophy, we offer much more than a mere hotel and a glass of Malbec. We refuse to kill the goose that laid the golden eggs!