Though her parents don’t drink and she’s just 18 years old, Mercy Torres is walking bravely into a life of wine, heading to study wine and viticulture at Cal Poly this week with the support of a full-ride scholarship aimed at BIPOC students.
The Carpinteria native and Carp High grad — who grew to appreciate the culture of wine while working for the past two years at Corktree Cellars on Linden Avenue — is the first of two students to benefit from Delicato Family Wines' Winemaker Scholarship Program . Nearly 100 students from across California applied for the four-year scholarship, which also comes with professional mentorship, summer internships, and post-graduate work for the Manteca-based wine company.
“I thought I was too late — I got super stressed,” said Torres, who was told about the scholarship by Cal Poly’s financial aid office. “But I was able to get everything done. It was a lot of hard work, but obviously so rewarding and amazing. It’s like a big fat miracle.”