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Grapes for new years eve: 12 Grapes for 12 Months: An Unusual New Year’s Tradition

A Spanish New Year’s Eve : The Salt : NPR

Green Grapes And Red Underwear: A Spanish New Year’s Eve : The Salt As a clock tower rings out 12 chimes, people all over the country will scoff a dozen grapes, hoping for good luck. With several seeds per grape and only a couple of seconds to swallow each one, the task is harder than it sounds. And then there’s the bit about wearing a gift of red undergarments.

Food History & Culture

Jeff Koehler

Ringing in the New Year in Spain requires eating a dozen grapes and wearing a very specific kind of undergarment.

Jeff Koehler


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Jeff Koehler

Ringing in the New Year in Spain requires eating a dozen grapes and wearing a very specific kind of undergarment.

Jeff Koehler

If the thought of watching the ball drop in Times Square again is already making you yawn, consider perking your New Year’s Eve celebration with this tradition from Spain: As midnight nears on Nochevieja, or “old night,” the last day of the year, the entire country gathers in front of television screens or in town squares, clutching a small bowl of green grapes and wearing red underwear. More on the underwear later.

The camera of the main national TV channel focuses on the clock tower of the 18th-century Real Casa de Correos in Madrid’s Puerta del Sol while a pair of announcers in formal wear, high above the thousands of revelers packed into the chilly plaza below, quickly repeat instructions one last time. After the bells ring out four times in quick succession — “Wait, wait, ignore those!” — there is a slight pause and then begins a series of 12 chimes — one for each month.

At that first dong, Spaniards from Barcelona to Bilbao to Cadiz pop a grape into their mouths. There is little time to chew and swallow, much less savor, because about two seconds later there is a second dong and a second grape gets popped into the mouth. And on through 12 dongs and las doce uvas de la suerte (“the 12 lucky grapes”).

If you eat all 12 by the end of the final bell’s toll — and that doesn’t mean finishing with a half-chewed mouthful — then you will have good luck in el año nuevo (the new year).

This popular tradition is a century or so old, though its exact origins remain debatable. One oft-repeated story says that growers in Alicante had a bumper 1909 harvest and found a creative way to sell off their surplus.

The traditional variety of grape consumed at the start of the new year is called Aledo. The grapes mature late are not harvested until November and December.

Jeff Koehler


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Jeff Koehler

The traditional variety of grape consumed at the start of the new year is called Aledo. The grapes mature late are not harvested until November and December.

Jeff Koehler

Recently, though, old newspaper articles have been republished that show the tradition began decades earlier, in the 1880s. These stories tell of bourgeoisie in Madrid copying the French tradition of having grapes and champagne on the last day of the year. Before long this custom had been adopted by certain madrileños who went to Puerta del Sol to see the bells chime at the turning of the year and, most likely in an ironic or mocking manner, to eat grapes like the upper class.

About 80 percent of the “lucky grapes” come from the valley of Vinalopó in central Alicante, on Spain’s Mediterranean coast. Fleshy, deliciously sweet, and pale, almost whitish-green in color, they are a traditional Spanish variety called Aledo that, maturing late, are not harvested until November and December.

But these are no ordinary grapes. Protected by Denominación de Origen (designation of origin, or D.O.) status, budding clusters are wrapped in paper bags in June and July and kept covered as they ripen. This was first done in the late 19th century to protect them from a plague of cochylis vine moths. Growers found it also conserved the flavor, aroma and color of the grapes, and slowed their maturation.

According to the regulatory office for D.O., Uva de Mesa Embolsada Vinalopó, bagging the grapes also means that “they form a peel that’s much finer by not having to fend off the aggressions of the rain, the sun or the wind.”

When I went to Barcelona’s iconic La Boqueria market to buy my grapes for this year’s festivities, Maria, the seasoned stall owner of Frutas y Verduras E. Lafuente, told me that “having such a fine skin also makes them quicker to eat. There’s less to swallow.”

Supermarkets sell small tins of 12 seeded and peeled grapes.

Jeff Koehler


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Jeff Koehler

Supermarkets sell small tins of 12 seeded and peeled grapes.

Jeff Koehler

And, with the bells impatiently tolling, that small detail makes a difference. It is no easy task eating grapes so quickly, especially when each has three or four seeds. (Seedless grapes are a rarity here, though some painstakingly remove the seeds beforehand. Ever more extreme — or modern — are the small tins of 12 seeded and peeled grapes now sold in supermarkets.) The only way to finish all 12 is to not chew, just take a solid bite and then swallow, pips and all.

Such a strategy is easier to plan than to execute, especially by grape number six or seven when, in my experience, the giggles kick in. After 15 years living in Spain, I have learned that the only way to finish all 12 is by concentrating on the chimes and ignoring the rest of the surrounding commotion.

If scoffing grapes at midnight isn’t strange enough, convention says you must do so while wearing red ropa interior, or underwear — a bra, a sock, a garter, whatever. And — stranger yet — the undergarment should be given to you by someone else.

Maria, the stall owner, reminded me not to forget a third traditional lucky charm to accompany red underwear and grapes: drop a gold ring into my celebratory glass of cava (local champagne-style bubbly from Catalunya). “Just don’t swallow it!” That would, no doubt, be a harbinger of bad luck.

When the 12 dongs finish and the last of the grapes has been swallowed, there are cheek kisses, toasts with glasses of cava, and pieces of turrón (almond and honey nougat from Alicante) passed around as the most expensive commercials of the year play on TV and phone lines jam with the crush of well-wishing calls.

In this year of acute economic hardship in Spain, many will hope that eating the grapes brings better luck in 2013, and try particularly hard to finish them all before the last chime fades to silence and the new year begins.

Jeff Koehler is the author of Morocco: A Culinary Journey With Recipes. His next cookbook, on Spain, will be published in 2013. Visit www.jeff-koehler.com or follow @koehlercooks.

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Why Do Mexicans Eat Grapes on New Year’s Eve?

Introduction:

Why Do Mexicans Eat Grapes on New Year’s Eve

If you’ve ever been invited to a Mexican New Year’s Eve party, then you’ve likely seen Mexicans shoveling grapes into their mouths hurriedly before the ball drops on New Year’s Eve. To anyone who has ever seen this ritual, you have no doubt wondered Why do Mexicans eat grapes on New Year’s Eve?

History:

Why Do Mexicans Eat Grapes on New Year’s Eve

Eating grapes on New Year’s Eve isn’t originally Mexican. It comes from Spain. Known as las doce uvas de la suerte (the 12 lucky grapes), Spanish eat a grape for every stroke of the bell at midnight on the 31st while it rings in the new year.

This tradition is surprisingly young, dating back to 1909—with evidence for the ritual dating back at least to 1895. Though it seems that eating grapes on New Year’s Eve was a relatively obscure custom before 1909, it was popularized as a custom when vineyards in Alicante used the ritual as a way to sell more grapes after a bountiful harvest that year.

Since then, it has spread to many Latin American countries and even the Philippines. However, eating grapes on New Year’s Eve in Mexico is especially prominent.

New Year’s Eve (or Nochevieja in Spanish) is a sacred time in Mexico. It is at this time that people eat their grapes, usually in one of two places: they are either gathering around the town square to eat grapes, or they are eating grapes on New Year’s Eve in their homes after their family dinner.

Meaning:

Why Do Mexicans Eat Grapes on New Year’s Eve

There are two general meanings for the eating of the twelve grapes. The first meaning is more common in Spain—but it can be found in Mexico. It states that each grape symbolizes a month in the coming year (January, February, March. . . and so on).

If the grape is sour, that month will be sour. If the grape is sweet, that month will be sweet. So you might want to buy grapes ahead of time and then you can ensure that they have a chance to ripen before New Year’s Eve!

The other tradition is the more common one in Mexico. It states that you get twelve grapes and each one is a wish. You silently think to yourself of some facet of your life that you want to improve in the coming year.

Maybe you want a better relationship or a stronger career. Perhaps you want someone that you love to better their health. Whatever your desires, you get to wish them while you’re eating grapes on New Year’s Eve in Mexico during those 12 seconds.

How to Do It:

Why Do Mexicans Eat Grapes on New Year’s Eve

Don’t think that it’s easy though! It’s hard to eat all 12 grapes in only 12 seconds. If you can’t finish them, don’t try and overdo it. There’s no need to choke or panic over a superstitious tradition, and hardly anyone finishes all 12 grapes.

Besides, half the joke is knowing that you’re going to start laughing as soon as the grapes start piling up inside your mouth. Don’t worry, eating grapes on New Year’s Eve in Mexico supposed to be fun!

Of course, some people try and develop different strategies for how to eat the grapes in time. After all, you only get one chance to get these 12 lucky grapes that superstition has it will grant your wishes.

Conclusion:

Why Do Mexicans Eat Grapes on New Year’s Eve

The most important thing about eating grapes on New Years Eve in Mexico is to not take it too seriously. Take a chance to just enjoy yourself because, after all, it’s New Year’s Eve!

Why do Spaniards eat 12 grapes on New Year’s Eve?. Spain in Russian

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It is important that each grape goes into the mouth under each new strike of the chimes. Keeping within such a time frame can sometimes be very difficult, especially if you are surrounded by a crowd of laughing friends and relatives at the festive table. To make life easier for the Spaniards, spermaceti began to produce special sets of 12 neat little grapes in a small box, which is very convenient to hold in your hand, wherever you are.

You might also be interested to know where this unusual tradition came from. If you ask your Spanish friends about this, you will surely hear the story that this is due to the tricks of winemakers who tried to sell as many grapes as possible after another rich harvest. There is some truth in this, but according to legend, this tradition is directly related to the proletarian culture in Spain.

The ritual of eating 12 grapes to the sound of the clock originated in Madrid’s Puerta del Sol and is associated with a working-class uprising against a tax imposed in 1882 by Madrid Mayor José Abascal y Carredano. In December, he decided to introduce a tax of 5 pesetas for those who decide to hold festivities on the eve of Epiphany. It is known that in order to stage the arrival in the city of the three biblical wise men – Melchior, Gaspard and Belshazzar, the Spaniards staged noisy cavalcades, street performances and costumed processions. According to the mayor, the tax could help restore order in the streets of Madrid.

The working class, of course, did not like this decision, and in retaliation they decided to triple their own holiday in front of the then City Hall building. Each brought with him 12 grapes and ate one of them under the chimes. Thus, the Spaniards expressed their indignation at the fact that they were deprived of the right to celebrate the holiday as they wanted, because only wealthy Spaniards could pay the tax. Eating grapes was in their eyes a mockery of the dining habits of the bourgeoisie and a statement of complete disrespect for the rich and their way of life.

Meanwhile, the Spanish Association of Otolaryngologists warns that there are many dangers for humans in such a quick eating of grapes. They recommend buying seedless grapes and insist that the time between each stroke of the clock be increased from 3 seconds to 5 seconds, allowing celebrants to breathe properly while eating the grapes. People over 65 years of age are not recommended to participate in this venture, as they are at risk and can simply suffocate. The same applies to children under the age of five.

Read Spanish news now and in Telegram – @espanarusa_news. Subscribe to the channel and be the first to know about key events!

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grapes, tradition, new year, new year’s eve

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