Grape treading festival, Manilva

The ‘Vendimia’, or grape harvest of Manilva has been celebrated since the 16th Century and forms an integral part of the traditions, culture and character of the town.

This harvest festival, one of the most important on the calendar in Manilva, changes of date each year to coincide with the actual harvest, and traditionally a thank-you party for the workers who collect the grapes.

At dusk, there is always a procession – in this case, Nuestra Señora de los Dolores (I’d better not translate that to English), who watches over the vineyards, and also a ‘doma vaquera’, a horse riding parade, plus women from the town dressed in traditional folk dress.

Manilva people join together to tread on the grapes

After the procession, one of the most important moments takes place – the popular offering of the best bunches of grapes to the Virgin and the subsequent treading of the grapes to extract the first juice of the season, the methods for doing so have been passed down through scores of generations. Experienced or not, visitors should be prepared to get their shoes and socks off for the communal grape treading in Calle del Mar.

An interesting point to note, although many would prefer not to hear it, but the natural yeast in the skin of the feet goes towards boosting the fermentation process. But, fear not, the alcohol kills off any remaining bacteria in the final wine. This harvest festival takes place in Manilva from Saturday, August 31 until September 2.