Alfarnatejo throws 24th Gazpacho Party with New York artist and Malaga football club tribute

There are many Spanish delights in traditional cuisine that encourage people to return to the shores of Spain year after year, but one, gazpacho, wins hands down every time. Alfarnatejo is about to prove it once more this Saturday when the village hosts the 24th Fiesta del Gazpacho de los 3 Golpes, a provincial tourist interest event that continues to draw bigger crowds each August.

Plans were recently unveiled for the August 1 bash. Called the cold soup “Andalucia’s summer classic” and praised for Alfarnatejo’s own recipe, handed down through generations, visitors are encouraged to swing by and discover the secrets of Territorio Tejón while tucking into the “three-blow” version, the most typical version from this part of Axarquía.

Mayor Benítez reminded everyone that the fiesta ranks among Malaga province’s most established food celebrations, filling the village on the first weekend of August. Locals keep adding new attractions, he said, and this year a cultural twist joins the gastronomic one. Painter José Luis Puche flies in from New York to be named an adoptive son. A proper salute to Málaga football club and its fans for their LaLiga promotion also features, with the local football pitch being renamed Afición Malaguista, a nearby square taking the club’s name, and a Daniel Miazzo mural being unveiled.

Expert local cooks will prepare roughly 1,200 litres of the soup. Its “three blows” tag refers to the oil, salt, and vinegar mixed in with tomato, onion, pepper, and mint. Some farmhands once poured extra oil over bread after olive or cereal work, turning leftovers into an evening meal. Historians trace similar cold soups back to Roman times, though today’s ingredients arrived after the 16th-century voyages to the Americas.

Full family fun programme

There will be kids’ activities, a giant gazpacho photo opportunity, Tejonera tunnels, and a Tejon fair. There will be lots of prizes and a music school players’ parade at 11am. The Sabor a Malaga market, lavender stalls, and workshops will open an hour later. Institutional speeches at the Arroyos botanical garden at midday include Puche’s adoptive-son honour and the opening of his exhibition upstairs in the town hall. Women ceramicists receive a tribute next; their bowls remain the fiesta’s calling card. A 3D Alfar y Natejo monument will be unveiled at 1pm. Samuel Perea’s showcooking follows at 1.30pm beside the park gazebo, with 2026 bowl sales and tastings starting then.

The Kalima orchestra kicks off music at 2pm, followed by Long Play versions, the Infinity Show at 11pm, a reggaeton tribute, Infinity’s return at 3.30am, and DJ Javi Domínguez closes the fun festivities.