The tolling of the bells at midnight on the 31st December has varying amounts of significance to different people. For many, New Years is a chance to put the mistakes of the last 12 months behind them and focus on improving themselves for the next 12 months. Yes, we know this often doesn’t last past lunchtime on the 2nd January but apparently, it is the thought that counts…or is that Christmas?
Anyway! In Spain, they don’t trust their future year to anything so flimsy as self-discipline and willpower. No. They trust it to grapes!
Las Doce Uvas de la Suerte or the twelve grapes of luck is a Spanish New Years tradition that dates back to at least 1895. Nothing at all to do with a sales and marketing ploy from Alicantese vine growers to better sell their produce – honest. Regardless, rare is the Spaniard who will risk poisoning their fate for the coming year by skipping the grapes at New Years.
It is believed that each of the 12 grapes represents a month for the following year and depending on whether you can munch them down in time to the chimes of the clock at midnight and how tasty or bitter they are, they signify the type of luck the year to come will have for you.
For example, if your first grape is a sweet one, it means that January will be a good month. A sour grape indicates a bad month. Some people believe that eating the grapes will bring them happiness, peace, and good health. Others, choosing to make wishes, ask for love, peace, a new red Corvette, and other wishes that will make the New Year special.
Rules of Lucky Grapes
A quick word of advice: Although on the face of it eating 12 grapes may seem like an easy task you will be surprised at just how difficult getting them all in your mouth before the bells stop chiming actually is.
For each toll of the Puerto del Sol clock tower at midnight you must pop a grape in your mouth. You have until the next toll (approx. 3 sec) to chew and swallow before having to eat the next grape.
Make sure you start to eat the grapes when the official chimes start. Many people get confused, as there are four other double chimes just before the clock strikes twelve. 35 seconds before midnight a ball at the top of the Puerto del Sol clock tower starts to fall towards the main bell. Once it gets to the bottom it does four double chimes – do not start yet!
WARNING - DO NOT jam the grapes in your mouth all at once! This is considered cheating and is very unlucky!
Grape Eating Personalities
Through years of observation, I have discovered six common profiles of those who have been (mostly) successful achieving this feat, which I offer as a guide for your New Year’s grape-eating:
Zen Master – Neatly lines up the grapes and methodically eats them one by one, while meditating on the sound of the 12 chimes. Starts the New Year fully in the moment. Om.
Full Frontal – Embraces the New Year with gusto by shoving all of the grapes in their mouth at once. Worries about swallowing them later – Extremely bad luck and thoroughly not advised.
False Starter – Anxious about getting all 12 grapes down, starts eating the first one before midnight strikes, which doesn’t count and is said to bring bad luck. Be patient grasshopper.
Reina Isabel – Prepares grapes in advance by cutting them in half. Eats them with a fork from a plate. Eating the grapes by halves may be less authentic, but it is the best method for small children, and for anyone worried about looking like a slob.
Exhibitionist – Also known as “el chulo.” Sees grape eating as another extreme sport, or just a chance to show off. Starts the New Year with an ego boost, by throwing the grapes in the air and catching them in their mouth. Requires secret pre-New Years’ Eve practice.
Drunken Style – Makes an effort to eat the grapes but cracks up, starts talking, drinking, hugging or otherwise gets distracted midway through the 12 grapes. This is, needless to say, what happens most often.
Happy New Year!
Oh, one final (slightly) more serious note…
For many of us eating the grapes pretty much guarantees starting the year off with a little adrenaline rush, and most likely some laughs. The goal of getting the 12 grapes down in time can spark a contest of who is más macho. The biggest challenge is more likely to be not gagging as you cram them in your mouth and trying to swallow while laughing hysterically. However, this tradition might cause difficulties for people who suffer from anxiety or worry. There is a lot of pressure: eating one grape per second, swallowing, putting another grape in the mouth, while also asking a wish to be granted. After all, what can happen to the anxious person in the New Year, if all 12 grapes have not been consumed by the time the final bell tolls? And, what happens if each of the 12 grapes is sour? Be sure to remind the anxious that it is just a bit of fun!
