Can grapes bring you good luck? The Spanish believe in this, and at midnight on New Year's Eve, there is a race across the country to eat 12 grapes before the first minute of the year.
The 12 grapes representing the months of the year must be eaten one at a time before the clock strikes 12:01. If the grapes are eaten, tradition says that luck will be with you all year.
Where does the tradition of eating 12 grapes come from?
The origin of the “happy grape” traditions hard to follow. The idea may have started with grape farmers in Alicante, Spain. to unload surpluses in the early 1900s, reports Atlas Obscura. Grapes are a reasonably priced crop that tend to produce good results, and there are often surpluses, so fruit can be brought in cheaply.
Or it could have been the Madrid bourgeoisie copying the French tradition of drinking grapes and champagne on the last day of the year, This is reported by NPR. But the story goes that the people of Madrid wanted to rebel against class differences and decided to mock the aristocrats by going to the Puerto del Sol to eat grapes to the sound of the bells.
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Whatever the beginning, the tradition has spread like wildfire in Spain. Supermarket chains such as Mercadona and Super Sol advertise and sell “uvas de la suerte” throughout Spain.
Mercadona, one of Spain's largest grocery chains, advertised four ways to purchase grapes for the occasion. A natural cluster of pitted grapes from Alicante adds “an element of fun to the tradition of the 12 grapes.” The seeds provide a “crunchy touch”, – said the supermarket. Consumers can also purchase seedless or prepackaged grapes, “specially selected and packaged with the exact amount needed for each chime.”
Pre-packaged grapes allow revelers to open grapes at the very moment the clock strikes and not worry about counting or cleaning grapes in the midst of the celebration.
You can also bring grapes peeled and pitted in a jar. These grape varieties are among the most popular among Spaniards due to their convenience, the supermarket said.
What are the rules of the New Year grape tradition?
No matter how the grapes are purchased, they are eaten at midnight Nochevieja is the key to the celebration in Spain. Celebrants must eat grapes before the clock chimes at 12:01 a.m., and if eaten in full, according to tradition, good luck will be with you throughout the year.
For this tradition, the Spanish usually choose green grapes.
Where did the idea of eating grapes under the table come from?
Eating grapes under the table isn't part of the original tradition from Spain, but it may be a 21st-century twist that's spreading on social media. TikTok users posted a message on social media and said they are eating 12 grapes – red or green – under the table in the hope that single people who eat grapes under the table on New Year's Day will soon fall in love.
User @annadstoddard posted this after she ate a grape under the table she was lucky in love. The footage shows her placing a twisted napkin ring on what appears to be her partner's finger.
TikTok user @helenguillen — now @helengmorales — posted in 2022 that she ate grapes under the table on New Year's Eve and got engaged afterward. U video, she shows off her wedding ring.