The Fiesta de la Vendimia grape harvest festival: a celebration of Manilva's wine excellence

In Manilva, wine culture is an essential part of the town's identity, its traditions and celebrations. The origins of the vineyards on the lush hills surrounding it date back to the 16th century. The Fiesta de la Vendimia, or grape harvest festival, is the main event that each year reaffirms the close bond between the town and the excellence of its wines. It’s a time to celebrate the arrival of the first wine of the season; it has grown in significance and is attracting more visitors from across the region each year. In fact, last year, it drew over 5,500 people.

Declared a Festival of Tourist Distinction by the Malaga Diputación provincial council, the Grape Harvest Festival has been held in Manilva for more than 60 years on the first weekend of September, marking the end of summer and coinciding with the conclusion of the grape harvest season.

The Grape Harvest Festival will begin this Saturday, 6 September, with a Holy Mass in honour of Our Lady of Sorrows, sung by the Municipal Music School Choir in the Church of Santa Ana. At the end of the Mass, the traditional procession of the Virgin of Sorrows will take place, accompanied by the Municipal Band and young women from the town dressed in traditional village attire, so she may protect the vineyards and bless the fields of Manilva.

The image will be carried in procession to Calle Mar, where one of the most moving and unique moments will unfold: the popular offering of the finest bunches of grapes to the Virgin of Sorrows, with participants dressed in traditional attire. This offering reaches its highlight in the “bunch of grapes contest”, a long-standing tradition with strong involvement from local wine growers. The night concludes with a fairground-style party, set in a festive atmosphere of stalls and fair tents, featuring live concerts and DJs.

The main day of the Grape Harvest Festival will take place this Sunday, 7 September, in a celebration popularly known in Manilva as ‘Domingo Rociero’. It’s a unique day, marked by large crowds and a family-friendly atmosphere. Throughout the day, there will be no shortage of traditional food, grape juice, a parade of horse riders (organised by the Peña Caballista de Manilva riders’ club), live music stages and many other attractions. In addition to tasting Manilva wine and grapes, visitors and attendees will be given traditional keepsakes.

Also during the day, at 7pm, comes the highlight of the Grape Harvest Festival in Manilva: the traditional grape treading to extract the season’s first grape juice, carried out in a press set up for the occasion in the Plaza de la Vendimia. This is a traditional practice passed down for generations from parents to children.

Each year, selected locals step up to the press to tread the grapes. The process breaks the skins to release the juice while also encouraging the natural yeasts on the grape skins to begin fermentation. The press has a square surface bordered by a raised edge and a slight slope towards the centre of one side. From there, the juice drains into a pit-shaped container located below the treading area.

Dozens of locals gather on Calle Mar, where the grape treading takes place, to taste this first wine of the season, a custom that draws more residents and visitors each year. It’s a symbolic tradition that preserves the classic wine-making techniques of Manilva, far removed from modern pressing systems.

The Fiesta de la Vendimia continues with music at various emblematic locations throughout the town until the day comes to an end.