Spanish New Year’s Eve tradition calls for eating twelve grapes with the midnight clock chimes.
The twelve grapes are known as las doce uvas de la suerte, or “the twelve grapes of luck.” Each grape corresponds to one of the twelve strokes traditionally sounded at midnight, and finishing them is popularly associated with good fortune for the twelve months ahead.
The custom is especially linked with Madrid’s Puerta del Sol, whose clock is broadcast nationwide. A common mistake is to count the preliminary warning sounds as part of the twelve; the tradition concerns the principal midnight chimes. Spain’s grape custom has also influenced New Year celebrations in several Spanish-speaking communities outside the country.