Madrid is the Spanish city where crowds traditionally eat 12 grapes by the Puerta del Sol clock on New Year's Eve.
The custom is known as las doce uvas de la suerte, or the 12 grapes of luck. People try to eat one grape with each of the clock's midnight chimes. The 12 grapes represent the 12 months of the coming year, and successfully keeping pace is popularly associated with good fortune.
The gathering centers on the clock at the Real Casa de Correos in Madrid's Puerta del Sol. Television broadcasts extend the tradition across Spain and to Spanish-speaking communities elsewhere. The custom is often linked to a large grape surplus in the early twentieth century, although earlier elite grape-eating practices also existed. The clock's preparatory sounds are not the same as the 12 main chimes, so celebrants must listen carefully.