Fiesta Nacional de la Vendimia (The Grape Harvest National Festival) takes place annually in Mendoza City,

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

. It is one of the most important festivals in the country, attracting large numbers of tourists to the region. It is a celebration of

wine Wine is an alcoholic drink typically made from fermented grapes. Yeast consumes the sugar in the grapes and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Different varieties of grapes and strains of yeasts are m ...

and the

winemaking Winemaking or vinification is the production of wine, starting with the selection of the fruit, its fermentation into alcohol, and the bottling of the finished liquid. The history of wine-making stretches over millennia. The science of wine and ...

industry. Each of the 18 departments in Mendoza Province prepare for the festival in the early months of the year. The main event occurs in the first week of March in Mendoza city featuring hundreds of dancers and performers, the selection of a "Reina Nacional de la Vendimia" (National Vendimia Queen) and a large

fireworks Fireworks are a class of Explosive, low explosive Pyrotechnics, pyrotechnic devices used for aesthetic and entertainment purposes. They are most commonly used in fireworks displays (also called a fireworks show or pyrotechnics), combining a l ...

display.

History

The first vendimia celebrations in Mendoza Province occurred in the 17th Century. The first official valendimia festival took place in 1936. Recently Mendoza's Vendimia ranked number two in

National Geographic ''National Geographic'' (formerly the ''National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as NAT GEO) is a popular American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. Known for its photojournalism, it is one of the most widely ...

's Top 10 World's Harvest Festivals, after the Thanksgiving celebrations in Plymouth Plantation,

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

Departments

Each of Mendoza's departments are represented at the festival: * Capital Department * General Alvear Department *

Godoy Cruz Department Godoy Cruz is a central department of Mendoza Province in Argentina. The provincial subdivision has a population of about 183,000 inhabitants in an area of , and its capital city is Godoy Cruz, which is located around from the Capital feder ...

Guaymallén Department Guaymallén is a central department of Mendoza Province in Argentina. The provincial subdivision has a population of about 250,000 inhabitants in an area of , and its capital city is Villa Nueva, which is located around from Buenos Aires. Hi ...

* Junín Department * La Paz Department *

Las Heras Department Las Heras is a department located in the north west of Mendoza Province in Argentina. The provincial subdivision has a population of about 183,000 inhabitants in an area of , and its capital city is Las Heras, which is located around from the ...

* Lavalle Department *

Luján de Cuyo Department Luján de Cuyo is a department located in the northwest of Mendoza Province in Argentina. The provincial subdivision has a population of about 104,000 inhabitants in an area of , and its capital city is Luján de Cuyo, which is located around f ...

* Maipú Department *

Malargüe Department Malargüe is a Departments of Argentina, department located in the south west of Mendoza Province in Argentina. Its borders are San Rafael Department, San Rafael in the north, La Pampa Province in the east, Neuquén Province in the south and Chil ...

* Rivadavia Department * San Carlos Department * San Martín Department *

San Rafael Department San Rafael is one of the departments of Mendoza Province, Argentina. The seat of the department is in the city of San Rafael. Statistics *Geographical location: 34° 15´ to 36° southern latitude and 70° 10´ to 66° 55´ eastern longitude. ...

* Santa Rosa Department *

Tunuyán Department Tunuyán Department is a Departments of Argentina, department located on the eastern border of Mendoza Province in Argentina. The provincial subdivision has a population of about 42,000 inhabitants in an area of , and its capital city is Tunuy� ...

Tupungato Department Tupungato is a departments of Argentina, department located in the provinces of Argentina, province of Mendoza Province, Mendoza, Argentina. The cabecera (departmental capital), Tupungato, is located approximately south of Mendoza, Argentina, Me ...

Programme of events

Blessing of the fruit

The

blessing In religion, a blessing (also used to refer to bestowing of such) is the impartation of something with grace, holiness, spiritual redemption, or divine will. Etymology and Germanic paganism The modern English language term ''bless'' likely ...

of the fruit takes place on the last Sunday of February.

Vía Blanca de las Reinas

On the evening of the first Friday of March the prettiest women elected as Reinas (queens) from each department parade in allegoric chariots through the streets of Mendoza dressed in decorative outfits designed to celebrate the winemaking tradition and the character of their Departments. This event has been known to attract over 200,000 spectators.

Carrusel Vendimial

The Carrusel Vendimial takes place on the Saturday morning, it takes the form of a daylight parade, where the Reinas ride their chariots through the streets, accompanied formations of men dressed in Gaucho style outfits and riding horses, they are followed by dancers representing various provinces of Argentina and other Latin American Countries. This parade also attracts huge numbers of spectators.

Central act

The "Acto Central" takes place in the Frank Romero Day

Greek theatre Ancient Greek theatre was a theatrical culture that flourished in ancient Greece from 700 BC. The city-state of Athens, which became a significant cultural, political, and religious place during this period, was its centre, where the theatre was ...

. It is an impressive spectacle of light and sound featuring over 1000 performers and dancers. The show pays homage to the "Virgen de la Carrodilla" and features traditional

folklore Folklore is shared by a particular group of people; it encompasses the traditions common to that culture, subculture or group. This includes oral traditions such as tales, legends, proverbs and jokes. They include material culture, ranging ...

music. The finale of the show sees the election of the "Reina Nacional de la Vendimia" and a large firework display.

Cultural impact

Vendimia Planitia Ceres is a dwarf planet in the asteroid belt that lies between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. The IAU has adopted two themes for naming surface features on Ceres: agricultural deities for craters and agricultural festivals for everything else. ...

, a large plain on the dwarf planet

Ceres Ceres most commonly refers to: * Ceres (dwarf planet), the largest asteroid * Ceres (mythology), the Roman goddess of agriculture Ceres may also refer to: Places Brazil * Ceres, Goiás, Brazil * Ceres Microregion, in north-central Goiás st ...

, is named after the festival.

References

External links

Vendimia Mendoza website
{{coord missing, Argentina Arts festivals in Argentina Mendoza, Argentina Tourist attractions in Mendoza Province Wine festivals Food and drink festivals in Argentina Folk festivals in Argentina .