The Parish Council of Arco de São Jorge will celebrate St Martin’s Day (São Martinho) on Saturday the 11th of November. The evening revives the old tradition of tasting the new wine and visiting local wineries.
Of the commemorations, there is the procession of Saint Martin “which replicates what the great popular poet, Manuel Gonçalves (Sorcerer of the North), described in his verses. Already in the nineteenth century, the population visited the houses and cellars of the parish in order to taste new wine and partake in a light snack, a tradition that continues to this day. The emphasis is on meeting people and having fun. The highlight of the procession is the carrying of the ‘Holy Codfish,’ which is carefully decorated by the population and carried along the entire route, in the style of a pagan procession.”
This year’s edition will once again feature the wine tasting of the produce created by the Parish Council ‘Pisa da Uva,’ initiative where residents and tourists pick the grapes, transport them to the press, and blend the wine at the Wine and Vineyard Museum Lagar. This all happened on the 11th of September.
At 18:30 the festival will start at the Wine and Vineyard Museum. This is followed at 19:00 by the beginning of the procession of the ‘Santo Bacalhau,’ through the central streets, the wine producers’ cellars, and the bars of the parish.
Finally, at 22:30 a final get-together is expected with roasted cod, chestnuts, and other delicacies of the season at the Municipal Exchange Centre, with music from the Banda Filarmónica do Arco.
Samantha Gannon
info at madeira-weekly.com
