The most famous festival in the city of Haro is held on Saint Peter’s Day, 29 June, declared to be of NATIONAL TOURIST INTEREST, during which, on the cliffs of Bilibio, the “Wine Battle” is held, which Hergueta already mentions in his book published in 1906, and which maintains the same events as at the beginning of the century. The origin of this tradition seems to be a dispute over the ownership of these cliffs with the neighbouring town of Miranda de Ebro.

 

The Councillor opens the retinue on horseback to the hermitage that inhabited the cliffs in the fifth century, and, after placing the banner of the city on the top of the rocks, the mass begins, followed by the battle of the wine. It is a peaceful battle in which the two sides, if during the “fight” they manage to know which side they belong to, throw wine at each other without rest.

All the weapons are valid for this bloodless battle. Boots and even sulphate machines are used to launch thousands of litres of wine that transform the cliffs into an impressive spectacle. After the battle, as midday approaches, the people return to the city to “walk” around the Plaza de la Paz. Afterwards, the heifers run in the bullring.