Michael Coy
The annual Manzanilla Fair will be held in Andalucia’s Sanlúcar de Barrameda from Tuesday May 27 to Sunday June 1, 2025.
So now the twin questions arise, what is Sanlúcar, and what is manzanilla?
If you already know, lucky you. If this is new to you, you’re in for a treat!
Sanlúcar de Barrameda is a pretty town which stands on the estuary of the mighty Guadalquivir river. Informally, it is known in Andalucía as the holiday resort of the people of Sevilla.
Manzanilla is the light, richly-flavoured sherry of the region. If you like your wine as dry as possible, this is the drink for you!
Excitement has been building in the town since January. For Sanlúcar, this festival is one of the highlights of the year (the other falling in August, when there are two weekends of live horse-racing on the beach).
“The Manzanilla Fair cannot be understood without its people, its art, and our unique wine. Sanlúcar is already preparing to open the doors of the Fair with that open spirit that defines us,” the mayoress, Carmen Álvarez, said recently.
Visitors will be able to enjoy all the usual fun of an Andalucían feria, with casetas, tapas and dancing. And of course there will be many opportunities to savour the infinite varieties of manzanilla.
The fairground setup is the responsibility of the City Council, specifically the Festival Department.
And it’s not a simple task: “The fairground is set up in an urban centre, and that creates many last-minute problems,” says Rodríguez Llovet, chairman of La Caña, who urges the administration to prepare the booths earlier than in other years to give the booth owners more time to prepare.
Currently, with the possibility of a surprise between now and May 27, there will be around 60 booths participating in the fair, organised into three categories: commercial, leisure and youth, and clubs or organisations.
If you’re thinking of going, and this is all new to you, booths (casetas in Spanish) are hospitality tents which you are welcome to enter, free of charge.
Inside, you’ll find local food, live music and lashings of the golden manzanilla wine.
The whole festival is co-ordinated by a Sanlúcar committee called “La Caña” (impossible to translate, but something like “the Swift Half” will convey the idea), but the community itself makes the thing work.
Booths are set up by professional bodies like the town’s pharmacists, or churches, or sports clubs – the only criterion is providing fun.
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One of the innovations of this year’s manzanilla festival will be the operation of the new Municipal Emergency Centre, recently inaugurated by the City Council.
Located next to the fountain that connects La Calzada with the Paseo Marítimo, this centre will bring together Civil Protection, health, and fire services to optimise care for the revellers and rapid-response to any accidents during the fair.
“With the opening of this new centre, we take another step in our commitment to strengthening citizen safety and providing our staff with adequate spaces for their work,” says Mayoress Álvarez.
Furthermore, the Mayor pledged to minimise inconvenience to La Calzada residents during the set-up and take-down of the fairground attractions.
Representatives of the La Calzada Residents’ Association expressed their gratitude for the fact that, for the first time in 53 years, the City Council has taken their demands into account in the planning of the Fair.
Rodríguez Llovet insists that the commitment of the fairgrounds owners remains unwavering.
“We are here to build, to add, to improve what we have year after year. And as long as the fair is held, we’ll be there working for it.”
The association reaches out to both residents and institutions to work together, convinced that the Manzanilla Fair is a symbol of Sanlúcar that must be cared for and projected with a vision for the future.
With the celebration and symbolic delivery of the first sherry barrel already underway, and with a reinforced security plan and an Emergency Centre in place, Sanlúcar is ready to party!
