What is on at the farmers' market on Sunday 8 November?
The Ayuntamiento (town council) of Los Llanos de Aridane invites residents to the Castañazo de San Martín on Sunday 8 November. It is a new edition of the traditional chestnut festival at the Mercadillo del Agricultor, the town's farmers' market.
According to the Ayuntamiento, the celebration runs from 10:00 to 13:00. The band Parranda Los De Repente will perform.
The council has not published a profile of the group or exact performance times within the three hours. Anyone who wants to hear the music should plan to stay a while.
The youngest visitors get a Colchoneta, an inflatable mat. The council says families can stroll around the market in the meantime.
When and where does the market open, and what does it cost?
A private market directory says the Mercadillo del Agricultor opens on Sundays from 08:00 to 13:00 on Avenida Doctor Fleming. The directory is not an official source, so visitors should check the times with the Ayuntamiento.
The same directory counts 24 stalls. It suggests the festival programme covers only the last three hours of opening time.
The Ayuntamiento says the stalls carry the usual produce from local farmers. The council has given no prices, including none for the chestnuts.
Nothing is known about parking or closures around Avenida Doctor Fleming. The announcement also does not say whether the programme changes in bad weather.
Why does La Palma celebrate San Martín with chestnuts and wine?
San Martín falls on 11 November, a Wednesday this year. According to the Ayuntamiento, the day once marked the vine's yearly cycle and the opening of the bodegas, where people tasted the new wine.
The council says chestnuts belong to the autumn harvest and went with gatherings of family, friends and neighbours. Parrandas, meaning friendly music sessions, and folk songs were never missing.
Wine appears in the announcement only as history. The council does not announce a wine tasting at the market.
The Ayuntamiento says it wants to keep folk traditions alive and strengthen the market as a meeting place. It invites people to bring back the mood of the old festivals and share regional products.
How old is the custom in Los Llanos de Aridane?
In November 2023 the council published a leaflet on the origins and customs of San Martín and the new wine. Its author is the town's official chronicler, María Victoria Hernández.
The oldest known written mention comes from Isaac Viera y Viera (1858 to 1941), a writer and journalist. In “Costumbres canarias” from 1916 he calls the custom “from time immemorial”.
On San Martín's day the bodegas opened, and guitar playing and celebration began at nightfall. A verse drifted through the streets of Los Llanos, joking about all kinds of people enjoying the new wine.
The Ayuntamiento says the leaflet was free at the Casa de la Cultura and in the town hall building. The council also announced similar booklets on Christmas and carnival customs at the time.
What else happens around 11 November?
On the night before 11 November, La Palma traditionally tastes the new wine straight from the barrels. According to the published description of the custom, it comes from the D.O. La Palma (protected designation of origin).
Tijarafe holds its own festival on 11 November. The programme includes carrying the saint's image from the hermitage to the parish church. No programme is available for other events in Los Llanos around the day.
The Castañazo on Sunday 8 November comes three days before the feast day itself. Wednesday 11 November remains reserved for San Martín.