La tamborrada festival in San Sebastian

La Tamborrada festival in San Sebastian, or San Sebastian Day as known to English speakers, is a holiday celebrated only in San Sebastian on the day of their patron saint every year.  The celebrations begin at midnight on the 20th of January with the ‘izada’ in the Constitution plaza in the heart of the old part when the donostiarras (citizens of San Sebastian) hoist their city’s blue and white flag.  It is at this moment when the ‘tamborreros’ (drummers) from Gaztelubide gastronomic society and representatives from other gastronomic societies and groups begin to play the famous melodies of basque compositor Sarriegui that will be played nonstop for the next 24 hours.

La Tamborrada festival in San Sebastian

 

The story begins in 1836 when a carnival band from San Sebastian started the tradition of celebrating the day of the city’s patron saint by marching through the streets playing music.  At first the participants dressed up in costumes but later they dressed in the uniform of the soldiers that were present in the city.  The first uniforms were designed using the Guipuzcoan battalion uniform template of the War of Independence which were notably influenced by French military fashion of the time.  As the festival grew with the number of participants, so did the variety of the military uniforms.

 

In the 21st century the festival has evolved into a representation of the expulsion of the French soldiers in the 19th century and highlights the city’s gastronomic culture as well.  Today you can find tamborreros dressed as cooks, sometimes carrying lifesize forks and knives!

 

On this day it is practically impossible to not see one of the so called TAMBORRADAS marching through the streets of San Sebastian.  There are now more than 125 such groups each with between 25-50 drums and 20-50 barrels used as drums accompanied by a music group and majorettes, called cantineras.  Additionally, there is also a special parade of tamborradas from the city’s schools that begins at city hall in the morning hours.

 

At midnight, 24 hours later, the tamborrada of Union Artesana is in charge of retiring the city’s flag in the Constitution Plaza, a ceremony known as ‘la arriada’ signaling the end of the festival until the following year.  It is an emotional moment for all Donostiarras and to be there in person is a once in a lifetime experience that all of us can share.

 

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Cider house restaurant

Introduction

The defining characteristic of the Basque Country is, undoubtedly, the culinary traditions. The best accompaniment to a special meal is, of course, a special drink. Which brings us to the celebrated local beverage: hard cider.

For centuries, this simple drink has been made from nothing more than apple juice, pressed and fermented according to the traditional practice.

From mid March til the end of April, a celebrated Basque ritual is the txotx season (pronounced “chatch”), people visit the cider houses when the year’s harvest is ready.

Most of the cider houses are located in the northeast of the province of Gipuzkoa, in traditional towns like Astigarraga, Hernani, Urnieta, and Usurbil. The die-hard ones keep in line with strict traditions, where people still eat standing, heavily dressed to ward of the winter chill in these large, old buildings. The more modern ones have indoor heating and plenty of seats at long, wooden tables to be shared among that day’s visitors.

The cider houses tend to charge a fixed price for the typical meal: codfish omlette, fried cod with peppers, a wood-fired t-bone steak. For dessert Idiazabal cheese, quince paste, and walnuts. Of course, this is all accompanied by as much cider as you can drink, direct from the wood casks on the walls.

Traditionally, the cider houses gave customers the opportunity to do a taste comparison from the different casks to choose the one they preferred. In Basque, a “txotx” is a small wooden stick, such as the one used to seal the wood cask in olden times. From there comes the tradition of yelling out “txotx!”. Signalling that a new barrel is about to be opened. In this unique tasting ritual originated the custom of customers bringing their own food and ingredients so that they weren’t drinking on an empty stomach. Today’s set menu of a codfish omelette, fried codfish with peppers, and of course, fine Basque meat grilled to perfection is based on these traditions.

 

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