St. Martin’s Day is a feast of St. Martin of Tours originating in France. It is also known as Martinmas or Martinstag. This official Catholic holiday is celebrated annually on November 11th. Different countries have different customs in celebrating this day. There are a few interesting common traditions such as processions of lanterns (marking the beginning of the butchering season), singing songs from door to door, and a baptism of a young wine which turns to mature wine ready for drinking.
Who Was St. Martin?
St. Martin was a Roman soldier, who was a great lover of the wine. He has been baptized as an adult and became a monk. It was said that St. Martin was so humble that he believed he shouldn’t have the honor of becoming a bishop. Therefore, he hid in a goose pen to avoid being declared a bishop. That is why today’s traditional meal, related to the celebration of St. Martin’s Day, is a goose.
Why do we Celebrate Wine on St. Martin’s Day?
According to the legend, St. Martin first introduced the ceremony of must baptism, that was banned by that time as a pagan ceremony. The ceremony turns an impure and sinful new wine into a mature wine through a blessing. Another interesting legend says that St. Martin was able to turn water into wine. One of the reasons that this day is marked as a ”Celebration of Wine”, is that the time of the St. Martin’s Day is the same time when a newly produced wine is ready for drinking. Martinmas is a very popular folk holiday in wine-producing countries. It’s the time when winemakers celebrate their hard work and toast to successful years in the future.
Must baptism and turning into a mature wine
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Use AGRIVI and improve your wine production to have a nice St. Martin’s Day celebration.
Text sources: Potepuhi || The Local || Total Croatia || Visit Budapest
Image sources:Â High School Dugo Selo
