history of the Haro Wine Festival dates back to the 12thcentury to a land dispute between the people of Haro and the neighboring village, Miranda del Ebro. King Ferdinand III of Castile would finally resolve the issue in 1237 via an executive letter which would later serve Judge Sancho Martínez de Leiva as a legal basis for establishing the legal boundaries between the neighbors. The judge also ordered that Haro town officials mark their property lines with the town’s purple banners every year on Saint Peter’s Day as well as the first Sunday of each September. If this task was not completed, the land would then belong to Miranda del Ebro. To complete this task, a procession to the Bilibio cliffs was organized on ever 29th of June.
Battle of Wine seemed to have occurred for the first time in 1710. According to records, after attending the mass and worshipping the patron saint, a celebration broke out in which the people started throwing wine at each other. The famous tradition was born that day and would gain tremendous popularity in the decade of 1945-1955. During this time the tradition earned the name “War of Wine” which would eventually be changed to the Battle of the Wine in 1965.