Bluefin tuna season: from the waters off Barbate to your plate at La Barrosa

Every spring, in the waters off Barbate, Zahara de los Atuneros and Conil, one of the Mediterranean’s oldest fishing rituals takes place: the almadraba (traditionally net-caught bluefin tuna fishing). A system of nets designed more than three thousand years ago that still captures bluefin tuna in almost exactly the same way as it did in Phoenician times. If you’re dining at La Barrosa between April and June, there’s a very good chance the tuna on your plate came straight from those nets.

It’s worth understanding what makes this fish so special and why its season is so brief. It changes quite a lot how you order it.

What the almadraba actually is

The almadraba is a trap-based fishing technique, not an active pursuit. It consists of a complex network of meshes anchored to the seabed, deployed each spring at the bluefin tuna’s natural migratory corridor between the Atlantic and the Mediterranean. The nets guide the tuna into a central copo (collecting chamber), where they are then hauled in by hand by the almadraberos.

The technique was brought to these shores by the Phoenicians some three thousand years ago. The Romans refined it — the Roman ruins at Baelo Claudia, near Bolonia, exist precisely because it was an industrial tuna-processing hub of the era. The Arabs inherited it (the word “almadraba” itself comes from Arabic al-madraba, meaning “the place where one strikes”) and ever since, the craft has been handed down through the generations in the four almadrabas that remain active in the province of Cádiz: Barbate, Zahara, Conil and Tarifa.

The calendar: when is the season

Atlantic bluefin tuna (Thunnus thynnus) make the journey twice a year between the Atlantic, where they feed, and the Mediterranean, where they spawn. The almadraba catches tuna on the inward run (de derecho, entering the Mediterranean to spawn) and the return run (de revés, heading back to the Atlantic).

• Inward-run almadraba: mid-April to mid-June. This is the main season — the tuna are in peak reproductive condition, carrying maximum accumulated fat. These are the fish that reach the finest restaurant menus.
• Return-run almadraba: July to early August. The tuna return leaner, having already spawned, so catches are smaller and the gastronomic quality is lower. Commercial volumes are also reduced.

The most eagerly awaited moment of the inward-run season is the levantá: the day when the almadraberos raise the nets of the copo and haul in the tuna. It takes place during specific hauls throughout the season and draws journalists, photographers, chefs and curious visitors from across Europe every year. The first levantá of 2026 was on 16 April in Barbate. Subsequent hauls are typically staggered through May and June according to quota allocations.

Why this tuna is different

Bluefin tuna are found in almost every ocean in the world, but the almadraba tuna from Cádiz has certain characteristics that set it apart from the rest:

1. The fat is at its peak

Because it is caught just before spawning, the tuna has spent months feeding intensively in the Atlantic. It carries an exceptional fat content, particularly in cuts such as the ventresca (belly), tarantelo (lower flank near the tail) and descargado (lean loin). When eaten raw — as sashimi, tataki or tartare — the mouthfeel is silky, almost sweet, with none of the dryness you might find in lesser fish.

2. The fishing is selective

The almadraba does not catch young fish or small breeding females. The mesh is calibrated to retain only adult tuna weighing more than 80 kilograms. Combined with international quotas (managed by ICCAT, the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas), this makes the system genuinely sustainable. This is not mass-extraction fishing; it is selective by design.

3. Zero stress at the point of capture

Almadraba tuna swim into the trap of their own accord. There is no chase, no hook. Minimal stress means minimal lactic acid released into the muscle — and lactic acid is what toughens the flesh. The result is a far cleaner texture than tuna caught by longline or industrial purse-seine.

4. Traditional butchering

Bluefin tuna in Cádiz is butchered following the ronqueo, a traditional cutting method that separates up to 25 distinct pieces, each with its own culinary use. Cooking a mormo (tenderloin) is nothing like cooking a ventresca or a tarantelo — and the almadraberos have known this for centuries.

The cuts worth knowing

If you see “atún rojo de almadraba” on a menu, the next thing that matters is which cut. The most interesting ones:

• Ventresca: the belly. The fattiest and most prized cut. Best on the griddle or over embers, cooked briefly so the fat melts while the centre stays pink.
• Tarantelo: the lower flank near the tail. A perfect balance of fat and flesh. Excellent for tataki or sashimi.
• Descargado: the lean upper loin. Clean and delicate, ideal for raw preparations.
• Mormo (tenderloin): the inner cut, very lean and tender. Best on a hot griddle with good salt and a drizzle of olive oil.
• Tataki: a technique, not a cut. Typically made with descargado or tarantelo, seared on the outside and raw within, served with soy sauce, ginger and sesame.
• Mojama: salt-cured tuna. Not seasonal — it is made to preserve. Served in thin slices with olive oil, or finely chopped over salad.
• Encebollado: the classic Cádiz stew. Tuna with slow-cooked onion, bay leaf and a touch of vinegar. It requires longer cooking, so leaner cuts like descargado or mormo are used.

How we work with tuna at La Rúcula

At La Rúcula we bring bluefin tuna onto the menu when the almadraba season begins and keep it there for the duration of the inward-run season. We’ll be straightforward about it: we work with local suppliers from Barbate and Conil who guarantee us full traceability and freshness. We don’t keep frozen tuna from a previous season’s campaign; we would rather go without than serve something ordinary.

During the season we typically offer:

• Bluefin tuna tataki with soy sauce, fresh ginger and toasted sesame. Seared on the griddle to order, served warm in thin slices. The most direct way to experience the quality of the fish.
• Bluefin tuna tartare with avocado, lime and extra-virgin olive oil from the hills behind Cádiz. A fresh starter, ideal before a fish dish or a rice.
• A tuna interpretation of vacío argentino when the cut lends itself — a brief turn on the griddle, Maldon salt, a thread of oil. For those who prefer a little more cooking without sacrificing succulence.

The price of almadraba tuna is high compared with other fish, and rightly so. It leaves the sea through an artisanal, quota-regulated system, is butchered by hand, arrives at the restaurant whole and is worked to order. There is no way to make it cheaper without losing quality.

What to drink with tuna

Bluefin tuna calls for wines with some structure. Our recommendations from the Jerez region:

• Dry oloroso: the classic pairing. Its oxidative character, redolent of roasted nuts, stands up to the fat of the tuna without overpowering it.
• Amontillado: more refined; ideal with tataki or sashimi, where you want to draw out the natural sweetness.
• Manzanilla en rama: if the dish is a fresh tartare, a young, unfiltered manzanilla works beautifully.
• Young Andalusian reds: also worth considering, especially with more fully cooked preparations such as encebollado.

If you’d like to explore this further, we also wrote a guide on pairing manzanilla and fino with fish, where we explain the full framework.

Why it matters to eat it in season

The inward-run almadraba lasts eight weeks. After that, frozen campaign tuna can continue circulating through restaurants for months — but it is not the same thing. The fat loses its texture, the flavour flattens, the freshness is gone. That is why it is worth planning ahead: if you want to try bluefin tuna at its very best, come to Cádiz between late April and mid-June.

And it is worth coming to the area where it is fished. Eating it in Madrid is simply not the same as eating it thirty kilometres from the net.

An almadraba bluefin tuna from Barbate, sliced thin with flaked salt and olive oil, eaten looking out to sea in May, is probably the most honest dish you will eat all season.

If you’d like to know more about our approach to cooking, you can read how we work with seafood, or browse the full menu to see which tuna cuts we have this week. To come and try it, the quickest way is to book a table a couple of hours in advance.

Enjoy the season.