Yerba Mate

For some who are traveling in Buenos Aires and arrived without any prior knowledge of yerba mate, have probably mistaken Argentines for major stoners who spend their days ingesting green looking “weed” from a bizarre looking bong.  The bong is not really bong but “mate” a special cup, the weed is not cheeba but “yerba” tea leaves, and the metal spout sticking out of the cup is called a “bombilla,” and it is basically a metal straw that contains a filter at the end.  Argentina is the land of Yerba Mate; a tea which is drank year round and packs quite a punch as it is a natural herbal stimulant that served as my life blood during long nights of studying back in my college days.  Argentines are addicted to their yerba mate.  Adults, teens and even young children can be seen slurping yerba mate at parks, social gatherings, work meetings, on the subway…basically you name the place, and more than likely someone is carrying around a thermos of hot water and all the mate fixings. 

A Very Very Brief History of Yerba Mate:
The first people to discover, make use of and the yerba mate were the Guarani people of South America.  The conquistadors arrived and decided “Que saaabor!” We like this stuff too!  Let’s grow it!  Then the Jeuits decided they too liked Yerba and decided they we’re gonna harvest the stuff and make plantations,  however the Jesuits were eventually expelled and yerba mate was adopted by the guachos of the South American pampas.  Guachos are cowboys, and yerba served as a wonderful campfire drink. 
As this is a short a sweet history…basically the drink became popular and is now a popular beverage in various South American countries in Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, and Paraguay. 

Yerba mate has a very distinct flavor.  For me it is impossible to describe, kind of a woodsy flavored green tea, but one word that comes to mind is fuerte or strong.  Most people… or I guess I should say most of the people who I have personally drunk mate with prefer to mix sugar with their yerba.  Some prefer that disgusting (this is a personal opinion and yes, I know some will not agree) fake aspartame sugar.  I prefer the real stuff.  I know there are “rules” when it comes to preparing a cup of yerba mate, but I am ignorant of these specific norms, but the yerba leaves are placed in a mate cup along with sugar and hot water.   The mate cup itself is not that particularly large, and it is often made from a variety of materials including: glass, ceramic, wood, hollowed out gourds and I have often seen these in gift shops, but I have seen mate cups that are made from a hallowed out bull hooves.  I think this is more of a novelty as I have yet to see an Argentine drinking from one of these.  Personally I prefer glass or ceramic mate cups.  The wood and gourd ones have the tendency to become moldy and yucky in the inside.   Every time you suck down your portion of yerba, you refill the cup, sprinkle a little sugar and pass it to the next person, it is almost ritualistic.  The metal straw serves a great way to prevent the spread of germs.  Back when I was a student at the University of Buenos Aires, my teacher would bring yerba mate and my entire class of fifteen or so students would all drink from the same straw and cup.  I managed to make it through the entire semester without a case of oral herpes.

So if you ever make it to Argentina and someone invites you to drink yerba mate take advantage of the offer, you won’t regret it and you’ll experience a taste of Argentine culture.  Yes, pun intended.