Put between 1/4 and 3/4 full. It depends on the taste you want and how crushed it is. Then cover with 70-80°C water. Aim for 1-2 tablespoons per cup for perfect balance. Water temperature is key to extract flavors fully without scalding. Factors include type, amount used, and method.
Leaves have high caffeine. A cup ranges from 20-180mg. Type, amount, and method impact caffeine level hugely. Traditional preparation makes a strong infusion with more caffeine.
This guide covers using and preparing it. We discuss cups, drinking from regular cups, best ways to drink with and without a bombilla straw. Also covered is preparing in a gourd, what a straw is called, why it has a straw traditionally, and curing a gourd.
It is a rare herbal tea with natural caffeine. It makes a great coffee alternative hot or cold. Wanting something new to coffee, I got equipment. First sip was familiar yet unfamiliar. The taste grew on me fast. I couldn’t stop sipping and refilled the gourd a few times the first night. My caffeine tolerance is high. How many refills per half gourd are normal? Is there a maximum recommended intake?
Argentinian has more stems, giving it a softer taste versus Uruguayan. It’s often mixed with herbs and spices and drunk hot and sweet. Chimarrão from Southern Brazil has a lighter, fresher, softer taste. Great for beginners as it’s less bitter but needs a special cup and bombilla. Tereré is Paraguay’s cold brewed official drink.
With 85mg caffeine per cup, it has less than coffee but more than tea. So like any caffeinated food/drink, it may increase energy and reduce tiredness. Coffee has health benefits too like antioxidants that it also has.
The traditional way uses a gourd, metal straw, leaves and hot water. Put leaves in gourd, add water, sip through straw. Urban culture in parts of Argentina, Paraguay, Chile and Brazil includes breaks for sharing rounds.
How do you travel with it?
Some people can’t go on a road trip without preparing it. Others need to ensure they take enough for their month long excursions around the world. And some just like to take it with them to the park, school, work or anywhere else not too far, but far enough to put some thought into the what and how of transporting, storing and cleaning up their mate. Below are a few tips on how to travel with it and not make a mess.
Mate cups come in all shapes, sizes, and materials: from bone to silicone, wood to ceramic, glass, metal and gourd. Gourds also come in a variety of shapes and sizes.
Mate is a drink that is made from the infusion of dried leaves and hot water. It’s like coffee in that it has caffeine, it’s like tea because it is steeped in hot water, but that’s where the similarities end. Unlike coffee and tea, mate is generally shared.
Yerba Mate appears to be adaptogenic. Mate seems to be in a group of herbs known as adaptogens.
To achieve the perfect cup, use a measuring cup or spoon specifically designed for it. Start with one tablespoon per cup of water for a standard serving. Adjust to your taste preference.
It was first cultivated by indigenous Guaraní and some Tupí communities prior to European colonization.
When preparing with a tea strainer instead of a gourd, use one tablespoon per 8 ounces of water. So from one kilo you can get around 250 servings.
It contains 85 mg of caffeine per cup, between coffee and tea. It has vitamins A, B, C, and E to boost immunity. It also contains minerals.
Meet in calm nature to drink together from one gourd with one bombilla. This ritual creates a bond.
To prepare you need a cup, bombilla, and leaves. Cups come in various materials. Gourds need curing first. The bombilla is a metal straw. Add hot water and share. It has numerous health benefits.