Yerba mate is a drink made by steeping dried leaves from the yerba mate plant in hot water. It tastes somewhat like green tea, with hints of tobacco and oak. The ideal brewing temperature for yerba mate is approximately 170°F (77°C); using boiling water will produce a bitter, inferior beverage.
Needing a gourd
The first thing you’ll need is a gourd (also called a mate). Gourds come in all shapes, sizes, and materials. If you want to go the traditional route which I recommend, you’ll need a calabash gourd.
Preparing the drink
To prepare a good mate, the gourd is filled approximately 2⁄3 with yerba. Very important (!) never stir with the bombilla straw. Actually, you never touch the bombilla. Pour water near the bombilla until the yerba is saturated. Afterward, put the bombilla in the gourd with the dry yerba in it. Pour hot water into the gourd to obtain the infusion.
Yerba mate contains caffeine, antioxidants, valuable polyphenols such as flavonoids and tannins, among other valuable compounds. These antioxidants have anti-cancer properties, and they reduce inflammation as well.
The preparation of mate is a simple process, consisting of filling a container with yerba, pouring hot, but not boiling, water over the leaves, and drinking with a straw, the bombilla, which acts as a filter.
Around 90% of the world’s yerba mate is produced in Argentina’s Misiones and Corrientes provinces with their abundant rainfall and average temperature of 21°C – ideal conditions for yerba mate agriculture.
The plants take 3-5 years to reach maturity before the first harvest. Seeds must be pretreated before planting to aid germination. Online retailers offer yerba mate seeds, though they can be difficult to find locally.
The leaves are used to make yerba mate tea. This tea is prepared by steeping the leaves in hot water. The tea is then drunk from a hollow gourd using a metal straw that filters out the leaves. Yerba mate tea contains caffeine and is often shared communally. The hollow gourd and the metal straw with a filter are traditional mate instruments. While simple, care and attention yields the best taste when preparing mate.
Yerba mate is native to parts of South America. The plant grows in Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay. These regions have suitable climate and soil conditions for yerba mate. The plant requires minimum annual rainfall around 1000mm. Temperatures between 20-30°C are also ideal.