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A post about Yerba Mate is a first here at ComLuv. If you are not familiar with it let me give you a quick heads up.
Yerba Mate is a kind of drink. Some take it further and say that it’s a kind of tea, due to a quite similar process of preparing it, but it’s not entirely true.
Yerba Mate is prepared by steeping dried leaves of a shrub called llex paraguariensis, which is native to some regions of South America (Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Uruguay and Paraguay).
Sounds quite exotic, I know, but I haven’t even told the best part. Yerba Mate is extremely good for you. It contains a number of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and anticarcinogens. Moreover, it has a similar noticeable effect that coffee has – it keeps you on your toes.
If you want to learn more about Yerba Mate and the effects it has on our bodies you can visit Wikipedia or do a quick search on Google, but now let’s focus on the actual process of preparation of this refreshing drink.
This is something I want to cover because many sites around the internet present a slightly different approach at this. Let me just say upfront that I’m no expert at Yerba Mate, but I’ve been drinking it for 6-9 years now (I can’t remember exactly when I started), so I know my way around it.
Yerba Mate
Here’s what the final effect looks like:
Equipment you need to prepare it
Of course, you need the leaves. There are probably many online stores offering Yerba Mate in your country. Doing a quick search on Google should do the job of finding one.
There are many kinds of Yerba Mate to choose from. For a beginner, I’d say that the Rosamonte Elaborada is a great starting point. It’s one of the most popular kinds of Mate, so it’s offered by nearly every store. It is the delicate flavor that has made it a classic known all over the world.
Here’s what it looks like among its friends:
Apart from the leaves the only mandatory thing you need is a bombilla – a kind of straw usually made out of wood or metal (you can see it in the picture above). It won’t cost you more than $5-$10 for the simplest model (also available in every
Mate is traditionally prepared in a calabash gourd, but you can use a regular cup, not to make it too complicated.
Preparing Yerba Mate
1. Water
The first step is simple. Boil some water and then wait approximately 10 minutes so it cools off a little.
2. Leaves
Take the cup and fill it one-half of the way with Mate leaves. Yes, you read this one correctly – one-half of the way.
Then arrange the leaves along one side of the cup. Aim for a sideways angle in which you can see the bottom of the cup on one side, and on the other side the cup is filled with Mate nearly to the top.
Here’s a picture to help you get it done (did my best to show you this):
3. Pouring water
Once you have the leaves arranged in the cup you can take the bombilla and place it inside the cup, at a roughly perpendicular angle to the slope of Mate. The other end of the bombilla rests on the opposite wall of the cup.
Now it’s time to pour the water. Try to aim for the visible bottom of the cup. Start by pouring just a little water so the leaves start to absorb the water. Then continue by slowly filling it all the way up.
Right after that your Mate is ready, you can drink it immediately.
4. Refilling
Same leaves can be refilled up to 8 times. So whenever you finish the cup just refill it with some hot water. Each refill reveals a slightly different flavor, which means that you can enjoy your drink throughout the whole day from the same leaves.
If you want to fully enjoy the refills it’s convenient to have a thermos with hot water around, instead of boiling water every time you want a refill. What I usually do is boil more water in the morning, pour it into a thermos, and that way I’m set up for the rest of the day.
Sugar and other extras
Traditionally, Mate is drunk without any extras, like sugar or lemon. Those extras kind of spoil Mate’s original, unique flavor. It’s a traditional drink, and like most traditional drinks, it’s good enough on its own.
That’s it for the process of preparing (brewing) Yerba Mate. For me, it’s a great substitute for coffee, and I don’t really know why because I like coffee too, but there’s just something about Mate that makes me enjoy it more. Anyway, feel free to tell me what you think. Have you tried Yerba Mate yet?
