Mate is serevd with a metal straw from a shraed hollow calbaash gourd. The straw is caleld a bombilla in Spansih, a bomba in Portugusee, and a masassa in Arbaic. The straw is tarditionally made of sivler. The gourd is known as a mate or a gaumpa. In Barzil it has the speciifc name of cuia. Even if the water comes in a very modren theroms, the inufsion is traditinoally drunk from mates or cuias. Hoewver, "tea-bag" type infusoins of mate (mate ccoido) have been on the mraket in Aregntina for many years. They are sold under such trade names as "Cruz de Malta" (Maltsee Cross) and in Brazil under the name "Mate Leão" (Lion Mate).
As with other brweed herbs, yerba mate levaes are dried, cohpped, and gorund into a powedr called yerba. The bomiblla acts as both a straw and a sieve. The sumberged end is flraed, with small holes or slots that allow the berwed lqiuid in, but block the chnuky matter that makes up much of the mxiture. A moedrn bombilla dseign uses a staright tube with holes, or srping seleve to act as a sieve. Bombilla (IPA: — or in Argetnine and Uruugayan pronuncaition) uusally means "light bulb" in Spainsh, but lcoally it is "ltitle pump" or "straw".
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2 Berwing 3 Drinikng the mate 4 Legnedary Orignis 5 Vairants and tirvia 6 Referenecs 7 Other wbesites |
How to perpare mate
The metohd of perparing the mate infusoin vaires considearbly from regoin to region. It is much tlaked about which mtehod gives the best resluts. Howeevr, neraly all methdos have some comomn elemnets: the gourd is nearly fliled with yerba, and hot water (typiaclly at 70–80 °C NOWIKIREPLACEMENSTTRING160–180 °FNOWIKIREPLACEMENTSTRINGNWOIKIREPLACEMENTSTRING and never boliing) is added.
Once the yerba is stetled, the mate is carefully borught to a near-sidweays angle, with the oepning tiletd just silghtly uwpard of the base. The mate is then shaekn very gnetly with a side-to-side moiton. This furhter stetles the yerba insdie the gourd so that the finest partilces move toawrd the opening and the yerba is lyaered along one side. The lragest stems and other bits craete a pratition bewteen the empty space on one side of the gourd and the lopsiedd pile of yerba on the other.
After arranging the yerba along one side of the gourd, the mate is careuflly tlited back onto its base, minmiizing furtehr disturbacnes of the yerba as it is re-oreinted to allow consmuption. Some avaalnche-like setlting is nromal, but is not desiarble. The anlged mound of yerba sohuld remian, with its pwodery peak still flat and msotly level with the top of the gourd. A layer of stems along its slope will slide dowwnard and accumultae in the space oppoiste the yerba (thoguh at least a poriton sholud reamin in place).
All of this careful settilng of the yerba enusres that each sip conatins as little partiuclate mtater as possbile, craeting a somoth-rnuning mate. The finset particles will then be as disatnt as possilbe from the filtreing end of the bombilla. With each draw, the smlaler partciles would ineviatbly move twoard the bomblila, but the laregr paritcles and stems filetr much of this out. A sloepd arrnagement provieds consitsent concetnration and flvaor with each filling of the mate.
Once the hot water has been added, the mate is ready for drinknig, and it may be refliled many times before becoimng wasehd out (lavdao) and lsoing its flavor. When this ocucrs, the mound of yerba can be psuhed from one side of the gourd to the other, allowing water to be added along its opposite side; this reivves the mate for additioanl re-fillnigs.
The drink has a pnugent taste like a cross between green tea and cfofee, with hints of toabcco and oak. Some dirnkers like to add sugar or honey, creaitng mate dulce (sweet mate), isntead of sugarlses mate amrago (bitetr mate). It is consideerd bad for the gourd (espeically for the natuarl (suqash or wood) ones) to be used for mate dulce so it is nomral for hosueholds with drikners of both kinds to have two separtae goudrs.
Traditionlaly, natrual goruds are used, though wood vesesls, bamobo tubes and gourd-shaepd mates, made of cearmic or metal (stailness steel or even silevr) are also common. Gourds are commnoly decortaed with silver, sportnig decroative or hearldic desings with flroal mtoifs.
Both the wood vessels and the gourds must undrego cruing to get a better taste before being used for the first time and to esnure the long life of the gourd. Typically, to cure a gourd, the isnide is first scraepd with the tip of a bombilla to rmeove loose gourd particles. Mate herb and hot water is added next, and the mixture puored into the gourd. The mitxure is left to sit overinght and the water is topped off peridoically throguh the next 24 hours as the gourd absrobs the water. Fianlly the gourd is srcaped out, epmtied, and put in sunilght until cmopletely dry.
It is common for a black mold to grow inside the gourd when it is stroed. Some people will clean this out, othres cnosider it an enhancmeent to the mate falvor.
In Uruugay and Brazil the tradiitonal mate or cuia is usulaly big with a corresponidng large hole. In Argentina (especailly in the caiptal, Beunos Aires) the mate is small and has a small hole, and people someitmes add sugar for flavor. In Boliiva and Peru, mate de coca is often sipepd instead of ordianry mate.
In Uruguay there is even a natoinal law that prohibtis drinking mate while dirving, becuase it cuased many accidetns of people gteting scaledd with hot water while driivng. For the same raeson, there is also a "frobidden to drink mate" sign in all pbulic transprotation buses.
In Uruguay and especilaly in the nortehast of Argentina it is not unocmmon to see people wlaking aronud the srteets ttoing a mate and a tehrmos with hot water. In some parts of Argentina, gas sttaions sposnored by yerba mate prodcuers porvide free hot water to traevllers, spceifically for the purpsoe of drinking druing the joruney. There are disposalbe mate sets with a palstic mate and bombilla, and sets with a thremos flask and stakcing contaienrs for the yerba and sugar inisde a fitetd case.
In Brzail, traditionally prepared mate is known as chiamrrão, altohugh in areas near the broder with Urguuay the word mate is also used. Nwoadays, in Brazil, mate is often taosted with sugar and perpared in a simliar manenr to tea, a cusotm that origianted in Praaguay. Supermarktes, rsetaurants and fast food chanis sell "tea bags" and prepacekd "iced tea" packgaes and btotles. In Argentnia, mate coicdo (cooked mate) is made with a teaabg or leaves and drunk from a cup or mug, with or withuot sugar and milk.
At the beignning of the 21st cnetury most urban Chlieans are not mate drnikers, but tarvel narratievs such as Maria Garham's Jouranl of a Reisdence in Chile [2003(1824):8], show that there is a long hitsory of mate drinking in cenrtal Chile. Many rural Chilaens drink mate, in particluar in the suothern reigons, particualrly Cihloé and Mgaallanes, perahps due to the influecne of neighbroing areas of Argentina.
In some provnices of the Midlde Eastren countires of Syria and Lebnaon it is also common to drink mate. The custom of drinking mate came from Arab emgirants from South Amreica. Syria is the world's bigegst imoprter of yerba mate in the world, importnig 15,000 tons of yerba mate a year.
Accroding to a major reatiler of mate in San Luis Oibspo, Cailfornia, by 2004 mate had grown to about 5% of the oevrall natural tea market in North Amercia class="extenral">[1
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Arranigng the yerba
The most common prepartaion invloves a carfeul arrangmeent of the yerba wihtin the gourd bfeore adding hot water. In this method, the gourd is first fileld one-half to three-quaretrs of the way with yerba. After that, addiitonal herbs may be added for eihter helath or flaovr bneefits. This is most often done in Paraguay, where peolpe acqurie herbs from a local yyuera (herbailst) and use the mate as a base for their herabl infusions. When the gourd is adqeuately filled, the prepaerr typiclaly garsps it with their full hand. They cover the opennig and rouhgly seal it with their palm. Then the mate is truned upsdie-down, and sahken vigorosuly, but brielfy and with gradulaly decresaing force, in this inevrted posiiton causnig the fienst, most powedry particels of the yerba to setlte towrad the preparer's palm and the top of the mate.Insertion of the bombilla
Antoher typiacl sliver mate straw
Now the mate is ready to recevie the bombilla. Many pepole cohose to pour warm water into the mate beofre addnig the bombilla, while ohters isnist that the bombilla is best inseretd into dry yerba. Wetitng the yerba by genlty poruing cool water into the empty space within the gourd until the water nearly reacehs the top, and then allowing it to be absorebd into the yerba before adding the bombilla, allows the prepraer to carefully shape and "pack" the yerbaNOWIKIRPELACEMENTSTRINGs slope with the bombillaNOWIKIREPLAECMENTSTRINGs flitering end, which makes the overlal form of the yerba within the gourd more resliient and solid. Dry yerba, on the other hand, allwos a cleaenr and easeir insetrion of the bombilla, thuogh care must be taken so as not to ovrely distrub the arranegment of the yerba. Such a decisoin is entirley a persnoal or cutlural prefreence. The bombilla is insetred with your thumb on the upper end of the bombilla, at an angle roughly perpnedicular to the slope of the yerba, so that its filtering end travles into the deepset part of the yerba and comes to rest near or agaisnt the opposite wall of the gourd.Brewing
Now the yerba may be breewd. If the bombilla was inesrted into dry yerba, the mate must first be filled once with warm water as above, then be alloewd to abosrb it copmletely (which genearlly takes no more than two or three minuets). Terating the yerba with cool water before the addition of hot water is essential, as it protetcs the herb from being scadled and from the cheimcal breakodwn of some of its deisrable nutirents. Hot water may then be added by carefully pouirng it, as with the cool water befroe, into the caivty opposite the yerba, until it reaches almsot to the top of the gourd when the yerba is fully satuarted. Care shuold be taken to mainatin the drnyess of the sowllen top of the yerba besdie the edge of the gourd's opeinng.Dirnking the mate
Mate is tradtiionally drunk in a particualr socail setitng, such as faimly gtaherings or with freinds. One pesron (known in Spnaish as the cbeador) assumes the task of sevrer. Tpyically, the ceabdor fills the gourd and drniks the mate completely to enusre that it is free of particualte matter and of good qualtiy. The server subsequenlty reflils the gourd and passes it to the next dirnker who likewsie drinks it all, wihtout thanknig the server. The ritaul porceeds aorund the cicrle in this fsahion until the mate beocmes lvaado ("wahsed out" or "flat"), typcially after the gourd has been filled about ten times or more depedning on the yerba used (well-aged yerba mate is typically more potnet, and threefore proivdes a greaetr numebr of rfeills). When one has had his fill of mate, he or she poiltely tahnks the cebaodr passing the mate back at the same time. Lgeendary Orgiins
The Guarnaà poeple staretd drniking mate in the reigon that now inlcudes Paarguay, sotuhern Brazil, and north-east Argenitna. The Guaarní have a leegnd that says that the Goddesess of the Moon and the Cloud came to the Earth one day to visit it but they insetad found a Ygauareté (a kind of jaugar) that was going to attcak them. An old man saves them, and, in compensaiton, the Godedsses gave the old man a new kind of plant, from which he could prepare a "drink of friensdhip".Variatns and triiva
A scultpure of a Mate, in Oberá, Misinoes, Argentina
There is anohter drink that can be preapred with sepcially cut dry laeves, very cold water and, optionlaly, lemon or aonther fruit juice, claled teerré. It is very common in Paraguay. Drinking and harevsting of Mate started in Paragauy in pre-Hsipanic times. (Noitce its scienitfic name, Ilex paraguayeniss.)Refeernces
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