about mate
Mainly consumed at home among friends and family, the dried leaves (yerba) are steeped in a gourd (mate) and the resulting tea is sucked through a metal straw, or bombilla. This rotating process of sharing is what makes the act of mate drinking a moment of intimacy for those present.
If you get invited to a yerba mate session, follow these directions to look like a pro:
-
1.When it's your turn, drink until the you completely drain the mate (don't move the bombilla around in the yerba—it's seriously bad form.) Notice the satisfying gurgling sound as you hit bottom.
-
2.Pass the mate to the designated brewer (cebador), who will probably be reaching for it. The cebador refills the mate with not-quite-boiling water and passes it on in a clockwise circle.
-
3.Gracias (thank you) means "I'm done", so go easy on the politeness if you want to go another round.
4. Enjoy the ensuing company and subtle lift.
HOW TO look like a PRO in a yerba mate session:
when people gather to drink mate, something magical happened (certainly) ...
Yerba mate, or Ilex Paraguayensis, is a tree of the holly family native to the upper Paraná delta, and the consumption of its leaves has long beeen a tradition of the Río de la Plata region. The Guarani and other natives drank yerba mate for its stimulant effect, which comes from caffeine and its xanthine cousins theobromine and theophylline.
Yerba mate is supposed to have powers such as mental stimulation, fatigue reduction, stress reduction, insomnia elimination, appetite control, body immunization, blood detoxification, nervous system toning, restoration of hair color and preservation of youth!. So, mate keeps you going, like spinach to Popeye, and it is mateway’s official fuel ;-)
THE ART OF BREWING
view informational VIDEO by nativa yerba mate
It is a simple, humble, daily custom and yet it has all the characteristics of a ceremony. Like any other ceremony it has its rites which have to be carefully performed in the same way, day after day.
More than a drink, The Mate has become a cultural phenomenon throughout South America.
