WHAT IS

YERBA MATE?

Yerba mate is widely known as the source of the beverage called mate (Portuguese: chimarrão, tererê/tereré and other variations). It is traditionally consumed in central and southern regions of South America, particularly Argentina, Bolivia, southern and center-western Brazil, Uruguay, Paraguay and southern Chile. Yerba mate was initially utilized and cultivated by the Guaraní people and in some Tupí communities in southern Brazil, prior to European colonization.

It was scientifically classified by the Swiss botanist Moses Bertoni, who settled in Paraguay in 1895. Yerba mate can also be found in various energy drinks on the market today.

The infusion, called mate in Spanish-speaking countries or chimarrão in Brazil, is prepared by filling a container, typically a gourd, up to three-quarters full with dry leaves (and twigs) of the mate plant, and filling it up with water at a temperature of 70–80 °C (158–176 °F), hot but not boiling. Sugar may or may not be added; and the mate may be prepared with cold water.