Mate, also known as yerba
mate, chimarrão or cimarrón, is a traditional South
American caffeine-rich infused drink,
particularly in Argentina (where it is considered as the "national
infusion"), Uruguay, Paraguay and Southern Brazil
and less in southern Chile, Bolivia, Syria and Lebanon.
Mate is like an herb tea, and
everywhere friends slow down and share mate. This is as much a social
experience as it is a way to quench a thirst.
Mate tastes like a very bitter Asian green tea. The
traditional mate is consumed without sugar, but some drinkers (especially the
younger generation) like to add sugar or honey, creating mate doce (sweet
mate), instead of mate amargo (sugarless, bitter mate).
Mate was first consumed by the Guaraní people and also spread by the Tupí people who lived in that part of southern Brazil which was Paraguayan territory before the Paraguayan War. The Guaraní have a legend that says the Goddesses of the Moon and the Cloud came to the Earth one day to visit it, but they instead found a yaguareté (jaguar) that was going to attack them. An old man saved them, and, in compensation, the goddesses gave the old man a new kind of plant, from which he could prepare a "drink of friendship".
Mate was first consumed by the Guaraní people and also spread by the Tupí people who lived in that part of southern Brazil which was Paraguayan territory before the Paraguayan War. The Guaraní have a legend that says the Goddesses of the Moon and the Cloud came to the Earth one day to visit it, but they instead found a yaguareté (jaguar) that was going to attack them. An old man saved them, and, in compensation, the goddesses gave the old man a new kind of plant, from which he could prepare a "drink of friendship".
In Buenos Aires, people drink mate every day, alone or with
friends. They drink it in winter as a hot drink and in summer as a cold drink
made with iced water or with fruit juice (sometimes called tereré).
If a person offers you their mate, it
is a sign of respect. Mate is shared from the same cup, using the same straw,
person to person. Sharing mate with another person is all about friendships. And
there is an etiquette to the sharing of the mate.
Mate is traditionally drunk in a particular social setting,
such as family gatherings or with friends. The same gourd (cuia) and
straw (bomba/bombilla) are used by everyone drinking. One person (cebador)
assumes the task of server. Typically, the cebador fills the
gourd and drinks the mate completely to ensure that it has a good quality. In
some places, passing the first brew of mate to another drinker is considered
bad manners, as it may be too cold or too strong; for this reason, the first
brew is often called mate del zonzo (mate of the fool).
The cebador refills the gourd and passes it to the drinker to the
right, who likewise drinks it all (there is not much; the mate is full of
yerba, with room for little water), without thanking the server. When one
has had one's fill of mate, he politely thanks the cebador, passing
the mate back at the same time. The cebador possibly drinks the second filling, as well, if he or she
deems it too cold or bitter. The loud sucking noise made by the straw when no
more tea remains is not considered rude. The ritual proceeds around the circle
in this fashion until the mate becomes lavado, typically after the
gourd has been filled about 10 times or more, depending on the yerba used and the ability of
the cebador. No one has
to take too long, others in the roda (round)
will likely politely warn him by saying "bring the talking gourd" (cuia
de conversar).
Traditionally, natural gourds are used, though wood vessels,
bamboo tubes and gourd-shaped mates, made of ceramic or metal (stainless
steel or even silver) are also common. The gourd is traditionally made out of
the porongo or cabaça fruit shell. Gourds are commonly decorated with silver,
sporting decorative or heraldic designs with floral motifs.
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