Mate

sheryl said...
Hmm, mate. My Merriam-Webster Collegiate (11th Ed.) says that mate is "a tealike beverage drunk especially in South America." What makes it tealike?

Lou: I’m not sure that I can do mate justice in a blog since I am no expert, but here I’ll try. If you want more info Wikipedia it! Mate (pronounced mah-teh) is “tea-like” because it is a bitter drink from the leaves of a (I believe) magnolia family bush. It is served in a gourd or wood cup and drunk through a special metal straw that keeps the leaf pieces from getting into to the straw.

I think most of our experience with the drink is with Spanish teachers that were kind enough to bring this great Argentine past-time for us to try in class. The cup is pretty small and a lot of leaves are used. (It looked a little gross to us at first-- all green and foamy when full.) I believe that, unlike tea, the mate leaves leach their chemicals and taste at a slow rate so that the same leaves can be used for many refills. For this reason after each person finishes off a cup, it is simply refilled with hot water and passed to the next person. It is often a thing to do in the afternoon with friends. Seeing people sitting in the plazas with friends and their thermoses and cup is a common thing.

What did we think? Well, we aren’t completely won over. First of all we would have to get the equipment (ok, not such a big deal). Which would consist of the cup a straw and a thermos. The thermos is essential to keep lots of very hot water nearby, but not boiling water. Boiling water ruins it. It is very bitter. I love green tea, but it is way more bitter than that. I have had it with sugar and once with some mint like leaves mixed in. It was pretty good then! One afternoon I had maybe 3 cups of mate and I could not sleep that night. According to web research I did, its not supposed to have that affect on you, but then I’m not used to caffiene. It didn’t give the heart racing feeling of coffee when I drank it, so I must not have realized that I had overdosed on caffeine!

We also have some pre-packaged, roasted leaves in tea bags that we just make like tea. It tastes really good—green tea like. But I have had some otherwise unexplained restless nights after drinking the tea, too. Needless to say I drink it in moderation. And Dan? Well, he’s been happy about having a coffee maker…But stay tuned, we may be converted, yet!