Rather impulsively, I purchased a mate gourd and a bag of yerba mate from Argentina in an effort to try something new and potentially replace my coffee drinking. I was inspired to do so from watching a Bon Appetit video where they showcased their chefs making coffee at home. Gaby, the lovely test kitchen manager, is Argentinian and doesn’t drink coffee, but she does drink mate. She had a vibrant assortment of various cups and gourds with a modest blue one being her favorite. Her demonstration of its preparation was intriguing to me because I realized I actually had no idea what mate actually was or how it was traditionally prepared. It felt like a ritual, and anything that seems witchy and steeped in a rich tradition is pretty appealing to me. It’s a sort of tea but I was under the assumption it was just run of the mill black tea. It couldn’t be more different, it’s akin to green tea but still extremely distinct. I’d say it’s earthier but perhaps slightly less astringent than green tea. I was hit with the dense herbaciousness pretty strongly the first few sips but then it mellowed out nicely as I continued to drink throughout the day. Supposedly you keep refilling the cup with hot (but not too hot) water until the leaves have exhausted their flavor. It’s a small cup but I’ve refilled it several times and the taste is still present. If I had an equivalent amount of coffee I’d probably feel like my nerves were fried. I’m sure I can abuse this drink too but I hope I won’t since I’m quite pleased with the way it’s making me feel in this initial tasting. I’m not fried but certainly stimulated. That’s a good thing!
The accoutrements!
There was a lot of this excess powder, I wasn’t sure when to stop shaking and wiping my palm.
The bombilla! What a name! ☺️
And so I sip.
This is probably the only sort of paraphernalia for something so specific I’ve ever acquired. And I can’t help but think it looks… vaguely similar to a certain other kind of paraphernalia which does make me chuckle and roll my eyes begrudgingly. Even the darn residual powder 🙄And it is, again, a ritualistic thing with multiple (albeit simple) steps to its preparation. However, instead of being bulbous and phallic-esque, I feel like my vessel looks like a small witch’s cauldron, how romantic. 💜
Put a few spoonfuls of tea into the cup.
Place your palm atop the opening of the cup and shake the tea to catch and remove excess powder on your palm.
Tilt the cup and redistribute the tea until the leaves lie at a steep angle.
Dig the bombilla into the bottom of the mound and ensure it rests against the side of the cup.
Add a few splashes of cold water to the most shallow side.
Heat water (but not too hot) and pour into the shallow side, filling just underneath the peak of the mound of tea.
Sip and enjoy!
I like it!