Yerba Mate
Yerba Mate has a long, deep cultural history in Latin America with the first known usage of the herb attributed to the Guarani Indians. The Guarani called this evergreen shrub the Caa bush and revered the tea made from its leaves as the 'drink of the gods'.The traditional ceremony around mate involves the use of a hollowed out gourd and a bombilla. Whenever guests are over, the host will take a gourd, put some roasted mate leaves in the bottom, and add hot water. The tea is then drank through a bombilla which is a straw, usually made of silver, with a strainer on the end to keep leaves in the gourd. The host drinks the gourd completely and then refills and passes it to the next person in the "mate circle", who drinks his gourd until it is gone. The process is repeated until everyone has had a drink from the mate gourd. The mate ceremony is shared by both the peasant and the aristocrat across many cultures in Latin America.
Traditional Way of Drinking
- Pour some yerba mate into your gourd.
- Pour warm water onto part of the yerba mate.
- Relax as the yerba mate awakens.
- Put a straw into the yerba mate.
- Pour in hot water and drink.
Disclaimer: The benefits of tea are based on the thousands of years of human practices. However, please consult your doctors for any scientific approves. Teas are not the substitues of your medicinces.