wheels wrote:Now, i know I've heard of this before, but if you lot think that I'm going to 'Google'
Mate, or derivitives of the word, you've got another think coming! I've got caught out with that one before!
So, come on, let's have an explanation for us infidels!
Phil
Per the suggestion by Dogfish to do a search putting "yerba" in front of "mate", thought I'd clue you in so you know it's not a setup
- It is well known as the source of the beverage called mate, Chimarrão, Tererê (or Tereré) and other variations, traditionally consumed in subtropical South America, particularly northeastern Argentina, Bolivia, southern Brazil, Uruguay and Paraguay. It was first used and cultivated by the Guaraní people and in some Tupí communities in southern Brazil, prior to the European colonization. It was scientifically classified by the Swiss botanist Moses Bertoni, who settled in Paraguay in 1895.
The act of drinking and the drink are referred to as "mate" here in Uruguay. Yerba is the stuff you put in the drink. People drink it hear like tea or coffee. Nope, I'm wrong. They drink more and all day long. Instead of a tea and coffee isle in the supermarket, there is a yerba isle. It basically looks like fine ground hay put in a "cup" and then hot water is poured periodically over it, the person then drinking it through a bombilla (straw). The tastes differ, just like coffee and tea, depending upon blend. Some is very strong, others nice and soft, and they add things like gingko, mint and a multitude of other ingredients. Ain't marketing great! It's hard to generalize a taste, because of all of these additives, but what we drink is like a cross between a green tea and, well hay.
Here's a link for a more in depth read.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yerba_mateTeach me. I will learn.
