View source for Chemistry:Mate (drink)

{{short description|Traditional South American caffeine-infused drink}}
{{italic title}}
{{Infobox drink
| name       = {{lang|es|Mate}}
| type       = Infusion, hot
| image      = Mate en calabaza.jpg
| caption    = {{lang|es|Mate}} in a traditional calabash gourd with a metal {{lang|es|bombilla}}
| origin     = The territory of the Guaraní people (present-day Paraguay, the Misiones province of Argentina, southeastern Bolivia, southern Brazil and Uruguay)
| introduced = [[History:Pre-Columbian era|Pre-Columbian era]]. First European written record by Spanish colonizers in the 15th century
}}
'''{{lang|es|Mate}}''' or '''maté'''{{efn|Both ''mate'' and ''maté'' are common spellings in English. It is spelled ''mate'' in both Spanish and Portuguese.<ref name="EB">{{cite encyclopedia |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/mate-beveragev|title=Mate - beverage |encyclopedia=[[Encyclopædia Britannica]] |access-date=8 October 2015 |editor-first=Melissa |editor-last=Petruzzello }}</ref>}} ({{IPAc-en|'|m|ɑː|t|eɪ}} {{respell|MAH-tay}}, Spanish: {{IPA-es|ˈmate|}}, Portuguese: {{IPA-pt|ˈmatʃi|}}) is a traditional South American [[Biology:Caffeine|caffeine]]-rich infused herbal drink. It is also known as '''{{lang|pt|chimarrão}}{{efn|Portuguese: {{IPA-pt|ʃimɐˈʁɐ̃w|}}}}''' or '''{{lang|es|cimarrón}}''','''{{efn|Spanish: {{IPA-es|simaˈron|}}}}''' and '''''ka’ay''''' in [[Social:Guarani language|Guarani]].<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3tYkDwAAQBAJ&dq=ka'ay+mate&pg=PA183 |title=Guarani Linguistics in the 21st Century |date=2017-05-15 |publisher=BRILL |isbn=978-90-04-32257-8 |language=en}}</ref> It is made by soaking dried [[Biology:Yerba mate|yerba mate]] (''Ilex paraguariensis'') leaves in hot water and is traditionally served with a metal straw ({{lang|es|bombilla}}) in a container typically made from a calabash gourd (also called the {{lang|es|mate}}), but also made from a cattle horn ({{lang|es|guampa}}) in some areas. A very similar preparation, known as {{lang|es|mate cocido}}, removes some of the plant material and sometimes comes in tea bags. Today, mate is sold commercially in tea bags and as bottled iced tea.

{{lang|es|Mate}} was consumed by the Guaraní and Tupi peoples. Its consumption was exclusive to the natives of Paraguay,<ref>{{Cite web |title=En busca del hueso perdido : (tratado de paraguayología) / Helio Vera |url=http://www.cervantesvirtual.com/obra-visor/en-busca-del-hueso-perdido-tratado-de-paraguayologia--0/html/ff4b16b6-82b1-11df-acc7-002185ce6064_17.html |access-date=25 March 2021 |website=Biblioteca Virtual Miguel de Cervantes |language=es }}</ref> more specifically the departments of Amambay and Alto Paraná. It is the national beverage of Argentina,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.infoleg.gob.ar/infolegInternet/anexos/215000-219999/218040/norma.htm |title=Ley 26.871 - Declárase al Mate como infusión nacional |work=InfoLEG |publisher=Argentinean Ministry of Economy |access-date=7 October 2010 |language=es }}</ref> Paraguay and Uruguay and is also consumed in the Bolivian Chaco, Brazil, Northern and Southern Chile, and Syria, where it was brought from Paraguay and Argentina by immigrants.<ref name="donald">{{cite book |title=Medical Toxicology of Drug Abuse: Synthesized Chemicals and Psychoactive Plants |last=Barceloux |first=Donald |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |isbn=978-1-11810-605-1 |date=3 February 2012 }}</ref><ref name="Middle East Online">{{cite web |url=http://www.middle-east-online.com/english/?id=64763 |title=South American 'mate' tea a long-time Lebanese hit |work=Middle East Online |access-date=11 March 2014 |archive-date=12 March 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140312014840/http://www.middle-east-online.com/english/?id=64763 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

== Accessories ==
The metal straw is known as a {{lang|es|bombilla}} or {{lang|es|bomba}} and is traditionally made of [[Chemistry:Silver|silver]]. Modern straws are typically made of [[Chemistry:Nickel silver|nickel silver]], [[Chemistry:Stainless steel|stainless steel]], or hollow-stemmed [[Biology:Cane (grass)|cane]]. The {{lang|es|bombilla}} functions both as a straw and as a [[Engineering:Sieve|sieve]]. The submerged end is flared, with small holes or slots that allow the brewed liquid in, but block the chunky matter that makes up much of the mixture. A modern {{lang|es|bombilla}} design uses a straight tube with holes or a spring sleeve to act as a sieve.<ref>{{cite news|last=Goodfriend|first=Anne|date=2 March 2006|title=Yerba maté: The accent is on popular health drink|page=1|work=USA Today|url=https://www.usatoday.com/travel/destinations/2006-03-02-yerba-mate_x.htm|access-date=29 May 2011}}</ref>

The container the {{lang|es|mate}} is served in is also known as {{lang|es|mate}}.<ref group="lower-alpha">Known as {{lang|es|mate}} or a {{lang|es|guampa}} in Spanish, or {{lang|pt|cuia}} or {{lang|pt|cabaça}} in Brazil.</ref> It is commonly made from calabash gourd but may also be made out of other materials.

== History ==
[[File:Schmidtmeyer, Peter & Scharf, G - Tertulia & Mate Party -JCB Library f1.2 (cropped).jpg|thumb|Tertulia and Mate party in Santiago de Chile, in 1821, by Scharf and Schmidtmeyer. John Carter Brown Library.<ref>{{cite book|author1=Peter Schmidtmeyer |author2=George Johann Scharf|publisher=Rowney & Forster|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EzcB9j2y-XIC|title=Travels Into Chile, Over the Andes, in the Years 1820 and 1821: With Some Sketches of the Productions and Agriculture; Mines and Metallurgy; Inhabitants, History, and Other Features, of America; Particularly of Chile, and Arauco|year=1821|page=266}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://americana.jcblibrary.org/search/object/jcbcap-ljcb-1-1-4604-7270004/|website=John Carter Brown Library website|year=1821|title=Tertulia and Mate Party}}</ref>]]
[[File:Dr francia.JPG|right|thumb|upright|Lithograph of José Gaspar Rodríguez de Francia, a 19th-century ruler of Paraguay, with a {{lang|es|mate}} and its {{lang|es|bombilla}}]]

{{lang|es|Mate}} was first consumed by the indigenous Guaraní who live in what is now Paraguay, southeastern Brazil, Argentina, Bolivia, Uruguay,<ref name="EB" /><ref>{{Cite book|last=Del Techo, Ximénez, Dobrizhoffer|first=Nicolás, Bartolomé, Martín|title=Tres encuentros con América, Asunción, p. 40.|publisher=editorial del Centenario|year=1967}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web | title = The Guaraní and Their Legacy | editor-first=Barbara |editor-last=Ganson | work = Oxford Bibliographies | access-date = 25 March 2021 | url = https://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/view/document/obo-9780199766581/obo-9780199766581-0222.xml }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/view/document/obo-9780199766581/obo-9780199766581-0222.xml|title = The Guaraní and Their Legacy}}</ref><ref name="Preedy">{{Cite book |last=Preedy |first=Victor R. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=k3HK2WuZrsYC&q=Goddesses&pg=PT204 |title=Tea in Health and Disease Prevention |publisher=Academic Press |year=2013 |isbn=9780123849373 |pages=165–6 |quote=The Indians known as the Guarani began drinking yerba mate in the region that now includes Paraguay, southern Brazil, southeastern Bolivia, Northeastern Argentina and Uruguay.}}</ref> and was also spread by the Tupí people who lived in neighbouring areas. After, it was commercialised to part of southern Brazil and northeast Argentina, mostly some areas that were Paraguayan territory before the Paraguayan War. Therefore, the scientific name of the yerba-mate is ''Ilex paraguariensis''. The consumption of yerba-mate became widespread with the European colonization in the Spanish colony of Paraguay in the late 16th century, among both Spanish settlers and indigenous Guaraní, who consumed it before the Spanish arrival. Yerba {{lang|es|Mate}} consumption spread in the 17th century to the Río de la Plata and from there to Peru and Chile.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.yerba-mate.com/yerba_mate_history.htm|title=Regional History of Yerba Mate|website=www.yerba-mate.com|access-date=30 October 2019}}</ref> This widespread consumption turned it into Paraguay's main [[Finance:Commodity|commodity]] above other wares such as tobacco, cotton and beef. Aboriginal labour was used to harvest wild stands. In the mid-17th century, Jesuits managed to domesticate the plant and establish plantations in their Indian reductions in the Argentine province of Misiones, sparking severe competition with the Paraguayan harvesters of wild strands. After [[Organization:Suppression of the Society of Jesus|their expulsion]] in the 1770s, the Jesuit missions — along with the yerba-mate plantations — fell into ruins. The industry continued to be of prime importance for the Paraguayan economy after independence, but development in benefit of the Paraguayan state halted after the Paraguayan War (1864–1870) that devastated the country both economically and demographically.

Brazil then became the largest producer of {{lang|es|mate}}. In Brazilian and Argentine projects in late 19th and early 20th centuries, the plant was domesticated once again, opening the way for plantation systems. When Brazilian entrepreneurs turned their attention to coffee in the 1930s, Argentina, which had long been the prime consumer, took over as the largest producer, resurrecting the economy of Misiones Province, where the Jesuits had once had most of their plantations. For years, the status of largest producer shifted between Brazil and Argentina.<ref>{{cite web|title=History of Mate|url=http://comex.lasmarias.com.ar/eng/detalle.php?a=yerba-mate-tea&t=3&d=1|publisher=Establecimiento Las Marías|access-date=8 November 2011|archive-date=12 November 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111112130854/http://comex.lasmarias.com.ar/eng/detalle.php?a=yerba-mate-tea&t=3&d=1|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Today, Argentina is the largest producer with 56–62%, followed by Brazil, 34–36%, and Paraguay, 5%.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://segundoenfoque.com/la-produccion-yerba-mate-argentina-registro-record-historico-2018-02-09|title=segundoenfoque|access-date=13 July 2018|date=9 February 2018|archive-date=10 February 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180210175347/http://segundoenfoque.com/la-produccion-yerba-mate-argentina-registro-record-historico-2018-02-09|url-status=dead}}</ref> Uruguay is the largest consumer per capita, consuming around 19 liters per year.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://blog.euromonitor.com/2016/10/as-consumption-stagnates-in-south-america-will-yerba-mate-move-north.html|title=As Consumption Stagnates in South America, will Yerba Mate Move North?|date=19 October 2016|access-date=23 June 2017|archive-date=24 November 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171124234301/http://blog.euromonitor.com/2016/10/as-consumption-stagnates-in-south-america-will-yerba-mate-move-north.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>

== Name ==
The English word comes from the [[Social:French language|French]] {{lang|fr|maté}} and the American Spanish {{lang|es|mate}}, which means both {{lang|es|mate}} and the vessel for drinking it, from the [[Biography:Quechuan languages|Quechua]] word {{lang|qu|mati}} for the calabash gourd used to make it.<ref>{{MW|maté}}</ref><ref>[https://www.cnrtl.fr/etymologie/mat%C3%A9/0 Etymology of ''maté''] in the ''Trésor de la langue française informatisé''</ref>

Both the spellings "maté" and "mate" are used in English. The acute accent indicates that the word is pronounced with two syllables, like café (both ''maté'' and ''café'' are stressed on the first syllable in the UK), rather than like the one-syllable English word "mate".<ref>Although the order of spelling variants in dictionaries is not necessarily meaningful in any particular case, ''Webster's Third New International Dictionary of the English Language Unabridged'', the ''Oxford English Dictionary'', ''Collins English Dictionary'', the ''Random House Dictionary of the English Language'' and Lexico.com all give the accented form "maté" before the unaccented form "mate", or refer the reader to see "maté" if they look up "mate".</ref> An acute accent is not used in the Spanish spelling, because the first syllable is stressed. The Yerba Mate Association of the Americas points out that, in Spanish, "{{lang|es|maté}}" with the stress on the second syllable means "I killed".<ref name=EB/>

In Brazil, traditionally prepared {{lang|es|mate}} is known as {{lang|pt|chimarrão}}, although the word {{lang|pt|mate}} and the expression "{{lang|es|mate amargo}}" (bitter mate) are also used in Argentina and Uruguay. The Spanish {{lang|es|cimarrón}} means "rough", "brute", or "barbarian", but is most widely understood to mean "feral", and is used in almost all of Latin America for domesticated animals that have become wild. The word was then used by the people who colonized the region of the Río de la Plata to describe the natives' rough and sour drink, drunk with no other ingredient to sweeten the taste.

== Culture ==
[[File:Pope Francis with Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner 4.jpg|thumbnail|Pope Francis holds a {{lang|es|guampa}} and {{lang|es|bombilla}} given as a gift while speaking with Argentine President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner.]]

{{lang|es|Mate}} has a strong cultural significance for both national identity and society. Yerba {{lang|es|Mate}} is the national drink of Paraguay, where it is also consumed with either hot or ice cold water (see tereré);<ref>{{cite book|vauthors=Conran C, Conran T, Hopkinson S|title=The Conran Cookbook|year=2001|publisher=Conran-Octopus|isbn=978-1-84091-182-4}}</ref> Argentina;<ref>{{cite news|last=Sanders|first=Kerry|title=Next time you're in Argentina, try a cup of mate|page=1|publisher=MSNBC|url=http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/24315283/ns/today-where_in_the_world/t/next-time-youre-argentina-try-cup-mate/|url-status=dead|access-date=29 May 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121001185454/http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/24315283/ns/today-where_in_the_world/t/next-time-youre-argentina-try-cup-mate/|archive-date=1 October 2012}}</ref> and Uruguay. Drinking {{lang|es|mate}} is a common social practice in all of the territory of Paraguay and parts of Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, southern Chile, and eastern Bolivia. Throughout the Southern Cone, it is considered to be a tradition taken from the Paraguayan Guaraní and drank by the {{lang|es|gauchos}} or {{lang|es| vaqueros}}, terms commonly used to describe the old residents of the South American {{lang|es|pampas}}, {{lang|es|chacos}}, or Patagonian grasslands, found principally in parts of Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay, southeastern Bolivia, southern Chile and southern Brazil. Argentina has celebrated National Mate Day every 30 November since 2015.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://inym.org.ar/noticias/yerba-mate-argentina/78956-30-de-noviembre-dia-nacional-del-mate-en-la-argentina.html |title= ¡Al gran mate argentino salud! 30 de noviembre: Día Nacional del Mate en la Argentina|last= |first= |date= |website= |publisher=INSTITUTO NACIONAL DE LA YERBA MAT |access-date=25 January 2021 |quote=El Congreso de la Nación Argentina, sancionó en diciembre de 2014 la Ley 27.117, la cual establece que el día 30 de noviembre de cada año se celebre el "Día Nacional del Mate", en homenaje al caudillo Andrés Guacurarí y Artigas, conocido popularmente como "Andresito".}}</ref>

Parque Histórico do Mate, funded by the state of Paraná (Brazil), is a park aimed to educate people on the sustainable harvesting methods needed to maintain the integrity and vitality of the oldest wild forests of {{lang|es|mate}} in the world.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.museuparanaense.pr.gov.br/modules/conteudo/conteudo.php?conteudo=56 |title=Museu Paranaense |publisher=Museuparanaense.pr.gov.br |access-date=13 February 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nativayerbamate/harvest.html |title=Nativa Yerba Mate |website=nativayerbamate.com/harvest.html |access-date=18 July 2011 }}{{dead link|date=September 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

{{lang|es|Mate}} is also consumed as an iced tea in various regions of Brazil, originating both from an industrialized form, produced by Matte Leão, and from artisanal producers. It is part of the beach culture in Rio de Janeiro, where it is widely sold by beach vendors;<ref>{{cite news |last=Barrionuevo |first=Alexei |date=9 February 2010 |title=Clamping Down on the Kaleidoscope of Rio's Beaches |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/10/world/americas/10rio.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0 |location=New York City |work={{wipe|The New York Times}} |access-date=30 August 2014}}</ref> the hot infused variation being uncommon in the area.

== Preparation ==
{{multiple image
| width = 200
| image1 = Mate_tradicional_con_pava.jpg
| alt1 = 
| caption1 = A traditional [[Biology:Calabash|calabash]] [[Biology:Gourd|gourd]] with a [[Engineering:Kettle|kettle]]
| image2 = Mate_moderno_con_pava_electrica.jpg
| alt2 = 
| caption2 = A modern mate with an electric kettle
}}


The most common preparation involves a careful arrangement of the {{lang|es|yerba}} within the gourd before adding hot water. In this method, the gourd is first filled one-half to three-quarters of the way with {{lang|es|yerba}}. Too much {{lang|es|yerba}} will result in a "short" mate; conversely, too little {{lang|es|yerba}} results in a "long" mate, both being considered undesirable. After that, any additional herbs ({{lang|es|yuyo}}, in Portuguese {{lang|pt|jujo}}) may be added for either health or flavor benefits, a practice most common in Paraguay, where people acquire herbs from a local {{lang|es|yuyera}} (herbalist) and use the {{lang|es|mate}} as a base for their herbal infusions. When the gourd is adequately filled, the preparer typically grasps it with the full hand, covering and roughly sealing the opening with the palm. Then the {{lang|es|mate}} is turned upside-down, and shaken vigorously, but briefly and with gradually decreasing force, in this inverted position. This causes the finest, most powdery particles of the {{lang|es|yerba}} to settle toward the preparer's palm and the top of the mate.

Once the {{lang|es|yerba mate}} has settled, the {{lang|es|mate}} is carefully brought to a near-sideways angle, with the opening tilted just slightly upward of the base. The {{lang|es|mate}} is then shaken very gently with a side-to-side motion. This further settles the {{lang|es|yerba mate}} inside the gourd so that the finest particles move toward the opening and the {{lang|es|yerba}} is layered along one side. The largest stems and other bits create a partition between the empty space on one side of the gourd and the lopsided pile of {{lang|es|yerba}} on the other.

{{multiple image
| height = 150
| image1 = Straw mate.jpg
| alt1 = 
| caption1 = A typical {{lang|es|bomba/bombilla}} or straw
| image2 = Bambusové bombilly.JPG
| alt2 = 
| caption2 = Homemade bamboo {{lang|es|bombillas}}
| image3 = Bombilla.jpg
| alt3 = 
| caption3 = An ornate silver {{lang|es|bombilla}}
}}

After arranging the {{lang|es|yerba}} along one side of the gourd, the {{lang|es|mate}} is carefully tilted back onto its base, minimizing further disturbances of the {{lang|es|yerba}} as it is re-oriented to allow consumption. Some [[Chemistry:Settling|settling]] is normal, but is not desirable. The angled mound of {{lang|es|yerba}} should remain, with its powdery peak still flat and mostly level with the top of the gourd. A layer of stems along its slope will slide downward and accumulate in the space opposite the {{lang|es|yerba}} (though at least a portion should remain in place).

All of this careful settling of the {{lang|es|yerba}} ensures that each sip contains as little particulate matter as possible, creating a smooth-running mate. The finest particles will then be as distant as possible from the filtering end of the straw. With each draw, the smaller particles would inevitably move toward the straw, but the larger particles and stems filter much of this out. A sloped arrangement provides consistent concentration and flavor with each filling of the mate.

[[File:Matero en Posadas.jpg|thumb|right|upright|Statue of a man serving {{lang|es|mate}}, in Posadas, Misiones, Argentina]]

Now the {{lang|es|mate}} is ready to receive the straw. Wetting the {{lang|es|yerba}} by gently pouring cool water into the empty space within the gourd until the water nearly reaches the top, and then allowing it to be absorbed into the {{lang|es|yerba}} before adding the straw, allows the preparer to carefully shape and "pack" the {{lang|es|yerba}}<nowiki>'</nowiki>s slope with the straw's filtering end, which makes the overall form of the {{lang|es|yerba}} within the gourd more resilient and solid. Dry {{lang|es|yerba}}, though, allows a cleaner and easier insertion of the straw, but care must be taken so as not to overly disturb the arrangement of the {{lang|es|yerba}}. Such a decision is entirely a personal or cultural preference. The straw is inserted with one's thumb and index finger on the upper end of the gourd, at an angle roughly perpendicular to the slope of the {{lang|es|yerba}}, so that its filtering end travels into the deepest part of the {{lang|es|yerba}} and comes to rest near or against the opposite wall of the gourd. It is important for the thumb to form a seal over the end of the straw when it is being inserted, or the air current produced in it will draw in undesirable particulates.

=== Brewing ===

After the above process, the {{lang|es|yerba}} may be brewed. If the straw is inserted into dry {{lang|es|yerba}}, the {{lang|es|mate}} must first be filled once with cool water as above, then be allowed to absorb it completely (which generally takes no more than two or three minutes). Treating the {{lang|es|yerba}} with cool water before the addition of hot water is essential, as it protects the {{lang|es|yerba mate}} from being scalded and from the chemical breakdown of some of its desirable nutrients. Hot water may then be added by carefully pouring it, as with the cool water before, into the cavity opposite the {{lang|es|yerba}}, until it reaches almost to the top of the gourd when the {{lang|es|yerba}} is fully saturated. Care should be taken to maintain the dryness of the swollen top of the {{lang|es|yerba}} beside the edge of the gourd's opening.

Once the hot water has been added, the {{lang|es|mate}} is ready for drinking, and it may be refilled many times before becoming {{lang|es|lavado}} (washed out) and losing its flavor. When this occurs, the mound of {{lang|es|yerba}} can be pushed from one side of the gourd to the other, allowing water to be added along its opposite side; this revives the {{lang|es|mate}} for additional refillings and is called "{{lang|es|reformar o/el mate}}" (reforming the mate).

== Etiquette ==
{{disputed section|date=August 2023}}
{{multiple image
| height            = 150
| image1            = MateinUruguay.png
| alt1              = 
| caption1          = {{lang|es|Mate}} drinking in public is commonplace.
| image2            = Man in Buenos Aires drinking mate.JPG
| alt2              = 
| caption2          = A man drinking {{lang|es|mate}} in a car
| image3            = Uruguayan senate.jpg
| alt3              = 
| caption3          = Uruguayan senators drink mate in parliament.
}}

{{lang|es|Mate}} is traditionally drunk in a particular social setting, such as family gatherings or with friends. The same gourd ({{lang|es|cuia}}''/mate'') and straw ({{lang|es|bomba/bombilla}}) are used by everyone drinking. One person (known in Portuguese as the {{lang|es|preparador}}, {{lang|es|cevador}}, or {{lang|es|patrão}}, and in Spanish as the {{lang|es|cebador}}) assumes the task of server, which most of the time is the house owner in family gatherings. Typically, the {{lang|es|cebador}} fills the gourd and drinks the {{lang|es|mate}} completely to ensure that it is free of particulate matter and of good quality. In some places, passing the first brew of {{lang|es|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 {{lang|es|mate del zonzo}} ({{lang|es|fool´s mate}}). The {{lang|es|cebador}} possibly drinks the second filling as well, if they deem it too cold or bitter. The {{lang|es|cebador}} subsequently refills the gourd and passes it to the drinker to their right, who likewise drinks it all (there is not much; the {{lang|es|mate}} is full of yerba, with room for little water), and returns it without thanking the server; a final {{lang|es|gracias}} or {{lang|pt|obrigado}} (thank you) implies that the drinker has had enough.<ref>[http://www.lanacion.com.ar/1156709-se-toma-un-mate-segunda-parte La Nación newspaper: ¿Se toma un mate? (Segunda parte)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180805112620/https://www.lanacion.com.ar/1156709-se-toma-un-mate-segunda-parte |date=5 August 2018 }} {{in lang|es}}</ref> The only exception to this order is if a new guest joins the group; in this case the new arrival receives the next mate, and then the cebador resumes the order of serving, and the new arrival will receive theirs depending on their placement in the group. When no more tea remains, the straw makes a loud sucking noise, which is not considered rude. The ritual proceeds around the circle in this way until the {{lang|es|mate}} becomes {{lang|es|lavado}} (washed out), typically after the gourd has been filled about 10 times or more depending on the {{lang|es|yerba}} used (well-aged {{lang|es|yerba mate}} is typically more potent, so provides a greater number of refills) and the ability of the {{lang|es|cebador}}. When one has had one's fill of mate, they politely thank the {{lang|es|cebador}}, passing the {{lang|es|mate}} back at the same time. It is impolite for anyone but the cebador to move the bombilla or otherwise mess with the mate; the cebador may take offense to this and not offer it to the offender again. When someone takes too long, others in the round ({{lang|es|roda}} in Portuguese, {{lang|es|ronda}} in Spanish) will likely politely warn them by saying "bring the talking gourd" ({{lang|es|cuia de conversar}}); an Argentine equivalent, especially among young people, being {{lang|es|no es un micrófono}} ("it's not a microphone"), an allusion to the drinker holding the {{lang|es|mate}} for too long, as if they were using it as a microphone to deliver a lecture.

Some drinkers like to add [[Chemistry:Sugar|sugar]] or [[Chemistry:Honey|honey]], creating {{lang|es|mate dulce}} or {{lang|es|mate doce}} (sweet mate), instead of sugarless {{lang|es|mate amargo}} (bitter mate), a practice said to be [[Medicine:Brazilian tea culture|more common in Brazil]] outside its southernmost state. Some people also like to add lemon or orange peel, some herbs or even coffee, but these are mostly rejected by people who like to stick to the "original" mate.
Traditionally, natural gourds are used, though wood vessels, bamboo tubes, and gourd-shaped {{lang|es|mates}}, made of ceramic or metal (stainless steel or even silver) are also common, as are vessels made from cattle horns. The gourd is traditionally made out of the porongo or {{lang|pt|cabaça}} fruit shell. Gourds are commonly decorated with silver, sporting decorative or heraldic designs with floral motifs. Some gourd mates with elaborated silver ornaments and silver bombillas are true pieces of jewelry and very sought after by collectors.

==Contaminants ==
Research found both cold- and hot-water [[Chemistry:Extract|extract]]ions of commercial yerba-mate products contained high levels (8.03 to 53.3&nbsp;ng/g dry leaves) of carcinogenic [[Astronomy:Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon|polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon]]s (i.e. [[Chemistry:Benzo(a)pyrene|benzo[a]pyrene]]).<ref>{{cite journal|url=http://cebp.aacrjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/17/5/1262 |title=High Levels of Carcinogenic Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Mate Drinks |journal=Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention |volume=17 |issue=5 |pages=1262–1268 |publisher=Cebp.aacrjournals.org |access-date=24 April 2012|doi=10.1158/1055-9965.EPI-08-0025 |pmid=18483349 |year=2008 |last1=Kamangar |first1=F. |last2=Schantz |first2=M. M. |last3=Abnet |first3=C. C. |last4=Fagundes |first4=R. B. |last5=Dawsey |first5=S. M. |doi-access=free }}</ref>
[[File:Mate gaucho.jpg|thumb|Brazilian-style ''Chimarrão'']]

== Other properties ==

{{lang|es|Mate}} is a rich source of [[Biology:Caffeine|caffeine]]. On average, {{lang|es|mate}} tea contains 92&nbsp;mg of [[Chemistry:Chlorogenic acid|chlorogenic acid]] per gram of dry leaves, and no [[Chemistry:Catechin|catechin]]s, giving it a significantly different [[Chemistry:Polyphenol|polyphenol]] profile from other teas.<ref name="Journal of Food Science">{{cite journal | doi = 10.1111/j.1750-3841.2007.00535.x | pmid = 18034743| title = Yerba Mate Tea: A Comprehensive Review on Chemistry, Health Implications, and Technological Considerations| journal = Journal of Food Science | date = 17 October 2007 | volume=72| issue = 9| pages = R138-51| last1 = Heck| first1 = C. I.| last2 = De Mejia| first2 = E. G.| s2cid = 32413555| doi-access = free}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | doi = 10.1111/j.1750-3841.2007.00535.x | pmid = 18034743| title = Polyphenols in green tea, black tea, and Mate tea| journal = Journal of Food Science | date = 17 October 2007 | volume=72 | issue = 9| pages=R138–R151| last1 = Heck| first1 = C. I.| last2 = De Mejia| first2 = E. G.| s2cid = 32413555| doi-access = free}}</ref>

{{anchor|Mateína}}According to Argentine culture in part promoted by marketers, the stimulant in {{lang|es|mate}} is actually a substance called '''{{lang|es|mateína}}'''<!-- Bolded because Mateína redirects here. --> (named after the drink). However, analysis of the active [[Biology:Yerba mate#Chemical composition and properties|chemicals in mate]] has found that {{lang|es|mateína}} does not exist.<ref>{{Cite web|date=14 October 2011|title=La mateína no existe|url=https://www.unl.edu.ar/noticias/leer/8809/La_mateina_no_existe.html|access-date=23 July 2020|website=Universidad Nacional del Litoral}}</ref>

== Legendary origins ==

The Guaraní people started drinking {{lang|es|mate}} in a region that currently includes Paraguay, southern Brazil, southeastern Bolivia, northeastern Argentina and Uruguay. They have a legend that the Goddesses of the Moon and the Cloud came to visit the Earth one day. An old man saved them from a {{lang|es|yaguareté}} ([[Biology:Jaguar|jaguar]]) that was going to attack them. The goddesses gave him a new kind of plant, from which he could prepare a "drink of friendship" as compensation for his actions.<ref name="Preedy" />

== Variants ==

[[File:Mate cocido frio.jpg|thumb|Iced {{lang|es|mate cocido}}]]
Another drink can be prepared with specially cut dry leaves, very cold water, and, optionally, [[Biology:Lemon|lemon]] or another fruit juice, called {{lang|es|tereré}}. It is very common in Paraguay, northeastern Argentina and in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil. After pouring the water, it is considered proper to "wait while the saint has a sip" before the first person takes a drink. In southern Brazil, {{lang|pt|tererê}} is sometimes used as a derogatory term for a not hot enough {{lang|pt|chimarrão}}.

In Uruguay and Brazil, the traditional gourd is usually big with a corresponding large hole. In Argentina (especially in the capital [[Place:Buenos Aires|Buenos Aires]]), the gourd is small and has a small hole and people sometimes add sugar for flavor.

In Uruguay, people commonly walk around the streets toting a {{lang|es|mate}} and a [[Physics:Vacuum flask|thermos]] with hot water. In some parts of Argentina, gas stations sponsored by {{lang|es|yerba mate}} producers provide free hot water to travelers, specifically for the purpose of drinking during the journey. Disposable {{lang|es|mate}} sets with a plastic {{lang|es|mate}} and straw and sets with a thermos flask and stacking containers for the yerba and sugar inside a fitted case are available.

In Argentina, {{lang|es|mate cocido}} (boiled mate), in Brazil, {{lang|pt-BR|chá mate}}, is made with a teabag or leaves and drunk from a cup or mug, with or without sugar and milk. Companies such as Cabrales from Mar del Plata and Establecimiento Las Marías produce teabags for export to Europe.<ref>[http://www.lanacion.com.ar/nota.asp?nota_id=340787 ''Cabrales abrirá locales en la Capital''] La Nación online, 6 October 2001 {{in lang|es}}</ref>

[[File:A bottle of an ice tea variataion of mate and a glass of it.jpg|thumbnail|upright=.8|{{lang|es|Mate}} is consumed as an ice tea in various regions of Brazil, in both artisanal and industrial forms. This is a bottle of industrialized {{lang|es|mate}} ice tea, bought from a local supermarket in Rio de Janeiro.]]
Travel narratives, such as Maria Graham's ''Journal of a Residence in Chile'', show a long history of {{lang|es|mate}} drinking in central Chile. Many rural Chileans drink mate, in particular in the southern regions, particularly Magallanes, [[Place:Aysén Region|Aysén]] and Chiloé.

In Peru, {{lang|es|mate}} is widespread throughout the north and south, first being introduced to [[Place:Lima|Lima]] in the 17th century. It is widespread in [[Earth:Rural area|rural zones]], and it is prepared with coca (plant) or in a sweetened tea form with small slices of lemon or orange.''<ref>{{Cite book|title=EL MATE Arte de Cebar|last=Villanueva|first=Amaro|publisher=La compañia general fabril financiera S. A.|year=1960|location=Buenos Aires|pages=200 (In Spanish)}}</ref>''

In some parts of Syria, Lebanon and other Eastern Mediterranean countries, drinking {{lang|es|mate}} is also common. The custom came from Syrians and Lebanese who moved to South America during the late 19th and early parts of the 20th century, adopted the tradition, and kept it after returning to Western Asia. Syria is the biggest importer of yerba-mate in the world, importing 15,000&nbsp;tons a year. Mostly, the [[Philosophy:Druze|Druze]] communities in Syria and Lebanon maintain the culture and practice of mate.<ref name="donald" /><ref name="Middle East Online" />

According to a major retailer of {{lang|es|mate}} in San Luis Obispo, {{wipe|California}}, by 2004, {{lang|es|mate}} had grown to about 5% of the overall natural tea market in North America.<ref>{{cite press release |title=Guayaki Honored With 2004 Socially Responsible Business Award |date=28 October 2004 |publisher=Guayaki |url=http://www.csrwire.com/News/3184.html }}{{Dead link|date=November 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |first=Laura |last=Everage |title=Trends in Tea |work=The Gourmet Retailer |date=1 November 2004 |url=http://www.gourmetretailer.com/gourmetretailer/magazine/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1000696346 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061105141723/http://www.gourmetretailer.com/gourmetretailer/magazine/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1000696346 |archive-date=5 November 2006 }}</ref> Loose {{lang|es|mate}} is commercially available in much of North America. Bottled {{lang|es|mate}} is increasingly available in the United States. Canadian bottlers have introduced a cane sugar-sweetened, carbonated variety, similar to soda pop. One brand, Sol Mate, produces {{convert|10|usfloz|ml|adj=on}} glass bottles available at Canadian and U.S. retailers, making use of the translingual pun (English 'soul mate'; Spanish/Portuguese 'sun mate') for the sake of marketing.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/graphic/2007/01/19/GR2007011900577.html | title = Tip Sheet: Lowdown on Liquid Power-Ups | access-date = 29 May 2011 | last = Rude | first = Justin | date = 19 January 2007 | newspaper=The Washington Post }}</ref>

In some parts of the Southern Cone they prefer to drink bitter mate, especially in Paraguay, Uruguay, the south of Brazil, and parts of Argentina and Bolivia. This is referred to in Brazil and a large part of Argentina as {{lang|es|cimarrón}} –&nbsp;which also an archaic name for wild cattle, especially, to a horse that was very attached to a cowboy—which is understood as unsweetened mate.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://circleofdrink.com/yerba-mate-terms-and-glossary|title=Mate Terms and Glossary|website=Circle of Drink|access-date=22 February 2019}}</ref> Many people are of the opinion that {{lang|es|mate}} should be drunk in this form.

Unlike bitter mate, in every preparation of {{lang|es|mate dulce}}, or sweet mate, sugar is incorporated according to the taste of the drinker. This form of preparation is very widespread in various regions of Argentina, like in the Santiago del Estero province, Córdoba (Argentina), Cuyo, and the metropolitan region of Buenos Aires, among others. In Chile, this form of {{lang|es|mate}} preparation is widespread in mostly [[Earth:Rural area|rural zones]]. The spoonful of sugar or honey should fall on the edge of the cavity that the straw forms in the yerba, not all over the mate. One variation is to sweeten only the first {{lang|es|mate}} preparation in order to cut the bitterness of the first sip, thus softening the rest. In Paraguay, a variant of {{lang|es|mate dulce}} is prepared by first caramelizing refined sugar in a pot then adding milk. The mixture is heated and placed in a thermos and used in place of water. Often, chamomile ({{lang|es|manzanilla}}, in Spanish) and coconut are added to yerba in the gumpa.

In the sweet version [[Chemistry:Sugar substitute|artificial sweeteners]] are also often added. As an alternative sweetener, natural {{lang|gn|ka'á he'é}} (''[[Biology:Stevia rebaudiana|Stevia rebaudiana]]'') is preferred, which is an herb whose leaves are added in order to give a touch of sweetness. This is used principally in Paraguay.

The gourd in which bitter {{lang|es|mate}} is drunk is not used to consume sweet {{lang|es|mate}} due to the idea that the taste of the sugar would be detrimental to its later use to prepare and drink bitter mate, as it is said that it ruins the flavor of the {{lang|es|mate}}.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://articles.latimes.com/1988-08-10/news/mn-143_1_yerba-mate-cultivation/2|title=More Than a Drink : Yerba Mate: Argentina's Cultural Rite|last=SMITH|first=JAMES F.|date=10 August 1988|work=Los Angeles Times|access-date=22 February 2019|issn=0458-3035}}</ref>

Materva is a sweet, carbonated soft drink based on yerba mate. Developed in Cuba in 1920, and produced since the 1960s in Miami, Florida, it is a staple of the Cuban culture in Miami.<ref name="Wong-2014">{{cite news |last=Wong |first=Samantha |title=Materva: Un Buchito de Cuba |url=http://www.jwu.edu/uploadedFiles/Documents/Academics/studentwork/JWUStuFoodWritingNMI.pdf |access-date=10 September 2020 |newspaper=Johnson and Wales: Student Food Writing |page=8 (PDF p.&nbsp;11) |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140113000105/https://www.jwu.edu/uploadedFiles/Documents/Academics/studentwork/JWUStuFoodWritingNMI.pdf |archive-date=13 January 2014}}</ref><ref name="Roque-2011">{{Cite book |title=The Cuban Kitchen |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vmJlvl1mVUgC&pg=PA6 |first=Raquel Rábade |last=Roque |date=2011 |edition=1st |page=6 |publisher=Alfred A. Knopf |access-date=10 September 2020 |isbn=9780375711961 |language=en}}</ref>

== Notes ==
{{notelist}}

== See also ==
* [[Biology:Black drink|Black drink]]
* Mate con malicia (Chilean beverage)
* [[Biology:Ilex guayusa|Ilex guayusa]] (caffeinated beverage made from another holly tree)
* List of Brazilian dishes
* Mate de coca
* Club-Mate
* Materva
* [[Organization:Guayakí|Guayakí]]
* Yaupon

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

{{Clear}}

== Bibliography ==
* {{cite book|last=Assunção|first=Fernando O.|title=El mate|series=Bolsilibros Arca|year=1967|language=es}}
*  [[Biography:Claude Lévi-Strauss|Claude Lévi-Strauss]] (1955), ''Tristes Tropiques'' (1973 English translation by John and Doreen Weightman) New York: Atheneum



[[Category:IARC Group 2A carcinogens]]

{{Sourceattribution|Mate (drink)}}