Seeing about this Yerba Mate craze…

Na, not sure it’s really a craze, at least not yet. But I figured I’d give it a go, gourd and bombilla style.

UPDATE:

I’ve now had some time to test the yerba mate and the gourd.

Learning how to properly prepare and drink the mate is certainly the first feat to overcome.  There are a number of good resources around the web.  I found this one to be particularly helpful.  When first preparing the mate, I found it useful to rinse the mate in the cup/gourd a couple times with cold water before pouring over with hot water.  This process allows you to get rid of any small dust/particles that are more likely to get pulled through the bombillia when drinking mate.

I’ve also started adding a few drops of stevia extract to each cup, prior to adding the hot water.  This helps to cut on the bitterness, but certainly isn’t necessary.

Overall, I’ve found yerba mate to have a mild stimulating effect that’s great for mind clarity.  It does seem to calm and even relax my muscles ever so slightly, which might not be for every situation, but is nice overall.  I’d certainly recommend adding yerba mate to your collection of tea products, and/or your lifestyle.  However, I’m not sure it’s a daily drinker for me, at least not now.  I’m going to continue drinking the mate and will update this again after more time has passed.

Until then, give it a go yourself and let me know what you think.