Mate

The two most famous drinks from Argentina are probably wine and mate [mah-tay], though not necessarily in that order. Mate is a very important drink in Argentina. It comes from the leaves of a tree in parts of Argentina. The leaves (in this form known as yerba mate [shear-bah mah-tay] are taken and put in a matero [mah-tear-oh].


A matero is like a cup, but usually thicker and made of more durable material like wood. After the leaves are in the matero, hot water is poured into the matero and the drink is ready to drink!


It is a little bitter, so many people put other things in to sweeten it up, like sugar. However, now you have a problem. How do you drink the mate without drinking the leaves? This is where the bombilla [bohm-bee-sha] comes into play. This is a metal straw that has a flat bottom, about the size of a nickel or a quarter. This bombilla has small holes in the bottom so that the drink comes up the straw and not the leaves. When one finishes the cup, he or she passes it to a friend and just refills the water. The leaves last for a few cycles of hot water. Here is a mate kit:


More than anything, drinking mate is a social activity. After a meal or after work, families and friends get together to talk and drink mate. People can easily spend a few hours passing around the matero. Besides, drinking mate is very inexpensive. Yerba mate, sugar, and hot water are cheap! This represents an important part of the culture: social activities are very important to Argentines. They love to sit, drink, and discuss to pass the time and enjoy each other's company.