Background: Yerba maté is the caffeine-rich, South American native plant Ilex paraguariensis. Infusions of Yerba mate tea are extremely popular for daily use throughout South America. Reportedly more than 90% of Argentinian adults consistently consuming it as their morning brew. There, Yerba maté tea is readily available at maté cafés and maté bars which are as prevalent as coffee houses are in North America and Europe.
The leaves of this member of the holly plant family have been gathered in the wild for centuries by native people in the area of origin in and around Paraguay. Guarani tribespeople are said to have introduced yerba maté tea to European settlers, including Spanish Jesuits who, beginning in 1670, established large plantation-style tracts of maté near their missions. Over the next 100 years its use and commerce spread greatly within South America. Jesuits also introduced it into Europe. Following the 1767 expulsion of the Jesuits, those mission plantations of Ilex paraguariensis were curtailed. Large agricultural plots eventually transplanted into Brazil. Wild, native yerba mate is only obtained from the southermost parts of Brazil and Province de Misiones in northeastern Argentina.
Traditional methods for imbibing mate involve sipping the infusion from a gourd-bowl through a bombilla (a type of metal straw.) This filters the yerba mate tea as it is consumed. Milk and sugar are often added, sometimes other herbs are included in the blend.
There are liqueurs made with maté, the herb powder is added to many treats and desserts.
Description: The dioecious evergreen tree Ilex paraguariensis grows to 60 ft. in height. Leaves are alternate, coriaceous and obovate with a serrate margin and obtuse apex. The inflorescences are in corymboid fascicles, dichasiums of 3 to 11 flowers are male, female are of 1 to 3 flowers. Flowers are small, simple, numbering 4 to 5 with whitish corolla. The fruit is in a nucule; there are four or five single seed pyrenes (propagules). Maté blooms October to November), has entomophilous pollination (diptera, hymenoptera) and fruits from March to June; dissemination is endozoic (by birds). The rudimentary embryo in many externally ripe seeds cause a long germination.
The genus Ilex belongs to the family Aquifoliaceae, which is widespread in subtropical and tropical regions of both hemispheres of the Americas. It comprises three genera in Argentina. Ilex paraguariensis is native to Argentina.
Dosage:
Taken as infusion and decoction. Yerba maté is quite flexible and favors any additions of sweeteners and creams (dairy, soy or other) The infusion is prepared by steeping the dry botanical in hot water. A decoction is sometimes made using cold water, allowing the mix to sit 1 or 2 hours before straining. It can be combined with other herbals to make tisanes, and/or with fruit juices to create delicious caffeinated beverages. Maté is great served chilled.
Safety:
There is no known negative health information available.
For educational purposes only This information has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This information is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
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