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Yerba Mate – A Long but Current History (2021)

ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

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Re: Yerba Mate – A Long but Current History (2021)

#21

Post by elhesuu »

wincy wrote: post #2

Is there any Yerba Mate you can buy that doesn’t taste horrible though? I consider myself pretty adventurous, but I bought some the other day and was shocked at how such a gross beverage has become popular so quickly.

I also dislike when mate is too bitter, but that doesn't generally depend on the yerba itself, but rather on how you prepare mate.

Try: - removing dust from yerba, by covering the top of your cup with a slightly humid cloth and shaking it for a few seconds (the dust should stick to it, but the leaves should not) - heating using water a tiny bit under 70 degrees hot (above this temperature the first mates will be too bitter, and the last too washy) - pouring water always in the same place, so that the leaves slowly get wet from bottom to top

Re: Yerba Mate – A Long but Current History (2021)

#22

Post by Kaibeezy »

hjgjhyuhy wrote: post #15

The thing I enjoy about Mate is how long lasting and stable its stimulating effect is. Coffee just gives me a quick spike after which I feel bad. Mate helps me to concentrate on boring stuff for hours.

Having looked at multiple articles before posting this one, your point is definitely a major advantage mentioned consistently. The technique of adding water repeatedly is how I’ve always done oolong tea and gotten a very similar experience.

I should mention I went down this rabbit hole due to the World Cup attention, but have been drinking mate for years and years.

Re: Yerba Mate – A Long but Current History (2021)

#23

Post by senectus1 »

seu wrote: post #7
wincy wrote: post #2

Is there any Yerba Mate you can buy that doesn’t taste horrible though? I consider myself pretty adventurous, but I bought some the other day and was shocked at how such a gross beverage has become popular so quickly.

Try adding some sugar. Traditionalists will pretend to be repulsed by it, but even in Argentina (where I come from), plenty of people add it to their mate.

heh, i went to Argentina for work once.. (it was just pre covid) and I was shocked and amazed at their consumption of this stuff... not only do they pour copious amounts of artificial sweeteners into the cups but they share the cup and straw around the office!

I shudder to think of them doing that during covid...

Re: Yerba Mate – A Long but Current History (2021)

#24

Post by sdfhbdf »

senectus1 wrote: post #23
seu wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Try adding some sugar. Traditionalists will pretend to be repulsed by it, but even in Argentina (where I come from), plenty of people add it to their mate.

heh, i went to Argentina for work once.. (it was just pre covid) and I was shocked and amazed at their consumption of this stuff... not only do they pour copious amounts of artificial sweeteners into the cups but they share the cup and straw around the office! I shudder to think of them doing that during covid...

When I was there last month, a lot of people said that not sharing mate anymore was one of the major cultural things that happened in Argentina because of Covid. Of course the country has other problems that it deals with but yeah looking around it seemed that almost all people carry their own. I’m not Argentinian though so I might not have reliable info just very recent

Re: Yerba Mate – A Long but Current History (2021)

#25

Post by eric__cartman »

i-petko wrote: post #14

Anyone else had terrible teeth pigmentation when consuming yerba mate tea? I had tried using it for some time, but had to go to the dentist because my teeth where turning brown. After realizing that introducing the tea was the only change I made before the issue started, I stopped consuming and the issue was indeed solved.

I'm from Argentina and consume it on a regular basis. I haven't noticed any pigmentation, although I have the habit to rinse my mouth after finishing a cup of anything that's not water so that might be why.

Re: Yerba Mate – A Long but Current History (2021)

#26

Post by contingo »

From the introduction, which starts by trying to give some wider taxonomic context:

>The genus Ilex comprises about 450 species growing in the tropical regions of South America and Asia. Ilex trees are located exclusively in South America...

The roughly 500-600 species in the genus Ilex are commonly called hollies and include the European Christmas holly, I. aquafolium. The genus overall has a worldwide distribution over both tropical and temperate regions, there is no particular concentration of diversity in the South American tropics. Strange to get basic facts so wrong in the opening sentences.

Re: Yerba Mate – A Long but Current History (2021)

#27

Post by varispeed »

hjgjhyuhy wrote: post #15

The thing I enjoy about Mate is how long lasting and stable its stimulating effect is. Coffee just gives me a quick spike after which I feel bad. Mate helps me to concentrate on boring stuff for hours.

I've been trying various Mates and they do nothing for me, in fact often I get sluggish and sleepy.

I have a similar effect after coffee, but if I drink like 4 espressos at once I get a slight bump of focus. When I get past 8 espresso my hands get a bit shaky and again I feel like I need to go to sleep.

I guess caffeine is not for me, however I still drink it, as it helps with migraines and ADHD.

Re: Yerba Mate – A Long but Current History (2021)

#28

Post by wslh »

i-petko wrote: post #14

Anyone else had terrible teeth pigmentation when consuming yerba mate tea? I had tried using it for some time, but had to go to the dentist because my teeth where turning brown. After realizing that introducing the tea was the only change I made before the issue started, I stopped consuming and the issue was indeed solved.

Dentist feedback: yerba mate pigmentation could be clean with a typical prophylactic treatment.

Re: Yerba Mate – A Long but Current History (2021)

#29

Post by varispeed »

wincy wrote: post #2

Is there any Yerba Mate you can buy that doesn’t taste horrible though? I consider myself pretty adventurous, but I bought some the other day and was shocked at how such a gross beverage has become popular so quickly.

If I find particularly bad tasting one, I'd add some Agava syrup and lime juice. Tastes great then.

Re: Yerba Mate – A Long but Current History (2021)

#30

Post by diegof79 »

i-petko wrote: post #14

Anyone else had terrible teeth pigmentation when consuming yerba mate tea? I had tried using it for some time, but had to go to the dentist because my teeth where turning brown. After realizing that introducing the tea was the only change I made before the issue started, I stopped consuming and the issue was indeed solved.

I'm from Argentina. We drink mate all the time. I never heard of (or experienced) teeth pigmentation issues caused by Yerba Mate. (yeah, I know it's a data point of one, but given the popularity and tradition of mate in the region, I think I'll hear about it if it's a common issue).

Assuming you are in the US. I notice that US products containing Yerba Mate (like tea bags or drinks) are heavily industrialized and have many other things besides Mate. I'll not discard the possibility of a problem caused by combining Yerba Mate with other chemicals.

Other than that is not different from coffee: drinking too much coffee without proper dental hygiene also affects teeth pigmentation.

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