In a city like Buenos Aires that really never sleeps, one starts to wonder what keeps the porteño motor running all day long? When studying abroad in Argentina, you have to learn the ways to wake and KEEP you up: stay sharp for your spanish classes, fit in with your porteño classmates and coworkers at your universities and internships in Buenos Aires, and still have time to drink in this city. One of their secrets is found in the world of 
Mate (ma-tay), a traditional and tasty south american drink, if you can handle it. Mente Argentina gives you some basics on Buenos Aires culture, beverage, and how you can take it all in, through a nifty little straw!
- What is it?: Mate, which is actually the name of the gourd that is used to drink out of, is a sort of tea, made of dried, chopped, and ground leaves called yerba. Although mate can can be bought in a tea bag form (called mate cocido), it is hardly the same drink. Mate can be drunk alone, but it is very much associated with the mate culture that shapes Argentina. You will probably see it passed around as much in the streets and parks as you do in your argentine universities and internships in Buenos Aires!
- Mate has three essential parts to it. the mate- the gourd/cup used to hold the drink, the yerba- the tea that you pour into the mate, and the bombilla– the metal or sometimes straw, slotted straw that is used to sip.
- What does it taste like?: if you haven’t had mate before you may be in for a surprise. But, while studying abroad in Buenos Aires, mate is an experience you won’t be able to miss. It can be very strong and bitter, and carries an earthy taste. Many have to get accustomed to mate
- How do you drink it? Every region (and really every mate drinker) has their own specific method of preparing mate, but the basics for Argentina are almost always the same:
- before using any mate, you have to cure it. Curing a mate is meant to get a better taste out of the drink as well as assured that the mate will last longer. If your mate is made out of a gourd, generally the first step is to wet the inside and try to remove the loose gourd particles. Then, whether your mate is wood or gourd, the key to curing is pouring yerba in the mate, adding hot water, and letting it sit for 24 hours. The mate will then absorb the water getting ride of any other tastes that will taint its future use. Then simply dump the yerba, clean out the mate, and let it dry.
- fill the mate about 3/4 of the way with yerba.
- place your hand over the top of the mate covering the hole entirely and shake it back and fourth. This is to get rid of the extra powder or polvo so the mate doesn’t taste chalky. shake the polvo off your hands and repeat this step several times. Then shake side to side to settle the yerba.
- Bring the mate to an angle so that the yerba is at a slant in the cup, on the lower the mate back to normal level.
- Put the bombilla in the dry mate at the lower end of the slope of the yerba at a semi/diagonal angle so that its ends is at the deeper side of the mate resting at an angle.
- Add cold water almost to the top of where the yerba sits and allow the yerba to absorb the water. this protects the mate from being burnt.
- Now pour hot water (below boiling temperature) in, down bombilla and sip out of the bombilla. Keep adding water without throwing out the yerba until the drink loses its flavor becoming lavado.
**Do not move the bombilla! Some mate drinkers such as uruguayan move the bombilla so that you drink a fresher section every time it becomes lavado. However, in Buenos Aires this is less common. Unless the mate-drinker you’re with does, do not move the bombilla!!**
- What is the Mate culture?: Mate is generally drunk in groups, among family, friends, and in a variety of social settings. The mate is passed around, each person drinking the water out and passing the mate back to the server to refill and pass it on to others. Take out your mate and inaugurate it for breakfast, pass it around when hanging with other study abroad students in your apartment, dabble in the uruguayan style and even drink it on the go!
- Why do you drink it?: Aside from mate being part of a tradition and a popular beverage here, it has a natural stimulant, similar to cafeine, called mateina. Mate is often drunk here like coffee would be, in the mornings or during the afternoons to give you some extra energy. Mate is also a digestive and has several vitamins and minerals, and has been said to help lower cholesterol!
So, Mente Argentina-ers, take out your mate, invite over all your friends, follow these steps and enjoy this magical ritual.