Blessed with a warm and bright autumnal evening in Buenos Aires, last Tuesday witnessed a spritely and fresh-faced group of Mentistas head along to Mate Club for an interactive workshop on everything you could possibly wish to know about this traditional and (passionately) treasured Argentinian drink. Despite everyone’s demanding days in their respective programmes, astronomic levels of enthusiasm and tenacity to learn, typical traits of all Mentista students these days, continued unaffected. We excitedly climbed the rustic winding stairs of La Paz Arriba, a neat café near El Microcentro, eagerly anticipating the start of a whirlwind educational chat on all things mate…
Gathered around tables laden with mate paraphernalia, including a centre piece yerba plant stood tall and proud, our guide Nahuel launched into a detailed and infectiously positive description of the nation’s beloved drink. He regaled us with factoid after factoid about the properties and health benefits of plant – for example, if you’ve ever wondered why Argentinians go to bed so preposterously late and yet still work a full day, it’s because mate contains (healthy and natural) energy-enhancing properties. He also delved into the darker side of mate production, including controversial issues around its production methods, such as labour conditions in certain parts of the country and the vast quantities of water required. Then, assured of the fact we were going to sample sustainably and ethically produced mate, we learned the basics of mate etiquette, from how to prepare it like a pro to who, how and when one should serve it. We were finally left with the bombshell that you can also add a whole host of sweet and wonderful products to the yerba enhance the flavour (honey, mint, lavender, aniseed to pick just a few) – mild relief for a few that were a little taken aback by the initial strong and bitter taste.
Armed with a comprehensive knowledge of why Argentinians are so obsessed with this mini-cauldron-like-dwelling drink, we threw ourselves into the weekly language exchange event. By the time we had finished our fancy mate tutorial, a mass of local Argentinians and Porteños had turned up to have a good old chinwag with us over a mate or two (and a gratefully received array of snacks). As is the form with Mate Club events, we each joined a table with 2 or 3 Argentinians or other native speakers to practice our Spanish, providing a great way to meet local people in the city as well as informally practice the Spanish you’ve been learning in the classroom/office.
Check out Mate Club’s website for more information on future language exchange events. And also keep any eye out of the next Mente Argentina mate workshop if you missed out this time!
Abrazos!