Thursday, July 23, 2009

Store Shelf Packed with Yerba Mate

Shelf Full of All Different Kinds of Yerba Mate Tea in a Grocery Store in Montevideo, Uruguay
Like coffee and tea, not all yerba mate tastes the same. Still, it's always dazzling to see all those different brands and styles on one and the same thing. I personally don't taste any difference between all these sorts of Mate, but maybe this is because of the fact I haven't tried all yet. Yerba mate is mainly consumed in countries like Argentina and Uruguay. I found this shelf in a small grocery store in Montevideo which explains the hefty price tag; it's in Uruguayan peso.

14 comments:

Julie said...

I have heard of the drink but not tasted it myself. I do however, like the colourful shelf arrangement.

Unknown said...

Hello, very nice your blog, I post about yerba mate too, check it. Well. salutes.

Chattahoochee Valley Daily said...

Attractively arranged. So what is yerba?

Lowell said...

I'm fairly certain I have seen Yerba Mate in our supermarket...have no idea what it is, though.

This is an excellent shot showing all the choices with which we are presented (in just about every area) which seems such a waste and creates a good deal of confusion...

Which one to buy? Help!

Bob Crowe said...

I enjoyed mate on my visits to Argentina and brought back a half kilo but I never could get used to the communal gourd and sipping the hot liquid through the metal bombilla. Doesn't it burn everyone's lips? I'll give it another try when I'm down your way in February.

AB said...

Nice shot of the colourful rows.

By the way, have you seen Javier Echaiz' photo? It tackles the same theme from a more rustic angle.

RogerB said...

Don't leave us hanging here - what is yerba mate? More important, does it have caffeine?

B SQUARED said...

I agree with you, hard to tell the difference.

AB said...

RogerB: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m2otYqpcn00

Yes, it does contain caffeine.

EG CameraGirl said...

There is an amazing variety here for a small grocery store. Yerba mate must be very, very important in Buenos Aires! ;-)

Buenos Aires Photoblog said...

@AB
Thanks for the video link. Your other link to Javier Echaiz' blog isn't working. Did you mean "Te cambio el té por el mate" ? (;
His blog is wonderful!

@bfarr
@RogerB
Yerba mate is a tea-like herbal brew from the leaves of the yerba mate plant. This plant is an evergreen shrub and it contains caffeine. According to wikipedia the caffeine content varies between 0.3% and 1.7% of dry weight (compared to 2.5–4.5% for tea leaves, and 1.5% for ground coffee).

@Your EG Tour Guide
Absolutely, yerba mate is much more important than coffee and tea in Argentina, Uruguay and other Latin American countries.

AB said...

BA Photoblog: Yes, that was the link I meant to post. I think his blog is good, too. The mate post seemed especially good, and especially Argentinian.

Silvina said...

@bob crowe: a good mate is made not with boiling water (maybe the reason why you burn your lips) The temperature of the water is sslightly minor. You have to take out the water from the fire a little before it starts to boil.

Yerba is a plant that grows mainly in south america. Is like the tea plant. You make infusions from the leaves. The yerba can be "con palo", with little sticks that makes it stronger in it flavour, or "sin palo", without the sticks. And you can drink it with slices of orange or lemon peel, with or without sugar, with coffee, with cold water (tereré), some people even drink it with milk (ewwww).

Eduard said...

I suppose this picture has been made in Uruguay, because the brands are all Uruguayan: canarios, sara, la mulata, del cebador.