Yerba Mate Etiquette

The etiquette for drinking Yerba mate is very important as Argentineans will clearly point out if this ediquette that follows is violated:

There is a designated pourer, called the cebador, who serves the mate to everyone—and only him/her can pour the hot water. Cebador, comes from the verb cebar which means “to serve” or “to pour” but is used almost exclusively to mean to serve or pour mate.

The cebador drinks the first mate

Drink the whole mate—slurping is okay.

Once everyone else in the circle has drank a cup of the mate it is passed around again for a second turn.

This continues until the tealeaves have lost their flavor or become lavado (“washed”). Remember, the mate ritual is based around what we like to call “The Principle of the Conservation of Hierba”. This means that preventing the hierba from becoming lavado is the goal! Therefore:

Do not touch the straw or use the straw to mix the tea leaves and water

Try to keep the herbs on the top dry

Do not change the order or slow the tempo.

tags: yerba · yerba mate ·