Well I'm one of those weird folks who can barely get a cup of Yerba Mate down but now that it's good for Gatherers, I decided to give it another go.

This morning I came up with mixing a bag of Yerba Mate with Jasime Green with some Stevia and that did the trick!  Oh boy is it good!

The Jasime cuts the (what I think of) harsh flavor of the Yerba Mate.

Now I can gain the benefits!

I really like yerba mate, maybe with a little vegetable glycerine.

The stevia I use has vegi glycerine in it.... so I'm covered!  

Whoa... I feel loaded!  Wow... I'm going to have to cut that yerba mate cup in half!  this is worse than a caffine high!

anybody else get a boat load of energy from this stuff?

Not sensitive to the stimulant in mate at all. I have a lemon ginger mate I often drink. My diabetic mother drinks a cinnamon rooibos mate.

Tradtional Medicinal has a very mild lemon mate. But I use Mate Factor mate, and they have a great variety.

I use and loooovvve a bulk blend I find at my WF called mate latte...it has cocoa nibs (bennie) and herbal flowers and stuff that are sooo tasty.

Yogi, I think, makes a yerba mate with lemon balm?  2 beneficials, and pretty good.  I've come to really like it straight up (with agave and a bit of rice milk), but I hated the flavor at first.

I guess I'd be better off with veg. glycerine, have to give that a whirl.

Quoted from Melissa_J

Yogi, I think, makes a yerba mate with lemon balm?  2 beneficials, and pretty good.

That would be two diamond foods for Hunter. I'd be interested in sources/brands.

Rats, sorry, it's not lemon balm, it's lemongrass and lemon myrtle.  The lemon and mate combo is good though, so you could combine them yourself to get the double diamond.

It was Traditional Medicinals, in any case.

Excellent article, Dr. D. Glad to be benefitting from matte!!!

Quoted from jayneeo

Excellent article, Dr. D. Glad to be benefitting from matte!!!

I agree. Thanks for sharing that link with us.


It sounds like sounds like a cup of Yerba Mate tea would be good thing to drink if you happen to indulge in some high glycemic goodies.  

Quoted from Don

I agree. Thanks for sharing that link with us.


It sounds like sounds like a cup of Yerba Mate tea would be good thing to drink if you happen to indulge in some high glycemic goodies.  

Don if so, that would be great... any science on this yet?

funkymuse, did you read the link? I think Don is extrapolating from that...and it is science.

So basically, yerba mate is better for diabetics (and gatherers and non-secretors) than green tea.

Can AGE's cause all sorts of havoc?  I know there are circulation problems and the obvious diabetes complications, but also inflammation and such?  Thyroid trouble?

Got a tea maker today from Walmart!  I'm brewing away a blend of Yerba Mate and Green tea!

Quoted from Melissa_J

So basically, yerba mate is better for diabetics (and gatherers and non-secretors) than green tea.

Can AGE's cause all sorts of havoc?  I know there are circulation problems and the obvious diabetes complications, but also inflammation and such?  Thyroid trouble?

Green tea and Yerba Mate address different issues and both are good for you. However, you are probably right that Yerba Mate might really be good for diabetics.

Yes, AGE's can cause all sorts of problems.

Agreed.  Green tea is usually what I see recommended for diabetics, it's cool to know there's other great stuff.

I'm looking forward to seeing which of all those sorts of AGE problems that GTD helps fix in this gatherer

Listen... I think I'm getting too jacked up on Yerba Mate especially if I brew it too long.  

What kind of caffine is in this stuff?  

Obviously it's not the same type as in coffee beans.

hey funkymuse! Its not the same thing as caffeine, from what I have heard....its a very nice high, but it takes a little getting used to....you will adjust  and not get "jacked up". I speak from experience.

I've never gotten jacked up on the stuff, but I'm the girl who had two cups of coffee last night (I know, bad girl!) and went to sleep soundly a half hour later...

The "stimulant" in mate is matteine, which is similar to caffeine, but not the same. If you google matteine and mate, you'll see a lot of articles about it- some disagree and say it's caffiene, others don't. It's kind of all academic, because some will find it stimulating, and there will be people like me who drink it right before bed and still go soundly to sleep.

Wheeeeee, Yerba Mate really makes me flyyyyy...I love it!!

same here!

Mate is the drink for me then. I'm looking forward to trying all kinds of varieties! I've got some cocoa nibs on order from Mountain Rose and will try them with mate, Jaynee's description of her 'mate latte' just sounds way too good!

I put choc. stevia in mine.  I'll try some choc. powder now!  Never thought of it!

btw, how is everyone drinking theirs? I don't like hot mate. I throw the tea bag in my water bottle and drink it cool/room temp all day...

I tried yerba mate a while ago and did not like it. I then soaked the mate leaves in water and gave them to the worms in my worm farm. Maybe they got a kick out of it [lol].
But reading all the posts, I might give it another try - I can always give it to my worms if I still don't like it.

I love my morning thunder and also my mate latte! Mate alone is pretty ...well...yucky, but you can get used to the earthiness by adding some nice flavor to help along...and then you start to just like it .

Quoted from Curious

I tried yerba mate a while ago and did not like it. I then soaked the mate leaves in water and gave them to the worms in my worm farm. Maybe they got a kick out of it [lol].
But reading all the posts, I might give it another try - I can always give it to my worms if I still don't like it.

Try it with Jasmine tea.  I use two bags... one Yerba Mate and the other Jasmine green... Delicious and much easier to get down.  Can't stand YM alone!  

Ok now after drinking this stuff for a couple of weeks.. I'm hooked!  

But going online I have run into all these sites telling that their Yerba Mata is the best and not to brew it from tea bags and only get Brazilian... etc., etc., etc.

It's enough to make one crazy!

So should I brew it from leaves for the  maximum benefit of the nutrients?  And what is it with these Yerba Mate Gourds?  Is that just a trendy thing for Yerba Mate drinkers or??

Any Yerba Mate connoisseurs out there?  

Quoted from Brighid45

Mate is the drink for me..I've got some cocoa nibs on order from Mountain Rose and will try them with mate, Jaynee's description of her 'mate latte' just sounds way too good!

Oh, and I thought I invented Matte Cocoa. I put a tsp. of Hershey's plain cocoa in my Matte tea the other night with a few drops of Stevia, and Wow!  I thought I was drinking hot chocolate. Wonderful.  I REALLYimproved my mood after dinner.  Judy 0Oo so grateful for Dr. D's books

Just made Smoked Yerba Mate and Peppermint tea together with some choc. powder and stevia... oh my gosh... oh my gosh!!!

and with some rice milk or other compliant milk - can we say peppermint mocha from starbucks ???!    



I'm ready to open a Yerba Mate shop and give starbucks some competition!  ha...

and just think before GT I was totally against this stuff...
what a bonehead!  ha...

Quoted from 1323

So should I brew it from leaves for the  maximum benefit of the nutrients?  And what is it with these Yerba Mate Gourds?  Is that just a trendy thing for Yerba Mate drinkers or??

Any Yerba Mate connoisseurs out there?  

As someone who discovered yerba mate in my local amazing tea house where it was being served in gourds, I can vouch that at least in that case, the only difference with home brewed was the container. It tended to make the mate taste stronger though, and you can reinfuse the gourds easier.

By the way, I don't know if it's just me, but I find it surprising that so many of you say you have problems with the taste of mate... To me it tastes pleasant to neutral, kind of like green tea but with no hint of bitterness. I do add a bit of honey though.

Has anyone else tried having mate with ginger and green tea? I'm getting to really like it, especially with some lemon.

On the subject of cocoa and tea, I tried some cocoa nibs in my green tea, and it didn't work for me.  I didn't seem to taste the chocolate at all, only the cocoa fat.  But cocoa powder is very effective at turning any tea into a mocha.

Well after all my Yerba excitement, it seems I'm having backlash.  When I drink coffee, I get a craving reaction that starts for sugar, wheat and choc that starts about 3 days in to drinking coffee.

It seems that is now happening with Yerba.  I may be too sensitive to drink it. Anyone else have any sensitivity with green tea or yerba?

Yerbe Mate is now my favorite tea to drink and I like the taste...I have not put sugar or sweetner in tea for over 4 years now..it's tough at first but your taste buds adjust

I just ordered tea from The Mate Factor (matefactor.com).  Haven't received it yet, but looking forward to it.  It has yerba mate and peppermint (maybe carob too--can't remember) in one tea, and yerba mate, roasted barley, roasted chicory, and carob in another.  Looking forward to receiving it and trying it.

Quoted from 1323

I may be too sensitive to drink it. Anyone else have any sensitivity with green tea or yerba?

Yes, I do. I can only drink tea (green, black or white) very occasionally. As for Yerba mate, I don't like it, so I don't drink it.

Have finally been able to source some carob powder, looking fwd to give a carob-yerba-mate a shot tomorrow!  

Maybe some people find the taste of yerba mate intolerable because we are supertaster /tasters?

That's a point. I haven't had the opportunity to check, but I reckon I'm a non-taster... That would explain it

I really like the yerba mate i have at the moment, but i think it's milder tasting than another version I've come across (i hardly infuse it at all & re use the teabag). More expensive though, but glad I took the plunge. I have never thought of adding anything to it.

Honeybee, are you a Gatherer too? if so, hurrah, we B Gatherers seem a bit thin on the ground