- Joel Muñoz
- Apr 8
- 3 min read
What is the perfect mate kit?
The perfect Taragüi mate kit includes a traditional mate (gourd or glass), a stainless steel bombilla, a thermos that keeps the water at 75-80°C, and quality yerba mate. A thermal bag to carry everything is also essential. This set ensures you can enjoy mate anywhere, maintaining the tradition and flavor intact. Read all about the kit in this article.
Every mate drinker, a beverage currently considered one of the fifty best in the world, should stock up on a good mate kit that includes everything needed to prepare it. Whether enjoying it alone or with friends; at home, in a park, or at the office.
Basic composition of a mate kit
A mate kit will first and foremost include a good mate. It can be a hollow gourd with a small base and a wide mouth to ensure perfect brewing. Although mates are available in many materials, glass ones preserve the flavor and original properties of the yerba mate, don't absorb odors or flavors, and are very easy to clean. And if they're also wrapped in thermally insulated materials, such as leather, the mate will maintain its ideal temperature for longer.
Another essential element is the bombilla, a thin, metal tube-shaped piece that allows you to sip the yerba mate infusion.
A glass or steel thermos to maintain the water temperature, with a recommended capacity of 1 liter.
The perfect mate kit should include a thermal bag or tote bag to carry the thermos, preferably made of waterproof fabric for greater protection outdoors and liners that provide adequate thermal insulation.
Of course, good-quality yerba mate. With or without a stem, flavored, in sachets, smooth, or with low dust content: there's a type of yerba mate for every taste.
At home, it's also ideal to have a kettle that allows us to heat the water to the right temperature, around 75°C.
The mate kit in different cultures
Although the composition of the kit doesn't vary much from country to country, there are some differences depending on the local culture.
In Argentina, for example (the world's leading producer of yerba mate), residents consider the custom of "matear" (making a mate) a social activity and enjoy it mostly in group gatherings, where everyone shares a single mate and a cebador (beef steward) is in charge of preparing the infusion for everyone.
For Uruguayans, on the other hand, mate is a more individual habit enjoyed anytime, anywhere, so everyone has their own personal mate set and carries it with them anywhere in the city. In Uruguay, mates (containers) are much larger, and yerba mate without a stem is preferred.
How to make the best use of your mate kit
It's important to use a properly seasoned mate (prepare it so the pores are sealed and any flavors from the material are eliminated). It's recommended that the bombilla be made of stainless steel, silver, or nickel silver. Proper cleaning and maintenance of the mate kit is crucial: after drinking mate, all the yerba mate should be removed as quickly as possible, then rinsed, drained, and laid out to dry upside down to prevent the growth of mold and germs.
And of course, always use good-quality yerba mate with a genuine flavor, texture, and aroma.
Drinking mate is an ancient custom deeply rooted in cultures like Uruguay and Argentina, as much (or more) than soccer or barbecues. Drinking mate goes beyond just an infusion; it's considered a means of social connection, part of a time-honored ritual that is increasingly spreading beyond South America.