Yerba Mate Latte

Healthy herbs, rooibos, honeybush, decaf tea, and yerba mate.


Feb 2nd, '11, 02:49
Posts: 17
Joined: Nov 21st, '10, 18:47

Yerba Mate Latte

by matcha/mate.enthusia » Feb 2nd, '11, 02:49

Today was a snow day (as is tomorrow), with below-zero temperatures--started off my day with a delicious homemade yerba mate latte. Naturally, this warming concoction prompted me to wonder as to the experiences of those at TeaChat regarding mate lattes. There are quite a few recipes out there regarding this beverage, surprisingly:

http://video.about.com/coffeetea/Yerba-Mate-Latte.htm

http://www.ehow.com/how_5045116_make-ye ... latte.html

http://www.welikeitraw.com/rawfood/2007 ... _latt.html

http://guayaki.com/mate/3451/Mate-Latte-Recipes.html

I made my latte today with about a cup of strong-brewed mate (approx. 3-4 tbsp. of Guayaki brand leaves), 1/4-1/2 cup whole milk, 1/4 tsp. vanilla extract and a dash of cinnamon. Delectable as it was, my mate latte was far from perfect; I noticed that, despite the potency of the mate, it tasted rather diluted due to the water and "thin". These observations led me to ponder the perfect recipe for a yerba mate latte drawing upon elements of the recipes in the above links. Unfortunately I did not have mint leaves (for flavor) or soy/fortified milk (for frothiness) available; I wonder, however, if it would have been better to just directly steep the mate leaves in the hot milk rather than adding the milk to the mate water. The third link above suggests the use of cashew milk/butter and agave sweetener; I found that the vanilla along with a pinch or two of cane sugar rendered it sufficiently sweet without overpowering the already-competing flavor of mate. What is your take on the best recipe for this underrated but excellent beverage?

User avatar
Feb 2nd, '11, 03:16
Posts: 852
Joined: Mar 4th, '10, 22:07
Location: somewhere over the rainbow

Re: Yerba Mate Latte

by Poohblah » Feb 2nd, '11, 03:16

mate lattes seem to be really popular with the starshmucks crowd who want to try something new but not too new. I personally find them rather lacking. I prefer the first draw of a gourd :) I wish you good luck though! Experimenting with flavors is the best part about beverages.

Feb 2nd, '11, 03:20
Posts: 17
Joined: Nov 21st, '10, 18:47

Re: Yerba Mate Latte

by matcha/mate.enthusia » Feb 2nd, '11, 03:20

Oh don't get me wrong--there's little better beverage-wise in this life than freshly brewed yerba mate straight out of a traditional cuia. I just enjoy mate in a variety of contexts (I baked it into waffles and mixed it with grapefruit juice, for instance) and the thought of a warm perfect mate latte in the morning is wonderful. :D

EDIT: Also, first draw? The first infusion is tasty but incredibly bitter, usually, which is why the host traditionally drinks it to be polite. I find that the second infusion is the perfect one, as the bitter edge is gone but the mate flavor otherwise suffers no noticeable dilution.

User avatar
Feb 2nd, '11, 19:26
Posts: 852
Joined: Mar 4th, '10, 22:07
Location: somewhere over the rainbow

Re: Yerba Mate Latte

by Poohblah » Feb 2nd, '11, 19:26

matcha/mate.enthusia wrote:Oh don't get me wrong--there's little better beverage-wise in this life than freshly brewed yerba mate straight out of a traditional cuia. I just enjoy mate in a variety of contexts (I baked it into waffles and mixed it with grapefruit juice, for instance) and the thought of a warm perfect mate latte in the morning is wonderful. :D

EDIT: Also, first draw? The first infusion is tasty but incredibly bitter, usually, which is why the host traditionally drinks it to be polite. I find that the second infusion is the perfect one, as the bitter edge is gone but the mate flavor otherwise suffers no noticeable dilution.
First draw wakes you up from sleepiness the best :)

+ Post Reply