Each of the yerba mates from the various regions of South America offer a unique flavor and style - just like regional specialty coffee, tea, wine and cocoa.  Guayaki is celebrating yerba mate (pronounced ‘MAH-tay’) diversity with the announcement of San Mateo Loose Yerba Mate.  Sourced from the rainforest in the San Mateo region of Southern Brazil, this air-dried organic yerba mate provides Guayaki customers with yet another delicious and invigorating yerba mate style to enjoy.  San Mateo Yerba Mate provides “the lift of coffee, antioxidants of green tea, euphoria of chocolate and nutritional profile of wheatgrass” - all in one delicious eco-friendly beverage.

In South America, where yerba mate is a cultural phenomenon, techniques for processing yerba mate vary from country to country.  In Paraguay and Argentina, many people prefer mate that has been wood dried and aged.  Whereas in Brazil, “cruda yerba” (yerba mate which has not been roasted or aged) is often preferred.  Guayaki’s new San Mateo blend is crafted in the Brazilian style by using an air dried, smoke-free drying process that yields a bright and lively herbal flavor and a clean finish.  Unlike other brands in North America, Guayaki uses a premium cut which blends the whole leaf, tender stems and leaf powder to capture the potent ‘whole plant’ energy of the yerba mate tree. 

San Mateo Loose Yerba Mate can be brewed like coffee in a French press, coffee machine or espresso maker, or it can be enjoyed the traditional way with a gourd and bombilla (metal filtered straw).  Guayaki provides San Mateo in an economy sized 16-ounce bag for an SRP of $13.99.

The mountainous and densely forested São Mateus do Sul (translated to San Mateo) region in the southern Brazilian state of Parana is the nation’s unofficial yerba mate heritage center and is home to the Jaguar and other remarkable jungle wildlife.  Called erva-mate in the local Portuguese patois, air-dried erva-mate is the base of regional yerba mate drinks called chimarrão (hot) and tereré (cold).  Erva-mate is so popular that stone mosaics depicting the drink and its culture adorn village sidewalks. Guayaki San Mateo is a premium blend of only the very best organic shade-grown yerba mate that has been carefully selected from several local rainforest cultivations that implement sustainable agriculture and fair trade practices. 

A yerba mate farmer uses low-impact horse power in the rainforest of San Mateo Region

A Darker Shade of Green - Reduce Your Carbon Footprint by Drinking Guayaki’s San Mateo

San Mateo Loose Yerba Mate is a ‘carbon subtracting’ product.  This eco-feat is due primarily to the vast carbon sequestration that occurs in the vibrant rainforest where Guayaki’s yerba mate is sourced.  Each 16-ounce pack of organic, shade-grown and fairly-traded San Mateo Loose Yerba Mate achieves a subtraction of 573 grams of carbon.  The independent assessment was performed by Conscious Brands™ (www.consciousbrands.com) in accordance with the CarbonLabels.org standard.  Growing Guayaki Yerba Mate in the natural rainforest absorbs 875g, while the carbon emissions from processing and transportation are much less: 220g processing, 11g packaging and 71g transportation. 

Organic Guayaki Yerba Mate Thrives Under the Rainforest Canopy in Brazil

Guayaki’s award-winning Market Driven Restoration business model directly links their customers’ purchases to their partner farming communities in the Atlantic Rainforests of South America.  Guayaki’s partners sustainably harvest organic yerba mate in the rainforest, generating a renewable income stream which enables the local communities to improve their lives and restore their lands.  Sustainable yerba mate agriculture within the rainforest is a robust, long-term economic alternative to the destructive land use practices which threaten the region, such as vast soy plantations, clear cut logging and cattle grazing.  Even the San Mateo package itself is eco-friendly.  It is made from innovative biodegradable and compostable films that are forest-friendly, and the package is printed using water-based inks. 

New Published Research Highlights the Nutrition and Health Benefits of Yerba Mate

The uplifting and nourishing choice of health-minded people, yerba mate provides 24 vitamins and minerals, 15 amino acids, 11 polyphenols (powerful antioxidants) and saponins (phytochemicals that bolster the immune system).  Yerba mate is also well-known for its adaptogen-like qualities and has been proven to be a valuable weight management tool.  Per serving, San Mateo contains the caffeine equivalent of ¾ cup of coffee; however, the caffeine is balanced by mate’s theobromine (the ‘euphoriant’ in chocolate), theophylline (another stimulant), and B vitamins including pantothenic acid (prevents over-stimulation of the nervous system).  Therefore, people that drink yerba mate gain vitality and clarity of mind, but not the jitters, digestive discomfort and headaches that are common among consumers of coffee and energy drinks. 

For many centuries, the indigenous herbalists of South America have used yerba mate as the base for their medicine.  Now, modern science is backing up many aspects of their cultural beliefs.  A compilation of research published by researchers from the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition at the University of Illinois in the November 2007 issue of the Journal of Food Science* details mate’s many health attributes, including:

Yerba mate possesses a much higher antioxidant capacity than green tea. 
Yerba mate has been found to be hypocholesterolemic and hepatoprotective.
[Mate] is a protector of DNA oxidation and in vitro low-density lipoperoxidation.
Mate Tea has been shown to have possible effects in the area of weight loss and management.
Mate has also shown to have potential as a digestive aid due to a choleretic effect, increasing the rate of bile flow.
Administering Mate extract decreased lipid oxidation in the heart by protecting myocardial tissue. 

The Traditional Gourd Cermony - The Yerba Mate Culture of Sharing and Hospitality

Millions of people in South America sip yerba mate from a traditional gourd and bombilla throughout the day.  Now that awareness of the health benefits of yerba mate is spreading rapidly on this continent, North Americans are becoming more interested in the cultural roots of this beverage.  The ancient gourd ritual for enjoying yerba mate is a symbol of hospitality.  Drinking mate inspires openness between those in the drinking circle, and this communal spirit allows the mate to do more than just nourish and energize bodies and minds.  As the mate gourd is passed around, a sense of connection emerges.  Typically, the cebador (mate server) prepares mate for a friend or a group of friends. The cebador drinks first, testing the waters to ensure that only a smooth running mate is shared.  Then the gourd is refilled with water and passed counter-clockwise with the bombilla facing the recipient.  Each person drinks the entire gourd.  After the last sip, the gourd is returned with the bombilla facing the cebador.  The gourd is refilled with hot water and follows the circle, continuing until the mate is lavado (flat).

In addition to the new San Mateo, Guayaki offers Traditional Yerba Mate, Gaucho’s Fuerte Espresso Mate, Java Mate (with spices and ramon nut), seven bottled Organic Yerba Mate Drinks, six Yerba Mate Tea Bag Blends, Traditional Yerba Mate Tea Bags, two varieties of Mate Latté Concentrates and yerba mate accessories.  www.guayaki.com.