If you want to get the most out of your mate, a gourd and bombilla isn’t enough.
There’s one more thing you’re missing.
And that’s a good thermos.
Don’t just take it from me…
Every avid yerba mate drinker carries one with them. In fact, you’ll see people in the streets of South America carrying it around wherever they go.
They understand why a thermos is so important.
Having one makes drinking yerba mate more convenient and more efficient.
Let me explain…
Why You Need A Yerba Mate Thermos
Imagine, for a second, it’s early in the morning and you’re ready to have your morning mate.
You go to your kitchen, dump water in your kettle, and start boiling.
Then you head over to your table to prepare your gourd with your favorite yerba mate, while waiting for the kettle to call you over.
When it does, you take it off the fire and wait for it to cool down a little. After a few minutes have passed, you pour hot water into your gourd – nice and slowly, making sure it doesn’t spill. You let it steep for a minute, then take a sip.
Delicious! you tell yourself, so you continue to keep drinking.
You begin to feel more awake, alive, and excited to start your day. Awesome!
Now you fill your gourd for the 5th time, but there’s something wrong.
It tastes horrible!
It’s bland, boring, and warm. What happened?
You check your kettle and find that the water has cooled down.
Now you’re upset, your mate doesn’t taste good, and you don’t have the time to heat up more water either.
What a waste!
Does this sound familiar?
Sure it does.
And it’s probably the most annoying thing to go through.
Mate can be drunk hot or cold (tereré)…
But Mate Tastes
Horrible When Warm
And I’m sure you can agree.
Warm mate just doesn’t taste right.
Think of it like pizza…
Pizza tastes best when it’s fresh out of the oven. And many people also love leftover pizza that’s cold. But when it’s warm? Not really.
It’s the same with mate.
If it’s not hot, it tastes bad. And if you’re drinking tereré and it’s not cold, it tastes bad too.
Keeping your mate at the most optimal temperature gives it the best taste and aroma.
But that’s not all…
Warm Water
Takes Longer To
Extract The Leaves
This is a known fact: hot water speeds the steeping process.
It extracts all the nutrients, compounds, and antioxidants at a much faster rate than warm or cool water does.
Why’s this important?
Because suppose you were drinking mate and only your first few gourds were with hot water. That’s great, you get a lot of the caffeine and other stimulants from the leaves. But as the water starts to cool down, it’ll take longer to extract, and as a result, you probably won’t get the most out of your mate.
Chances are, there’s still a bundle of healthy nutrients and compounds that you missed out on – all just because your water was too warm.
Luckily, you can avoid this from happening with a good yerba mate thermos.
What You Can Expect With A Thermos
When you get a thermos, you’ll quickly realize why it’s so crucial to your mate experience.
First, you’ll always have hot or ice cold water. When stored in a thermos, the temperature won’t return to room temperature until over 24 hours (depending on which one you get – you’ll find out which is best in a minute).
But this isn’t the only advantage you get…
With a thermos, you can drink mate anywhere. Whether it be at work, school, the beach, or park, just prep some hot water in your thermos, a gourd full of yerba, and you’re out the door.
There’s just one thing…
What’s the best yerba mate thermos?
Best Yerba Mate Thermos
There are two flasks which I recommend.
The first one is by Thermos.
This thermos is made with stainless steel and features a patented vacuum insulation design that can keep water hot or cold for up to 24 hours. What’s more, it holds 40 ounces of water which is equivalent to 1.2 liters, which is perfect as most mates don’t even last for more than one liter. With this thermos, you’ll have more than enough water to squeeze out every last drop of your mate.
It’s also very easy to use. Just remove the top (which is also a cup), and twist the cap off to pour water into the thermos. Then screw the cap back on to seal it shut. Whenever you’re ready to pour, just twist the cap slightly open. This opens up two slots for where water can flow out.
Cap shows where to pour
This is my first recommendation, which you can get on Amazon.
Now I’ll admit, its pouring system isn’t the absolute best. Maybe I’m not doing it right, but I do sometimes accidentally pour water on myself (as well as on my girlfriend when I try to serve her). Despite this though, it does a magnificent job keeping water hot/cold and that’s all I’m really looking for.
If how a thermos pours is a concern for you, then I suggest you get this Precision Pour Flask.
Among native mate drinkers, this is actually a very popular option, but isn’t readily available. You can catch many people from South America using it. Even superstar footballer Lionel Messi.
It works like any other thermos, except this one features a spout. With a single small opening for water to come out, you can ensure you pour exactly where you need to, instead of accidentally pouring outside your gourd or on the dry mountain of mate. This is a must-have for those who use smaller gourds as you’re at higher risk of missing.
If you want to get this thermos, click here to get it on Amazon.
Final Words
As you can see, a thermos makes drinking mate a much more pleasant experience.
No longer do you have to endure the nasty taste of a warm mate.
You can now enjoy the fresh and delicious flavors of a hot mate – from start to finish – when you get a thermos.
Stop wasting time boiling water over and over again because it cools down too quickly, and get yourself a quality yerba mate thermos like the ones above to keep your water hot for hours on end.
It’s no surprise that so many South Americans carry one with them everywhere…
P.S. If you enjoyed this article, you might also want to check out our store for exclusive yerba mate products.