Yerba mate comes in all different colors, tastes, strengths, cuts, and even effects. And this variation comes from the way each type of yerba mate is harvested, processed, and aged.

Yerba mate is native to South America and comes mostly from Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay, and Brazil.

Each country has its own distinct yerba.

In today”s post, we’ll cover each one among the four countries, as well as brands that sell each particular type in case you want to give them a try.

So without wasting any time, here’s the first one…

1. Argentinian Yerba Mate

Argentina is the second largest producer of yerba mate in the world. Most of the yerba mate brands you see in America come from there.

Argentinian yerba mate is what I usually recommend beginners to try first.

Why?

For a couple of reasons.

One being, it’s the easiest to prepare. Their yerba is usually high in leaves and stems, and low in dust. The leaves are often of a medium-sized cut and the stems can be as long as a centimeter. With these larger particles, you can easily strain the tea using the bombilla (filtered straw) without running into any problems.

Depending on the brand, some Argentinian mates can be strong and robust in flavor, while others can be light, sweet, and super mild. Of all the four types of yerba mate, Argentinian brands are one of the most diverse when it comes to strength and flavor.

Common notes found in their yerba mate are earth, wood, grass, florals, honey, bread, and smoke.

This mate is traditionally consumed from a spherical, hollowed-out calabash gourd and a bombilla.

Some popular brands include Cruz De Malta, Rosamonte, Taragui, and Anna Park.

2. Paraguayan Yerba Mate

Paraguay is the smallest producer of yerba mate and can be quite hard to find in the United States. Some online stores provide them. However, you’re limited to a small selection of brands.

Paraguayan yerba mate is one of my favorites.

Its cut is similar to Argentina’s. It mostly contains finely-cut to medium-sized leaves, large stems, but with a greater amount of dust. It can be hard to discern between the two to the untrained eye. But when you’ve had enough of both yerba mates, it’s obvious which is which.

In regards to taste, Paraguay is a monster of its own. Their yerba mate is a bit bolder, but a lot more complex in taste. It can go from very bitter, to sweet, to salty, to even sour. It checks of all the boxes and has lots of flavor to keep you intrigued.

Common notes consist of grass, hay, bread, smoke, tobacco, dried fruits, florals, and nuts.

Paraguayan yerba mate can be brewed hot, but they’re mostly designed to be brewed cold. When brewed cold, this is known as tereré in Paraguay – their national drink. Tereré is much preferred in Paraguay because of the extremely hot weather, and is traditionally consumed in a guampa (animal horn) instead of a gourd.

Some popular brands include La Rubia, Selecta, and Pajarito.

3. Uruguayan Yerba Mate

Uruguayan yerba mate is unlike the two you just read about.

First, here’s something interesting about Uruguay.

Uruguayans drink the most yerba mate in South America, even though they don’t grow any themselves. The climate and environment in Uruguay aren’t conducive for growing the plant there. Instead, their yerba is imported from Brazil.

Uruguayan mate consists almost entirely of small leaves and dust. Stems are almost nonexistent. The ones you do find are short and thin and hardly noticeable. This is one of the reasons why I don’t recommend this type of yerba to beginners. It’s harder to prepare and will require a spoon bombilla to prevent clogging.

And second, this mate is a lot bolder and stronger in taste. It’s bitter, creamy, and dark in flavor.

Common notes include dirt, soil, chocolate, peanut butter, cement, and rubber.

You can typically find Uruguayans drinking this mate out of a torpedo gourd with a pico de loro bombilla.

Popular brands include Canarias and Sara.

4. Brazilian Erva Mate (Chimarrão)

Brazil is the largest producer of yerba mate or what they call, chimarrão (she-ma-HOWN) or erva mate (er-va MAHCH).

As you can see from just the picture, chimarrão is very different.

Chimarrão almost entirely consists of this fine neon green dust (pulverized leaves) with very few stems and leaves. It looks much like matcha green tea. The color of this mate is vibrant green because they don’t age it like the other countries do. This erva is as fresh as could be.

Brazilian yerba mate is the hardest of the four to prepare. It takes a lot of practice and technique to perfect it. So don’t be surprised when you first try to drink it and you can’t even get one measly sip. You’ll likely waste tons of herb before finally getting it to work.

Despite preparation being difficult, the taste of chimarrão is the most beginner-friendly. The strength is light, the texture is creamy, and the bitterness is mild.

Common notes include fresh grass, butter, nuts, and salt.

Chimarrão is traditionally and most easily drunk from a cuia (Brazilian calabash gourd) with a large spoon bombilla (or bomba).

Some brands of chimarrão are Ximango and Madrugada.

Which Type Of Yerba Mate Is Best?

No two yerba mates are the same despite where they come from.

They all have different qualities and effects.

But that’s what makes it so great.

You don’t want to keep buying all these different types of brands only to find out they all taste the same right?

But if I had to decide which type I like the best, I’d have to go with Argentina and Paraguay. They offer the most diverse tasting notes at least so far in my experience.

However, I love all types of yerba mate.

I’ve tried many and rarely do I find a brand that tastes bad. Each brand always has something unique that I can appreciate.

Final Words

If you made it this far, you now have a good understanding of what the four types of yerba mates are. If you know which one you want to try, even better.

Remember: no two brands are the same.

They might have similarities, but they’ll never taste exactly alike so don’t stick with just one region.

It’s best to explore and try a variety of brands in the beginning to figure out which one you enjoy most.

However, like I said earlier, if you’re a complete beginner, yerba mate from Argentina is probably your best place to start.

P.S. If you found this post helpful, you might also want to check out our store for exclusive yerba mate, gourds, and bombillas!