If you have been doing your share of reading about drinking yerba mate, then you may have noticed that it is not only a healthy habit; it can also turn into a social event. When it comes to enjoying yerba mate, there are basically three configurations to it: solito, parceria or roda (portuguese). If you are clueless to what these 3 terms mean, then please continue reading and allow me to explain how to enjoy yerba mate.
Solito
This term literally means “alone” or “solitary”. This basically means that you enjoy drinking your Yerba Mate even if there is no one else to share it with you. Most assiduous “Materos” are usually solito drinkers. They will most likely drink Mate every day even if they have to do it alone sitting in front of the TV or in their car while driving to and from work.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with being a matero solito. It just means that your body has grown accustomed to its daily dosage of Yerba Mate and it’s good that way!
Parceria
Drinking mate in pairs is also a very popular way of drinking mate. There is nothing more relaxing than shooting the breeze while enjoying a nice gourd of Yerba Mate. Actually it is pretty much the healthy and herbal equivalent of having a nice cold beer with a friend or a romantic glass of wine with that very special someone.
Throughout the Pampas and much of Southern Brazil, it is not at all uncommon to see older couples sitting on their porches and windows, welcoming the dusk and the hymn of the cicadas. Many people have grown accustomed to drinking Yerba Mate in pair and they will rarely do it when alone. Indeed, they have unconsciously associated the pleasures of talk with the pleasures of matear.
Roda
The term “Roda” literally means “circle”, therefore “Roda de Mate” literally translates to Mate circle. In a Mate Circle configuration, people will gather around in a circle in order to socialize and drink Yerba Mate. This configuration has been around for as long as time and has helped keep alive many of the tales and folklores of the ancient Guaraní people.
When participating in a mate circle, don’t forget that there are silent rules to be followed. If you don’t know what these rules are, then make sure you get up to speed on all the rules of a mate circle, before joining one. If you have any questions about this, don’t hesitate to shoot us an email we’ll be glad to help you out.
So boys and girls, lesson time is over and hopefully it wasn’t too boring for you. As always, you are more than welcome to keep on reading, but I strongly suggest you take a break and go prepare yourself a gourd.