It has been a while since I posted a review, so let’s resume by taking a little trip down to Paraguay, shall we? Today’s featured yerba is Selecta Traditional Yerba Mate brought to us by the Grupo Selecta company in Bella Vista, Paraguay. Selecta Traditional Yerba Mate is hand harvested only 3 months out of the year and special aged for 2 years before packaging. If you haven’t tried it yet, then read on to find out if this is something for you.
Brand
Grupo Selecta is an Paraguayan group, which has been around since the 1950s. It is presently made up of 3 main separate enterprises (El Mirador, Farmer and E.B.S.A), which focus mainly on sustainable forestry, livestock and agriculture. Their yerba mate branch is one of Paraguay’s premium brands and has been on the market since the 1970s. The company is constantly striving to keep their mission to remain genuine, while still keeping up with the latest market trends. In an ever-growing international demand for yerba mate, this has certainly not been an easy task for Grupo Selecta nor for any of its local competitors.
Blend
To be honest, this was my first time to purchase this yerba. The first thing that you notice, when opening the package is the significant amount of polvo (powder). While it does contain some stems, it has a smaller leaf cut than other well-known traditional Argentina brands. This is probably due to the fact that Paraguayans prefer to take their mate cold in tereré style. All in all, a rich blend with a fair mix of greenish to brownish tones.
Taste
Selecta Traditional is smoked during the drying process, which results in a bolder flavor when drinking with either cold or hot water. The unique smokey flavour will kickstart your day. Drink two mates of this early in the morning and you are likely to immediately feel the effects.
Aroma
Like the taste, so is the aroma. A sniff inside the package takes me right back to the campfires and barbecues, which I experienced while travelling around the serene Paraguayan countryside.