Chimarrão is a yerba mate-based drink infused with hot water, served in a gourd, and ingested using a metal straw called bomba or bombilla. It is a traditional drink of the southern region of Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, and Chile.
The natives who inhabited those regions at the time of the Spanish colonist’s arrival were the pioneers of drink consumption.
Over time, the yerba mate tradition became the most consumed drink in the region, especially by Italian settlers.
Despite being associated with the gaucho culture, a traditional cowboy was born and raised in regions across Southern Brazil. Yerba mate served the productive chain emergence, active in the economy of Brazil’s southern region and neighboring countries.
In addition to the yerba mate consumption bringing multiple health benefits, drinking chimarrão as a group is synonymous with culture, hospitality, and friendship. It brings people together to chat about everyday subjects.
May the only bitter thing in life be the taste of chimarrão.
Jump To Section
- The History
- The Habit of Drinking Chimarrão
- The Chimarrão importance
- The Yerba Mate
- What is the difference between Chimarrão and Tereré?
- Drinking Chimarrão And The Health Benefits
- Health Risks
- The Market
- Chimarrão 10 Commandments
The History
The spread of yerba mate as a drink dates back to the late 15th. When Spanish colonists found the Guarani and Quechuas natives. Who inhabited the region of the Paraná, Paraguay, and Uruguay rivers basins, carrying in small bags, a ground herb. They called ‘caá ‘ which means “herb water” that was chewed or consumed as a drink.
The natives used a small gourd as a container and a bamboo straw. In which the side that was in contact with the liquid had a kind of fiber braiding to prevent particles from passing through.
From that moment, the colonizers had contact with the herb “caá-i” and later spread by the Jesuit priests.
The term “chimarrão” comes from Portuguese and Spanish vocabulary. From Portuguese brown or clandestine, in Spanish, it is cimarrón, which means brute or barbarian.
The word chimarrão was also used by the southern region settlers to designate the rude and bitter drink of the natives. Which was taken without any other ingredient that softened the taste.
Although Spanish-speaking countries prefer to call it “mate,” the term “chimarrão” was adopted by Brazilians and spread throughout the national territory.
During the 16th century, the consumption of chimarrão was prohibited in southern Brazil, by the same Jesuits. Who propagated the drink, as they considered it a “devil’s herb” due to its supposed aphrodisiac content, a fact that has never been proven. However, the Spanish colony consumed the drink clandestinely.
Between popularizing and prohibiting the drink, what is known is that from the 17th century onwards, the Jesuits began to encourage mate consumption again to keep people away from alcohol.
With the European’s arrival, the way of drinking chimarrão was modernized. Becoming similar to what is known today and the habit of drinking chimarrão made with hot or cold water. Became popular mainly in the south, southeast, and central regions of Brazil. Also, yerba mate is consumed in Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, and some places in Chile and Peru.
The Habit Of Drinking Chimarrão
Like burgers from the US, wines from France, or pasta from Italy, it is practically impossible to visit the South of Brazil and not try chimarrão.
Rio Grande do Sul is the state where yerba mate is most consumed. The gauchos have chimarrão as a symbol of the Rio Grande do Sul state and its history.
Chimarrão is a highly social drink. The tradition is to enjoy the drink as a group, whether in a family circle or with friends, which reflects the spirit of a united community.
The habit of drinking collectively reflects the same way that the ancients, which gave rise to chimarrão, did in community rituals.
The Chimarrão Importance
In the Rio Grande do Sul, mate is more than a traditional symbol. It is estimated that 11 million gauchos are united in their passion for this simple drink, which has a date on the calendar: April 24, the State Day of Chimarrão.
Legend has it that the Spanish soldiers, when they arrived at the Paraguay River in 1536, were very impressed by the land’s fertility on the river banks, thus founding the first city in Latin America: Assunción de Paraguay. Due to the homesickness of their families, the soldiers were famous for their drinking habits.
To cure their drunkenness, they started taking yerba mate as they noticed that it relieved their hangovers. That’s how yerba mate arrived in the Rio Grande do Sul, transported on the back of the warriors of that time.
Since then, chimarrão has become one of the main symbols of Rio Grande do Sul, to the point of deserving a day dedicated to it, celebrated on April 24.
The drink’s popularity also led the state to elect Venâncio Aires city, the Chimarrão National Capital. The economic movement generated by the yerba mate cycle earned the town the title, and the creation of a Chimarrão National Fair called Fenachim.
The chimarrão’s flavor drives tourism and the economy of Venâncio Aires, which currently has 65,000 people and annually produces around 3.5 tons of yerba mate, earning around US$ 400K.
In the Parana’s development history, yerba mate was responsible for the state’s economic, social, and political growth. Its historical and symbolic importance ended up being honored as a branch of yerba mate in the green and white state’s flag.
Catanduvas, the municipality of Santa Catarina, is the primary yerba mate producer, which is why it holds the title of chimarrão’s capital of the state. The Chimarrão fair is considered the most significant event in the city, bringing together thousands of visitors each edition, reflecting the importance of yerba mate cultivation in the economy and the Santa Catarina culture.
The Yerba Mate
Yerba mate is the protagonist of chimarrão. To be ready for taste, it goes through several stages of drying, roasting, and grinding.
It is what will define the drink´s flavor and aroma, a pure mate leaf, bitter, smoked, or mixed with other types of teas, called by consumers mate jujado.
Yerba mate is scientifically known as Ilex paraguariensis, a tree that can reach more than eight meters in height, originating in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest and can be found in the forests of the three southern states of Brazil, northern Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay.
The species is an agroecological forest product that can be used to recover degraded areas and landscaping.
Its primary use is the leaves, and fine stems for Yerba mate production since the wood is unsuitable for firewood, pulp, or paper.
There are two types of yerba mate for consumption, one for chimarrão and toasted tea and another for soft drinks.
The main known components of yerba mate are folic acid, vitamins, minerals, tannins, and alkaloids such as caffeine.
The caffeine in yerba mate is around 2.2% in young leaves, decreasing in older leaves, responsible for the stimulating action of chimarrão and toasted tea. Tannins, accountable for the drink´s astringent taste, are around 16%.
What Is The Difference Between Chimarrão And Tereré?
Tereré is the cold version of Chimarrão. It is also made with yerba mate, but in cold water, and can be mixed with different herbs, like mint, lemon, pineapple, orange, and ginger, while the traditional chimarrão does not accept changes. It is served only with yerba mate infused in hot water.
According to critics, Tereré is not chimarrão but a typical drink from Brazilian central states and, mainly in Paraguay, where in Asunción, the country’s capital, there are places that rent both the water jug, the gourd, and the bomb, along with the herb.
Due to the hot climate, these South American central regions prefer to consume cold yerba mate.
The container where the drink goes is different. While chimarrão is called porongo or gourd from a plant called porongueiro, the tererê container is a type of sinuous cup made from the ox horn called guampa that can be covered in leather.
The consumer uses a pump made of stainless steel to prevent rust and is usually decorated with stones, gold, or silver. In contrast, the tereré is consumed using a pump made of alpaca metal.
Curiously, the tererê name comes from the fact that when you reach the end of the drink, the pump makes a sound that resembles “tererê.”
Drinking Chimarrão And The Health Benefits
Is drinking chimarrão regularly good for health?
Chimarrão has beneficial properties for human health. The plant is capable of fighting diseases such as anemia and diabetes and has great nutritional value. The yerba mate was considered by the Spanish colonizers as the nectar of the gods.
As a tea, it is used in traditional healing. Its main properties are stimulant, diuretic, digestive, and sudorific.
Yerba mate is rich in vitamins from the B, C, D, and E complex and mineral salts, such as calcium, iron, manganese, and potassium.
Moreover, drinking chimarrão regularly fights cancer cells, delays aging, reduces blood pressure, aids digestion and hydration, cures hangovers, and acts as a stimulant that increases resistance to fatigue, boosting your mood.
Studies carried out in 1988 by the Institut Pasteur and the Society for Scientific Application, both based in Paris, revealed that yerba mate contains more pantothenic acid than royal jelly and is a true stimulant of the sexual glands.
Health Risks
However, excessive consumption can cause insomnia or irritability. In addition, mate is often associated with the risk of getting esophageal cancer.
The International Agency issued the alert for Research on Cancer, which is part of the WHO, after 23 researchers from 10 countries reviewed more than 1,000 epidemiological, observational studies and animal experiments conducted from November 2015 to June 2016.
The researchers investigated the coffee, chimarrão, tererê, and yerba mate as tea consumption.
The conclusion was that drinks infused above 65ºC favor the development of esophageal cancer due to the thermal damage caused to the mucosa that covers the organ.
Although the Gauchos do not like to talk about this subject, the fact is that in Rio Grande do Sul, the state that most drinks chimarrão in Brazil, the cancer incidence is up to 5 times higher than in the rest of the country. This scenario is probably caused by chimarrão consumption at a temperature of 65ºC or more.
According to the researchers, esophageal carcinoma may be associated when using the pump.
When the consumer sucks the hot liquid, it goes straight from the gourd to the throat without previous contact with the mouth, where the heat exchange takes place, which occurs when drinking from a cup or glass.
As the esophagus has no nerve endings in its initial part, there is no pain sensation when ingesting the hot liquid.
Therefore, many people can be mistaken in thinking that it withstands excessive heat very well.
According to Ricardo Gurski, the head of surgery at the Clinical Hospital of Porto Alegre and professor at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, the hot water of the mate when burning the esophageal mucosa facilitates the entry of carcinogenic substances received through food.
“The issue is not the fact of drinking hot water, per se, but how much the person is exposed to the volume and high temperature of the water and the frequency with which this happens”, concludes Ricardo Gurski. He also states that esophageal cancer is highly lethal and difficult to diagnose early. When symptoms appear, the cancer is already at an advanced stage.
Nevertheless, there is no need to give up the habit of drinking chimarrão, as there is no relationship between yerba mate and the disease, and the risk is not exclusive to the drink.
The WHO study pointed out that the consumption of any hot beverage, such as coffee or tea at 65ºC or above, for instance, can contribute to the emergence of esophageal cancer.
The recommendation is to consume hot drinks at 55ºC, the same temperature as an espresso coffee when it comes out of the machine.
The Market
Brazil is one of the world’s largest food producers. Among the products, soybeans, oranges, coffee, and sugar cane stand out.
Currently, the country is also the leading producer of yerba mate with approximately 900 thousand tons per year, followed by Argentina with 840 thousand tons and Paraguay with a production of 170 thousand tons.
The seedlings purchase and labor are the highest cost for the yerba mate growing, which together can reach 65% of the investment per hectare. As the total production only starts in the fifth year of cultivation, the payback begins around the tenth year. However, the farms can explore cultivation for at least 40 years.
The average productivity per hectare is around 7 to 8 tons. However, it is possible to reach 20 tons/ha by following technical guidelines.
The yerba mate’s income ranges from US$0,30 to US$0,35 per kilo.
The habit of consuming Yerba Mate is widespread in the southern region of Brazil, with the state of Paraná being the largest producer in volume and Rio Grande do Sul in planted areas and technology.
The growing market for cosmetics, medications, paints, resins, cleaning products, and gastronomy items, such as beers, soft drinks, and sweets, has expanded the domestic and international market of the herb industry.
Chimarrão 10 Commandments
You can drink chimarrão by yourself, accompanied, or in a group. e
When drinking the yerba mate in traditional circles, you must follow the 10 commandments.
- Never ask to add sugar to the Mate: The real mate is strong and bitter.
- Don’t ever say that drinking Mate is unsanitary: Many might find it strange because, traditionally, it gets passed around from mouth to mouth. Well, they say ” If you are disgusted by everyone and sharing is not your thing you better grab yourself a soda”
- Never complain about the Mate being too hot: If nobody is complaining about it, then it means that it is perfectly bearable or you can move to Paraguay and drink terere.
- Never leave your Mate half-full: Traditionally, it is disrespectful to not drink to the end.
- Drink it ’til it “roars”: Don’t be embarrassed to drink your Mate until it slurps. Nobody in the circle shall judge you.
- Don’t mess with the bombilla: Positioning the bombilla is an art that if not mastered might possibly ruin the whole Mate. Sometimes, clogging can occur because of the type of Mate or the bombilla. But never EVER attempt to fix it yourself! Let the Matero have a look at it. By the way, the Matero is responsible for preparing the chimarrão.
- The order in which the Mate gets passed shall never be altered: Don’t ever change the order in which the Mate gets passed around. The Mate should always be passed on with the right hand. Passing your Mate with your left hand means a lack of respect for your fellow drinker.
- Don’t delay passing the Chimarrão around: A Mate circle is a social event and an ideal place to exchange ideas. But Keeping the Mate too long in your hands is a lack of respect for the others who are also waiting their turn.
- Don’t condemn the host for drinking the first round: The first round of Mate is always the most bitter and he who drinks it is actually doing you a favor.
- Never say that Mate causes throat cancer: Nobody gathers around a Mate circle to hear that they will get cancer, so it’s best not to talk about it.
Bottom Line
The way of drinking yerba mate, discovered by the Spanish colonists from the hands of the natives who lived in the southern regions of South America, has become a social and friendly act nowadays.
The ritual of drinking chimarrão brings people together for a conversation circle. In addition, the consumption of yerba mate can bring numerous benefits to people’s health.
The chimarrão travels from hand to hand, carrying the southern people’s history, culture, and essence. The chimarrão circles are synonymous with freedom, fraternity, and fraternization, symbolizing hospitality.
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