Yerba Mate: From Indigenous Substance to Argentine Icon and International Energy Drink

Julia Sarreal

Julia Sarreal, Arizona State University

Yerba mate. It's more than the fizzy energy drink you see next to Red Bull and Monster Energy cans at the supermarket. Yerba mate as an infusion is bound up with rich Indigenous and national histories and is the subject of an upcoming conversation-styled event featuring historian Julia Sarreal of Arizona State University, who will draw on her recent book on yerba mate and Argentina.

Associate professor Shawn Austin of the U of A Department of History will host the conversation at 4:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 26, in Willard J. Walker Hall (WJWH) 427.

Yerba mate, originally an indigenous infusion and shamanic substance that was condemned by Spanish priests, quickly became a mainstay of colonial Río de Plata's regional economy. Today, it is widely seen as an authentic marker of Argentine national identity and a daily necessity—the national soccer team proudly hauled 1,100 pounds of the stuff to Qatar for the World Cup! And yet, yerba mate consumption has seen its ups and downs.

For much of the 20th century, many elites considered it unhygienic and unmodern; the infusion is often consumed in a group with participants sharing the same receptacle and straw, and the drink has long been associated with rusticity, especially Guaraní peoples and gauchos (cowboys). Yerba mate also has a long history outside of the Río de la Plata and appears most commonly in the U.S. in energy drinks. This conversation with Sarreal will explore the evolution of mate from its indigenous origins to its national and international renaissance. 

This event is free, open to the public and will include a yerba mate demonstration and samples, both the energy drink and traditional mate.

This is event is sponsored by the Latin American and Latino Studies Program, the Department of History and the International and Global Studies Program.