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This article is part of a series of 4 articles on the importance of mate in the culture of its 4 main consuming countries: Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, and Brazil.
The Uruguay is often mentioned as THE mate country and mate as a Uruguayan drink.
And it all makes sense when you stroll through the streets of Montevideo. You encounter someone at every corner with a mate in hand and a thermos under their arm.
Uruguay is a (small) country in South America with nearly 3.4 million inhabitants. It is located between Argentina (to the west) and Brazil (to the north) and has its capital Montevideo.
This country is often called the Switzerland of Latin America for its safety, democracy, low corruption rate, and high standard of living compared to the rest of the continent.
It is considered one of the most socially advanced countries in Latin America.
The ancient Guarani populations of Paraguay and northern Argentina caught the attention of Spanish colonizers with their habit of drinking mate. Initially, they banned its consumption before understanding what mate was, as well as its benefits.
But this ban was not successful. Indeed, mate quickly won the hearts of the indigenous populations of neighboring regions, including Uruguay.
For Uruguayans, mate retains the symbolic character it had for the Guaranis: drinking a mate is much more than sharing a drink. It is a daily shared ceremony that strengthens bonds of friendship and promotes exchanges.
The use of the thermos to prepare mate is an initiative of Uruguayan culture, which has allowed mate to be taken out of the house and shared everywhere, all the time. There is even an expression in Argentina for those who walk around with a thermos under their arm: "to have the Uruguayan style."
Recently, mate has often been associated with Uruguay in France and Europe. Indeed, Uruguayan footballers such as Edinson Cavani and Luis Suarez are frequently seen on the sidelines with a mate in hand.
All neighboring countries have their "mate day". In Uruguay, a law was proposed in 2011 to make October 12 of each year the "Dia del Mate Uruguayo".
Unsuccessful, because Uruguay currently does not have a dedicated day to celebrate its favorite drink. Except, perhaps, the national mate day of its big neighbor, Argentina, on November 30?
Uruguay is therefore the only one of the 4 main maté-consuming countries not to have a national day dedicated to it.
A surprising fact for the country in the world where the inhabitants are the largest consumers of maté!
But perhaps they do not need to celebrate their drink: they already honor it every day!
Although Uruguay is the country with the highest per capita consumption of maté in the world, it does not produce maté!
If maté is culturally rooted in Uruguay, the country has always had to import the famous green leaves from its neighboring countries to meet the annual consumption of its inhabitants (9 kg per person!).
Today, Uruguay imports nearly 50,000 tons of maté per year, making it the largest importer of maté in the world (far ahead of Syria and Chile).
The maté consumed in Uruguay comes mostly from Brazil.
Although maté is not produced in Uruguay, some projects aim to reintroduce maté trees in the region. The Ambá conservation project, launched in 2017, aims to protect an area of 2,000 hectares, within which maté trees have been planted.
In Uruguay, maté is consumed traditionally: with a bombilla, in a calabash. The maté consumed in Uruguay is aged maté, a maté with a powerful taste, not really recommended for unaccustomed palates (at the risk of being unpleasantly surprised).
Each country has its own type of maté, with its specificities. Here are the main differences and characteristics of the maté found in Uruguay:
Uruguay was the first country in the world to legalize the production and sale of cannabis, in 2013.
The market has not kept waiting, and one can find several blends of yerba maté and cannabis.
Even though it does not produce mate, Uruguay has some of the most well-known mate brands:
Founded nearly 60 years ago, Canarias is the most well-known brand in Uruguay. The Canarias mate is produced by one of the largest manufacturers in Brazil.
La Selva is a Uruguayan mate brand specialized in medicinal herbs. Unfortunately, the company does not communicate about the origin of its mate.
Sara is a slightly less known Uruguayan brand than the previous 2 brands. However, it is not new, as it was created in 1918. The Sara mate is produced in Brazil.
The gourds used in Uruguay are, like those from Argentina, often made from squashes.
However, they are frequently crafted with leather and aluminum to make a model called "Torpedo."
The gourds used in Uruguay are also very similar to those used in Argentina.
The "loro beak" gourd is nevertheless a typically Uruguayan model. It is distinguished by a significant curvature at the tip.
