Curing and Looking after your Mate
1) The Natural Gourd
What is a Gourd? It is formed by drying out a gourd, which is the fruit of the Calabash plant or tree, and hollowing it. There are a few varieties so the type of shape may vary. Often they are decorated on the outside, or maybe wrapped in leather or cloth. Sometimes they have metal rims and stands if they don't stand alone. Here you see one growing
Why should I cure my gourd?
Curing your mate if done properly should prevent the gourd from splitting. The gourd itself adds to the flavour of your brew, and the curing process improves the flavour and lengthens the flavourful life of the gourd.
How do I cure my gourd?
We recommend the following procedure to cure a gourd:
1. Remove any debris
With a natural gourd it is perfectly normal for there to be ‘paper’ like debris inside, and possibly some seeds (imagine that when growing, the gourd is like a pumpkin or butternut squash). The inside maybe slightly black. Wash out the gourd with warm water – no soap – and scrape the debris out with a spoon. If the gourd is a pear shaped one, DO NOT REMOVE THE ‘BUD’– this will cause leakage.
2. Disinfect (optional)
Pass salt around the inside. The salt acts as a disinfectant. This step is also helpful for later on - if your gourd develops a mould you can remove and disinfect for peace of mind.
3. Cure
Fill the gourd with old, used yerba tea leaves and leave for a few hours. If you don’t have any used yerba, you can use split teabags, or soak some fresh yerba in water and use that. It is important that the yerba/tea is just wet, DON’T FILL THEGOURD AND LEAVE SOAKING IN WATER, this will often lead to the gourd splitting. Some people add alcohol to the wet yerba (any alcohol will do) – this is optional.
You can now prepare a normal mate. Over time the gourd will absorb more and more flavour of your yerba.
Ongoing care of your gourd
It is important that after use you remove used yerba and keep your gourd dry, otherwise mould is likely to form. Never leave your gourd soaking in water, this will cause it to split.
2) The wooden mate
Wood is a popular material for mate cupas mainly because the flavour can be enhanced. Wooden mates usually give a richer enhancement to the taste, sometimes sweeter, as opposed to the gourd which is bitter.
Why should I cure my wooden mate?
Wooden mates are very prone to splitting, especially the palo santo wood. Curing the wood will help to seal the natural poresand increase the product life.
How do I cure my wooden mate?
1. Seal the pores
Spread oil or butter around the inside walls of the mate cup
2. Cure
Fill the mate with old, used yerba tea leaves and leave for a few hours. If you don’t have any used yerba, you can use split teabags, or soak some fresh yerba in water and use that. It is important that the yerba/tea is just wet, DON’T LEAVE SOAKING IN WATER, this will often lead to the splitting. Some people add alcohol to the wet yerba (any alcohol will do) – this is optional. After it has been left for at least a few hours, clean thoroughly to remove the yerba and oil.
You can now prepare a normal mate. Over time the gourd will absorb more and more flavour
Ongoing care of your mate
It is important that after use you remove used yerba and keep your mate dry, otherwise mould is likely to form. Never leave your gourd soaking in water, this will cause it to split. Don't allow to over dry, this will cause splitting. The best way to allow to dry is to shake out allexcess water and dry pointing down on a drying rack. Don't leave to dry on a radiator.
3) Ceramic, glass or synthetic mates
These kind of mate cups don't require curing, but should be washed before use. They can be treated like normal crockery but depending on the outer material mmay need to be carefully washed e.g. If wrapped in leather.