Friday, April 25, 2008

How Do You Pack It?


Often times I am asked, "How do you pack it?," when people see a bombilla (bohm-bee-ya) for the first time. They think it is a cool pipe, when in fact it is a metal drinking straw used to drink yerba mate. Yerba mate (mah-tay) is a popular tea native to subtropical  South America. It is prepared by steeping the dried leaves in hot water. Drinking mate with friends from a shared hollow gourd is an extremely common social practice in Argentina. It is used in popular medicine as a STIMULANT to the nervous system, a diurectic, and an appetite suppressant. People in the states are FINALLY catching onto yerba mate's healthy properties and inexpensive price. 

For more info, check out ::  http://www.YerbaMateLovers.etsy.com

Cactus Gallery has an assortment of beautiful handmade gourds, bombillas and four different types of yerba mate tea imported from the motherland, Argentina. A typical set runs you $20-22 and a fancy set goes for $40-45. Do something good for your body today - start drinking mate!

1 comment:

Pete Mastroianni said...

This is a wonderful example of the ingenuity of the Argentine artisan.
Old technology with a twist.
I have one of them, I have been using one for over 2 years and it performs great. It seldom gets clogged and it is a breeze to clean. Simply pull the spring loaded cover over the edge and release. Rinse with warm water and replace cover.
Try it, you will never return to the traditional bulb end bombilla.
Pete
http://www.myyerbamatestore.com/