Yerba Mate - (California Studies in Food and Culture) by Julia J S Sarreal (Paperback)

About the Book

"Like coffee or tea, yerba mate is one of the world's most beloved caffeinated beverages. Once dubbed a "devil's drink" by Spanish missionaries in South America only to be later hailed by capitalists and politicians as "green gold," it has a long and storied history. And no country consumes and celebrates yerba mate quite like Argentina. This is the first book to explore the extraordinary history of this iconic beverage in Argentina from the precolonial period to the present. From yerba mate's Indigenous origins to its ubiquity during the colonial era, from its association with rural people and the poor in the late nineteenth century to its resurgence in the last years of the twentieth century, Julia Sarreal meticulously documents yerba mate's consumption, production, and cultural importance over time. Yerba Mate is the definitive history of this popular beverage and social practice, and it tells a fascinating story about race, culture, and how a drink helped forge the national identity of one of the world's most dynamic countries"--

Book Synopsis

Like coffee or tea, yerba mate is one of the world's most beloved caffeinated beverages. Once dubbed a "devil's drink" by Spanish missionaries in South America only to be later hailed by capitalists and politicians as "green gold," it has a long and storied history. And no country consumes and celebrates yerba mate quite like Argentina.

Yerba Mate is the first book to explore the extraordinary history of this iconic beverage in Argentina from the precolonial period to the present. From yerba mate's Indigenous origins to its ubiquity during the colonial era, from its association with rural people and the poor in the late nineteenth century to its resurgence in the last years of the twentieth century, Julia Sarreal meticulously documents yerba mate's consumption, production, and cultural importance over time. Yerba Mate is the definitive history of this popular beverage and social practice, and it tells a fascinating story about race, culture, and how a drink helped forge the national identity of one of the world's most dynamic countries.

From the Back Cover

"This book is unique: the first ever on the deep history of yerba mate, the Indigenous stimulant tea of South America whose significance has only grown over time. The book takes on mate, now the crucial marker of modern Argentine national identity, as a remarkably changeable cultural, political, and social commodity. Julia Sarreal's story here is as delightful and stimulating as a warm infusion of mate itself."--Paul Gootenberg, general editor of The Oxford Handbook of Global Drug History

"A long-awaited work and a true tour de force through five centuries of the history of yerba mate. At the intersection of economic, social, and cultural history, this book will be required reading for those who research food, commodities, and labor from a historical perspective. "--Valeria Manzano, Universidad Nacional de San Martín - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Argentina

"Sarreal's exhaustively researched book narrates Argentina's economic and cultural history through its fluctuating relationship with a single, fascinating commodity. By exploring the persistence of mate drinking--an Indigenous custom--in a country that has often emphasized its connections to European modernity, she illuminates the conflicts that have shaped the nation."--Matthew B. Karush, author of Musicians in Transit: Argentina and the Globalization of Popular Music

Review Quotes

"Yerba Mate explores the history of one of the world's cafeinated beverages from the precolonial period to the present in Argentina. The book is an interesting refection of how yerba mate, 'green gold, ' shaped the national identity of Argentina."-- "Economic Botany"

"As Sarreal notes, yerba mate is now increasingly consumed as a cold beverage in Europe and the United States, marketed as a pick-me-up superfood with all the false trappings of Indigenous exoticization. And thanks to Sarreal's sweeping book, scholars of Latin America and of food and drugs now have a definitive study of yerba mate in Argentina, and a picture window on the nation's historical longue durée."
-- "Hispanic American Historical Review"

"Yerba Mate would appeal to anyone interested in learning all that is needed to know about an infusion that is embedded in Argentine culture and the country's everyday life. . . . I would recommend heating water, preparing a mate, and sipping while you enjoy the reading."-- "ReVista"

"Yerba Mate is the first book to chart the captivating journey of Argentina's cherished caffeinated beverage from its indigenous roots to the modern day. Through meticulous documentation, author Julia Sarreal showcases how yerba mate has intertwined with Argentina's cultural and racial dynamics. She sheds light on yerba mate's transformative role in shaping the country's national identity and its present ubiquity."-- "Food Tank"

About the Author

Julia J.S. Sarreal is Associate Professor at Arizona State University and author of The Guaraní and Their Missions: A Socioeconomic History. She has a Ph.D. in History from Harvard University and teaches classes on Latin American History and Latin American Studies. Dr. Sarreal first tried yerba mate as a Peace Corps volunteer in Curuguaty, Paraguay. Her intellectual interest in the beverage was sparked while living in Buenos Aires and working on her dissertation about the Guaraní missions.