Che Mate tea (roasted flavour)

Maté is a revitalising herbal beverage. The leaves grow naturally in the subtropical iron-red soil of South America where maté has been enjoyed locally over the centuries. Maté is recognised around the world for its valuable nutrients and today millions benefit from its many virtues. Maté has been aptly called "Nature's most perfect beverage".

Maté - pronounced mah-tay - is an evergreen shrub belonging to the holly family. Its botanical name is ilex paraguariensis and it is grown in the iron-red soils of northern Argentina, Paraguay and southern Brazil.

Maté's health-giving properties were first recognised by the Guarani Indians who drank copious amounts of maté to combat fatigue, stimulate the mind, detoxify the blood - and even restore youthful hair colour. In more recent times, Charles Darwin declared maté the "perfect stimulant", although history does not reveal whether he was referring to his youthful hair colour.

Currently maté accounts for 53% of the hot beverage market in Argentina, and it knows no social boundaries. Offering and accepting maté is a gesture of hospitality and friendship - not only for the gauchos riding across the pampas with only maté to keep them going, but also for city-dwellers drinking maté in the cafés of Buenos Aires.