At first glance, an Argentina supermarket is like any other. Then you notice the whole aisle devoted to yerba mate, a vegetarian section that consists only of cardboard-like soya milanesas, and – as one blogger has noted – an astounding number of variations on tinned corn.
It would be fair to say that mate falls in to that polite category of beverages – along with Fernet – of being ‘an acquired taste’. Pronounced ‘mah-tay’ (as opposed to an informal synonym of friend), this drink infusion is ubiquitous in Argentina and Uruguay. You’ll see taxi drivers, old ladies in the streets, lovers in parks, and friends in houses cradling a little gourd, taking a sip of mate through a bombilla (straw), and sharing it round. You’ll see it everywhere, and it will only be a matter of time (measured in hours rather than days) before you are offered some…