489721 Thu Feb 14 13:47:01 -0800 2008 5 12 Boston Area 0 3398280 Matte, the brazilian drink. I've been looking for a shop that sells everything i need to make Matte at home. From the herb, to the sugar, to the metal cup and straw. Can someone point me out to a store in Boston or beyond where i can get all their things? Also, if there are different choices in terms of quality of products, can you suggest which one i should get? Thank you Thu Feb 14 13:47:01 -0800 2008 117400 r_walid 1 3398317 I drink mate regularly........For a quick fix, you can buy the Yerba Mate bags at Trader Joe's. Pretty decent quality. A couple of years ago, I bought a bombilla (cup made of hollowed out gourd) and metal straw from a matte website, plus some mate tea. I can't remember the specific site, but the cup and straw were fine. I've never seen a metal cup for mate, just the gourds. The mate itself, however, was not so good....very bitter. I've since got some nice loose mate at McNulty's in Greenwich Village...theirs is excellent, nice and smooth. You can order online here: http://mcnultys.com/ Thu Feb 14 13:55:51 -0800 2008 3398280 11301 Science Chick 1 3398354 Can't help you with the cup and straw (seems like the sort of thing the Internet was born to do), but Tealuxe sells the actual yerba mate loose. Thu Feb 14 14:05:08 -0800 2008 3398280 11344 finlero 1 3398810 I thought I postd this, but it doesn't seem to be here. You can buy Guayaqui (the People )Yerba Mate, loose, in packages, at the Whole Foods in Cambridge, RiverSt. Thu Feb 14 16:21:40 -0800 2008 3398280 11108 galleygirl 1 3399105 When the weather gets hot, you can try a related product, a Cuban soda called "materva" I've found it at El Oriental de Cuba in JP and that big latin grocery nearby. Not pure mate of course but it's mate flavored. Good stuff. Thu Feb 14 18:22:26 -0800 2008 3398280 152667 Ralphie_in_Boston 1 3424064 Everything you need to make chimarrao can be bought inexpensively in local Brazilian stores. Note the most common cuia is made from a gourd and this along with the metal straw (bomba) can be had for around $2. Brazilian butchers (Case de Carnes Somerville, Acougue Brasil Medford, Tony's Foodland E Somerville, probably La Sultana Everett/Somerville/E Boston) and Supermarkets (Gol Somerville/Framingham) usually carry these and inexpensive 1 kilo bags of mate. That would be for the green mate traditionally used for chimarrao, but they also carry Mate Leao (toasted) and the mate leao cha gelado (sweetened iced tea with lemon). In the past fancier cuias and bombas were available in stores, but a lot of these specialty products have disappeared locally due to the dollar (in the past importers could make a killing, bringing in small quantities). The Somerville brazilian market used to carry nicer ones before they were acquired as Gol, but could still have something. International Market in Union Square redid their stock and not certain they have it, but is worth a peek and you could luck out at either casa de carnes or the medford acougue. If you really want to go fancy, a Brazilian jeweler would probably make you a bomba from silver. Otherwise your best bet would be at a Brazilian rodeo and there is usually one Memorial Day weekend -- I have seen tooled leather cuias. And as mentioned you can mail order all this, at a premium. Fri Feb 22 09:21:40 -0800 2008 3398280 12962 itaunas