Yerba Mate
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Cold brewing yerba mate fixes the one thing that turns a lot of people off hot mate: the bitterness. Steep it cold and long instead of hot and fast, and you get something smoother, almost sweet, without losing the kick.
The quick recipe
Ratio: 2 tablespoons loose yerba per 1 cup cold, filtered water
Steep: 8 to 12 hours in the fridge
Filter: sieve, French press, or cold brew pitcher, then once more through a coffee filter if you want it clean
Keeps: about 3 days, sealed
Serve: over ice, with lime or mint
Here's the longer version: how I do it, how I filter it, and the gear and bags I'd buy if I were starting over.
Real talk: this is my favorite way to drink mate. There's almost always a jar of cold brew in my fridge.
The night before, I measure out the yerba, add water, and slide it in. By morning it's done. No kettle, no waiting, no babysitting a gourd. I pour a glass of strong, smooth, filtered mate and get to work.
The word I keep landing on is clean. No sludge at the bottom of the cup, no bombilla clogging, no bitter edge. I like it more than most of the traditional ways, and I say that as someone who loves the traditional ways.
Ratio consistency ties into the same principle covered in why your tea tastes bitter — too much leaf or too little water throws off the whole brew, hot or cold.
Use about 2 tablespoons of loose yerba mate per cup of cold, filtered water. That's roughly double what you'd use for a hot brew, since cold water extracts much more slowly. If you're using organic yerba mate, you'll notice the flavor stays cleaner at this ratio instead of turning grassy.
Quick scale: 1 cup of yerba to 8 cups of water gets you a big batch for the week. Want it stronger? Add more leaf, not more time.
Combine the yerba and water in a jar or pitcher, stir once, and refrigerate for 8 to 12 hours. Overnight is the easy answer. Don't rush this by using warm water to speed things up. That's what reintroduces the bitterness you're trying to avoid.
Filtering is the whole game. Loose yerba leaves fine dust behind, so whatever you use, the goal is the same: leaf out, liquid in. Your bombilla won't help here. A proper gourd and bombilla is built for hot mate, not for straining a cold batch.
These are the methods I actually use:
1. Bulk: bowls and a kitchen sieve. This is my big-batch method. I steep in a large bowl or jar, then pour through a kitchen sieve into a second bowl. For a really clean result, I pour it a second time through a coffee filter or a piece of cheesecloth. It's not fancy. It works every time.
2. French press. Add yerba and cold water, put the lid on, and refrigerate overnight. In the morning, press slowly. The mesh handles most of it, and a second pass through a sieve catches the rest. If you already brew with one, here's how it ranks against other coffee gear.
3. Honestly, anything that filters. A nut milk bag, a paper coffee filter in a funnel, a tea sock, a cold brew pitcher with a built-in mesh. If it separates leaf from liquid, it's a mate filter.
You don't need a special mate pitcher. Cold brew coffee makers are basically a jar with a mesh filter and an airtight lid, which is exactly what overnight mate needs. If you want one piece of gear that does the steeping, filtering, and fridge storage in one container, here's what I'd buy.
Takeya Deluxe Cold Brew Coffee Maker, 2 Quart
$34.99 | 4.6 stars | 67,000+ ratings
My pick. Tritan plastic so it won't shatter in a fridge door, an airtight leakproof lid so it won't taste like last night's leftovers, and a fine-mesh filter. The 2 quart size is the sweet spot for a week of mate. It's also dishwasher safe, which matters more than you'd think when you're cleaning fine leaf dust out of a pitcher. There's a 1 quart version for about $25 if you want a smaller batch.
Runner-up: the Hario Mizudashi Cold Brew Maker, 1000ml ($20.65, 4.6 stars, 12,000+ ratings). It's slimmer, fits a fridge door, and is designed for cold brew tea and coffee, which is close to what mate is.
My honest note: mate is finer than coarse coffee grounds, so even with a good mesh filter you may see a little dust. If that bugs you, pour the finished batch through a coffee filter once. Takes 30 seconds.
Not every bag is equally good cold. For overnight brewing I want something smooth, with minimal powder so the filter has less to fight. These are my picks from my full list of top Amazon yerba mate bags.
1. Playadito Yerba Mate, 1kg
$16.90 | 4.7 stars | 4,100+ ratings
My first pick for cold brew. It's the bag with the least powder I've found, which means the cleanest glass. Smooth, mellow, easy to filter.
2. Cruz de Malta Yerba Mate Loose Leaf, 2.2 lb (Pack of 2)
$26.04 | 4.7 stars | 1,100+ ratings
The bulk pick. Large leaf, low dust, and a two-pack of kilos. If you're making big batches every week with the bowl-and-sieve method, this is the one that keeps your cost per glass low.
3. Taragüi Yerba Mate Original with Stems, 1kg
$14.99 | 4.6 stars | 3,300+ ratings
The classic. Leaf and stem (con palo) gives a mild, balanced cup. A good default if you just want to make cold brew and not think about it.
4. The Mate Factor Organic Dark Roast, 12 oz
$14.42 | 4.6 stars | 800+ ratings
Roasted, toasty, and closer to iced coffee in spirit. If you're coming from coffee, cold brew this one first. It's also the easiest to strain.
5. Kurupí Yerba Mate Menta y Boldo, 500g
$9.99 | 4.6 stars | 389 ratings
The mint one. Mint and cold water is a natural pairing, and this style comes from the tradition of cold mate in hot weather. Cheap enough to try on a whim.
Check price and reviews on Amazon
Pour over ice. A squeeze of lime or a few mint leaves both work well and are traditional additions in a lot of South American households. Resist the urge to add sugar until you've tried it plain first. The smoothness of a proper cold brew often doesn't need it.
Other things worth trying once:
Citrus: orange or grapefruit peel in the jar overnight.
Ginger: a few thin slices for a little heat.
Sparkling: half cold brew, half sparkling water, over ice. Dangerously good.
Honey: stir in a spoonful while it's still room temperature so it dissolves.
Hot mate is the slow, social, work-session ritual, and cold brew isn't a replacement. It's the grab-it-from-the-fridge version. Tereré, the ice-cold mate sipped through a bombilla all over Paraguay, Argentina, and Uruguay, is a third thing: loose yerba in a cup topped up with ice water. I love all three, but for a busy workday the pre-filtered jar wins.
If you drink tereré on the go, a good thermos full of ice water does the job all day. Here is the one I would pick: Blog: Best Thermos for Drinking Yerba Mate All Day.
Weak? Use more leaf. Bitter? Cut the steep to 8 hours and keep it cold. Gritty? Filter it again through a coffee filter. Tastes off? The batch is too old, so start fresh in a clean jar.
I keep mine in a sealed jar and drink it within about 3 days. After that the flavor fades, and since it's a plant infusion with no preservatives, I don't push it. If it smells or tastes off, toss it.
Yes. Yerba mate naturally contains caffeine. Cold water pulls out less than hot water in the same amount of time, which is why I use a lot more leaf. Use a stronger ratio and you get a strong cup. Amounts vary by brand and batch, so treat it like any caffeinated drink and see how you feel.
Absolutely. A mason jar, a sieve, and a coffee filter is all you need. A cold brew pitcher is just more convenient.
You can, and it's the easiest option since there's nothing to filter. Use about 2 bags per cup and steep overnight. Loose leaf tends to taste fuller, but bags are great for travel.
Hot water pulls out bitter compounds quickly. Cold water extracts more slowly and more gently, so you get the smooth parts of the leaf without the harsh edge.
Yes, and it works well. Roasted (tostada) mate tastes toasty and is a good gateway if you're used to coffee.
Give it one overnight batch before you decide whether you like it. The first glass always surprises people who only know mate as bitter and hot.
Much love,
Josh
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