Sol Maté

Sol Maté
Organic Sparkling Yerba Maté (4 pack of 10fl oz bottles) (www.drinksolmate.com)
Sol Maté Beverage Group Ltd.
Waterloo, Ont., Canada

"Just Energy. No jitters"

I picked up a four pack of Sol Maté at Whole Foods Market for the same reason I always buy things like this. I'm a sucker for exotic drinks and snacks. Between Lotte Plaza (a local Korean market) and Whole Foods, I'm forever running out of pocket cash and overstocking my refrigerator.

I'd heard about yerba maté some time ago and ever since, I've wanted to try it. Unfortunately, as a first-timer, I can't speak to the quality or authenticity of the maté flavor.


For background on Yerba maté see Wikipedia's article:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yerba_mate

In a nutshell, this yerba maté soda is supposed be a more palatable stimulant than caffeine. Unfortunately, I average four cups of coffee a day at work and I drink tea like water at home. So I'm not the best test subject for the energy claim. But, it's other attributes are easy enough to cover.

First off, the bouquet is much like iced tea or sweet tea. The color is an attractive, pale, rosy gold. The taste is a pleasant tartness balanced with a touch of sweetness and mild carbonation that keeps the drink lively. The finish is astringent.

Overall it's a very clean and refreshing drink. The astringency and the gentle, leafy, dried-herb taste of the maté (I presume) are interesting and pleasant.

Trouble is, I can't figure out what to pair it with. Fruit perhaps? It seems like it would be a great drink to have on hand in summer at a barbecue. But, the flavor is so delicate it might be easily overwhelmed.


Rating: 6.5 out of 10 Good Stuff