Tereré is a cold version of yerba mate, the caffeinated herbal drink popular across South America. Where traditional mate uses hot water, tereré is prepared with cold or ice water and often mixed with fresh herbs, fruit juice, or flavored water. It originated with the Guaraní people of Paraguay, where it remains the national drink and a cornerstone of daily social life.
Origins and Cultural Significance
Tereré has deep roots in Guaraní indigenous culture, where it developed alongside a broader tradition of plant-based medicine called Pohã Ñana. The drink was never just about refreshment. Families passed down knowledge of which medicinal herbs to add, how to prepare them, and what ailments they addressed. UNESCO recognized tereré and its associated traditional knowledge as part of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, specifically citing the Guaraní ancestral practices surrounding the drink in Paraguay.
In Paraguay today, tereré is everywhere. People drink it in parks, on job sites, and in living rooms, almost always in a group. One person prepares the drink and passes it around the circle, refilling the vessel with cold water between each serving. This communal ritual, repeated multiple times a day, functions as a social glue. It’s how neighbors catch up, how coworkers take breaks, and how families bond across generations.
How Tereré Differs From Hot Mate
The core ingredient is the same: dried, ground leaves of the yerba mate plant. The difference starts with temperature. Traditional mate is brewed with water heated to around 70–80°C, while tereré uses cold water, often with ice. This makes it a natural fit for Paraguay’s subtropical heat, where daytime temperatures regularly exceed 35°C.
Flavor and customization also set the two apart. Hot mate is typically drunk plain or with sugar, letting the bitter, grassy flavor of the yerba dominate. Tereré invites additions. Fresh-squeezed citrus juice, coconut water, or herbal blends are all common. The cold water produces a milder, less bitter infusion, which makes it easier to layer with other flavors.
Interestingly, cold brewing actually extracts more of certain beneficial compounds. Research published in the journal Nutrients found that cold-prepared yerba mate infusions contained higher levels of polyphenols and caffeine-related alkaloids compared to hot preparations. In one analysis, the second pour of a cold brew yielded 350 mg of polyphenols per 100 mL, compared to lower values in equivalent hot infusions.
Caffeine and Nutritional Profile
Tereré delivers a moderate caffeine hit that changes with each refill. Using a standard preparation of about 50 grams of yerba mate with 180 mL of cold water, the first pour contains roughly 36 mg of caffeine. The second pour peaks at about 57 mg, and the third drops to around 48 mg. By the tenth refill, you’re down to about 12 mg, and by the thirtieth, it’s nearly negligible at 3 mg. For comparison, a standard cup of coffee contains 80–100 mg of caffeine.
Each pour also contains theobromine, the same mild stimulant found in chocolate. The first few pours deliver 8–12 mg per serving. Combined with the caffeine, this creates a gentler, more sustained energy boost than coffee, without the sharp spike and crash many people experience.
Beyond stimulants, tereré is rich in plant antioxidants. Cold-brewed yerba mate contains high concentrations of chlorogenic acids, the same family of protective compounds found in coffee and green tea. These compounds help neutralize free radicals and have been linked to reduced inflammation in numerous studies.
Health Benefits and Risks
One notable advantage tereré has over hot mate is safety. Multiple epidemiological studies have linked very hot mate consumption to increased risks of esophageal, oral, and laryngeal cancers, with risk climbing alongside the temperature, daily quantity, and years of habitual drinking. Cold mate beverages, by contrast, showed no increased cancer risk. The culprit appears to be the thermal injury to delicate tissues in the throat and esophagus, not the yerba itself.
On the performance side, yerba mate consumption has been shown to increase fat burning during exercise by about 24% at moderate intensities. A study published in Nutrition & Metabolism found that participants who consumed yerba mate before working out shifted their energy use away from carbohydrates and toward fat, burning roughly 0.5 to 1.0 extra calories per minute from fat stores compared to a placebo. This glycogen-sparing effect could benefit endurance athletes, though the study used yerba mate generally rather than tereré specifically.
Traditional Herbal Additions
What makes Paraguayan tereré truly distinctive is the practice of adding “yuyos,” or medicinal herbs, to the cold water before pouring it over the yerba. These aren’t random garnishes. Each herb carries specific traditional uses rooted in Guaraní plant medicine.
- Mint and lemon balm for a cooling, calming effect
- Ginger as a flu preventative and immune booster
- Horsetail as a traditional diuretic
- Fennel or burro’s tail for stomach problems
- Cocú and pererina for refreshment and flavor
There’s even a well-known blend called “tereré levantol,” a mix of lemon verbena, sarsaparilla, and various roots traditionally used as an energizing stimulant. Vendors throughout Paraguay sell pre-mixed bags of fresh yuyos at markets and roadside stands, and many families grow their own herb gardens specifically for tereré preparation.
How to Prepare Tereré
You need three things: a cup or gourd (called a guampa in Paraguay), a metal straw with a filter on the end (a bombilla), and loose-leaf yerba mate. You’ll also need a pitcher of ice water, and optionally, fresh herbs or juice.
Fill the guampa about halfway with yerba mate. Cover the top with your palm, flip it upside down, and give it a shake. This moves the finer particles toward the bottom, which helps prevent the bombilla from clogging. Tilt the guampa back upright and angle the yerba into a slope, leaving one side lower. Slide the bombilla into the empty, lower side and place an ice cube on top of the yerba.
If you’re using yuyos, muddle or crush them in your water pitcher to release their flavors before adding ice. Pour the cold water (or juice mixture) into the low side of the guampa, filling it to the top. Let it sit for a moment, then drink through the bombilla. Refill with more cold water and pass it to the next person, or keep refilling for yourself. A single load of yerba can handle 10 to 30 pours before the flavor fades.
Choosing Your Equipment
Traditional Paraguayan guampas are made from hollowed-out cattle horn or carved wood, though ceramic and stainless steel versions are widely available. The material matters less than the size: a guampa that holds 200–300 mL works well for most people.
For the bombilla, stainless steel is the most practical and popular option. The filter end comes in three main styles. Spoon filters are the most versatile and work with most yerba cuts. Spring filters handle finer-ground yerba better and reduce clogging, though they need more frequent cleaning. Removable filters are ideal for daily drinkers because they allow deep cleaning and tend to last longer. Cane bombillas still exist as a nod to tradition, but metal versions dominate everyday use.