Types of yerba mate gourds
Understand the difference between gourd types so you can choose which works best for you.
Depending on where you are or what you have available, there are many different ways to drink yerba mate. Some examples are natural calabash gourds, wooden cups, ceramics, glass, horns, and the list goes on. Each has its pros and cons so we're here to help you choose the perfect mate.
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- General description: Stainless steel gourds are popular due to their ease of use, easy access, and affordability for those that are just starting with yerba mate or want to take their gourd on the go.
- What's it made from? Stainless steel gourds can be made solely from stainless steel but a large amount of the higher quality gourds are made from a double layer of stainless steel with a thermal copper lining that keeps the temperature of the liquid locked inside the mate so the users don’t feel anything other than room temperature on the outside.
- How is it made? Stainless steel gourds are usually produced by machinery in batches with a thin layer of powder coating on the exterior.
- Biggest Pro: Most affordable and easy to start with and to maintain.
- Biggest Con: They don’t really have the traditional look and feel of the mates used centuries ago
- Do I need to cure the gourd? Nope, just give it a rinse and start drinking.
- Easy to Clean? Very easy. Rinse with water and soap or run through the dishwasher if the manufacturer confirms it is dishwasher safe.
- Durability and Long term care: Very durable and can last for years. Stainless steel gourds can survive drops and can be treated similar to any other glassware you have in your house.
- Impact to taste: Some people report a more “metallic” taste but just as many people say they taste no difference.
- Look/feel/tradition: Stainless steel cups are the modern take on yerba mate gourds where maybe some of the tradition is traded off for usability and accessibility. The gourds are usually sleek and survive the wear and tear over multiple years.
- Are they handmade? Not usually. They are usually produced by machinery.
- Price range: Usually $15 to $35. It depends on the quality, style, reliability, and reputation of the shop selling them.
- Easy to travel with? Very easy. Most 8 and 12oz gourds will fit standard car cupholders and some mate gourds also come with lids that can be used to hold your yerba during bumpy roads or to let you sip any other drinks from the mate
- Does Yerba Crew sell stainless steel gourds? Yep! We sell high quality double layer thermal copper lined stainless steel mates. Our mates are 8oz in volume which is perfect for your daily mate session. 12oz gourds are sometimes used but they result in overuse and waste of the yerba mate leaves. Our mates also come with a BPA free lid, stainless steel bombilla, and a cleaning brush. Check them out here!
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- General description: Wooden mates are a really nice middle ground between the calabash gourds and stainless steel mates.
- What's it made from? Wooden gourds are usually made from algarrobo, palo santo, or anchico wood.
- How is it made? The gourds are usually shaped by hand or with a lathe. Some wooden mates will either have a metal base or metal rim for ease of use.
- Biggest Pro: Beautiful flow, feel, and usually handmade.
- Biggest Con: Can be susceptible to cracking or splitting if it retains moisture or becomes too dry.
- Do I need to cure the gourd? No, but you can. With wooden gourds, sometimes splitting can occur during the curing process. If never formally cured, the split may have never appeared. In my opinion, I would skip the initial curing and let your daily drinking do the curing over time.
- Easy to Clean? Pretty easy. Just wash it out with water and pat dry it with a cloth to prevent excess water from collecting in it. Don't store it upside down. You want good airflow while its drying.
- Durability and Long term care: Your mate will cure even more over time and can last for years. The main goal is to prevent mildew by keeping the mate dry if you're not drinking from it.
- Impact to taste: Some impact. Over time, the gourd will absorb some of the flavor from the yerba mate and will impart that taste during future mate sessions. Not a bad thing though!
- Look/feel/tradition: Wooden gourds tend to feel great in your hand can look absolutely beautiful if you find the right artisan.
- Are they handmade? Pretty much! Hand cut, hollowed, and refined.
- Price range: Usually between $20 - $95 depending on the wood quality and any other ornate additions to the gourd.
- Easy to travel with? Pretty easy to travel with because they won't break easily but also they may tip over.
- Does Yerba Crew sell wooden gourds? Yep! We currently sell beautiful anchico and algarrobo wooden gourds. They are all made by hand in Argentina by a local artisan. Check them out!
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- General description: Ceramic gourds are growing in popularity due to so many artisans developing or refining their skills during the pandemic. Ceramic gourds come in all shapes, sizes, colors, and quality levels.
- What's it made from? Ceramic gourds are made from a variety of clay and usually have some type of glaze applied to them mostly for aesthetic and sensory reasons. Make sure to check if the clay is considered commercial grade and/or food safe.
- How is it made? Ceramic gourds usually start as a brick of clay, they’re then turned and shaped into the desired design and if desired the interior and/or exterior can be coated in a glaze. High quality ceramics are then placed in a kiln and fired at extremely high temperatures of 2255°F / 1235°C completely sealing them and making them food safe.
- Biggest Pro: Very unique, look great on a table, and are easy to clean.
- Biggest Con: They can crack if dropped and can feel hot to the touch if they are filled with boiling water and don’t have a sleeve.
- Do I need to cure the gourd? Nope, just give it a first rinse with soap and water and then you're ready to start drinking. If the shop's clay is fired at the proper high temperatures and made of high quality clay, it becomes completely sealed and won’t absorb liquid. Our Yerba Crew ceramic mates fit this quality level :)
- Easy to Clean? Very easy. Just rinse with soap and water and the yerba should come out very easily.
- Durability and Long term care: Outside of cracking if dropped, the ceramic mate will last for years and no additional maintenance outside of cleaning it is required. Because ceramic mates usually have more weight to them, they don’t easily get tipped over like lighter mates.
- Impact to taste: No impact to taste for the ceramic gourds as they should be completely sealed and won’t absorb moisture from the yerba.
- Look/feel/tradition: Ceramic gourds aren’t as traditional as calabash gourds but due to the fact they are made from clay, hand turned, and fired, they are very traditional in human history.
- Are they handmade? It depends on the mate. Check with the store selling the mate. For instance, all the Yerba Crew ceramic mates are handmade one by one.
- Price range: Usually $25 - $125. Ceramic mate prices have a huge price range based on the amount of intricacy in the shape, designs, and glazes used. Handmade ceramic mates usually start around $40 and can sometimes go up to $350.
- Easy to travel with? More difficult than something like a stainless steel mate since you do need to take care not to let the ceramic mate bounce around in your suitcase or fall out of your hand onto cement at the awesome BBQ you went to.
- Does Yerba Crew sell ceramic gourds? Yep! We’re very proud of our mates and the artisan that produces them. They are made by hand in Budapest by an artisan named Ildikó. She makes each by hand and has worked closely with us to design mates that fit perfectly with the yerba mate culture. Check them out here!
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- General description: Calabash gourds are the most traditional but also some of the most difficult to maintain.
- What's it made from? Calabash gourds are made from natural organic calabash gourds like squash and/or bottle gourds.
- How is it made? The gourds are cut off the vine, hollowed out, dried, and cleaned.
- Biggest Pro: The most traditional way to drink mate.
- Biggest Con: More complicated to cure and to maintain in order to prevent mold or cracks.
- Do I need to cure the gourd? Yes, it's vital to cure these gourds to seal the exposed pores to prevent mildew and cracking.
- Easy to Clean? Pretty easy. Just wash it out with water and pat dry it with a cloth to prevent excess water from collecting in it. Don't store it upside down. You want good airflow while its drying.
- Durability and Long term care: After the initial curing stage, your mate will cure even more over time and can last for years. The main goal is to prevent mildew by keeping the mate dry if you're not drinking from it.
- Impact to taste: Some impact. Over time, the gourd will absorb some of the flavor from the yerba mate and will impart that taste during future mate sessions. Not a bad thing though!
- Look/feel/tradition: Calabash gourds can be traced back to the original yerba mate drinkers so it's very traditional. The natural feel and look really enhance the whole experience!
- Are they handmade? Pretty much! Hand picked, cut, hollowed, and refined.
- Price range: Usually between $20 - $75 depending on the quality and any other ornate additions to the gourd.
- Easy to travel with? Pretty easy to travel with because they won't break easily but also they may tip over and won't fit in a cupholder.
- Does Yerba Crew sell calabash gourds? Not currently. We're currently sticking with mate gourds that are easier to maintain and easier to start your yerba mate journey with. One day though :) Check out our offerings!
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- General description: Glass gourds are seen most often as a just the raw glass cup or wrapped in something like a decorative leather. They are fairly popular in Argentina because they are easy to clean and can have an ornate wrapped exterior.
- What's it made from? Glass gourds can be sold in a double layered insulated version, a clear gourd shaped version, or wrapped in a cover.
- How is it made? Glass gourds are made in a similar fashion to a standard glass coffee mug.
- Biggest Pro: Easy to clean and see through if not wrapped
- Biggest Con: They can crack and not necessarily traditional.
- Do I need to cure the gourd? Nope, just start drinking.
- Easy to Clean? Pretty easy. Just rinse with water and the yerba should come out very easily. If wrapped in something like leather, just be careful to try to keep the exterior dry.
- Durability and Long term care: As long as you don’t crack the glass, these can last for years.
- Impact to taste: No impact to taste for the glass gourds as they should be completely sealed and won’t absorb moisture from the yerba.
- Look/feel/tradition: Glass gourds aren’t necessarily traditional but they have been popular for decades and can be shaped into unique forms. They can also be wrapped in materials that look like an Argentinian flag, a Messi jersey, or anything you want.
- Are they handmade? Most aren’t but if you find a glass artisan they can use glass shaping techniques to create a one of a kind gourd.
- Price range: Usually $18 - $35 depending on the quality and any other ornate additions.
- Easy to travel with? More difficult if it is solely glass but less difficult if it is wrapped in a material that can prevent scrapes and damages from small falls.
- Does Yerba Crew sell glass gourds? Not currently. We like them but have been focusing on our wooden, ceramic, and stainless steel gourds. Check them out here!
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- General description: Silicone gourds are usually super convenient and durable but not very traditional.
- What's it made from? Silicone
- How is it made? Silicone gourds are usually made from forming silicone gel from a machine containing a specifically shaped mold. The most common silicon gourds are about the size of a tea cup with a small bombilla clamp built in.
- Biggest Pro: Easy to clean, durable, and travel ready.
- Biggest Con: They are not very traditional and can be prone to tipping over due to the flexible structure.
- Do I need to cure the gourd? Nope, just give it a rinse and start drinking.
- Easy to Clean? Very easy. Usually, you can just push the bottom of the mate through the top to empty out the mate. Then rinse with soap and water.
- Durability and Long term care: Very durable and can last for years. Some staining can occur over time.
- Impact to taste: No reports of major taste impacts from silicone gourds.
- Look/feel/tradition: They feel squishy and are fun. You can usually choose from multiple colors also. Definitely not traditional but it’s a modern touch and convenient to experience the bigger tradition of yerba mate.
- Are they handmade? No, they are usually produced by a molding machine.
- Price range: Usually $10 to $25. It depends on the quality, style, reliability, and reputation of the shop selling them.
- Easy to travel with? Very easy to throw the empty mate into your travel bag. Just watch to make sure it doesn’t tip over and also make sure you don’t squeeze too hard with your hand since you can push the yerba and water out of the top.
- Does Yerba Crew sell silicone gourds? No, but we eventually plan to. They are very convenient and fun. Check out our mate gourds in the mean time.
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- General description: The animal horn mate (also commonly called a guampa) is very popular in Paraguay and with people that drink Paraguay style yerba mate like tereré.
- What's it made from? The horn of an animal like a Bull or different types of cattle. There are also synthetic versions made from materials like stainless steel.
- How is it made? The horn of an animal is usually cut, hollowed out, and cleaned.
- Biggest Pro: Very traditional in Paraguay and interesting looking
- Biggest Con: Fairly easy to tip over.
- Do I need to cure the gourd? Yes, since these are organic materials they should be cured first. You can cure them by filling them with used yerba mate and letting them sit for 12 – 24 hours.
- Easy to Clean? Fairly easy. A little awkward due to the shape of the guampa but you just rinse with some water and pat dry.
- Durability and Long term care: Similar to calabash gourds, if you maintain the guampa by keeping it dry after use, the guampa can last years.
- Impact to taste: There are some reports of a slightly more earthy flavor but because the guampas are usually used with tereré that has some complementary flavors like lime, you shouldn’t notice any influence from the gourd.
- Look/feel/tradition: The guampas are incredibly unique looking compared to most other drinking vessels. They are also true to the tradition that started centuries ago.
- Are they handmade? Yes, they are usually cut, hollowed, and decorated by hand.
- Price range: Usually $20 to $45. It depends on the quality, style, reliability, and reputation of the shop selling them.
- Easy to travel with? Fairly easy as they have a narrow shape to them but you need to be careful not to crush or chip them.
- Does Yerba Crew sell horn guampas? No, we don’t currently sell them but we love the look of them. Check out our other mate gourds in the mean time.
Types of Mate Gourds, What's the Difference?
A friend asks me which mate gourd to start with...
My quick and simple answer is to start with a stainless steel mate gourd. They are the easiest to maintain, easy to buy, and don't require curing.
I definitely recommend also buying the other gourd types to embrace the full yerba mate experience but start simple and add to your collection as you go.
Keep Learning about Yerba Mate
Choosing Yerba Mate
Start simple. Check out our page explaining yerba mate exactly like we explain it to our friends and family.
Choosing a Bombilla
Learn how bombillas work along with the different styles and materials to give you the best yerba mate experience.
Order Your Supplies
Order the supplies you need to get started. We have a selection of high quality mate gourds, bombillas, and yerba mate.