Maté
Ilex paraguariensis

This popular South American beverage is named after the Spanish word for "gourd," because it has traditionally been brewed in a hollowed out drinking gourd or "maté." Preferred to coffee in Argentina, maté has a uniquely smoky flavor because the leaves are dried over brick ovens. Unusual among caffeine beverages, maté contains vitamin C, which brought it to the attention of early Jesuit missionaries. They noticed that native South Americans seemed to survive just fine on a diet of meat and maté, while Jesuits kept getting scurvy. They concluded that maté prevented the mysterious "sailor's sickness," so began drinking it, too. A cup of our maté may have about as much vitamin C as a 1/4 teaspoon of lime juice.

Commonly called: roasted maté