Anna Park Yerba Mate - Organic - 1.1 LB / 500 g / 17.6 oz

I’ve tried various yerba mates, but Anna Park stands out. The flavor is smooth, without bitterness or smokiness — just right. I brew it at 70°C, and the taste unfolds beautifully. The energy boost is steady, without jitters or crashes. The packaging keeps it fresh. For those who appreciate a natural, clean product — this is it.

This is a very fine Argentinian unsmoked yerba maté, which is to say that it is smooth, delicate and somewhat herbacious. Before buying it, I asked on Amazon what the best temperature for brewing it was, not because I am a beginner at drinking yerba maté, but rather because there are so many variations in taste depending on brewing temperature and steeping time, and I wanted to know what people's experience with Anna Park were.UPDATE:After reading some negative reviews I felt like chiming in. This is a very fine yerba, but because of it's delicacy you need to experiment with temperature and steeping. If you want bold and nutty, you can go up to 180 F (unheard of for most yerbas) for 20 or 30 seconds. You can also go low, ay 160 degrees for a longer steep. This yerba is capable of many different flavors, and never gets bitter.Regarding stems, I used to drink only sin palo (without stems), but discovered that the stems add a stronger anti-inflammatory effect, which is desirable. In a good yerba like this one the stems do not detract but add to the taste.Among the answers was a piece of information that is erroneous…a suggestion that boiling water be used. This is flatly wrong, as virtually every drinker of yerba maté will tell you. The most recommended range of temperatures is between 160 and 180°F. Water that is any hotter than 180, and especially boiling, will create a burnt taste that, for me, tastes like burnt newspaper. Moreover, the yerba needs to be pre-wetted with room temperature water before the hot water is poured over itAt any rate, one respondent suggested 175°F, and I concur. This temperature brings out roundness, sweetness, and a slight maltiness that is missing at lower temperatures. When I tried brewing at 160° it had a very grassy taste...too grassy for me.Scientifically, the antioxidant activity of yerba maté is highest at 158°F, according to an article I read on NIH, but yerba maté at all of the recommended temperature ranges has high antioxidant activity.In general, the rule of thumb for yerba maté is that the more delicate, floral yerbas do better at the lower temperatures, and the hardier ones do better at higher temperatures, but Anna Park is an exception to the rule in my opinion. This tallies with the experience of veteran yerba maté drinker Dave at Circle of Drink. He has found that some of the more delicate yerbas do better at a higher temperature. That isn't to say that he likes Anna Park at higher temperature, as I don't recall his preference.Anna Park definitely has a feeling of purity, cleanliness, and integrity, no doubt due to its being grownin such a balanced ecosystem. Because of its smoothness and utter lack of bitterness, this is a great mate for beginners, as well as veterans in search of a delicate yerba.

Nicely processed and packed tea,

This is a lovely, organic, unsmoked yerba mate with a traditional cut from Argentina. It's my favorite by far. You can play around with the brewing temperature and steeping time to get the taste and caffeine effect that you want. Other reviews give helpful tips. You can also watch YouTube videos."Traditional cut" means not just the leaves. If you want just the leaves, please don't buy Anna Park. Those of us who love AP will happily drink the entire plant, including leaves, stems, and the powder created from processing. If you look at websites based in countries that traditionally drink yerba, you will find that the nutritional potency of yerba comes from drinking everything. Especially if you are drinking it in a mate gourd, each part of the yerba creates the taste and experience of drinking it.Another way to think of it: whole plant is also better for the planet. Drink what we've taken from the earth and pay homage.However! If you want to try Anna Park and you find that you are, in fact, turned off by the dust and stems, there is something you can do. Pour the yerba into a large glass jar (mason jar with lid) or a larger bag and shake it vigorously up and down, keeping up always up and down always down. Don't spin it around and do something topsy turvy. Gravity will split everything into sections - stems on top, leaf in the middle, powder on the bottom. You can at least remove the powder that way, which will make it easier to brew the leaves and stems in a tea strainer. And I think you'll like the leaf and stem combo. Just give it a try and don't think it's weird. It's just what the edible parts of the plant look like. Plus, the stems soften the taste of the leaf, are less bitter, and provide more bass notes to your beverage.

This is my first yerba matte and I'm not gonna lie, the first time I tried to make it it was awful. I used a tea strainer the way I do my other looseleaf teas and it was terribly bitter. So here's some tips!1. If using a tea strainer, rinse the tea first. This will remove a lot of the dust, and the dust is the stuff that would be filtered out by a traditional method of brewing. You'll probably be fine if you use tea bags.2. The bitterness is way more related to the brewing temperature than other teas. Seriously, get out a thermometer and make sure you're as close as possible to the recommended tea temp written on the bag. Green tea or black tea temps will make this very bitter.3. Add a minute for rebrew. So if brew #1 off of leaves is 2 minutes, let a second brew steep for 3 minutes for the same flavor intensity.4. If it's still a little bitter for your preference, add a tiny bit of honey.

Brew between 160°-180°F for optimal, natural flavor. Leaves are strong enough for a dark, slow second brew. Uplifting, calm energy.

The tea comes in eco friendly packaging which is recyclable paper. The tea tastes great. I like to add ginger/lemon honey to it. It seems very high quality tea. I have not started using the traditional mug and straw yet, but am happily brewing it using a tea strainer. I do insert the tea dry and shake around a bit first to get out the really fine tea particles as the bags tend to have a lot. Great flavor and freshness. Love supporting a small business.