Del Cebador — 3.90 palos — reviewed 4/7/2012
Type: Traditional “Calidad Superior” (Superior Quality)
Region: Grown in Brazil. Uruguayan based company, Molino Puritans.
Description
Drinking this mate here in Argentina transports brings me home, to New York, as if I were drinking my favorite brand there, Mate Factor (MF). Eerily similar to Mate Factor, both yerbas share that traditional Brazilian yerba taste: malty, robust, Guinness Stouty, and full bodied. I expect the main difference between MF and Del Cebador, is the curing process. MF packages within 5 days of harvesting and I’m assuming, due to the color and smoother taste of Del Cebador, that they follow the more traditional method of allowing the yerba to sit for up to a year or so before the final cut, packaging, and shipping to market. As with Canarias, Del Cebador is another yerba that’s been grown in Brazil and imported to Uruguay. Uruguay, growing little of their own yerba, relies heavily on Brazil for the production of their mate.
Cut 4.00 palos
Fine cut, typical of Brazil. Splinter and stringy palos, but not a problem if using the properly filtered bombilla. Strong PPL-R for Brazilian yerba. Plenty of polvo, but not overbearing.
Body/Texture/Taste 4.50 palos
Rich, creamy, and silky. Full bodied with that signature malty taste profile that consumes your palate. Rich dark chocolate swirling with milder, milk chocolately notes. Guinness Stout. Slightly nutty. Toasted bread. French toasty.
Nose 3.50 palos
Ovaltine. Malty. Stouty. Toasted bread. Clean and simple.
Finish 3.75 palos
Strong dark chocolate. Cacao. Hot chocolate. Forceful and direct with delicate subtleties of nuts and caramel.
Cycle 3.75 palos
Superior cycle than MF. Even when green-tead/washed, the malt is still present. Good stable cycle, especially if the mate is drunk is a larger gourd that’s typical of Uruguay/Brazil.
Overall: 3.90 palos
Recommendation
If you’re a fan of Mate Factor and currently find yourself in South America, it’s a no brainer! Get yourself some Del Cebador and a fine Uruguayan gourd/bombilla, and get busy man! This is the Ovaltine of the Mate world. MF and DelC are brothers indeed. This yerba is definitely in the class of malty, strong, robust mates; but with style and class. Not the sort of harsh and clumsy robustness found with Rosamonte or La Tranquera or even Taragüí, but calmer, smoother, milkier strength that’s closer on smoothness scale to, say, a Nobleza Gaucho (blue bag) or a Traditional Guayakí. I highly recommend this yerba to all mate drinkers.
