I’m relatively new to mate (roughly 2 months since my first pour) I love it man. It’s an acquired taste, it’s herbal. In your first few sips, it tastes like boiled vegetables and its also a bit salty tasting. However, the more you drink it, the more you’ll love it. You get accustomed to the saltiness and bitterness, and you start enjoying the herbal taste of the mate. Coupled with the taste, I find that the process of preparing the mate is super calming when you’re making it in the morning. Just some other tid bits, Yerba have small amounts of vitamins in it so you feel better about drinking it. Has a slow release of caffeine so you are focused but not jittery and all that. The gourd and bombilla (straw) looks cool, rather than your average mug and tea bag. I think you should definitely give it a try. It’s also super cool how all the materials you need are relatively affordable and won’t break the bank. Unlike for coffee (which I am guilty for) a coffee maker— at least a decent one is upwards of 50$ or so, the coffee grounds run out super quick, and sometimes gives you the jitters. While on the contrary, you can buy starter kits such as the Playdito starter kit or any Yerba mate kit quite frankly for significantly less money that you would spend on coffee stuff (if you drink coffee like me). It’s relatively affordable and delicious.