The people of Argentina are, for the most part, happy, laid-back and fun. We think there's a reason for this: Mate. Why mate? For starters it's their national drink. Folks down there drink 8 times as much mate as they do coffee. In fact, there has been much speculation that the real reason behind the Falkland invasion was that during a visit to the Pentagon a few Argentine generals got themselves addicted to coffee and decided to go and bomb a few sheep. But that's something for the History Channel to explore.

Back to mate. Mate comes from the leaves of a tree called Ilex Paraguayensis, which is pronounced . . . rarely. Once a year the leaves are harvested, dried and then aged for a whole year like a fine wine or a cheap scotch. And then it's brewed like a tea and, when the mood strikes ­ apparently about every 15 minutes or so ­ guzzled with complete and utter abandon.

In the beginning, mate was just a thing that the locals did. The mate grew wild and life was good. But then the Jesuits showed up, and in an inspired move, they started cultivating mate, and life was even better. Now, mate is being exported all over the world, and even us gringos are going nuts over the stuff. And why not? It's got antioxidants out the wazoo, it's buzz is laid-back and fun, it blends with milk for an amazing latte, and sheep everywhere are starting to relax. What¹s not to love?