Mate (Ilex paraguariensis) tea preparations: Understanding the extraction of volatile and non-volatile compounds upon variations of the traditional consecutive infusions

•Specific effects of mate tea grinding types and water temperatures were elucidated.•Water flow through the tea mash was highly determining to the extraction patterns.•Clogging layers were described for the first time and considered a key phenomenon.•Fine tea particles and higher water temperatures triggered stronger clogging layers.•Altered flavors must be linked to the occurrence of stronger clogging layers. Common variations of traditional consecutive infusions of mate (Ilex paraguariensis) tea were studied. Effects of tea grinding type and water temperature on the extraction of volatile and non-volatile compounds were elucidated. Extraction behavior was determined mainly by grinding type and to a minor extent by water temperature. The extraction behavior along the series of infusions is mostly driven by the way the water can access and flow through the tea mass. This processes are impaired by the formation of clogging layers which are more intense upon the increasing abundance of tea particles of sufficiently small size and high water temperatures.