Mushroom guide · Everyday rituals
How Mushroom Coffee Works
What is actually in a cup of mushroom coffee, where the caffeine comes from, and a few simple ways to make it taste better, hot or iced.
Mushroom coffee sounds stranger than it is. Nobody is brewing a pot of chopped mushrooms. It is ordinary coffee with mushroom extract powder stirred in, and a good one tastes like coffee, not like soup.
More people in Canada are trying it every year, usually for one of two reasons: they want a gentler daily cup, or they already take a mushroom supplement and would rather drink it than swallow it. Here is how it works, and how to make a cup you will actually look forward to.
What is in mushroom coffee?
Every mushroom coffee has two parts: the coffee and the mushrooms. The details are where products differ.
The coffee. Most mushroom coffees use instant or ground coffee. Ours, Cloud 9, uses certified organic instant Arabica, medium roast, so it dissolves in seconds with no brewer or filter.
The mushrooms. These are added as an extract: the mushrooms are dried, ground and extracted, then dried again into a fine powder. Extraction is what makes them easy to mix into a drink. Cloud 9 blends Lion’s Mane, Turkey Tail, Cordyceps, Reishi, Maitake, Shiitake, Snow Ear and Almond Mushroom fruiting-body extracts plus wild-harvested Chaga.
That last point matters. A mushroom’s fruiting body is the part you would recognize as the mushroom. Some products use mycelium grown on grain instead, which can leave a lot of starch in the powder. We explain the difference in Fruiting Body vs Mycelium.
Where does the caffeine come from?
From the coffee, not the mushrooms. The medicinal mushrooms in mushroom coffee do not contain caffeine. So if you are sensitive to caffeine, treat a cup of mushroom coffee like a cup of coffee, because that is what it is.
How you feel with any coffee is personal, so start with one cup a day and see how it suits you.
| Regular instant coffee | Cloud 9 Mushroom Coffee | |
|---|---|---|
| What’s in it | Coffee | Organic instant Arabica plus nine mushroom extracts |
| Caffeine | From the coffee | From the coffee only |
| Taste | Coffee | Coffee, medium roast, not mushroomy |
| Serving | Varies | About 2 g, around 40 cups per 80 g jar |
| Sugar | Varies | Sugar-free, vegan |
Why mushrooms in coffee?
Each mushroom in the blend has its own history. Reishi and Chaga have been traditionally used as teas for a very long time. Lion’s Mane is one many people take for focus and memory, and it is being studied for that. Cordyceps is popular with active people, and Turkey Tail is one of the most studied mushrooms of all.
A morning cup is simply an easy place to fit them in. If you already make coffee every day, there is no new habit to build.
The best routine is the one you will keep. For a lot of people, that is their morning coffee.
How to make a better cup
Instant mushroom coffee is quick, but a few small steps make a big difference to the texture and taste.
- Start with a paste. Put one serving (about 2 g) in the cup and add a spoonful of hot water. Stir it into a smooth paste first. This stops clumps.
- Use hot, not boiling, water. Let the kettle sit for a minute after it boils, then top up the cup. The coffee tastes smoother and less bitter.
- Add milk if you like it. Dairy, oat or almond milk all work. Frothed milk turns it into a quick mushroom latte.
- Adjust the strength. Too strong? Add more water. Too light? Use a little more powder rather than steeping longer.
- Try a pinch of spice. Cinnamon or cocoa on top goes well with the medium roast and adds no sugar.
Iced version: dissolve a serving in a little hot water, pour it over a glass of ice and top up with cold milk or water. It is ready faster than a cold brew.
What to look for when you buy
Whatever brand you choose, read the label. Check which part of the mushroom is used (fruiting body or mycelium), how many mushrooms are in the blend, what kind of coffee it is, and whether there are fillers or added sugar. Our guide on how to read a mushroom supplement label walks through it step by step.
From the forest to your mug
Pacific Rim Mushrooms started with wild mushrooms. We picked them in the BC backcountry and later sold dried Morels, Pine mushrooms and Chaga from our own shop. Years of handling mushrooms led us to the extracts we make today in British Columbia, and Cloud 9 coffee is one of the simplest ways to try them.
If you would like to try it, Cloud 9 Mushroom Coffee is the place to start. Prefer drops? Lion’s Mane Elixir Drops mix into any coffee you already make. Our Buyer’s Guide compares every format side by side.
This article is for general information only and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. Mushroom coffee contains caffeine. If you are pregnant, nursing, taking medication or have a health condition, talk to your health care provider first.
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