Despite how it may sound, mushroom coffee isn’t some crazy health fad that consists of brewing mushrooms in hot water. Nor is it a hallucinogenic drink. Nope, mushroom coffee is the new trendy way to drink coffee.
It does indeed still include coffee as the main ingredient, but it has been mixed in with functional mushrooms like lion’s mane, reishi, chaga and cordyceps, to naturally enhance your day. You can also check out these amazing mushroom supplements.
Many mushroom coffee products are popping up in the UK, so let me take you through my favourites.
My top picks
- Best ground coffee: Solve Labs | Skip to review
- Best lion’s mane coffee: Vivo Life | Skip to review
- Best instant coffee: London Nootropics | Skip to review
- Best organic: Upraising | Skip to review
- Best decaf: No Ordinary Moments | Skip to review
- Best value: DIRTEA | Skip to review
What is mushroom coffee?
Mushroom coffee is a blend of regular coffee and medicinal mushrooms like chaga, lion’s mane, reishi, or cordyceps. These mushrooms are added for their potential health benefits, including immune support, cognitive enhancement, and stress reduction.
The coffee itself is made using various brewing methods, and the mushrooms are typically incorporated in the form of extracts or powders. The taste of mushroom coffee is generally mild, with a subtle earthy or slightly bitter undertone from the mushrooms. It can be prepared like regular coffee, with options like instant coffee powder and ground coffee for cafetieres and moka pots.
Is drinking mushroom coffee good for you?
Whilst there is limited science backing up the health benefits of drinking mushroom coffee, there are some widely enjoyed benefits that you may potentially experience. You may possibly see a reduction in your stress levels and inflammation thanks to the thousands of antioxidants present in mushrooms, as well as improvements in your sleep and a stronger immune system (see more).
On top of this, many mushrooms can help to reduce cortisol levels in your system which can help to counteract the stress-inducing effects of the caffeine in coffee. Meaning you may be more likely to enjoy your cup of coffee, without the horrible jitters.
Solve Labs
- Mushrooms: Lion’s mane or chaga
- Type: Ground coffee
- Price: £0.57 per coffee
If drinking a cup of freshly brewed cafetiere coffee is part of your daily routine, then you’ll find it really easy to slot this ground mushroom coffee by Solve Labs in. It is a simple mix of ground arabica coffee from Brazil mixed in with functional mushrooms.
They have two options for you to choose from. One is mixed with lion’s mane and rhodiola rosea, making it great for cognitive efficiency, and the other is made with chaga and ashwagandha, helping your body to adapt to stress.
Their coffee is suitable for all coffee makers plus it has a lovely flavour. Plus each serving contains 500mg of either lion’s mane or chaga mushroom. Find out more about the brand in my Solve Labs review.
Vivo Life
- Mushrooms: Lion’s mane
- Type: Ground coffee
- Price: £0.76 per coffee
If you are looking specifically for a lion’s mane ground coffee, then make sure to check out this one by Vivo Life. Each cup of coffee contains 4000mg of lion’s mane mushroom from 100% fruiting bodies.
The ground coffee is a single origin arabica blend from Ethiopia and has a lovely taste to it, which completely masks any mushroom taste.
When you subscribe, one coffee costs just £0.76, also making this one of the more affordable mushroom coffees here! But I haven’t found that they scrimped on quality as I still find it very effective.
London Nootropics
- Mushrooms: Lion’s mane or cordyceps
- Type: Instant coffee powder sachets
- Price: £1.25 per coffee
These mushroom coffees from London Nootropics are by far my favourite instant coffee blends. I don’t usually enjoy instant coffee, mostly due to the taste and mouthfeel, but London Nootropics have successfully made these into really drinkable coffee powders. Read my full London Nootropics review to find out more.
The flavour is great and mixes really well with vegan milk to make an adaptogenic latte. Thanks to their individually wrapped sachets, they are also great for travelling or for taking to the office.
They have two mushroom coffee blends, including one with lion’s mane (for focus) and another with cordceps (for energy). You can easily mix and match them throughout the week depending on what you need from them.
Upraising
- Mushrooms: Chaga
- Type: Ground coffee
- Price: £1.13 per coffee
For a well-rounded tasting brew, I recommend this Live Well coffee from Upraising. It has a great depth of flavour and a real earthiness to it. As a coffee snob, this ticks all the boxes.
It is mixed with chaga mushroom, Rhodiola Rosea, and Schisandra Chinensis, all of which are supposed to help with energy. In my photo you may see it also contains Maitake, but they recently replaced this with Rhodiola Rosea.
I have also tested their other coffee blends, including a lion’s mane coffee and a reishi coffee, both of which also taste delicious!
No Ordinary Moments
- Mushrooms: Lion’s mane, reishi, cordyceps and chaga
- Type: Instant decaf coffee with chai spicing
- Price: £0.72 per coffee
This one is for all the decaf coffee drinkers out there. This decaf coffee blend from No Ordinary Moments contains a mix of lion’s mane, reishi, cordyceps and chaga mushroom. All of the adaptogenic ingredients total 1250mg per coffee, but this is spread across a whole host of mushrooms.
The decaf coffee is flavoured with chai spices and comes in instant powder form. I like to mix mine in with oat milk and a spoonful of agave syrup. It is great as an afternoon pick me up and the adaptogens help to provide much-needed energy without the need for any caffeine.
DIRTEA
- Mushrooms: Lion’s mane, chaga and cordyceps
- Type: Instant coffee powder
- Price: From £0.40 per coffee (with subscription)
This mushroom coffee blend from DIRTEA is the best value option that you can find. You get 1000mg of mushrooms and other adaptogens for every cup of coffee. And with their subscription offering, you can get this for as little as £0.40 per coffee. However, the price does go up if you are buying singular bags.
It comes in instant coffee form and blends easily with hot water and a dash of oat milk. But I do find it tastes like instant coffee, so it isn’t an option for any of the instant coffee haters out there.
They make sure to use purely organic mushrooms from 100% fruiting bodies in their blend, although I don’t believe they are UK or European-grown like the majority of other brands.
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