Brain Coffee - Mushroom Coffee

Brain Coffee is an instant lion's mane coffee: 33% lion's mane mushroom powder, 52% roasted chicory and 15% arabica coffee, all organic according to the brand. Each 2 teaspoon serving carries 1500 mg of lion's mane, the highest of our three coffee blends, with less caffeine than a normal instant coffee because only 15% of the bag is coffee.

The chicory carries most of the coffee flavour, the arabica adds the real thing, and the lion's mane makes up a third. It comes as a 150 g bag, single or in 2 and 3 pack deals.

What it is

Mushroom coffee is ordinary coffee with mushroom powder blended in. In this blend the coffee is a small share by design: 15% arabica carries the coffee note, 52% roasted chicory gives body and bitterness, and 33% lion's mane makes up the rest. Arabica beans have about a third of the caffeine of robusta, which is why the brand chose them. It is sold as an instant powder, so you stir it into hot water or milk and drink; it also goes into cold milk or a smoothie.

The result is lighter and less caffeinated than a mug of instant coffee. At 1500 mg lion's mane per serving it carries more of the mushroom per cup than My Kinda Coffee (1.2 g), which is the main reason to choose it over that blend. It also has no added sugar; My Kinda Coffee contains glucose syrup.

The brand does not publish a milligram caffeine figure for any of the three coffee blends. What it states is the proportion of coffee and the bean type, so if a number matters to you we cannot give one.

This is a Herba Store UK own-label product.

How to make it

Up to 2 teaspoons per cup, mixed into hot or cold water or milk, or blended into smoothies and milkshakes. It dissolves like an instant coffee with a little lion's mane sediment at the end. Sweeten and add milk as you would any coffee.

• Single pack: 150 g, £14.99
• 2 pack: 2 x 150 g, £29.99
• 3 pack: 3 x 150 g, £39.99 (£13.33 a bag)
• At 1500 mg lion's mane per serving and 33% lion's mane, a serving is about 4.5 g, so a bag is about 33 servings at roughly 45p each

Reseal and keep dry. Instant coffee and chicory both cake if left open.

What's inside

• Lion's mane mushroom powder, 33%
• Roasted chicory root, 52%
• Arabica coffee, 15%
• 1500 mg lion's mane per 2 teaspoon serving
• Nothing added, per the brand; organic, per the brand

Lion's mane (Hericium erinaceus) is the white, spined mushroom, dried and powdered. Chicory (Cichorium intybus) is a roasted root with a coffee-like bitterness and no caffeine. Arabica (Coffea arabica) is the higher-grown, milder coffee species with roughly a third of the caffeine of robusta (Coffea canephora).

Who it's for

People replacing one of their daily coffees with something lighter, and anyone who wants the most lion's mane per cup in a coffee-flavoured drink. It suits a mid-morning cup, a desk routine, or a first coffee for someone cutting back on caffeine without giving it up. Because it contains real coffee it is still a morning drink rather than an evening one.

If you want zero caffeine, the chicory blend is the one. If you want more coffee flavour and do not mind glucose syrup, My Kinda Coffee has 20% arabica.

Pairs well with

My Kinda Coffee is the sibling with more coffee (20%) and a touch of glucose syrup. The caffeine free chicory coffee is the evening alternative. Many people take lion's mane capsules alongside a mushroom coffee for a measured amount. Compare all three blends under mushroom coffee, browse teas and drinks, and see every lion's mane format under lion's mane.

Frequently asked questions

What is mushroom coffee?

Coffee blended with mushroom powder, sold as an instant drink. This one is 15% arabica, 52% chicory and 33% lion's mane. Our mushroom coffee guide explains how it is made.

Is mushroom coffee good for you?

It is a food, not a medicine, and we make no health claims for it. What we can say is that this blend has less caffeine than regular coffee, no added sugar and 1500 mg of lion's mane per cup.

How much caffeine does it have?

Less than regular coffee: only 15% of the blend is coffee, and it is arabica. The brand does not give a milligram figure.

How many cups in a bag?

About 33, based on the brand's serving size of 2 teaspoons.

Read our mushroom coffee guide for how these blends are made and how to compare them. Herbastore ships this product from the UK, with free UK shipping on orders over £40. Orders are packed by Herbastore UK, so if you are buying from more than one of our brands everything arrives together.