How Is Mushroom Coffee Made? From Bean to Cup
How Is Mushroom Coffee Made? From Bean to Cup
By Chris Rea, COO of Mariko Grove · August 2026
Updated August 26, 2026
People ask us how to brew mushroom coffee all the time. Fewer people ask how it's actually made, and that's the more interesting question. Two ingredients start in completely different places, on different continents, grown by different methods, and somehow end up in the same bag.
This is that process, laid out plainly: how the coffee side is grown and roasted, how the mushroom side is grown and extracted, how the two come together for ground versus instant, and where testing fits into the chain before anything ships. Where we can tell you exactly what we do, we will. Where a detail about our production partner's process isn't confirmed yet, we'll say that too, rather than guess.
What Mushroom Coffee Is Made Of
At its simplest, mushroom coffee is two things: real coffee and mushroom extract powder. That's the whole ingredient list for ours: ground Arabica coffee (or instant coffee), Lion's Mane mushroom, and Chaga mushroom. No fillers, no grain starch added as bulk, no third mystery ingredient.
The mushroom part isn't whole dried mushrooms crumbled into your grounds. It's a processed extract, dried and milled into a fine powder, measured out in milligrams per serving the same way any other functional ingredient would be. The rest of this post is about how that powder, and the coffee it joins, each get made.
How the Coffee Side Is Made
The coffee in Mariko Grove starts as ordinary Arabica coffee cherries, grown, picked, and processed at origin before a bean ever reaches a roaster.
Our ground blend is built on five Arabica varietals from two countries: Catuai and Mundo Novo from the Cerrado region of Brazil, and Caturra, Colombia, and Castillo from the Huila and Cauca cooperatives in Colombia, grown between roughly 900 and 1,800 meters above sea level. The Brazilian beans are pulped natural for richness, and the Colombian beans are fully washed for a cleaner, brighter cup. Together they roast into a medium-roast profile with dark chocolate and toasted nut notes.
Our instant blend takes a different route: single-origin Papua New Guinea Arabica, the Typica, Bourbon, and Arusha varietals, grown in volcanic highland soil between 1,400 and 1,800 meters. Those beans are washed for clarity, then freeze-dried after brewing so the cup comes together in seconds with hot water instead of a filter.
Both blends are small-batch roasted in Southern Oregon. Roasting is the step that turns green, grassy coffee into the aromatic, chocolate-and-nut cup you actually taste, and it happens before either blend meets a mushroom.
How the Mushroom Side Is Made
Lion's Mane and Chaga start as living organisms long before they're a powder in your cup, and getting from mushroom to extract takes a few distinct steps: growing, drying, extraction, and milling into powder.
Growing Lion's Mane and Chaga
Our Lion's Mane is a blend of mycelium and fruiting body, cultivated on oats. That matters because the two parts of the mushroom carry different compounds: hericenones concentrate in the fruiting body, while erinacines are found primarily in the mycelium. Using both is a deliberate choice to capture compounds from each stage of the organism, not a fruiting-body-only extract.
Chaga grows differently by nature. In the wild, it forms as a dark, irregular conk on living birch trees, sometimes for ten to twenty years before harvest. We haven't published a part-by-part breakdown of our Chaga sourcing the way we have for Lion's Mane, and we won't imply more precision than we can back up. What we can tell you is that both mushrooms come from a U.S.-based production partner, and further sourcing detail is available on request.
Drying and Extraction
Once harvested, mushroom material is dried to remove moisture before it's processed further. From there, the industry-standard next step is extraction, and it exists for a practical reason: mushroom cell walls are made of chitin, the same tough material found in crab shells, and your body can't break chitin down efficiently on its own. Eating raw mushroom powder doesn't give you meaningful access to what's inside it. Extraction is what makes those compounds usable.
There are three common extraction methods across the category. Hot water extraction pulls out water-soluble compounds like beta-glucans and polysaccharides. Alcohol, or ethanol, extraction pulls out compounds that don't dissolve in water, including triterpenes and hericenones. Dual extraction runs both methods in sequence to capture the fuller range of compounds. We're confirming the specific extraction method our production partner uses and will update our Our Mushrooms page once that's verified, rather than name a method we can't stand behind yet.
After extraction, the concentrated material is dried again and milled into the fine, flavor-neutral powder that ends up measured into each serving.
How They Come Together: Ground vs Instant
The mushroom powder and the coffee meet at different points depending on the format.
For ground coffee, the Lion's Mane and Chaga extract is blended into the roasted, ground coffee. Each 12 oz bag holds about 34 servings, with 500 mg of Lion's Mane and 500 mg of Chaga per 1 tablespoon (10 g) serving. You brew it exactly like regular ground coffee, drip, pour-over, French press, or espresso.
For instant coffee, the mushroom extract is added after the coffee's own extraction, right before freeze-drying, specifically to preserve the coffee's clarity rather than muddying it earlier in the process. Each 1.9 oz jar holds about 18 servings, with 150 mg of Lion's Mane and 150 mg of Chaga per 1 teaspoon (3 g) serving. Add hot water and stir; nothing to brew.
Once it's in the bag, brewing method is really the only variable left in your hands. Our brewing guide covers ratios, water temperature, and steps for every method, ground or instant.
Where Testing Fits in the Chain
Before any blend ships, the roasted coffee base goes to an independent lab, and sampling happens on that coffee base prior to the mushroom extract being blended in. The lab tests for heavy metals (lead, arsenic, cadmium, mercury), mycotoxins, mold, and yeast. Results are published as Certificates of Analysis, or COAs, on our Lab Reports page, tied to specific batches so anyone can check the actual results.
We want to be precise about scope here: that testing currently covers the coffee base, not the finished blended product and not the mushroom extract on its own. We're working with our suppliers to obtain COAs specific to the Lion's Mane and Chaga extracts and will publish those on the Lab Reports page once they're available. If you want the fuller explanation of what a COA is and why batch-by-batch testing matters, we wrote a whole post on it: why we test every batch.
The Mushroom Coffee Production Chain, Stage by Stage
Here's the whole chain in one table, the version worth bookmarking. The right column applies to any brand's mushroom coffee, not just ours; it's what a label or product page should actually tell you at each stage.
| Stage | What Happens | What to Look For on Any Brand's Label |
|---|---|---|
| Coffee growing | Arabica cherries are grown and hand-picked at origin. | Named country, region, or single origin; named varietals; growing altitude |
| Coffee processing | Cherries are processed to remove the fruit from the bean (washed, natural, or pulped natural). | Named processing method, not just "premium coffee" |
| Roasting | Green beans are roasted in batches to a target roast level and profile. | Roast level stated; ideally a roast date or freshness window |
| Mushroom growing | Lion's Mane and Chaga are cultivated or harvested, each by methods specific to the species. | Named species; disclosed part (fruiting body, mycelium, or both) and substrate if mycelium is used |
| Drying | Harvested mushroom material is dried to remove moisture before further processing. | Rarely disclosed in detail; reasonable to ask if not stated |
| Extraction | Dried material is extracted (hot water, alcohol, or dual) to concentrate usable compounds. | Extraction method named, not just the word "extract" |
| Milling | Extracted material is dried again and milled into a fine powder. | Milligrams per serving disclosed for each species, not a single "blend" total |
| Blending | Mushroom powder joins the coffee, timing depends on format (ground vs instant). | Clear ingredient list; no unnamed "proprietary blend" |
| Testing | An independent lab samples a batch for contaminants at some stage of the process. | What exactly was tested (coffee base, mushroom extract, or finished product) and a batch-matched COA available to view |
| Packaging & shipping | The finished product is sealed and shipped to the customer. | Roast date or best-by date on the bag |
Frequently Asked Questions
Is mushroom coffee just coffee with mushroom powder stirred in?
Not quite. The mushroom powder is a processed extract, not raw mushroom, and it's typically blended in during production rather than stirred in at home. In ground coffee, the extract is blended into the roasted, ground beans before packaging. In instant coffee, it's added after the coffee's own extraction, right before freeze-drying. You're not doing any mixing yourself beyond adding water or brewing as usual.
Does mushroom coffee contain whole mushrooms?
No. There are no mushroom pieces, caps, or stems in the bag. What's in there is a dried, extracted, and milled powder made from Lion's Mane and Chaga, measured in milligrams per serving. It looks and behaves like a fine ingredient powder, not chopped or dried produce.
Why does extraction matter?
Mushroom cell walls are made of chitin, which the human body can't break down efficiently on its own. Extraction, using hot water, alcohol, or both, breaks that structure open so the compounds inside the mushroom are actually accessible rather than passing through mostly intact. Skipping extraction and using raw mushroom powder means much of what's inside stays locked away.
What should a mushroom coffee label actually tell you?
At minimum: the named mushroom species (not just "functional mushroom blend"), the part used (fruiting body, mycelium, or both, plus the substrate if mycelium is involved), the amount per serving for each species, and what was actually tested, coffee base, mushroom extract, or finished product, with a batch-matched COA you can look up. A brand that discloses all four is telling you more than a slogan on the front of the bag ever will.
What part of the mushroom does Mariko Grove use?
Our Lion's Mane is a blend of mycelium and fruiting body, cultivated on oats. We haven't published the same level of detail for our Chaga sourcing yet, and we're not going to describe it more precisely than we actually know. Our extraction method is still being confirmed with our production partner; we'll update our Our Mushrooms page once that's verified.
Is mushroom coffee made the same way for ground and instant?
The coffee sourcing and the mushroom extraction are separate processes either way, but the assembly differs. Ground coffee gets the mushroom extract blended in after roasting and grinding. Instant coffee gets the extract added after the coffee's own extraction, right before freeze-drying, to keep the coffee's clarity intact. Both end up with the same two mushrooms; the format just changes when and how they meet the coffee.
The Bottom Line
Mushroom coffee is coffee grown and roasted like any specialty coffee, joined by mushroom extract that goes through its own growing, drying, extraction, and milling process before the two ever meet. Where we know a detail about our own chain, we've told you. Where something is still being confirmed with our production partner, we've said that instead of guessing.
If you want the full picture of the two mushrooms themselves, start with our Our Mushrooms page. If you're new to mushroom coffee generally, our beginner's guide is the place to start.
And now that you've seen how mushroom coffee is made, you can see what actually goes into ours: both blends, ground and instant, live in the mushroom coffee collection, coffee-forward and with the coffee base batch-tested before anything ships. When the bag arrives, our brewing guide covers every method.
About the Author
Chris Rea is the COO of Mariko Grove, overseeing operations, sourcing, and shipping logistics. He ensures every batch of mushroom coffee is handled with care from warehouse to doorstep.
FDA Compliance Disclaimer: This content is provided for informational purposes only and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. Statements regarding mushroom coffee products have not been evaluated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.