Reishi coffee: why the bitter mushroom is in the blend and what the research measured
Of the six mushrooms in Mello, Reishi is the one with the strongest reputation and the strongest taste. It is intensely bitter on its own, it has a thousand year record as a tea in China and Japan, and it is the mushroom most associated with evenings and rest. So people reasonably ask why it is in a coffee you drink at 7am. This is the plain answer.
What Reishi is
Ganoderma lucidum is a glossy, red brown bracket fungus that grows on hardwood stumps in warm climates. It is too tough and bitter to eat, so it has always been used as a tea or an extract; the Chinese name lingzhi and the Japanese name reishi both refer to it. It is one of the most cultivated medicinal mushrooms in the world, grown on logs and sawdust across Asia, and it is the species people mean when they say ganoderma coffee, a product category that has existed in Malaysia and Singapore for decades.
Why it is bitter
Reishi's bitterness comes from triterpenes, a class of compounds that is also the part of the mushroom researchers are most interested in. That creates a tension in any blend: more Reishi means more of the compounds and more bitterness. Mello lists Reishi as part of a six mushroom blend on the pack without a per mushroom amount, and the blend is balanced so that Reishi sits behind the arabica in the coffee and behind the leaf in the matcha rather than on top. If you can taste bitterness in the cup, it is more likely the water was boiling than that the Reishi is showing through; our taste guide covers that.
What the human research measured
Reishi is one of the more studied mushrooms in the laboratory, mostly for its polysaccharides and triterpenes in cell and animal work. The human trials are few and small. A 2012 review of five trials on blood sugar and blood pressure found the evidence too thin to conclude anything. A small 2005 trial of 132 people with fatigue complaints used a Reishi extract for eight weeks and measured questionnaire scores. There are studies on sleep in animals and almost none in people. Research suggests the compounds are biologically active; what a food quantity does in an ordinary person over months, the studies cannot yet tell you. Our Reishi research page lists them so you can read the methods rather than our summary.
Why put an evening mushroom in a morning coffee
Three honest reasons. First, tradition: Reishi has been taken daily as a tea for centuries, morning included, and the evening association is a modern marketing shorthand rather than a traditional rule. Second, the blend logic: six mushrooms with different compound profiles cover more ground than one, and Reishi's triterpenes are unlike anything in Lion's Mane or Cordyceps. Third, and we are careful here: some people say a coffee with Reishi in it feels smoother than a plain coffee. We are not going to claim that, because the research does not support it as a claim and the smaller caffeine dose, about 48mg a serve, is the more likely explanation for a gentler cup.
Reishi and caffeine
People sometimes ask whether Reishi cancels caffeine or makes coffee less stimulating. No. A serve of Mello has about 48mg of caffeine and that caffeine does exactly what 48mg of caffeine does regardless of what mushroom sits beside it. If you want a lower caffeine drink, the number to look at is the caffeine figure, not the Reishi. Our sleep and half life article has the arithmetic for afternoon cups.
Ganoderma coffee versus mushroom coffee
Ganoderma coffee, common in Southeast Asian markets, is usually instant coffee with a Reishi extract and often a lot of sugar and creamer. Mello is a six mushroom blend with no added sugar, and the Reishi is one of six rather than the headline. If you have had a ganoderma coffee and found it bitter or sweet, that is a different product with a different balance.
Who should be careful
Anyone with a mushroom allergy should avoid both Mello blends. Reishi has been studied in the laboratory for effects on blood clotting and blood pressure, which is a reason for anyone on medication for either, anyone due for surgery, and anyone managing a medical condition to talk to a GP or pharmacist before adding an extract. The same applies to anyone pregnant or breastfeeding. The coffee blend contains coconut milk and MCT oil, so anyone with a coconut allergy should choose the matcha or skip both. Our Reishi explained article goes deeper on the mushroom itself.
The short version
Reishi is a bitter, long used tea mushroom with an active but early research base, balanced in the Mello blend so you do not taste it. It is in the coffee for tradition and for what it adds to a six mushroom blend, not because it changes what the caffeine does. Listed on the pack as one of six, no per mushroom amount claimed. Both pouches are 30 serves, ship free Australia wide and carry a 30 day money back guarantee.