We’re guzzling a lot of coffee to power through these couple days before Thanksgiving … and to keep ourselves healthy into old age even as we transform from carbon-based to pumpkin-pie-based life-forms.

But many folks now prefer low-caffeine coffee alternatives like MudWTR and Four Sigmatic, hot beverages made with legal adaptogenic mushrooms instead of beans, so we’re dedicating this issue to both. Whichever liquid gets you to Thursday (wine?), have a wonderful holiday from all of us at b.

Mushrooming business: Are functional fungi the next CBD?

“Coffee for dogs”: How Los Angeles roaster is helping pups

Robusta: NYC coffeemaker saved the bean from snobs

(Source: Shutterstock)

First, CBD became the non-psychoactive, health-focused alternative to THC as states legalized marijuana. Now, with Oregon and Colorado legalizing psilocybin, will “functional” mushrooms — valued at an estimated $26.7 billion market as of 2021 — serve the same purpose?

Psychedelics have generally been normalized in Silicon Valley, where tech executives micro- and macro-dose to reduce anxiety and boost creativity. However, most businesspeople in the U.S. probably aren’t looking to trip their faces off. Adaptogenic fungi such as reishi, cordyceps, and lion’s mane might relieve stress and boost energy, inducing an overall flow state without the mental side effects.

Emphasis on might. Since functional mushrooms are treated as supplements as opposed to drugs, the Food and Drug Administration doesn’t require manufacturers to prove they are safe or effective. And that can be frustrating for ethical manufacturers.

“The mushroom space will be dominated by whoever can get the next exaggerated claim in front of the consumer first,” says Ziv Haklili, co-founder of Live Conscious, a wellness brand that produces the superfood mushroom coffee Beyond Brew.

Many of the industry’s claims about improved brain functioning are based on rodent studies. Functional mushrooms show potential for positive impacts on human health — such as improved sleep and mood — but scientists caution they need more study.

Even if the FDA isn’t a threat to functional mushroom marketing, social media algorithms could be. “When we have videos go viral on TikTok and Instagram, we commonly get flagged and banned incorrectly for ‘violating community guidelines,’” says Alli Schaper, co-founder of SuperMush, which sells mushroom mints and mouth sprays. “This just further proves the need for education.”

That education may not fully happen until clinical research catches up with consumer demand. Go ahead and sip on some mushroom coffee, but you might want to hold off on drinking the Kool-Aid.

(Source: Ring)

At Muddy Paw Coffee, owner Darren La Borie doesn’t serve his award-winning coffee to dogs, but he does serve coffee for dogs. The two Los Angeles locations are Rover-friendly in a physical sense — one has a patio dog park; both have leash hooks at tables so human customers can tap away on their laptops. And that’s just for starters.

A portion of all sales go to animal welfare charities that prevent shelter overcrowding. La Borie also creates private label bags for charities who distribute his coffee (Muddy Paw currently works with approximately 50 organizations across the country). When the animal disaster response team SMART LA needed to become a 501(c)(3), La Borie helped them raise the funds to do so. 

While struggling animal shelters are an issue too big for a single coffee shop to solve, La Borie keeps his mindset simple. “One cup at a time, one animal at a time,” he says. “That’s all I can do right now.”

Is your business going to the dogs? Check out the pros and cons of pets in the workplace.

(Source: Netflix)

For years, Arabica was considered the only option for craft coffee, dominating global production with up to 80% of market share. And while Arabica is a fine bean, its success came at the expense of its cousin robusta — and the Vietnamese coffee farmers who overwhelmingly grow that variety.

Nguyen Coffee Supply founder Sahra Nguyen, a first-generation Vietnamese American businesswoman, rejected the robusta stigma, which she saw firsthand across the New York City coffee world. She knew that robusta could make great (and far more sustainable) coffee, and has raised millions of dollars in venture capital while proving the naysayers wrong.

Sipping is believing, and Nguyen has even convinced industry peers, including Blue Bottle Coffee, to sign the “Robusta Pledge” to revitalize farmers left behind by the longtime Arabica preference. In other words, she got them to wake up and smell the coffee.

Ready to drink up? View our coffee connoisseur’s guide to pairing tastes and tasks.

Written by Lauren Vino, Tess Barker and Dan Ketchum.