Four Sigmatic Mushroom Coffee Review: Is It Worth It?

This Four Sigmatic Mushroom Coffee review explains if this popular type of mushroom coffee is worth it.

Four sigmatic mushroom coffee review
Drinking one or two cups helps me focus and unlock more energy

I love coffee but it doesn’t always love me. Drinking one or two cups helps me focus and unlock more energy. However, when I drink more than that I occasionally get the jitters or have trouble sleeping that night.

I also dislike unwanted side effects like a caffeine crash. 

Enter coffee alternatives containing medicinal mushrooms and cordyceps. Mushroom coffee aims to provide regular coffee’s attention, focus, and alertness benefits without any jitters and other anxiety-inducing side effects from too much caffeine. Different variations can aid with relaxation, recovery, and sleep.

Four Sigmatic Mushroom Coffee is a popular brand of mushroom coffee that sells several different types for various times of the day, including morning and evening. This Mushroom Coffee review explains what this coffee is, what it does, how much it costs, and who it’s for. We also compare Four Sigmatic to competitors. 

What Is Four Sigmatic Mushroom Coffee?

Finish farmer Tero Isokauppila founded Four Sigmatic in 2012. In Finland, coffee drinkers consume an average of 12kg of coffee per person per year. Finland is one of the largest coffee consumers in the world.

Naturally, residents are experts on good coffee.

The blend consists of three main ingredients; Arabica coffee, Chaga mushrooms, and Lion’s Mane mushrooms. Chaga mushrooms were brewed in WWII as a coffee substitute when no coffee was left for the war effort. The company found that combining these three ingredients can get a great-tasting coffee without all the unwanted side effects.

Four Sigmatic refers to sigma standard deviations of nutrient-dense foods. The last (fourth) deviation is incredibly nutrient-dense foods, or superfoods, which claim to include both Chaga and Lion’s Mane mushrooms. You might also be interested in our MUDWTR vs. Everyday Dose comparison.

Four Sigmatic Products

Four Sigmatic sell several different types of alternative coffee drinks, protein powders and creamers for coffee lovers. It sells these products in the United States and internationally. For this review, we’ll focus on its most popular drinks.

Four Sigmatic Mushroom Coffee With Lion’s Mane and Chaga Mushrooms is an energizing drink for those who want to focus. It’s ideal for mornings and beating an afternoon slump.

Four Sigmatic Chill with Reishi and Chaga Mushrooms and its cacao drinks are ideal for those who want to relax and sleep more easily. They are good night-time drinks. They are also nice after a workout.

These two Four Sigmatic products come as ground mushroom coffee or as instant coffee. You can brew the former as normal or add the latter to a cup of hot water. You can buy these drinks as ground coffee and brew them like normal coffee or as instant.

If you don’t like Four Sigmatic’s Lion’s Mane elixir or its Chaga traditional brew, its new Perform coffee is a great alternative. Cordyceps mushrooms are well known for health benefits, including a boost in athletic performance, and L-Theanine functions much like Chaga. This amino acid is usually found in green tea and negates the jittery effects of caffeine.

Finally, the Four Sigmatic Adaptogen blend is a good choice if you want to consume the various healthy mushrooms as a powder that you can add to your smoothies or other drinks.

Four Sigmatic Mushroom Pricing

Four Sigmatic Mushroom Coffee is provided on a membership basis, with a monthly subscription. The bags of ground and instant coffee vary by size and promotion. However, a bag of ground coffee typically cost $20, while instant costs $15.

Discounts are sometimes available if coffee lovers purchase a subscription rather than a once-off. Smaller one-pack orders include whole-bean coffee, decaf whole-bean coffee, and instant.

As the company sells several different products, I’d recommend purchasing a once-off bundle so you can sample several of them before taking out a subscription. These bundles contain its most popular drinks, creamers, and MCT oil.

Is Four Sigmatic High-Quality?

Four Sigmatic is a premium mushroom coffee company. Suffice it to say, its ground mushroom coffee is of a higher quality than the instant versions. Its products are billed as healthy drinks with various benefits.

A box of four sigmatic mushroom coffee
Its ground mushroom coffee is of a higher quality than the instant versions

This proposition may somewhat explain the higher price-point versus a traditional bag of ground coffee, which averages below $10.

Who Is Four Sigmatic Mushroom Coffee For?

The various Four Sigmatic products are for almost anyone. However, they are particularly suited for health-conscious individuals who either want a coffee alternative or are interested in exploring the health benefits of mushroom coffee. Here are several types of individuals who will enjoy its drinks.

Coffee Drinkers With The Jitters

Four Sigmatic is for those who cannot get through the day without multiple cups and can’t seem to put them down. This mushroom blend is ideal for experiencing some of the benefits of coffee without drinking caffeine. It makes you more productive and less tired afterward.

It reduces the negative effects of excess caffeine including caffeine fatigue and or insomnia. However, some Four Sigmatic drinks contain a small amount of caffeine.

Fans of Medicinal Mushrooms

Lion’s Mane mushrooms and Chaga mushrooms offer several health benefits. According to researchers, Lion’s mane mushroom is antioxidative, and antidiabetic and can even help alleviate depression, amongst other things. It’s used to treat cognitive impairment, Parkinson’s disease, and Alzheimer’s disease.

It’s popular for those who want to increase mental clarity and focus.

According to researchers, Chaga Mushrooms can reduce inflammation, heart disease and relieve high blood pressure.

Athletes And The Health Conscious

According to researchers, cordyceps can help increase an athlete’s V02 max to perform better during challenging workouts. This medicinal mushroom can also improve recovery after a challenging workout and aid sleep. Even if you’re not an athlete, good news.

This medicinal herb also has anti-aging properties. Suffice it to say, this benefit is difficult to test!

High Anxiety And Stress-Prone Individuals

If you suffer from anxiety and stress but can’t part ways with coffee – the Chaga mushroom inside this blend negates the jittery side effects of caffeine. The Four Sigmatic Mushroom Coffee Chill blend is aimed at those who have trouble relaxing and sleeping but still to drink a beverage like coffee. It can also strengthen your immune system if consumed consistently.

Four Sigmatic Caffeine Content

Some Four Sigmatic products are caffeine-free, whereas others contain a small amount. Instant coffee contains less than 50mg of caffeine, approximately half the amount of normal instant coffee. Bear in mind that brewing time, scoop size, and the amount of water affect that amount.

Its Lions Mane elixir and Chill products don’t contain any caffeine. If you’re concerned, check out the ingredients before buying.

How Does Four Sigmatic Coffee Work?

We love coffee because it’s tasty and fun to drink. It’s been lauded for four significant benefits:

  • Containing essential minerals, such as potassium and phosphorus
  • Having antioxidant properties
  • Increase mental clarity
  • Increases physical and mental reaction and alertness

As much as we enjoy coffee, caffeine can affect people differently. Drinking too much can produce some highly unwanted side effects:

  • Coffee can increase the production of hydrochloric acid, which may cause indigestion and irritation of the stomach lining and esophagus.
  • Coffee causes crashes and heightens nervous systems, which may be great for energy bursts but aggravates anxiety and sleep disorders if consumed excessively.

So, along with another reviewer, we purchased several types of Four Sigmatic products and tested each one for a few weeks.

Digestion And Appetite Returned

At first, I was thrilled that coffee was helping with weight loss. I thought this was because of appetite suppression. It turns out that coffee increases your metabolism can combined with a regular diet and exercise for sustained weight loss.

My appetite would return after the crash, and I was overeating, setting me back on my goals. The mushrooms’ gut bacteria helped return my appetite to normal while keeping the same metabolic burn off the caffeine. It also made my stomach less irritable after a few days.

A Smoother Transition From Tired To Energized

If you’re like me, you don’t want to talk to anyone or start your day without a cup of java. One particular thing that always troubled me was the transition. One moment, I’m sipping coffee, not feeling anything, and 20 minutes later, I am over-energized.

The mushroom blend helped reduce the caffeine content in the coffee and slowly release it.

Athletic Performance

I run and cycle a lot. It’s difficult to quantify if drinking or consuming a single product improved my ability to work out. There are so many variables to a good workout.

However, I noticed my energy levels improved and felt more focused after consuming these products. Although coffee helps me work out, I can’t drink more than one or two cups daily. I could also drink more than two cups of Four Sigmatic per day without any side effects.

What Does Four Sigmatic Mushroom Coffee Taste Like?

Four Stigmatic With Lion’s Mane is a dark and smooth drink. It tastes like TK and smells like TK. It does not taste like mushrooms.

It tastes much better than a cup of instant coffee but doesn’t quite compare to the taste and aroma of coffee brewed from freshly roasted beans.

A cup of Four sigmatic mushroom coffee
It tastes somewhat sweet didn’t need to add creamer or sweetener

Four Sigmatic Chill is a dark substance with a slightly thicker consistency than a standard cup of coffee. It also has a distinctive and earthy aroma. It tastes somewhat sweet and I didn’t find I need to add creamer or sweetener.

It does not taste like coffee at all. Pleasingly, it also does not taste like mushrooms. If you want something more akin to a chocolate drink but with the same effects, best try the Four Sigmatic cacao mix.

I preferred the taste of Four Sigmatic Chill over Lion’s Mane. I began drinking the former more frequently as part of my wind-down ritual. Like with any coffee drink, it’s down to personal preference.

Suffice it to say, Four Sigmatic ground coffee tastes much better than its instant offerings. In fact, I found the instant Lion’s Mane hard to drink and didn’t enjoy it.

Four Sigmatic Mushroom Coffee Vs. Regular Coffee

Coffee is great until it’s not. Caffeine crashes sometimes hurt more than they benefit, making you more tired, more hungry, and in need of another pickup. This sometimes means more coffee, but that is a vicious cycle.

I can safely say there was no crash with Four Sigmatic, as the transition from energized to my natural state was smooth and unnoticeable. The anxiety jitters have entirely gone away – and although insomnia hasn’t – it helped alleviate the caffeine symptoms.

Areas For Improvement 

  • More expensive than a regular cup of coffee
  • Products are only available online
  • More bitter than regular coffee, i.e. add creamer
  • Instant mushroom coffee doesn’t taste great

Alternatives To Four Sigmatic Mushroom Coffee

Four Sigmatic is one of the best mushroom coffee brands due to its product offerings and price point. It has a unique blend that stops caffeine side effects, is nutrient-dense, and helps fill gaps in some diets. It’s also vegan and gluten-free. 

If you’re looking for an alternative that contains no caffeine, MUD\WTR is an excellent alternative. MUD\WTR is for those who want a coffee alternative before bed that won’t keep them up or want less caffeine in their morning/afternoon brew. Read our MUD\WTR review to learn more.

RYZE mushroom coffee is an excellent alternative too, with a creamier taste. RYZE is for those who don’t mind the extra caffeine and want the additional benefits of MCT oil. It’s US-only, though. Read our RYZE mushroom coffee review to learn more.

You might also like Ganoderma coffee. It’s another type of popular mushroom coffee sold by various brands. It’s available in local health food stores and also on Amazon. You can buy this mushroom coffee as instant, ground, and even as coffee pods.

Review Criteria

Along with another reviewer, we purchased several Four Sigmatic products for this review. These included its Lion’s Mane drink, Chill drink, cacao mix, and instant and ground coffee. We drank these products at various times of the day, morning, afternoon, and evening.

Sometimes, we drank these products in place of a normal cup of coffee, when tired, before a challenging workout, and before bed. We took notes about the taste profile, price point, and side effects.

Why You Can Trust Me?

As an avid coffee drinker who also suffers from anxiety and insomnia while needing to get through the day of working two jobs – coffee alternatives are a passion of mine. I’ve tried them all, including L-theanine supplements, black tea, instant coffee, and mushroom coffee. This review was made to clarify similar questions that others may have who are going through the same thing.

Full Coffee Roast’s editor is also a trained barista who’s tried many different types of mushroom coffee. He drinks this type of coffee regularly when he wants to avoid excess caffeine.

Is Four Sigmatic Coffee Worth It?

These days, I drink Four Sigmatic Chill almost every night as part of my bedtime routine. It helps me sleep. I occasionally replace my morning or afternoon cup of coffee with Four Sigmatic Lion’s Mane, usually the ground version.

I also include its adaptogen mix in my smoothies after a workout.

Although Four Sigmatic puts a premium price on its slightly bitter-tasting blend, it is dedicated to its craft. The company is working towards new blends to target different demographics and usage groups, constantly improving its taste and adding new ways to pack nutrient-dense foods into its beverages.

In short, Four Sigmatic sells quality mushroom coffee. Granted, it’s a somewhat acquired taste. So buy a pack before subscribing.

Opt for the ground versions over instant. These products taste better. It’ll cost you more than regular ground (or instant coffee).

That’s down to the healthy ingredients and lack of caffeine.

Author

  • Aisling O'Connor

    Aisling is an Irish food and drinks writer and journalist fueled by coffee and herbal tea. She followed up her journalism degree with nutrition studies. Find Aisling on LinkedIn.

Four Sigmatic Mushroom Coffee Review: Is It Worth It?
  • Price
  • Taste
  • Effectiveness
4.7

Is Four Sigmatic Coffee Worth It?

These days, I drink Four Sigmatic Chill almost every night as part of my bedtime routine. It helps me sleep. I occasionally replace my morning or afternoon cup of coffee with Four Sigmatic Lion’s Mane, usually the ground version.  I also include its adaptogen mix in my smoothies after a workout. Although Four Sigmatic puts a premium price on its slightly bitter-tasting blend, it is dedicated to its craft. The company is working towards new blends to target different demographics and usage groups, constantly improving its taste and adding new ways to pack nutrient-dense foods into its beverages. In short, Four Sigmatic sells quality mushroom coffee. Granted, it’s a somewhat acquired taste. So buy a pack before subscribing.  Opt for the ground versions over instant. These products taste better. It’ll cost you more than regular ground (or instant coffee). That’s down to the healthy ingredients and lack of caffeine.