We were thrilled to appear on Everyday Northwest from Portland's CW and KOIN6 to discuss the incredible benefits of our functional mushroom extracts and our new energy drink, MYCO Energy.
Our co-owners, Hunter Allan and Jake Stout, had the opportunity to share insights about our products, how they are made, and the various health benefits they offer. Below is the transcript of our appearance, where we delved into the specifics of our extracts and energy drink.
Transcript:
"Ally: Vesper Mushrooms makes functional mushroom extracts right here in Portland. Their high-quality extracts absorb immediately into cells with a variety of benefits. Their new mushroom energy drink, which is MYCO Energy, offers a cleaner energy boost that is jitter-free and limits the caffeine crash—both things I really love in my energy drinks. Joining me now to chat more are co-owners Hunter Allan and Jake Stout. Welcome on you two! Great to have you both here. Now, what are the benefits of mushrooms?
Hunter: So, there’s a variety of benefits. We brought a few different extracts to sort of explain what they all do. This one is Reishi, which has been shown to be really good for sleep and anxiety. There’s Turkey Tail for prebiotics, which are great for gut health, also good for immune health. Cordyceps for energy and blood flow—that’s in the energy drink along with Lion’s Mane, which is what we have here. It’s great for mental clarity, cognitive health, and focus. So, Lion’s Mane is probably the most popular functional mushroom, and it has some really amazing benefits.
Ally: The first thing I hear when I hear mushrooms is I immediately think of the psilocybin mushrooms that are currently kind of a little controversial. Are these the same as those? How do you work with these?
Jake: Yeah, so these are different varieties of mushrooms. The illegal mushrooms have psilocybin in them, yes. You’re not going to get high on these or anything like that. They just have their unique compounds that are totally legal.
Ally: Gotcha, gotcha. Common question, though. I was going to say, that’s what I thought of. And what is happening right here? Is this how you make the mushrooms you create?
Jake: Yeah, so these are kind of like the stages of growing Lion’s Mane. We’ve got some over here. This is grain spawn. These are what are called rye berries—basically rye grain. The mycelium colonizes this, and then you spawn it to the bulk substrate right here. Once this fully colonizes, you cut this open, and then it’ll look like that. You put it in a hydroponic tent for a few weeks, and then this eventually grows.
Ally: Oh, very cool, very cool. It looks kind of like a bunny almost, in a way. I don’t know, it looks like a white rabbit a little bit.
Hunter: They call it Hedgehog Mushroom. Fuzzy and cute.
Ally: Very cool. So, let’s talk about your energy drinks, which are right here. Do they come in different flavors?
Hunter: Not yet. We just came out with this, so there’ll be new flavors coming soon, so stay tuned on that. But what we wanted to do is make something that was the benefits of an energy drink without all the drawbacks like caffeine and all that.
Ally: I was going to say, it says on the can: zero sugars, 150 milligrams of caffeine, and B vitamins. Those are all some great things to hear. What are some other highlights when it comes to the MYCO Energy?
Hunter: Yeah, so the MYCO Energy has our Gold Metal extract, which is this one here and that is a combination of our Cordyceps for energy and Lion’s Mane for focus and cognitive health. So, you should feel a lot more awake and present and not so jittery with the MYCO Energy.
Ally: Good to know. And what are the benefits of liquid extract as opposed to common mushroom products like mushroom powders and capsules?
Jake: Yeah, so a lot of mushroom powders have this mycelium inside of them, and you can’t really separate the mycelium itself from the substrate. You end up with a lot of fillers. The extraction process also breaks down the cell wall of the mushroom. Mushrooms have a thick cell wall made of chitin, which our body can’t adequately break down. So, when you take the powder, you end up passing out a lot of the nutrients. This breaks the cell wall down for you to really maximize bioavailability.
Ally: Interesting. Could you show me like a quick demo on how you use the extracts?
Hunter: Yeah, so the MYCO Energy already has the Gold Metal extract in it, but for the sake of the demo, I’ll put some Turkey Tail in there as well. Basically, all I’m going to do—this could be your coffee, tea in the morning—is put it in any drink that you enjoy on a daily basis.
Ally: How many times a day should you use this if you want to see the desired effects?
Hunter: Just once a day. You can take it straight under the tongue, but they’re pretty bitter on their own. So, if I mix it into a beverage, I’m not going to taste the extract at all. And that’s it, just a couple droppers full, and it’s ready to go.
Ally: Good to know, good to know. Well, Hunter and Jake, thank you both so, so much for joining me. For more information, go to Vespermushrooms.com and Mycoenergy.com to check it all out. Thank you again, you two.
Thanks, Ally.
Of course."
We had a wonderful time sharing our passion and knowledge about functional mushroom extracts with Ally and the Everyday Northwest team. Their platform provided us an excellent opportunity to spread awareness about the incredible benefits of our products to the people of Portland. Thank you, Ally, and the Everyday Northwest team, for having us and supporting our mission to bring the best of functional mushrooms to everyone.
For more information, visit Vesper Mushrooms and check out our range of high-quality extracts, including Lion’s Mane, Reishi, Pink Freud Lion’s Mane and Reishi Blend, Gray Matter 5 Mushroom Spagyric Concentrate, Chaga, Turkey Tail, Cordyceps, and Gold Metal Cordyceps and Lion’s Mane Extract. Also, don’t forget to try our new energy drink, MYCO Energy, for a clean and effective energy boost.
