Smaints Mushroom Coffee review: ingredients and dosages compared
By the Mush n Go editorial team - 12 October 2026
By the Mush n Go editorial teamPublished on 12 October 202610 min read
Smaints review
Mushroom Coffee from the German brand Smaints is a decaffeinated coffee enriched with two mushrooms, cordyceps and lion's mane at 250 mg of extract each, and around fifteen actives: vitamins, choline, tyrosine, ginkgo. It is a carefully worked formula, with no caffeine. Brainstoorm offers something else: three mushrooms, maca and ashwagandha, 20 mg of caffeine to keep a little lift, a lower price and 60 days to change your mind. Here are the two labels, line by line.
Who is writing: Mush n Go makes Brainstoorm, a direct competitor of Smaints. This page compares what each brand states on its website and, for Brainstoorm, the technical data sheet from our contract manufacturer. Figures recorded on 6 October 2026. We have no connection with Smaints.
Brainstoorm coffee flavour
Lion's mane, cordyceps and chaga from the fruiting body, maca, ashwagandha and roasted chicory. The taste of coffee, without the jitters.
Try Brainstoorm →Brainstoorm choc-hazelnut
The same mushroom base, with cocoa and rhodiola. 60 days to change your mind, with a money-back guarantee.
See the choc version →Our verdict in brief
A decaf with fifteen actives, or a cup of mushrooms and plants.
Smaints and Brainstoorm share the same starting point: moving away from the caffeine of regular coffee. Smaints removes it entirely, with a decaffeinated Arabica, and builds a formula of vitamins and amino acids around it. Brainstoorm keeps a small dose, 20 mg, and builds its cup around three mushrooms and two plants.
- Brainstoorm is for you if you want three mushrooms rather than two, maca and ashwagandha, a light touch of caffeine, a gentler price and the right to taste it for 60 days.
- Smaints is for you if you no longer want any caffeine at all, if you like the taste of a real Arabica coffee, and if a formula rich in B vitamins, choline and tyrosine appeals to you.
- On price, Brainstoorm is cheaper: €1.42 per cup as a one-off purchase versus €1.67 for Smaints, and €1.00 versus €1.50 on subscription.
What is Smaints
A German functional drinks brand, and its caffeine-free coffee.
Smaints is a German company based in Thuringia, which makes a range of mushroom powders in Germany: coffee, cocoa, golden milk, tea. Its Mushroom Coffee is built on a fair trade Arabica, decaffeinated with water. The brand states that its mushrooms come from European organic cultivation and are extracted twice.
The ingredients in detail
What is in one serving of Smaints.
The Smaints label gives a figure for every active, line by line, which is remarkable for such a long formula. Here are the figures for a 5 g serving.
| Ingredient | Per serving | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Decaffeinated Arabica coffee extract | around 2,500 mg | 50% of the recipe |
| Cordyceps extract | 250 mg | ratio not stated |
| Lion's mane extract | 250 mg | ratio not stated |
| Total 2 mushrooms | 500 mg | extracts |
| L-glycine | 545 mg | |
| Tea plant powder | 300 mg | |
| L-tyrosine and choline | 200 mg and 200 mg | |
| Citicoline and L-taurine | 100 mg and 100 mg | |
| Ginkgo | 50 mg | extract |
| Vitamins B1, B3, B5, B6, B12 and C | 100% of the reference intake |
Source: product page and label of “Mushroom Coffee mit Cordyceps und Hericium” on smaints.de, recorded on 6 October 2026. The weight of coffee is our calculation from the stated 50%. The brand publishes neither the extraction ratio, nor the part of the mushroom used, nor the polysaccharide content, nor the residual caffeine content.
Extract or equivalent
Two numbers for the same mushroom: how to read them.
On a mushroom coffee label, the same ingredient can appear with two very different weights. Both are correct; they simply do not measure the same thing. Smaints shows weights of extract, with no ratio; Brainstoorm shows dried-plant equivalents. To compare fairly, we give both figures on the Brainstoorm side.
The extract is what is in the cup
An extract is a concentrate. With a 10:1 ratio, it took 10 g of dried mushroom to obtain 1 g of powder.
The equivalent is the starting weight
“1,000 mg dry equivalent” with a 10:1 ratio means 100 mg of extract in the cup.
The part of the mushroom matters
The fruiting body is the mushroom itself; the mycelium is its network of filaments. Both are used, and a clear label says which.
The rule for comparing
Always the same column on both sides: extract against extract, equivalent against equivalent. That is what the following table does.
Dosages compared
Brainstoorm and Smaints, line by line.
For Brainstoorm, the table gives the actual weight of extract and then, in brackets, the dried-plant equivalent. For Smaints, the stated weight of extract. Brainstoorm coffee flavour: 6 g serving. Smaints: 5 g serving.
| Per cup | Brainstoorm coffee | Smaints Mushroom Coffee |
|---|---|---|
| Caffeine | 20 mg, microencapsulated | stated as caffeine-free |
| Lion's mane | 100 mg (1,000 mg) | 250 mg |
| Cordyceps | 250 mg (1,000 mg) | 250 mg |
| Chaga | 20 mg (1,000 mg) | absent |
| Maca | 375 mg (3,000 mg) | absent |
| Ashwagandha | 40 mg of extract | absent |
| Vitamin B5 | 6 mg, 100% of the reference intake | 6 mg, 100% of the reference intake |
| Other vitamins | none | B1, B3, B6, B12 and C at 100% |
| Amino acids and choline | none | glycine, tyrosine, taurine, choline, citicoline |
| Base | roasted chicory 3,500 mg, acacia 889 mg | decaffeinated Arabica coffee, around 2,500 mg |
| Part of the mushroom | fruiting body | not specified |
| Sweetener | xylitol | none |
Sources: Brainstoorm technical data sheets from Laboratoire FGnutra (editions of 28 January 2026 and 8 July 2025); “Mushroom Coffee” product page and label on smaints.de, recorded on 6 October 2026.
These are two philosophies. Smaints puts together a broad formula, in which the mushrooms sit alongside vitamins, amino acids and choline, with a higher dose of lion's mane than Brainstoorm. Brainstoorm stays plant-based: three mushrooms from the fruiting body, as much cordyceps extract as Smaints, plus chaga, maca and ashwagandha. Both provide 6 mg of vitamin B5, which contributes to the reduction of tiredness and fatigue and to normal mental performance.
Caffeine
Zero caffeine on one side, 20 mg on the other.
For once, Brainstoorm is not the one with the least caffeine. Smaints uses a water-decaffeinated Arabica and states that its product is caffeine-free; its product page gives no figure for the residual content. If you have to avoid caffeine completely, that is a real plus.
Brainstoorm makes a different, deliberate choice: 20 mg per cup, four times less than an espresso, which contains around 80 mg according to the European Food Safety Authority. This caffeine is microencapsulated (NewCaff®), meaning it is coated so that it is released gradually: enough to keep that little morning lift, little enough not to weigh on the rest of your day.
If you are giving up caffeine
Smaints is stated as caffeine-free. Brainstoorm contains 20 mg: it is not a decaf.
If you only want to cut down
An espresso: around 80 mg. A cup of Brainstoorm: 20 mg, released gradually.
In the afternoon
At 20 mg, a cup of Brainstoorm after lunch weighs four times less on your evening than an espresso.
If caffeine is what matters to you, our article how many cups of coffee a day does the maths cup by cup, and coffee and anxiety sets out the signs of having too much.
Price, shipping, guarantee
The price per cup, and the right to try.
Smaints sells in euros in Germany. Brainstoorm prices are recorded on the France store. Both contain 30 servings.
| Prices recorded | Brainstoorm | Smaints Mushroom Coffee |
|---|---|---|
| 1 tin or 1 pouch | €42.71, i.e. €1.42 per cup | €49.99, i.e. €1.67 per cup |
| Subscription, 1 month | €29.90, i.e. €1.00 per cup | €44.99, i.e. €1.50 per cup |
| Best listed price | €69.90 for 3 months on subscription, i.e. €0.78 per cup | €161.96 for 4 tins on subscription, i.e. €1.35 per cup |
| Shipping | free from €59 in France | free in Germany; €6.90 elsewhere in the European Union, free from €30 |
| Money-back guarantee | 60 days, even once the pouch is open | not offered: statutory 14-day right of withdrawal, sealed product |
Prices recorded on 6 October 2026 on mushngo.com (France store) and smaints.de (Germany store). Return conditions as per the Smaints returns policy.
On this front, the advantage goes to Brainstoorm: its cup costs less as a one-off purchase, the gap widens on subscription, and its guarantee gives you 60 days to ask for a refund, even once the pouch is open. Smaints has free delivery with no minimum order in Germany in its favour.
Which one to choose
Cut caffeine out, or bring it down to almost nothing?
If you want a coffee with no caffeine, enriched with a full formula of vitamins and amino acids, Smaints is a serious product and you will not go wrong. If you would rather have a cup made of mushrooms and plants, with just enough caffeine to start the day, you are the person we created Brainstoorm for.
- 20 mg of caffeine per cup, released gradually: four times less than an espresso, without being a decaf.
- Three mushrooms from the fruiting body, 1,000 mg of equivalent each, including 250 mg of cordyceps extract.
- Two extra plants: 3,000 mg of maca equivalent, plus ashwagandha, neither of which is in the Smaints recipe.
- A gentler price: €1.42 per cup as a one-off purchase, €1.00 on a monthly subscription.
- 6 mg of vitamin B5 in a single cup, i.e. 100% of the reference intake: it contributes to the reduction of tiredness and fatigue.
- No mushroom taste: roasted chicory brings the roundness and bitterness of a coffee.
- 60-day money-back guarantee: you taste, you decide.
More than 50,000 people have already replaced one of their cups with Brainstoorm, and rate it 4.8 out of 5.
Before starting either one
- Brainstoorm contains caffeine and is not recommended for children or for pregnant and breastfeeding women; Smaints recommends seeking medical advice during pregnancy and breastfeeding.
- Brainstoorm is not recommended if you have a thyroid, liver or heart condition: ask your doctor for advice.
- A food supplement is not a substitute for a varied diet. Do not exceed the stated daily dose.
Your questions
All about Smaints.
What is in Smaints Mushroom Coffee?
A decaffeinated Arabica coffee, 250 mg of cordyceps extract, 250 mg of lion's mane extract, glycine, tyrosine, choline, citicoline, taurine, ginkgo, tea plant powder and six vitamins at 100% of the reference intake.
Does Smaints Mushroom Coffee contain caffeine?
The brand states that it is caffeine-free: it uses a water-decaffeinated Arabica. Its product page gives no figure for the residual content. A cup of Brainstoorm contains 20 mg of caffeine, an espresso around 80 mg.
Is Smaints Mushroom Coffee safe?
Nothing in the information published by the brand points to any particular risk. It recommends that pregnant and breastfeeding women seek medical advice. If you are on medical treatment, ask your doctor for advice.
Which mushrooms are in Smaints?
Two: cordyceps and lion's mane, at 250 mg of extract each, which the brand says come from European organic cultivation. Brainstoorm contains three, lion's mane, cordyceps and chaga, from the fruiting body.
How much does Smaints Mushroom Coffee cost?
€49.99 for the tin of 30 servings, i.e. €1.67 per cup, and €44.99 on subscription, prices recorded on 6 October 2026. Delivery is free in Germany.
Can you get a refund on Smaints?
The brand applies the statutory 14-day right of withdrawal, which no longer applies once the product has been unsealed. It does not advertise a money-back guarantee. Mush n Go refunds Brainstoorm for 60 days, even once the pouch is open.
What is the difference between Smaints and Brainstoorm?
Smaints is a decaffeinated coffee enriched with two mushrooms, vitamins and amino acids. Brainstoorm contains no coffee: three mushrooms, maca, ashwagandha and 20 mg of caffeine, on a roasted chicory base.
Where is Smaints Mushroom Coffee made?
In Germany, according to the brand. Brainstoorm is made in France, near Toulouse.
Sources
- Smaints. Product page and label “Mushroom Coffee mit Cordyceps und Hericium”, shipping and returns policies, legal notice, smaints.de. Accessed on 6 October 2026.
- Laboratoire FGnutra. Product technical data sheet “Brainstoorm Café 180 g”, edition of 28 January 2026.
- Laboratoire FGnutra. Product technical data sheet “Café Brainstoorm V5” (chocolate hazelnut flavour), edition of 8 July 2025.
- EFSA Panel on Dietetic Products, Nutrition and Allergies (2015). Scientific Opinion on the safety of caffeine. EFSA Journal, 13(5):4102.
- Commission Regulation (EU) No 432/2012 establishing a list of permitted health claims made on foods (vitamin B5).
Smaints is a trademark of its owner. The information about this product is what the brand publishes; it may have changed since it was recorded. Spotted a mistake? Write to us and we will correct it.
Further reading
Before you choose, see how to read a label and what caffeine changes in your day.
Discover our mushroom and adaptogenic plant supplements
Our vegan formulas, made in Toulouse by a French manufacturer.