Enhanced Coffee: What is it and Why Should I Drink it?

When you’re trying to make the most of every day, that starts by expecting more from your coffee. If your current morning mantra is simply “drink more coffee,” it’s time to level up, by choosing coffee that actually does more. Regular coffee helps wake you up and power through your to-do list at the start of the day. Enhanced coffee delivers all the benefits of your usual cup, then adds functional ingredients to support energy, focus and brain power. Read on to learn exactly what Enhanced Coffee is, the benefits it offers and how to brew it. Plus, get a list of common natural nootropics often used in enhanced coffee.

What is Enhanced Coffee?

Enhanced Coffee is coffee that provides all the energy of a typical cup of coffee, while being fortified with additional functional ingredients. These extra ingredients offer benefits well beyond caffeination! The High Achiever™ from Bulletproof supports energy, focus and brain power; other blends may include mushrooms, adaptogens or nutrients to support the mind and/or body. The Maximizer is formulated to support your gut health and metabolism.

Every enhanced coffee blend is different. Mushroom coffee blends might include ingredients for gut health or immune support, while nootropic coffee will focus on brain power and mental benefits. Adaptogenic coffee would include ingredients to support a healthy response to stress. And other enhanced coffees go beyond mental benefits, with ingredients to offer energy support, too.*

When choosing any enhanced coffee, it’s important to know what powers your roast. Read labels and make sure it includes ingredients that have studies to confirm their effectiveness.

Beyond the beans, here is what you will find in The High Achiever™:

• Caffeine: First and foremost, coffee delivers caffeine–one of the oldest and widely used nootropics. It impacts cognition, learning and memory.^[1]
• B Vitamins: These essential nutrients play many roles in the body — like supporting healthy energy levels so you can own the day. As a bonus: B Vitamins also support healthy metabolic function.^[2]
• Coffeeberry®: A stone fruit produced by coffee plants, this is a natural source of caffeine that will energize your morning – and help you stay focused when you need it the most.
• Lion’s Mane mushroom: This science-backed shaggy white mushroom helps support cognition and brain health. (It’s known scientifically as Hericium erinaceus.)^[3]

With Bulletproof’s enhanced coffee, you get the clean Bulletproof coffee you love, enhanced with a powerhouse blend of science-backed ingredients. With added B Vitamins, Lion’s Mane and Coffeeberry®, we take extra steps to carefully roast this enhanced brew for that familiar coffee taste. (Our beans are hand-picked and carefully roasted so your coffee tastes like coffee. You get the brainy benefits of Lion’s Mane mushroom, without any mushroom flavor.)

How to Brew Enhanced Coffee

With the growing popularity of enhanced coffee, it can be found in most of your favorite formats; ground coffee, instant or coffee pods.

If you can brew a cup of regular coffee, you can brew enhanced coffee. You can make the switch to Enhanced Coffee without adding any complicated steps or extra time to your morning routine.

While not impossible, it’s rare to find enhanced coffee in a whole bean format. This is because the additional ingredients are difficult to infuse into a whole bean roast without using adhesives or adherents.

The High Achiever starts with coffee beans roasted to Bulletproof standards. We then grind the medium-dark roast beans and blend in the active ingredients. The result is a coffee that tastes as good as you expect – no mushroomy flavors.

Caffeine Content

Some Enhanced Coffees (particularly mushroom coffees) may not contain any actual coffee. Others may use decaffeinated coffee beans. However, most combine coffee with added ingredients, so they do contain caffeine.

In some cases, enhanced coffee can deliver even more caffeine than a standard cup. The High Achiever contains approximately two times the amount of a regular cup of coffee—to give you the energy you need to carry on. (Keep in mind: The maximum amount of caffeine intake recommended per day is 400mg.)

Functional Ingredients

Nootropics

With a name that comes from the Greek words^[4] for “mind” and “turn,” nootropics are ingredients that may support memory, cognitive function, attention, performance and creativity. These brain supplements help you feel sharp, alert and focused when you need to perform your best. They can also help support cognition and fight brain fog.

Examples of natural nootropics include:

• Amino acids like L-Theanine and Taurine.Neurotransmitters like GABA (gamma aminobutyric acid).
• Botanicals like Ginseng, Rhodiola rosea, Maca, Bacopa monnieri and Ginkgo biloba.
• Functional mushrooms such as Lion’s Mane (Hericeum erinaceus), Chaga (Inotus obliquus), Cordyceps (Cordyceps sinensis or militaris).

Adaptogens

Adaptogens are beneficial plants and mushrooms that can help strengthen your body’s ability to handle non-specific stressors and maintain homeostasis.

Examples of common adaptogens include:  

• Ashwagandha, or Indian ginseng
• Asian ginseng (Panax ginseng)
• Cordyceps mushroom
• Rhodiola rosea

Possible Side Effects

Keep in mind that Enhanced Coffee often contains extra caffeine, so sip wisely! If you are an individual who is sensitive to caffeine, start with a small amount.

If you have a health condition or are on medication, it’s best to talk to your health-care provider before giving it a try.