BRIEFLY REVIEWED: A Small $45 Bottle of Maple Syrup

Feral Fungi specializes in rendering mushrooms into quasi-medicinal tinctures that can be administered via products including syrup and coffee.

The heart of THE COOKBOOK TEST is our weekly deep-dive review and recipe test of a new or vintage cookbook. But occasionally I’ll buy or receive a product that catches my eye and the result is a column that goes a little something like this one.

Feral Fungi Cordyceps Maple Syrup is made with pure organic maple syrup and a concentrate of the company's Cordyceps Spagyric Tincture derived from ethically wild-harvested or cultivated mushrooms. Each bottle "is packed with over 30 grams worth of fresh Cordyceps." [1] The syrup is priced at $45 for 8 oz, about $5.60 an ounce.

I requested a bottle for review because the price tag was eye-poppingly large, and because I like maple syrup.

Tasted side-by-side with good 'ol reliable Costco maple syrup (about $12 for 33 oz., about 36 cents an ounce), Feral Fungi syrup is noticeably thicker and slightly earthier, quite possibly a result of the mushroom tincture - Feral distills, ferments, and distills again multiple times, until finally the mushrooms are "boiled down into a thick tar or honey."

Emphasis on "slightly" earthier - it's a vague mustiness that's on the edge of perception. The pitch for these syrups suggests a more dramatic impact ("The distinct flavor from each mushroom compliments the sweet maple taste") but the truth is that minus the texture, both syrups are comfortably close in terms of flavor impact. The key difference for the consumer, of course, is that Feral Fungi syrup is about 17 times more expensive.

This suggests that the real selling point for this stuff is the medicinal side of the coin. The description of the Cordyceps Maple Syrup notes:

"Cordyceps fungi are highly prized in all parts of the world. Traditionally given to promote strength and stamina, this kidney and adrenal tonic is still used throughout the world to promote healthy oxygenation and natural energy levels, as well as healthy kidney and liver function."

And, sure enough, there seems to be claims aplenty online about the health benefits of Cordyceps, mainly stemming from interpretations of traditional Chinese medicine. This is all well and good; there are plenty of legitimate medicines that emerge from traditional herbal practices and folk remedies, and God knows that the fungi kingdom is home to many powerful potential medicines and/or poisons.

But I found myself left with a few questions:

1. If this particular maple syrup is being sold as medicine, what am I treating, specifically? Is it meant to prevent cancer or inhibit other unwanted medical conditions? Or is it meant to treat or cure particular conditions? If so: What conditions? At what point during their progress?

2. The main difference between a harmless supplement, effective medicine, and poison is the dosage of the substance in question. How many pancakes' worth of syrup to treat, for example, a failing kidney? Or shrink an existing cancerous tumor? And how big are those pancakes? And how thick should we pour the syrup?

3. In summary: Should we only be using the syrup with the guidance of some sort of medical professional? If so: How should they be licensed and trained? Or if not, because it has no real medical impact and therefore no real medical risk: why does this syrup cost $45 for 8 oz.?

I fired these questions back at Feral Fungi. Jason Scott, the company's founder, replied via email:

Being a supplement we can't make specific structure function claims. Herbs and mushrooms don't really work like pharmaceuticals, and are generally supportive of multiple things at a time.

Cordyceps would primarily be supportive of healthy energy levels and xygenation. You can use cordyceps for more severe conditions but I would generally use the syrup for more of a baseline daily support, as opposed to anything specific.

Dosing of our syrup is one tsp is the equivalent of 1 dropper full of tincture. There are many ways to support your system with supplements without them being administered by a doctor. For more specific uses and indications I would go to a doctor, and likely not use a syrup. Think of the syrup like a functional and tasty way to get the underlying support of the fungi.

For example I like to use a tsp in my coffee sometimes for a little extra nerve support and energy in the morning.

Mushrooms are traditionally considered “superior herbs” meaning you can take large doses over a long period of time with no adverse effect. They have an underlying support on the immune system and inflammation response along with the things mentioned above.

If you’re into supplements and you like the benefits a Cordyceps tincture might have to offer, a syrup-based delivery system might be an ideal way to get your mushrooms and enhance your pancakes as you go. I, for one, wish that more of my medications were available in a waffle-friendly format. (I suppose NyQuil might fit the bill.)

But if you’re like me and you still generally buy into the overall premise of western medicine, $45 for somewhat thicker maple syrup that offers generally defined “support and energy” is a steep price to pay. It’s interesting - in mainstream American society, most things we consume are either food or medicine, but in many other cultures, food is medicine, and there’s a tremendous gray area filled with herbs, fungi, ferments, and all manner of semi-, demi-, quasi-, and faux medicinal products to be consumed as tradition suggests, or on a hunch, or with the advice of the merchant who sells them. Feral Fungi caught my eye because it’s a very western-facing package filled with a tribal or eastern-facing approach to staying healthy, and it takes its place amid a massive and growing stream of supplements that crowd the Internet’s virtual shelves.

[1] FOOTNOTE: A friend and subscriber to Heavy Table (where I previewed this newsletter earlier this morning) mentioned that the Cordyceps mushroom plays a large, ominous role in the video game and TV series The Last of Us, wherein the fungus essentially turns people into zombies. So far I am showing only faint signs of zombie-style behavior, which I’m chalking up to a lack of sleep rather than psychoactive maple syrup.