Until recently, I almost never drank coffee.  I drank tea if I needed a boost or a Dr. Pepper, but regular morning caffeine consumption wasn’t a part of my routine.  Then, I became a Chief of Staff, and coffee became necessary to sustain life functions.  But coffee often makes me jittery, so I decided I wanted to quit.

And because my phone knows more about me than my partner does, my social feeds began suggesting Mud/Wtr as an alternative to coffee.  So I thought I’d give it a try.

CNN has a longer rundown if you’re interested, but Mud/Wtr is billed as a “coffee alternative.”  It’s made with mushrooms like lion’s mane and reishi, as well as turmeric, cacao and other ingredients they claim are designed to improve mental performance, cognition, immunity, and mental well-being.  It also contains unsweetened masala chai, vanilla and sea salt.  But let’s talk about what really matters: taste and effectiveness.

I hoped when I ordered this that it would taste like the spiced chais that I order in coffee houses.  It does not.  It smells and tastes a bit like Indian takeout.  It’s a more savory, far less sweet beverage.  I didn’t hate it, but I certainly wasn’t telling anyone else how delicious it was.  Even after I added the powdered creamer, which is made from coconut milk and other ingredients, it still had a very strong masala chai flavor that was more savory.

As for effectiveness, MUD/WTR contains 1/7th of the caffeine that coffee does.  So it’s not caffeine free, but it is caffeine light, and less caffeine than tea or soda.

I drank MUD/WTR for a week straight — no coffee and only herbal tea — and it was effective at making me feel awake and alert.  In fact, I found that if I drank it in the afternoon, I wasn’t tired before bed so I regulated it to morning use only.  I had no jitters, and didn’t have that awful feeling where you still feel tired but you’re also wired.  (Hate that.)

The last thing to talk about is price.  The tins are $50 for the coffee-like drink and $30 for the creamer.  Both contain a 30-day supply.  I spend about $4 per day on coffee, so it’s a wash.  Making it at home, my husband spends about $30 a month on coffee, so it’s not.

Bottom Line. It’s very effective if you like the positive effects of coffee, but not the potential downsides.  From a pure efficacy standpoint, it is definitely worth the money.

However, I did not enjoy the flavor as much as I like the taste of coffee or tea (even unsweetened and unflavored). I began mixing in some more unsweetened cocoa powder, and it wasn’t a big change.  I finally began mixing in a little sugar free vanilla syrup, and that made a difference, but not enough to make me want to drink it.

When I slow my caffeine consumption post session (not looking forward to the withdrawal), I will probably drink Mud/Wtr as an alternative when I need to be awake for work or when I feel tired.  But I don’t know yet if I will buy it again when the tin runs out.

If you want to try Mud/Wtr, this link goes to the Free People website and I earn a small commission if you buy the product.  But as always, I accepted no compensation or free product from the company.  I bought the product with my own money.

{this post contains affiliate links that may generate commission for the author}