Method of Myceliating Coffee

Abstract

The present invention includes a method of myceliating coffee beans including sterilizing the coffee beans, preparing a liquid tissue culture including an aliquot of fungal liquid tissue culture derived from liquid state fermentation, and inoculating the coffee beans with the fungal liquid tissue culture. Next, the step of enabling mycelium growth on the coffee includes controlling temperature, humidity, and sterility of the environment. The aliquot of fungal liquid tissue culture is optionally agitated to form hyphael conglomerations of mycelium having sizes of less than 1 mm in diameter.

We claim: 
     
         1 . A method for myceliating coffee beans, comprising:
 sterilizing the coffee beans under pressure;   providing a submerged fungal liquid tissue culture inoculating the sterilized coffee beans with the submerged fungal liquid tissue culture; and   enabling the fungal culture to incubate the fungal mycelium on the coffee beans to prepare the myceliated coffee beans, wherein the myceliated coffee beans are capable of being used to prepare a palatable coffee beverage for human consumption.   
     
     
         2 . A method as set forth in  claim 1  further comprising: preparing the fungal liquid tissue culture by harvesting a floating mass of hyphae derived from unagitated liquid state fermentation, and inoculating the coffee beans with the hyphae. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the step of enabling the fungal culture to grow fungal mycelium on the coffee beans wherein the coffee beans are infused with fungal metabolites. 
     
     
         4 . A method as set forth in  claim 3 , wherein the step of enabling infuses the coffee beans with β glucans. 
     
     
         5 . A method as set forth in  claim 3 , wherein the step of enabling infuses the coffee beans with LZ-8 protein. 
     
     
         6 . A method as set forth in  claim 3 , wherein the step of enabling infuses the coffee beans with ganoderic acids. 
     
     
         7 . A method as set forth in  claim 3 , wherein the step of enabling infuses the coffee beans with lucidenic acids. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 3 , wherein the step of enabling the fungal culture to grow fungal mycelium on the coffee beans comprises wherein the coffee beans are infused with a component selected from the group consisting of: polysaccharides, proteins, glycoproteins, nucleic acids, ergosterol, and erinacines. 
     
     
         9 . A method for myceliating coffee beans as set forth in  claim 1 , wherein the method further comprises roasting the harvested coffee beans. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the liquid fungal tissue culture is comprised of fungi selected from the group consisting of  A. blazei, C. sinensis, G. lucidum, H. erinaceus, G. frondosa, P. eryngii, P. ostreatus, P. citrinopileatus, P. djamor, T. versicolor, L. edodes, F. velutipes, V. volvacea, H. marmoreus, P. nameko, M. hortensis, M. angusticeps, P. umbellatus , and  T. fuciformis.    
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein the liquid fungal tissue culture is comprised of fungi selected from the group consisting of  C. sinensis, G. lucidum T. versicolor, T. fuciformis, G. frondosa , and  P. nameko.