🫠 Ask a Guide Anything

Welcome to Tricycle Day. We're the psychedelics newsletter that plays favorites with our subscribers. Everyone who replies to this email will be tied for #1. 🫶

There’s a certain type of psychonaut who talks about mushrooms like they’re fine wines. Shroomeliers, if you will.

“Ahh yes. Earthy notes of introspection with a bold spiritual finish. Pairs well with grief.”

But it’s hard to know how much of that is based in reality. So we brought the debate to our tasting room of professionals.

For today’s newsletter, we asked our network of licensed psilocybin facilitators: How do you think about choosing a mushroom strain for a journey? Have any favorites?

Here's what they shared.

Heads up. You’re running out of time to book a legal psilocybin journey for $500.

Althea’s Pick is, hands down, the most affordable way to experience psilocybin with a licensed facilitator.

But on Wednesday (July 1), the price goes up to $750.

While that’s still a fraction of the going rate, it’s a significant bump from our launch price. So if you've been sitting on the fence, now's the time to hop off.

Plus, we now have dates confirmed for July through September, so you can actually plan around your life.

Start setting those intentions…

Some facilitators swear the strain shapes the trip. Adam O'Neil, who’s fond of Shakti, chalks it up to personality: “Shakti seems to present herself as shy at first, often giving a subtle experience.” With time, he’s seen Shakti ask “if the person is ready for more, and exercising patience with the person until they say they are ready for her call.” 

Sophia Catalano focuses on the genetics. She sticks to landrace varieties, which “remain relatively close to their original geographic lineage and have not been extensively hybridized.” She says they “tend to be less potent than many modern cultivars.” 

Melissa Grossman tags each strain to a predictable effect: “Golden Teacher, a reliable favorite, tends to produce a more cerebral experience resulting in a more experiential journey. Thai Tanic is usually more mystical and visual, while Mazatapec provides a gentler, spiritual journey.”

Many facilitators don't pick a favorite strain so much as match one to the job. Monica Ramunda centers the journeyer: “When selecting a mushroom strain, I consider the client's previous experience with psychedelics, their intentions, sensitivity, physical comfort, and the depth of experience they are seeking.” For newcomers, she suggests Jitsudo Yellow or Thumper.

Scott Burd matches by feel: “I tend to view strain selection as a collaborative process. During preparation, I'll share the strains available and invite clients to notice what resonates.” More often than not, his pick and the client’s match. As he puts it, “Coincidence, intuition, or something else? I honestly don't know, but I've learned to trust the process.”

To be fair, sometimes the matching only goes as far as the menu allows. With so many genetic variants out there, Denise Vargas is realistic: “When working with legal medicine in a legal wellness center, we may not have access to a strain we prefer.”

Not everyone believes strain selection is worth obsessing over. Clayton Ickes thinks it’s all a bit hand-wavey: “People have all kinds of stories about strains... This one is more masculine. This one is more feminine. This one connects you to your heart. This one connects you to spirit.” His real interest is the concentration of psilocybin, psilocin, and any other compounds present. “Everything else seems like superstition to me.” 

Kate Schroeder agrees that we give strains too much credit: “Dose, preparation, mindset, physical health, the therapeutic relationship, and the environment all shape the experience far more than the name attached to the mushroom.”

Char McKendrick isn't ready to call it either way: “There are so many mushroom strains out there, and we're still learning about their unique qualities.” What she does know is this: “Meaningful journeys can happen with any strain.”

Ever heard of the entourage effect? 

No, that’s not the aura you radiate when you pull up to the ceremony with your boys. (But don’t worry. It’s immaculate.)

It’s the theory that secondary alkaloids present in the mushroom (beyond psilocybin and psilocin) may be shaping the experience. 

We know that different strains show significant variability not just in psilocybin and psilocin levels, but in related compounds like baeocystin and aeruginascin. Each strain carries its own chemical profile.  

Get this. One study even found that whole-mushroom extract held its own against pure psilocin in activating the serotonin system, despite containing ~10x less of it. Those other compounds must be pulling some weight. 

So yeah, a cube may not be a cube after all.

Anyway, hands down, our favorite rationale for picking a strain goes to researcher Sue Sisley.

She chose Jedi Mind Fuck for her clinical trials mostly because she gets a kick out of writing those three words on government forms.

Thanks to Skeeter from Maryland for submitting this week’s question. 🫠

Reply to this email to shoot your shot. If it’s a juicy one, we may select it for a future issue.

That’s all for today, Cyclists! Whenever you’re ready, here’s how we can help.

Forwarded this email? Subscribe here.

DISCLAIMER: This newsletter is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended as a substitute for professional medical advice. The use, possession, and distribution of psychedelic drugs are illegal in most countries and may result in criminal prosecution.