Wild Cordyceps is super rare and insanely expensive to source, it generally grows in the mountainous regions of China, the Himalayas and Tibet. In the wild, Cordyceps exists as a parasitic fungus that inhabits the body of insects such as caterpillars and ants.
'Ophiocordyceps sinensis', formerly 'Cordyceps sinensis' (we use a cultivated form of this strain at SuperFeast), appears as a blade-like mushroom growing out of the head of a caterpillar. The Cordyceps mycelium is encased in the mummified body of the caterpillar, this is where the fungus germinates. The fruiting body sprouts forth from the caterpillar, and is generally cap-less and shaped like a blade or twig. Kinda creepy hey?
Due to the prohibitive cost of this wild tonic herb, the Chinese developed a really smart and effective way to cultivate Cordyceps mycelium, which they now grow in liquid fermentation tanks (and is completely caterpillar free, making it vegan friendly!).
This pure mycelium product is known as Cs-4 and this is what we use at SuperFeast.