PULSE JAVA JIVE ORGANIC BLEND OFFERS THE FLAVOR WITHOUT THE CAFFEINE BUZZ.

Byline: Mariko Thompson Staff Writer

Studio City chiropractor Ron Marinaro loves coffee. But there are times when his patients have to give up the caffeine. For them, he created Rocamojo.

Made from certified organic roasted soybeans, Rocamojo contains no caffeine and provides 13 grams of protein and six grams of fiber. The product, launched in May, is in 100 retail stores in California, Arizona, Montana and Hawaii.

``You look at the bottom of the dusty shelf and that's where you find the coffee alternatives,'' said Marinaro, who runs Rocamojo out of a wing of his chiropractic Pain Relief Center. ``I want Rocamojo to be on the top shelf. It tastes good and you get the health benefit, too.''

Marinaro isn't the first to substitute roasted soybeans for coffee, but he hopes to build his fortune on being the best. He's tried many of the other soybean coffee alternatives and compares their taste to ``tree bark mixed with water.''

For about a year, Marinaro and his wife, Katharine, experimented with different blends and roasting techniques, using a roaster in their garage. Friends and relatives served as taste testers. Besides the full soy drink, the Marinaros also produced Rocamojo Blend, a 50-50 mix of roasted soy and certified organic coffee from Oaxaca, Mexico.

``When I hand out samples, I'm no longer reticent,'' said Michael Peikoff, Rocamojo president and chief operating officer and a former Sony Pictures executive. ``The response has been so favorable.''

Marinaro says his coffee alternative should appeal to pregnant women and seniors on certain types of medications who have to give up coffee, as well as people who want the cancer-fighting anti-oxidants found in soy. Rocamojo and Rocamojo Blend retail for about $9 per pound.

Marinaro discovered a love of natural foods and cooking as a youth, living on his grandmother's farm in Italy for six years. Today, he and his wife own 38 acres of land in Malibu, where they grow organic vegetables and wine grapes.

``We are working on other products,'' he said. ``That is a long-term goal, to create good-tasting certified organic products.''

TECHIE TOY: Remember when a wrist watch simply told the time? Aimed at the outdoors recreationalist, the Suunto X6 wrist-top computer can measure how far you ascend and descend on trails, assess the slope of terrain and provide barometric pressure readings. Data can be downloaded to a personal computer, allowing hikers, bikers and climbers to keep training diaries and track performance. The Suunto X6 retails for $349. Visit www.suunto.com for more information.

- M.T.

SLEEPYTIME: When you're sleeping as fitfully as Al Pacino did in the recent film ``Insomnia,'' forget the herbal tea and just put your head on your pillow. But first spray the pillow cover with Origins' new Sleep Perchance to Dream pillow mist, a mixture of cinnamon, vanilla and lavender, priced at $20 at Macy's. Or just give up and try to stay awake with a few whiffs of Philosophy's new Alchemist peppermint oil. It's one of a set of four aromatherapy oils for your inner patient to combat the sleepies, the stuffies, the fussies and the weepies, available at Sephora and Nordstrom stores for $25 a kit.

- Barbara De Witt 

BED-UCATION: Whoever coined the phrase ``sleep like a baby'' probably didn't have one, as many fatigued parents of newborns can attest. In ``Good Nights'' (St. Martin's Griffin; $13.95), Dr. Jay Gordon and Maria Goodavage build a case for the family bed or co-sleeping as safe, beneficial and conducive to a good night's rest for both parents and child. They review scientific research, provide tips on setting up the family bed, and address how new parents can put the sex back in sex life.

- M.T.

CAPTION(S):

4 photos

Photo:

(1) Chiropractor Ron Mariano, left, and Rocamojo president and chief operating office Michael Peikoff offer their product as a nutritional substitute for coffee.

(2) no caption (Book: ``Good Nights'')

(3) no caption (Origins Sleep Perchance to Dream pillow mist)

(4) no caption (Suunto X6 wrist-top computer)