Chai
BHAKTI CHAI
1048 Pearl St., 303-484-8770
Second Place: Boulder Dushanbe Teahouse
Third Place: Third Street Chai
Fourth Place: Pekoe Sip House
Fifth Place: Trident Booksellers and Cafe
Chai
tea’s sweet and spicy blend is Boulder’s personality in a cup. Its
exotic flavors even find ways to adapt through the seasons; iced chai in
the summer is refreshing after a yoga session, and warm chai’s spices
feel like a good seasonal choice during chilly winter afternoons spent
reading in a local coffee shop. Locally owned Bhakti Chai blends
of black tea, cardamom, ginger and cane juice emulates the fiery
“masala chai” tea made in India. No variation says Boulder quite as
well.
Coffee House
OZO COFFEE CO.
1015 Pearl St., 303-645-4885
5340 Arapahoe Ave., 303-440-0233
Second Place: The Laughing Goat
Third Place: Vic’s
Fourth Place: The Cup
Fifth Place: Amante
Ozo Coffee Co. makes
a pretty darn good espresso, but to judge a coffee shop by just its
coffee is akin to judging a book by its cover. The atmosphere, the
seating, the product, the wifi and the service all contribute to the
ambience that creates a fine coffee shop. Ozo scores highly in all
categories. Its friendly staff are more than willing to talk your ear
off about the subtle flavors in its ever-rotating list of roasts. The
chairs are comfortable enough to make you feel welcome staying a few
hours. And, the list of lattes and mochas is long enough to ensure you
never run out of new flavor combinations to try. Taking second is The
Laughing Goat, which provides music and adult beverages in addition to
wonderful coffee.
Coffee Roaster
OZO COFFEE CO.
1015 Pearl St., 303-645-4885
5340 Arapahoe Ave., 303-440-0233
Second Place: Boxcar Coffee Roasters
Third Place: Brewing Market
Fourth Place: Conscious Coffee
Fifth Place: The Unseen Bean
As
the general populace’s knowledge of coffee has increased over the past
few years, so has the number of competitors in this once-lonesome
category. It seems every coffee shop now either roasts its own beans or
gets them carted in by donkey from a guru on top of a mountain. This
year, Ozo Coffee Co. once again takes home the trophy. The mad
scientists at Ozo are constantly developing titillating new roasts,
satiating the thirst of even the most adventurous coffee drinker. Boxcar
Coffee Roasters, which supplies beans to several coffee shops around
the city, takes second.
Juice/Smoothie
JAMBA JUICE
3053 Arapahoe Ave., 303-247-1170 %u2028
Second Place: Whole Foods Market
Third Place: Alfalfa’s Market
Fourth Place: Shine Restaurant & Gathering Place
Fifth Place: Rush Bowls
Ever
get a mid-day craving for the perfect blended concoction of mango,
pineapple and passion fruit? Maybe you’re more of a strawberry-banana
gal or a pomegranate-blueberry-raspberry guy. No matter what your frozen
desire, Jamba Juice has got you covered. And if the fruit in
your smoothie isn’t enough of a health reason to drink your lunch, of
course you can always add multivitamins, energy or protein for a little
incentive boost. Our runner-up this year is Whole Foods, which
includes a splash of green in each of its blended beverages — think
spinach, chard, bok choy or kale. Health alert!
Latte
OZO COFFEE CO.
5340 Arapahoe Ave., 303-440-0233
Second Place: The Laughing Goat
Third Place: Vic’s
Fourth Place: The Cup
Fifth Place: Amante
Nothing
makes the somewhat bitter taste of espresso palatable to the
coffee-averse like a well-made latte. Mix in milk and perhaps a shot of
flavoring, and you’ve got something even a tried and true sweet tooth
can enjoy. But let’s not knock the palate of hard-core latte drinkers.
We’re sure the Italians had some much higher, more refined purpose in
mind when they started blending espresso with steamed milk. We just got
so distracted by those hearts, leaves and other designs gracing the top
of the foam that we forgot to think much about it. In any case, if you
want a coffee with both the artistic and culinary imprints of your
barista, the best stop in town, our readers say, is Ozo Coffee Co.
Mocha
OZO COFFEE CO.
1015 Pearl St., 303-645-4885
5340 Arapahoe Ave., 303-440-0233
Second Place: The Laughing Goat
Third Place: The Cup
Fourth Place: Vic’s
Fifth Place: Starbucks
You think you know coffee, but Ozo Coffee Co. has
a list of mochas like you’ve never seen. With more than a dozen
varieties, Ozo offers concoctions like the “Island” mocha, with coconut
and macadamia nut syrup mixed in with the standard chocolate, and the
“Lumberjack,” which blends 64 percent Costa Rican dark chocolate with
maple syrup and vanilla flavors. With seemingly endless options, there’s
a delightfully tasty option for everyone on Ozo’s mocha menu.
Teahouse
THE BOULDER DUSHANBE TEAHOUSE
1770 13th St., 303-442-4993
Second Place: Pekoe Sip House
Third Place: Ku Cha House of Tea
Fourth Place: Celestial Seasonings
Fifth Place: Atlas Purveyors
Spice up your tea life at this year’s winner for the teahouse category: The Boulder Dushanbe Teahouse. Their
lengthy list of offerings sample from the four main types of tea:
white, green, black and oolong with imagination-piquing names like
Silver Dragon. They have herbal teas, which technically aren’t really
tea at all, but herbal infusions masquerading as tea. But the herbs
included have special benefits, according to Dushanbe’s website, that
can include help with indigestion or flatulence or sleeplessness. And,
of course, the Teahouse offers all kinds of teas in a hand-carved,
ornately-painted teahouse.
Your
tea life could also get a dose of excitement at Pekoe Sip House, this
year’s runner up, where the Spicy Green Chai (made with ginger, green
tea and steamed milk) will leave a pleasant zinging sensation on your
tongue.
