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This weekend, the Caffeine Crawl returns to St. Louis for the third year, to the delight of every coffee-connoisseur and average Joe who enjoys his daily cup of joe. The two-day event offers crawlers educational presentations on topics from home brewing to the origins of coffee, as well as plenty of caffeinated samples and swag bags.
Though we’re all familiar with Pub Crawls, it was Jason Burton, founder of the LAB, who decided to create the first Caffeine Crawl to help educate the public about one of the most consumed beverages in the world. Since the first Caffeine Crawl in 2011, the LAB has held 19 Crawls across the nation, all with phenomenal popularity and success.
Nine local coffee shops, along with Kakao Chocolate (see full list below), are excited to participate in the event, some for the third year in a row.
Scott Carey, owner of Sump Coffee says, “The crawl is the closest thing coffee has to something like a beer festival right now. A celebration of coffee…it’s both an exploration of different coffee philosophies as well as the places the coffee is served.”
This year, Kaldi’s Coffee Roasting Company and Chauvin Coffee Company will be Roaster Sponsors, with Chauvin kicking off the event at 5 p.m. on Friday night and Kaldi’s starting the celebration on Saturday at 10 a.m.
“It’s a really wonderful way to showcase what’s going on in St. Louis,” explains Frank McGinty of Kaldi’s Coffee. “For the past three to five years, the coffee scene here has taken off and gone in a really great direction. It’s a great way for people in the industry—or even outside the industry—to go and see what’s going on.”
During the hour-long stops, each shop is offering a unique experience to attendees, with some offering presentations or tours. However, what owners seem most excited about are the product samples they will share. Carey reveals that at Sump, “guests will have a first look—and taste—of a cold coffee brew using a method that's new to the shop.”
McGinty explains that the Friday night stop at Kaldi’s Demun Café will be a collaboration with two other local companies, Bissinger’s Chocolates and Urban Chestnut Brewery. He says, “That will be our Friday night experience, kind of a coffee, chocolate, beer pairing.”
McGinty continues that at Kayak’s (part of the Kaldi’s family) on Saturday, there will only be one coffee served, a new coffee from Columbia, but it will be brewed in five different ways. “You can see how a coffee changes based off of how it’s brewed. It will be a great way for people to have some eye opening experiences whether they’re new to coffee or they’re the seasoned barista.”
Verner Earls of Chauvin chuckles as he says, “We’re looking forward to caffeinating as many people as we can on Friday. It’s great that we get the initial exposure. We get to share not just the caffeine, but the excitement in what all of us do and how we do it specifically here. It’s going to be a lot of fun. Jason [Burton] is really on to something here. He’s a smart dude. This is an outstanding opportunity for a bit of education.”
From the first stop on the crawl, ticket holders have their choice in modes of transportation, whether it is by car, bus, or bike, and ticket prices range from $24 to $30, depending on the transportation.
Participating shops include:
Kaldi’s Coffee Roasting Company
Tickets can be purchased at caffeinecrawl.com.
