Wednesday, May 25, 2011

CC: Sunrise Coffee Co

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What's does "CC" mean?
Location: Las Vegas, NV
Free WiFi ? : yes
Rating:
5+ [
see key]



Las Vegas has a reputation for a lot of things but one of them has not been coffee. As a town that seems to live off of travelers, local places did not seem to take as easily as in other towns. This boded poorly for the prospect of good coffee, as the average coffee drinker is still satisfied with sub-par coffee that the big chains ever so happily pump out.

But in this coffee desert, I managed to find a distant oasis near the airport. I caught wind that Sunrise Coffee happened to serve Klatch Coffee, a superb coffee roaster from San Dimas, and the first chance I found, I made my way over.

I found Sunrise on the corner of a small strip mall in what seemed like a part of town that is just recently developing. Save for a tacky collection of paper back novels, the shop interior held a chic look with a slate wall, lots of interesting art and a overtly pleasing aesthetic.

The coffee was indeed Klatch, with a full rotation of their coffee as well as two espresso blends on hand. I had an espresso of the World's Best Espresso (voted so at the 2007 World Barista Championship) and a drip of their Rainforest Blend. The drip I had a mixed experience with, as my first cup was really stale and thus I asked that when they brewed a fresh pot, if I could have some of that instead, to which they ever so apologetically agreed. Thus my second, much fresher cup of the Rainforest Blend held notes of toffee, pepper, oregano and buttermilk amidst a medium body that didn't win me over yet proved decent (I've never had the blend before but it tasted a bit darker then a medium roast).

The espresso on the other hand was a juggernaut-in-a-cup that garnered my vote to its worldly superiority. The shots were pulled painstakingly well with a marbled crema, all conveying notes of sweet pound cake, white chocolate, a bit of ginger, vanilla and orange; overall, there was a nice bitter/sour balance amidst a staunch sweetness that made the cup shimmer.

The tea was free leaf (they offered bee pollen for your tea too, a sight I have never seen).

Aside from the stale coffee I was first served, I found myself happier then a man winning a hard million off his last quarter. If you make it into Vegas, take a detour from the strip to hit Sunrise Coffee.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Really good post!

Anonymous said...

Hey - I am definitely delighted to discover this. Good job!

Buy Coffee said...

Mmmm... Just reading your description of the coffee and the pastries already makes my mouth water. Perhaps they have a branch near Sacramento or San Francisco perhaps?

cheap k cups said...

Klatch Coffee is pretty darn good stuff. However, once someone like my wife gets done putting all the cream and sugar in her coffee a lot of the coffee tastes similar.

Anonymous said...

"Mugged coffee"=to Ethiopian coffee
Why not tell the truth to kind Americans the truth. Read and inform yourself what happened since 1975 and you will find out the officials has been confiscating land cofee to sell to you calling it "Fair Trade Certified" It is illegal to buy or sell coffee in America. Why is it ok to buy stolen coffee from Ethiopia. Read all about it on the internet and tell kind Americans who are buying this coffee to help poor farmers the truth.