Mission Coffee and Tea, LLC

Mission Coffee & Tea serves beans roasted by Clay, one of my favorite Valley roasters when it comes to quality and consistency. And Mission is putting those beans to good use.

My pour-over was a beautiful single-origin Colombia with notes of plum, almond cake and cherry. The kind of cup that makes you stop and think for a minute because you keep trying to figure out what you are tasting. I am a sucker for a good single origin pour-over so Mission had me pretty happy here.

The espresso comes from single-origin Brazilian beans and is pulled on a beautiful Sanremo Cafe Racer espresso machine. I ordered a latte because apparently the pour-over was not enough caffeine for one visit. This thing was rich and comforting. Smooth milk chocolate and toasted almond lead the way. The steamed whole milk brings out a deep toffee sweetness and gives the drink a creamy heavy body. Subtle hints of dried fruit show up toward the end without getting in the way of that velvety finish.

Basically, if your idea of a great latte involves something rich, chocolatey and comforting, this is your move.

And then there is the mission behind Mission.

The space is modern and tranquil. It feels like a place where you are supposed to hang around for a while. Mission hosts events, coffee education and community gatherings. They even have conference rooms available if your gathering happens to involve PowerPoint.

Some of the proceeds from coffee sales support local and global causes, including organizations like Seeding Mercy and Feed My Starving Children. They also organize volunteer events and community efforts throughout the year.

There is a faith-based side to the shop as well. Spirit of Joy Lutheran Church holds services there on Sundays. Whether that is your thing or not, Mission has built a community around more than caffeine.

I had a good conversation with Mr. Chip Stoecker (the General Manager). He has traveled extensively to study coffee around the world. Hearing about his trips to various coffee farms was interesting. The guy knows his stuff and clearly cares about the sourcing process.

Mission Coffee & Tea is one of those places where the coffee would be enough reason to visit. But they decided to add a beautiful space, a strong community focus and a mission that reaches beyond the coffee bar.

Good coffee with a little more purpose behind it. Hard to argue with that.

Checkout other fabulous East Valley coffee shops.