Fourteener Coffee Club
At a glance
- Roasts inMinturn, CO
- Founded1989
- Founded byChris Chantler and Craig Arseneau
- CafesMinturn, Beaver Creek and Downieville
- VisitorsOpen to the public
Vail Mountain Coffee & Tea is one of the beloved local roasters we follow in Colorado: an independent roaster based in Minturn, founded in 1989. Here is what their own pages and public sources say about them, in our words.
Their story
Friends Chris Chantler and Craig Arseneau moved to Vail in 1989 after watching the ski world championships from Switzerland. They opened The Daily Grind Coffee Company first. The cafe later grew into roasting and took the Vail Mountain Coffee & Tea name. Roasting happens at about 8,000 feet using Northern Italian methods. The company reports more than 350 wholesale partners, and its service team maintains and repairs espresso gear from makers such as Franke, Slayer, Astoria, Mahlkonig and Modbar.
Staff teach coffee and tea classes at the Minturn cafe and in a dedicated cupping space, and will train a client's baristas on site or help plan the layout of a new cafe. Direct relationships with growers let it buy certified organic and biodynamic coffees and teas, and the owners say they have joined projects to support producing communities. Its news page has posted progress reports on a Colombian women's coffee project and on work with the ASPRASAR growers in Colombia.
What they roast
House blends include Nordic Blend, Bridge Street Blend, Meadow Mountain Blend, Gore Range Blend, Snowcat Blend and Holiday Blend. Single origins on the list when we checked: Ethiopian Guji Buku Sayasa, Honduras Finca Quebrada Onda, Sumatra Mandheling, Kenya AA, Tanzania Peaberry, Ethiopian Yirgacheffe and Brazilian Cerrado. Espresso: Espresso Italiano. Decaf: Decaf Ethiopian Yirgacheffe SW, Decaf Holiday Blend. Offerings change with the seasons, so this is what their own pages listed on 2026-09-28.
Where to drink it
The Minturn roastery runs as a cafe.
- The Roastery Cafe: 23698 US Highway 24, Minturn
- VMCT Beaver Creek Cafe: 15 Thomas Place, Beaver Creek
- Downieville Cafe: 999 County Road 308, Downieville
Address
23698 US Highway 24, Minturn, CO 81645
The Roastery Cafe.
Why buying from Vail Mountain Coffee & Tea matters here
Roasting at around 8,000 feet lets the team use lower temperatures, it says, and the dry mountain air keeps fresh beans from taking on moisture before packing. Besides the Minturn roastery cafe on the Eagle River and the Beaver Creek shop, a third cafe serves road trippers in Downieville, just off Interstate 70 at exit 234.
Every bag bought from a Minturn roaster pays roasting and cafe wages in Colorado, and the coffee reaches you days after roasting instead of months. That is the reason the club exists. Why local roasters matter.
About this listing
Listed as a local favorite. A listing does not mean Vail Mountain Coffee & Tea is part of the club.
Are you Vail Mountain Coffee & Tea? Email coffee@fourteenercoffeeclub.com to correct or remove this page.
More Colorado roasters
- Cimarron Coffee Roasters, Montrose
- The Coffee Trader, Montrose
- Serranos Coffee Company, Monument
By Joe McRose, Fourteener Coffee Club. Updated . Facts from Vail Mountain Coffee & Tea's own pages and public sources, read 2026-09-28.