Since it opened its first storefront in 2012, Corvus Coffee Roasters has always been keenly focused on developing personal, direct-trade relationships with coffee growers. While this is a great place to enjoy a pour-over or cold brew, there’s plenty to drink for non-purists, too, including creamy house-made almond-cashew milk, flavored iced-coffee “highballs,” and seasonal lattes, like the Auburn with maple syrup and cinnamon.

While we love visiting most on warm days when the garage doors open up to the action on Navajo Street, Black Eye’s well-crafted beverages make it a year-round destination. Whether your latte is made with local Huckleberry Roasters beans or with those from guest roasters like Onyx Coffee Lab or Tweed Coffee Roasters, it will be delicious.

Whether you’re drinking your perfectly pulled espresso neat or in a vanilla latte sweetened with house-made syrup, Crema delivers a top-notch drink. We prefer visiting the original, stand-alone Larimer Street location, where you can enjoy a pork belly banh mi alongside your cold brew. Heads up: Crema offers WiFi but no outlets, so if you think your work session will run long, you may want to caffeinate elsewhere.

Amethyst founder Elle Taylor has always put hospitality first at her cafes. As a result, baristas at Amethyst’s four dreamy and distinct Denver locations have an uncommon focus on the guest experience, bringing your drink to your table and bussing your empty cup to facilitate a more relaxing vibe.

There’s a lot to love at Huckleberry’s pair of Denver cafes, from the cheerful, trendy design to the perennially pleasant employees. Of Huckleberry’s two Denver outposts, we like taking out-of-towners to the Dairy Block location adjacent to the Maven Hotel lobby, where there’s plenty of seating and great people watching.

Hanging out at this beloved Uptown coffee shop feels like spending time at your cool aunt’s house, which also happens to have free WiFi, amazing coffee, and tasty, healthful bites. Espresso drinks are made with Huckleberry Roasters’ Blue Orchid Blend, and the house French Press and cold brew are prepared with Queen City Roasters’ beans.

In lieu of pour-overs or manual brews, Blue Sparrow opts to focus on serving great drip brews, making this a perfect spot to grab a good cup in a rush. House-made blueberry soda, nutmeg-dusted chai, and perfect matcha lattes round out the offerings.

The best coffee shops also function as community gathering centers. Whittier Cafe excels at this, hosting Ethiopian coffee ceremonies each Sunday at 2 p.m., as well as art shows and social justice events that draw big crowds from the namesake neighborhood, along with patrons from Denver and Aurora. Owner Millete Birhanemaskel sources all the shop’s beans from African nations, and oversees a justice fund, which covers the cost of coffee for those who couldn’t normally afford it.