“May I try the CBD cold brew with hemp milk cold foam?” This does not sound like a typical Starbucks order – or really any coffee order – unless you are ordering a beverage at The Sacred Bean, Colorado’s only full-service coffee shop operating from a renovated Volkswagen bus.
In Pueblo, The Sacred Bean is female-owned and operated by Vicy Stone – a well-known face amongst locals from working as a barista for nearly 20 years. In an interview with Vicy, she described how owning a coffee shop was always her dream and how the road to achieving it was filled with sweat, tears, and rainbows, literally.
16 oz. Experience
The entirety of The Sacred Bean is inspired by bringing uniqueness to the community. Stone emphasized, “I wanted to create drink recipes unlike anyone in town has tasted before!” Pueblo is vastly smaller than Colorado Springs and the variety of both local and chain coffee concepts is limited.
Speaking of uniqueness, other than a small walk-up window in Manitou Springs, Stone is the only other location in southern Colorado legally serving CBD-infused beverages for customers. If you are not on the CBD bandwagon yet, you will be after tasting (and feeling) how good Stone’s CBD cold brew is. The coffee beans she uses for this drink are sourced from Strava Craft Coffee in Denver.
But why infuse coffee with CBD? Vicy says, “CBD is gaining popularity because of its pain and anxiety relieving properties. I use it myself to help ease my pain, anxiety and fibromyalgia symptoms. CBD in coffee is great because it helps not only relieve anxiety and calm nerves, but it will keep you from getting the ‘jitters’ from caffeine. Regular consumption will help keep you calm and caffeinated, but also as a cold brew it is also much less acidic as compared to a hot brew.”
The flavor combinations on the drink menu go beyond the usual vanilla latte, although Stone would not mind brewing that up for someone too. If you are wanting a little spice in your life, then you will have to try the chile mocha. She specially makes the flavoring using Pueblo’s famous green chile peppers.
Or you can taste the rainbow in the iced superfood latte, consisting of an infusion of antioxidant-rich matcha tea, turmeric powder and dragon fruit powder which are first mixed separately with either oat milk or coconut milk and then the vibrantly colored flavors are poured one after the other over ice.
Get your camera-phone ready if you order a beverage containing milk because Stone crafts the surface with beautiful latte art design that often has rainbow colors and edible glitter. She mastered this skill by teaching herself and then trained other baristas around the town how to do it.
If you are a purist when it comes to coffee, Stone also offers traditional coffee beverages and fixings with the same quality-care as the non-traditional drinks. There is something for everyone inside the 12- and 16-ounce cup she serves. Kids and non-coffee drinkers can enjoy hot chocolate, Italian sodas, and hot or iced teas.
Baking Care of Business
Customers can always find an assortment of baked goods that are made the night before by Stone from recipes she developed. Before serving anything, she has multiple palettes taste-test her recipes and give their critique for improvements. If you are someone with dietary restrictions, Stone has your back. The sweet treats she bakes are either gluten-free, vegan or both. Prepare to be amazed by blue matcha glazed donuts with glitter sprinkles, coconut chai cookies, lemon blueberry scones, dark chocolate turnovers and cinnamon rolls with espresso cardamom icing.
Stone’s innovative concoctions are not the only thing that separate her from a usual coffee shop. Servicing customers from an unconventional set-up out of a Volkswagen bus has intrigued passersby to stop here instead for a coffee-break. Manifesting this concept was not what she originally envisioned. “I intended my business to look like a food truck. My husband Daniel owned the Volkswagen for over 20 years, and he came up with the idea of using it instead. It needed to be renovated anyway, so we designed the interior to accommodate the functions a normal coffee shop would require. Daniel did all the repairs and transformed it into everything we imagined,” she explained.
A Few Forks in the Road
The journey was not an easy path. After working at Pueblo’s former, The Daily Grind, now known as The Grind Haus, for 11 1/2 years, she became a coffee-making queen and was also the manager during most of her years working there. Before choosing to resign, she noted that her own coffee shop dreams were already brewing.
While in the process of developing her business, another cafe in Pueblo sought her expertise for a management position. “I needed the money, so I went for it, but I ended up taking on a number of other duties while still tending to my managerial duties. It became an eye-opening experience of how unappreciated I was by the company for how hard I was working at everything I willingly took on.”
Stone then parted ways with the cafe, but she did not let this unexpected detour discourage her. She instead reflected on the situation being like stepping-stones that would strengthen her business and guide her back on the path toward it.
After an extensive amount of time preparing, The Sacred Bean’s grand opening day was finally around the corner, until plans were stalled yet again. Thank you, COVID-19 shutdown.
Queen of Caffeine and Her Team
Stone finally hosted the grand opening in early May this year. “It’s been quite a journey,” she said, laughing at her pun. “So many relatives and close friends have and continue to help behind the scenes. This wouldn’t have ever been possible for me to do without their love and support.”
Her husband Daniel is always found helping in photos and videos she posts across her social media. The husband-and-wife team have also been a team as parents while they raise their two young children throughout the ride.
To savor some flare instead of your usual coffee routine, The Sacred Bean’s black Volkswagen van is serving customers at The Garage, 426 W. 5th St., 8 a.m.-noon every Monday, Renewed Wholesale, 720 S. Main St., 8 a.m.-noon every Tuesday and Sunday. On Friday and Saturday, the locations tend to vary but for the latest updates on The Sacred Bean’s scheduled locations and times or to check out photos more drinks and baked goods she’s selling, follow “the.sacred.bean” on Instagram or “The Sacred Bean” on Facebook.
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