Submitted Photo A humble cup of Schatz Crossroads’ medium roast was the final contestant in local attorney Andrew Schultz’s quest to find the best gas station coffee in Minot.

There is no shortage of options for the average coffee drinker in Minot, whether you’re just looking for something hot and bold or if you require four shots of espresso to get you going in the morning. With around 18 dedicated coffee shops and espresso bars to choose from, what might be taken for granted is the variety of options of gas station coffee, which sacrifice variety and other hand-crafted touches in favor of convenience and consistency.

It was this consistency that made such options appealing to local attorney Andrew Schultz even at a young age.

“I grew up drinking gas station coffee. I was always afraid I’d mess it up if I tried to make it at home,” Schultz said, “So when I was in college and in law school, I’d walk past the Shell station on my way to class and grab a cup of coffee.”

Schultz’s habits haven’t changed much over the years, and he still makes a point of stopping somewhere on the way to work to fill up a Styrofoam cup with something strong and drinkable that doesn’t come with the sticker shock of a Starbucks drive through.

“You think about who it’s for. Frankly you don’t think of a doctor or a lawyer or somebody who wears a suit to work is going to get their coffee at a gas station,” said Schultz, “You think of somebody driving a dually truck who’s getting ready for the oilfield, or a construction worker with a humongous refillable 32-ounce coffee mug. That’s really how our society runs, and you tend to think that is what they drink.”

One such morning in July, Schultz decided to visit a station near his old office by the State Fairgrounds, which ultimately gave birth to an idea.

“I come down there just for this coffee. I wondered if I could go to every gas station in town,” said Schultz, “I figured it’d be a nice month-long side project that I could just do in the morning. You know, I’m going to drink coffee anyway, might as well try it everywhere.”

Schultz soon decided to chronicle his journey in posts on Facebook, thinking that maybe his friends and family might get a kick out of it. He made his first post sometime in the middle of July. Each post details the different equipment and styles at each location, and closes with a review of the final product’s taste, temperature, and price.

“You have to know how to grind and you have to know how to brew. You have to know what temperature to serve. It really just comes down to that. A place that can do that on a consistent basis, that’s where I want to go,” Schultz said as he sipped on the final stop in his journey last Saturday morning at Schatz Crossroads.

Schultz limited his exploration to only medium roast coffees, as they offered an appropriate middle ground between boldness of flavor and caffeine content. Some stations stick to basic drip coffee that sits on warmers until they run out or are dumped to make a fresh batch, while other newfangled setups do go the extra mile by pouring and grinding beans for each individual cup. However, all the bells and whistles are for nothing Schutlz says if they don’t use quality coffee beans to begin with.

“You have to have good beans to start. I’ve had the experience or two where you have automated grinders like that, but because the beans are too rotten it tastes like you’re drinking cereal,” said Schultz, “Storage conditions matter, because if you have a bag that’s exposed to the air, it’s going to dry out over time.”

Schultz announced the finalists on Monday, which were: Arco, Cenex on Broadway and 18th Avenue SW, Holiday, Loaf N Jug on Fourth Avenue NW, M&H, Schatz Crossroads, the Shell by Marketplace NW, and the Sinclair on Burdick Expressway. Schultz plans to take the next two weeks for deliberations, and will announce his ultimate winner then.

“Is it faithful to the advertised strength? Is it the right temperature? How much are you paying for it? Obviously the most important thing is, does it taste good? But, for the taste, would you pay what they charge? That’s really what I’m looking for,” Schultz said.