This post is guest-written by Allison Wallner.

Being that caffeine is the substance of my mornings, I happily accepted the invitation to The LAB team’s Caffeine Crawl – Madison. This was the 52nd crawl for the LAB team and consisted of five routes and an after party. I held off on my morning caffeine ritual and chose the last route, which took place from 1-5 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 27.

We started out at Infusion Chocolates at Hilldale. In need of caffeine, I was glad to be greeted with a selection of iced coffee drinks. The Maya Iced Chocolate had a smooth, velvety chocolate taste followed by some spice. Meanwhile, a honey lavender chocolate caught my eye and did not disappoint.

Madison Sourdough stole the show for me with a demonstration of how coffee can be used within desserts. The stop included three samples for guests to try.

The Chocolate Espresso Opera Cake’s beautiful and precise design grabbed my attention right when I walked in. The layered dessert consisted of white cake, espresso powder and layers of chocolate all made in-house. It blended together wonderfully without being too sweet and having that kick of espresso. This is their most popular dessert, and I can now see (and taste) why!

The Caffeine Crawl also hustled through 5th Element Coffee, Cargo Coffee, Gail Ambrosius Chocolatier and Crescendo Espresso Bar & Music Café.

It was recommended to bring along water, and I can vouch for that. I took part in the route with the most chocolate tastings, and it turned out to be too much sweet for me. Still, I enjoyed the behind-the-scenes look at some of Madison’s local businesses. Be on the lookout, The LAB team hopes to return to Madison next year.