Meaning, their espresso machine…is like one found in an old airport terminal espresso vending machine…

Is this true? Madness.

On the coffee side: I do a lot of traveling and so does my friend so we appreciate that there’s a supplier of caffeinated delight that is seriously consistent through the US, UK, Ireland and mainland Europe. Might not be fantastic quality, but after a 18 hour haul, it’s one less thing to worry about.

I will however be asking about the beans next time I can afford to go in. Or I could pop into the one beneath us right now, I suppose. (^.^) Ah, well placed flat.

So I say, let Starbucks do its thing, and if it does it well, then it deserves to be successful. Especially since it seems to be that Starbucks success isn’t coming from dirty tactics, like driving down the price of wholesalers due to buying power or keeping employees on the breadline due to low compensation (both tactics of, say, Walmart). I must confess that after posting, I decided to buy a few shares of Starbucks (I’m hoping that my logic proves true in the future), so I can’t claim no affiliation any longer, but only a very small amount.

I suppose a good deal of Starbucks bashing is the natural instinct of a good many college, white collar radicals, for whom popular and financial success is some sort of anathema. A feeling, I imagine, is necessary to prop up their jejune sense of rebellion and uniqueness. There’s nothing like the word “corporate” to raise the hackles of “socialist” sons and daughters of insurance salesmen as they sit listless in their parent-paid dorm rooms. I say the hating a business for the simple dislike of business in general is immature, and, frankly, boring, old, and predictable (by the way, so is that Che t-shirt, so knock it off).

That aside, let’s talk coffee. Starbucks just got finished sacking upper management and replaced the CEO with the guy, Schultz, who used to run the place. Frankly, the company has admitted that it has gone astray by becoming too fast-food like, that is, rapid pell-mell expansion, drive-throughs, and the like. The now well-known three hour training is consistent with the plan to increase the quality of the coffee served. Will this, dear readers, give you a cuppa on par with the diligent artisan with his Marzocco and beans roasted exactly 48 hours ago of a custom and much labored over blend? No. It won’t get you a cup on par with the home-roasting enthusiast with her PID’ed Silvia either.

Is that all right? Sure. The reason is that there is room for the artisan item, there is room for quality item, and there is room for the cheap item. Starbucks, rightly, is trying to get back to that middle niche. The bottom niche can be left to your McDonalds or Dunkin Donuts, and the top is too uneconomical for a publicly traded corporation. Ideally, Starbucks is the place where you can happily have a business meeting or grab a quick cup when out of town or on a morning commute, and it is nationally available. I say ideally because of late the company has been falling short of the ideal (see sacking of upper-management), but it does have its place, and I daresay isn’t all that evil (see good employee benefits, high wholesale bean prices).

By the way, I have no affiliation with Starbucks.

Question to the Author: How often do you drink straight espresso shots?

Answer: Twice daily. For many years. “Caramel overtones” was something I just made up that sums up some of the best espresso shots I’ve had. Never seen a Starbucks manual in my life.

You also said: “did you know that Starbucks pays MORE than Fair Trade for their coffee?”

That I seriously doubt. Almost everyone else I’ve spoken to who imports beans says the opposite. Who to believe – competitors or marketeers?