Why I hate Starbucks.

Many people my age (young adults) seem to love Starbucks; they can't get enough of it. However I personally can't stand them. A lot of this has to do with the fact that I own my own espresso machine, and through the practice of one cap a day, and a latte here and there, I learned that they are a corporate conglomerate that has no quality control. Furthermore Starbucks is a genius of market manipulation, in their "pro-humanitarian advancement" coffee beans. They do such a great job at making you think, that 15 dollars you spent on a pound of coffee is, a) especially delicious and special, and b) that it helps human development in the third world where the coffee is grown. They've also created a cult of customers who prefer their coffee kool-aid flavored concoctions, rather than a consumer base who knows to appreciate a rich crema, a subtly micro-foamed latte, and a silky, smooth cap that you wish would continuously refill itself.

I'd like to start with the more shallow of my complaints against Starbucks. The bottom line, is that their coffee is an inconsistent, overhyped, and overpriced product. The joke that carrying a starbucks coffee cup is a status symbol is not so far off. For those in the know, carrying a starbucks coffee cup means that you know little about coffee, or that you were in a rush and couldn't enjoy a cup the way it's supposed to drank, in porcelain, over a minimum of 15 minutes. However that status symbol is what there selling, not the coffee. Sure they have espresso machines, and you can't order a medium but hey, that's what your paying four fifty for, in a drink that cost at most a dollar to make. 

Starbucks in many ways is credited with bringing specialty coffee (espresso drinks) to America. However that's a fallacy. It was really Alfred Peet who did it in Berkley California, not Seattle. And this brings me to the quality of Starbucks specialty drinks, which are at best abysmal. Sure they create fancy iced whipped concoctions better suited in an alchemists workshop than in a coffee shop, but remember it's spiked with kool-aid. But what I'm talking about is the classic specialty drinks; caps, latte's, straight shot's, Americano's, and lest we forget my favorite mystery drink (changes depending on where you get it) the Macchiato. Yes, at Starbucks, you can consistently get one of these delightful drinks. The price you will pay is whether or not your milk-based drinks will a) be improperly foamed, b) scorched, or c) stiff.Don't forget that this is put in a paper cup which is of course not only bad for the environment, but of course does nothing for the flavor of the coffee itself.

You'll notice that the proper latte (shown above) has a design, when the milk is foamed correctly a good barista can do this consistently in even caps and macchiato. That picture is one of my lattes (forgive me I'm oddly proud I have no life) and the milk was silky and smooth just as it should be. I ask you, have you ever gotten a latte from starbucks where the milk made the latte, where it blended together in harmony with the coffee? I think not, if you have, you'll note it was a once in a lifetime thing. Inconsistency overpricing, and just overall lousy quality have made me despise getting my coffee from starbucks.

The other issue with starbucks is their commitment to "helping their farmers." This can be seen with their Sidamo blends, where they want you to think that a dollar and 35 cents a day is a great wage compared to a dollar a day. Yes its 35% more, but its not enough to conceivably help lift an area out of the third world. However they want the consumer to think that 35 cents is a very big difference and in doing so make us by more, while really allowing for little to no progress actually obtained.

Now, I know I didn't go into much detail, on the last point, but to be honest that’s not my specialty. I'm sorry but when it comes to my coffee I sadly think more of the quality of the bean and roast than of the people behind it. I'm ashamed to admit it, but it's true. The question now becomes do I change my habits, and begin insisting on fair trade coffee. At the moment it’s whoever has the best roast for the price. Perhaps when I'm not a student and can afford the difference I’ll buy differently. Until then I'm happy my family even has an espresso machine, which has allowed me to experience the gift of truly magnificent lattes, caps, macchiato and the like.

I love coffee I really do, but I feel it shouldn't be ruined, that it’s not the image it conveys, that it's the quality of the bean, the flavor, the aroma, the acidity; I love it. However Starbucks has taken what I enjoy, and corrupted it with bad policy in their quality control. We've just been drinking too many of those kool-aid flavored frappuccinos to know that good coffee goes beyond starbucks.