I’ve wanted to write something for a while about the trajectory of Blue Bottle, a pioneer in light-roast espresso that I first tried in San Francisco's Hayes Valley in 2009. It’s no longer a local business, but a global one, owned by Nestle with shops across the country, and even a couple in Japan.
Blue Bottle’s success has, for the most part, benefited me. There are cafes in every city that I regularly visit. While I have my local favorites — Sightglass in San Francisco, 49th Parallel in Vancouver, Kaffeine in London and Black Fox in New York — Blue Bottle is reliable, and still makes some of the best coffee.
But I’ve long wondered if Blue Bottle, with its cerulean branding and light-wood countertops, would one day turn into this generation’s Starbucks. Especially when when Nestle — which also owns Nespresso — bought a 68 percent stake in the business last year. I can’t speak for what’s happening behind the scenes, but I have noticed that the food program is more uniform from city-to-city — although San Francisco’s Mint Plaza location still seems to offer a heartier breakfast — and that the pastry selection is more conventional than it once was. That’s all fine, I suppose, although one of the things I liked most about Blue Bottle was how it takes good care to work with local suppliers for things like ice cream (to make affogatos) and milk alternatives.
Recently, Blue Bottle in New York deviated from this strategy, replacing Malk almond milk with red-box Califia (known as “barista blend”). Malk is actually not local — it’s made in Texas! — but it tastes like actual nut milk, not processed or sugary. It’s more expensive than Califia at the grocery store, so I never minded paying the $1 extra the shop charges because it made my cortado taste good. See, I’m one of the those insufferable people who actually likes nut milk, but only fancy nut milk. (I do not endorse oat milk.)
I asked a couple of Blue Bottle employees about the Califia situation, and chatted with a rep via Twitter. Essentially, what they all said is that it’s a trial. (A source in Los Angeles tells me that my favorite location, the one on Sunset Blvd. in Echo Park, still uses a local brand called Mylk. TG.)
The thing I wonder, though, is that if Blue Bottle switches entirely to Califia and loses me over this, does it really matter? Having investors means that scaling is an expectation. I might have been a good person to win over early on — I like to be the first to try things, and I also love to proselytize— but do you need me by the time you’re a $700 million business? Many would argue that the answer is no.
I love Blue Bottle, so I’m willing to set it free, but hopefully I won’t have to do so any time soon.
One thing I have discovered that I am not willing to set free is my Apple Watch. Mine broke — really broke — in the middle of August and I haven’t been wearing one since. At first, it felt quite freeing, and I was happy to lose the tan line. But I started wearing a review unit this morning, and the minute I put it on I realized that I liked life more with it than without it. Over the past few months, I have become more reliant on my phone for things like checking the weather, checking texts, checking my schedule, and that’s not fun. I also really enjoy tracking my steps, being able to see when the sun will set each evening, and using it to pay for things. Three years later, I remain pro-Apple Watch. So there's that.
I'm happy I was able to share these updates with you. But all of this, all of these many words!!!, wouldn’t have been possible without my friend Sarah Miller’s essay “The Movie Assassin,” which was published on the new website Popula, where she is an editor. I liked it so much that I was determined to write this newsletter just so that I could include it. This was my priority.
Sarah and I met years ago, when I was editing a website about shopping. I really hated the job, but the people who worked there were nice and smart, and one of them introduced me to Sarah. She would write essays for me on things she wanted to buy, like boots. I have long admired her clear, funny prose.
This latest piece, though, is special, and I hope someone wants to make it into a movie or asks her to develop it into a book, because it so sharply calls out the dangers of collective ignorance. That might sound depressing, but it’s not. When I read the last line of the essay, I was happy because it was true. I think you will be, too.
(Just a Little of) What I Wrote Since March 2018:
(Just a Little of) What I Read Since March 2018:
- The Movie Assassin (Popula)
- How to Stay at the Park Hyatt in Tokyo for Free (Points Party)
- The Rockefellers vs. the Company That Made Them Rockefellers (NY Mag)
- The Death of a Once-Great City (Harper's)
- Martin Margiela outlines pressures of fashion’s fast pace in new letter (Dazed)
- The New Yorker's Jane Mayer Is Holding the World's Most Powerful Men Accountable (Elle)
- There’s a Reason You’re Drinking So Much Aperol Spritz (NY Times)
- "I Was a Starter Wife": Inside America's Messiest Divorce (Marie Claire, 2010)
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