Starbucks, I Was a Fool to Trust You

Call me naive, but I had moderately high hopes for 15th Avenue Coffee & Tea, the new stealth-Starbucks coffee shop that eschews Frappucinos for wine and beer and attempts to buck the chain's corporate image.

I've always loved the European-style cafe, with good espresso and alcohol, as a quiet counterpoint to bars; done right, they reinforce the idea that you can drink without getting drunk and emphasize conversation and quality drinks.

But then I saw this snapshot of the beer menu:  Stella, Redhook, and Widmer Brothers. That's one terrible "Belgian" beer owned by Anheuser-Busch InBev, and two watery microbreweries that are actually one company, the Craft Brewers Alliance. Oh, and which A-B has a stake in.

Frappucino anyone?