7.13.2020

Brave Coffee Vendor. Great cappuccino.

Intelligentsia Coffee on Second Street. 

I guess y'all have heard that, in addition to leading the world in COVID-19 infections (locked in a friendly competition with Arizona and Florida...) we're also smack in the middle of a massive heat wave. Add in the rattlesnakes, scorpions and politicians and one wonders why so many people are moving here...to Texas.

But, as you know, I'm always looking for those "silver linings" and today is no exception. 

We talked about my acquisition of two tiny cameras (Canon G16s) on Friday and Saturday and I showed you a passel of Jpegs from one of them in a blog post. I thought they looked really good. Much better than what I remembered being able to squeeze out of "point-n-shoot" cameras in the past. As I lay in bed listening to the locusts chirping, and the (almost) silent, black helicopters flying overhead last night, I started to wonder if the raw files from the G16s might be even better than the Jpegs.

I fired up the personal automobile and headed downtown at mid-morning. I've got a bunch of raw files to share with you but I liked this, the last shot of the morning (above), so much I decided I'd share this by itself before progressing to an exhaustive rendition of today's Raw Image Extravaganza.

I guess Intelligentsia Coffee is part of a chain. I found them again on Second St. when I was nearing the end of a noon-ish walk (already over 100° at noon) while struggling with thirst and dehydration. I ordered a cappuccino and also got a can of Richard's Rainwater (yes, canned rainwater...). The cappuccino was rich and sublime. I may never drink another kind of beverage in my life. I might have to locate my business next to this coffee shop and just create a standard, hourly cappuccino order. Now I can't imagine life without it. 

I got my cappuccino to go and walked over to the Seaholm Center to find a shady spot and savor the magic elixir. When I finished my indulgence I documented the cup. It's the finest image I've ever made. 

I guess you've figured it out by now. Today is International Hyperbole Day. 

But the coffee was really good. I guess I could look the business up on the Google but I'm so hot and lazy today I thought I'd just ask the VSL brain reservoir and find out if Intelligentsia Coffee is a national chain. Anybody?

More photos to follow in a follow on blog this afternoon. After I eat my requisite 50 vegetables for lunch......(oh dear!). 





10 comments:

Malcolm said...

That is far and and away the best post you've every written ;)

Larry S said...

Intelligentsia Coffee is an American coffee roasting company and retailer based in Chicago, Illinois. Founded in 1995 by Doug Zell and Emily Mange, Intelligentsia is considered a major representative of third wave coffee. In 2015, Peet's Coffee & Tea acquired a majority stake in the company.

karmagroovy said...

Another reason to shoot raw; Adobe RAW keeps improving. I've seen examples on the interwebs of people processing old RAW files and getting unexpected positive improvements.

Cut Mike some slack... he did mark his post (OT). I usually skip those...

eric erickson said...

KT, if you eat your 50 veggies for lunch, I do hope you at least add several slices of bacon on them for flavor? Sorry to hear about your weather. We here in Ohio have been experiencing some hot weather too, but nothing like what you folks have. Today was however straight out of a chamber of commerce playbook, 75 and sunny. Stay safe and keep the good posts coming, you make my day. Eric

MikeR said...

B - b- b - b - but ... isn't coffee a vegetable? I wonder if you're allowed to count every bean?

Kirk, Photographer/Writer said...

Karma Groovy. I should mark all of my posts as OT.

scott kirkpatrick said...

Mike on vegetables and Kirk on coffee both deserve room in which to ramble. Mike also marks the posts on pool as OT but they are fun to read. It only takes me a sentence or two to spot a vegetable or coffee post and find a better use for the time. And I may stick around a bit longer for the coffee.

Kirk, Photographer/Writer said...

And, of course, it's Malcolm for the win!

MB.Kinsman said...

As mentioned by another commenter, home town for Intelligentsia is Chicago, our fair city! One of several great places. Another Medici on 57th - known as a hangout for University of Chicago students, faculty, Obama, and the SDS back in the 60’s. Killer coffee, bakery and restaurant. Not sure Austin’s is a branch location.

Eric Seale said...

As has been previously noted on the interwebs, a vanilla soy latte is really a form of 3-bean soup. Order your coffee correctly, and you get extra veggy credit!