Iced Half-Caf Venti Three Pump Classic with Soy Americano

I have served people espresso and brewed coffee for twelve years of my adult life. Three of those have been with Starbucks. There's a lot that I could say about coffee, coffee culture, and Starbucks. All I will say today, without judgement, for lo, times are hard and business is to be had: there are fewer delicious beans to be had at Starbucks, and there's a lot less participation on the part of the barista in customizing and creating the drink for the customer. The latter is due to the emergence of technology that allows for drinks to be made with little to no quality loss with less human interaction. It is simply the passing of an age, but it is too bad.