Just after Memorial Day, panic gripped the chests of New York's coffee snobs when it came to light that a big capitalist private equity firm had bought up artisanal indie darling Stumptown. Though Stumptown owner Duane Sorenson downplayed the deal as just a "friend" investing "some money" into Stumptown, the Times has confirmed that TSG Consumer Partners, which previously bought a stake in VitaminWater, is the firm involved—and "some" money may actually be code for a lot. Enough to buy 90 percent of Stumptown and still have plenty left over to buy up all your favorite fancy coffee purveyors. more ›

In January, a roving monster with some real nasty lice terrorized Manhattan yuppies in Cloverfield. A few weeks later, the $11,000 Clover coffee machine began showing up in the press to devour yuppie wallets. more ›