Though people often say “Don’t judge a book by it’s cover,” for me it’s all about the presentation when judging coffee and tea.

Intelligentsia and Urth are famous for their beautiful designs on their drinks, and for that, they have my business. Sure, it might be somewhat shallow, but who doesn’t love a gorgeous, hand-crafted cappuccino over an inferior, boring one?

Back when “latte art” was young, only a few places spent the extra few seconds working on each individual drink. Soon baristas became more than just friendly faces behind the counter, making your day with caffeine — they became artists. But even though it now seems as though every other place has hired these artists, there is still demand for pretty coffee.

In this day and age, we’re all about how we appear. After all, isn’t that exactly why we go out to places that serve us coffee brewed to perfection and designed with talent? Most likely. And until we get around to learning how to beautify coffee ourselves, I’ll still want my dirty chai with the solar system and/or a self-portrait etched in the foam.