They All Look the Same to Me

Could Ralphs supermarket make coffee shopping any more confusing? That’s the question I ask regarding the Featured Image, taken today while trying to choose from the selection of on-sale house brands.

Notice that all are “medium roast” but somehow distinct. Supreme Blend is rich and pure, which supposedly differs from Premium that is rich and balanced. Well, both are rich but is balanced therefore not as pure?

Special Roast is full-bodied and enticing, while Select is smooth and mellow. But what does that mean when all are medium roast? I asked my wife which, while we laughed about the absurd descriptions. She chose the one with the most coffee by weight. You know, hard-bodied and sure.

Pricing is a hoot, too. Regular price is $9.99. But if you don’t mind surrendering some personal information and sign up for a Ralph’s card, the coffee costs $7.99. Thrifty shoppers can cough up even more (seemingly) private data and clip a digital coupon. That’s us! We bowed down to the great tracking-algorithm ages ago, which let me pay only $5.99. Oh joy.

I used Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra for the quickie. Vitals: f/1.7, ISO 200, 1/120 sec, 23mm (film equivalent); 12:16 p.m. PDT.