Local third wave coffee roaster and noted denier of iced espresso shots, Blue Bottle Coffee just received a $20 million investment from two venture capital firms to presumably expand their operations.

Blue Bottle currently has 10 official outlets in San Francisco and New York, not to mention countless local outlets that buy and brew their beans to their meticulous standards. The Oakland-based roaster could be using the funds to expand its brick and mortar empire now that other local chains like Peet's and La Boulange have both gone the mega-corporate route. As Wired notes, the infusion of cash follows the validation of artisan coffee chains like Portland's Stumptown Roasters. Meanwhile, TechCrunch speculates that the extra funds could be used to expand Blue Bottle's online sales and stocking beans at your local grocery stores as well — which turned out to be a large moneymaker for Peet's Coffee.

Personally, we're just hoping they finally bring the pre-bottled iced coffee from the Ferry Building to a wider market. That Illy stuff from the corner store is not very good.

Outside speculation: maybe they'll just use the 20 million to pay off the neighbors and finally put that coffee cart in Dolores Park.

Previously: All Blue Bottle Coffee coverage on SFist
[TechCrunch]
[Wired]