Why people are crazy about Blue Bottle, the coffee chain that Nestle just acquired for up to $500 million

Nestle announced Thursday that it had acquired a majority stake in high-end coffee retailer Blue Bottle Coffee, long a favorite of the tech community.

According to the Financial Times, Nestle will be paying up to $500 million for a 68% stake in the chain, which plans to have 55 locations by the end of the year. There are currently Blue Bottle stores in the Bay Area, Los Angeles, New York City, Washington, DC, and Tokyo.

Blue Bottle has received a total of $12o million in funding from many big-name investors over the years, from Morgan Stanley, Fidelity Management and Research, and True Ventures, to Bono, Jared Leto, Tony Hawk, and the founders of Twitter and Instagram.

The company has become hugely popular with hipsters and techies from coast to coast. Vintage brewing machines and artisanal coffee are some of its major selling points, and lines are known to get long.

We previously paid a visit to the spacious Blue Bottle cafe in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, to see what the hype is all about.