Meet Shepherd Combs | Co-owner of Cinchona Coffee alongside Shihong Zu

We had the good fortune of connecting with Shepherd Combs and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Shepherd, Let’s talk about principles and values – what matters to you most?
I think Shihong and I realized we could be business partners when we realized that we have similar values. For me, what you do is a reflection of yourself. Whether you are employed, unemployed, or self-employed, your behavior speaks to the kind of person you are.

I couldn’t have gone into business with someone who didn’t value honestly or integrity. I want to do this business the best we can, with integrity, and I hope people will like what we do. I don’t want to let the original vision slip away from us or change the business too much chasing customers or trends. 

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
My background has been in and out of coffee and bartending/management this past decade or so. I think it’s exciting to try and take aspects of the bar industry and see how they work into coffee.

One of the easiest examples is the creativity that drives cocktail culture. Why not put the same care and effort into a coffee drink? It’s definitely harder to come up with drinks when you can’t fall back on a trusty bottle of something pre-made (a splash of Campari is great in everything)

I also feel like coffee is somewhat associated with bubbly, but not honest interactions. For me, the human experience of walking into a bar is usually far superior, and like the book The Tender Bar, a lot of us have somewhat grown up and come into ourselves at bars and around the regulars who frequent them.

So yeah, come be real with us, and try some delicious drinks.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I don’t think any place in the city can top Garden of the Gods, and I think the top of Garden of the Gods is the place to beat in the park. I’d love to take someone climbing up the largest features and see the sunset behind the mountains from that spectacular view.

For eat and drink, not many places are as great as Chiba Bar. We’d probably get Donburi and a house yuzu sake to share. The next morning we might swing by Hold Fast for a delicious cup of honey-process Ethiopian and pick Nate’s brain (the head roaster). Not far from there is a beautiful off-leash dog trail hidden inside Palmer Park. I imagine we’d take my friends Scooby and Cricket.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Shihong’s wife, Rachel, has been doing us a ton of favors from manual labor to design and marketing. I think she just wants to see us succeed and vicariously experiences our happiness to get this thing off the ground.

Website: Cinchona.coffee

Instagram: @Cinchonacoffee

Image Credits
All these photos were taken by the talented Rachel Zu