Beans In A Jar, Pflugerville Skatepark, & An Afternoon Ride in North Houston

While I was on tour with my band back in June, I made a quick list of roasters in the areas where I was touring so I could pick up a bag or two during my travels.

One of the roasters that I noted was Combs' Coffee near Denton, TX.  Many reviewers noted that Combs' place was like a coffee temple... so yeah, I had to go check it out!

My girlfriend found this coffee "jarringly" great!

When you first arrive at Combs' place - it's not a regular coffee shop. Rather, it's nestled in a small enclave of small but modern warehouses.  When you walk in, there's a wall of mason jars filled with roasted coffee beans from around the globe. When I say "around the globe", I'm not only talking about the usual suspects, but also places such as China, Thailand, Bali, and Nepal.  

And then, when you walk past the small room filled with jars of beans, it's only THEN that you see the coffee shop and finally meet the man behind the brand, James Combs.

From my conversations James Combs, he shared that he is close pals with Weihong Zhang of Blendin Coffee Club (Houston) and they will occasionally work together to buy super high quality beans and split up the prize for their respective shops.  Both of them are Q Arabica Graders - which I had never heard of until I met James. The best way to put it, a Q Grader is the wine sommelier equivalent to the coffee industry.

After spending a lot of time talking about coffee with James, I picked up two jars to take back to Houston. Today, I'm reviewing the Nicaraguan Fincas Mierish bean from the Comayagua region.  BTW - check out the Fincas Mierish link for some fantastic details about their farms and beans.

About the coffee: this is a wonderfully rich coffee. I know I tend to lust after the Central African beans but this batch from Nicaragua is exceptional and worth enjoying.  I noticed a beautifully sweet start with this coffee.  Have you ever had a great "coffee flavored" ice cream or coffee-infused beer?  That's what I tasted when I first took a dive into this brew. It's the taste of what coffee SHOULD taste like. I could see adding a bit of oat milk or a lightly sweet cream to this coffee, but it's so rewarding right out of the pot. I also imagine this would make for a fantastic cold-brew - but it may not be acidic enough for those who like a super strong cold-brew.

Note that when you order from Combs' - your coffee will be shipped in a regular bag, not in the quart-sized mason jar packaging you find at his shop.

Moving on from coffee, let's check out two skateparks I found in Pflugerville, Texas last month!

Pflugerville is north by northeast of Austin, TX.  Super cute city that has monetarily benefitted from the rapid growth in Austin, but I'm not sure the locals appreciate the higher home prices and rapid growth from the Austinites moving into their community. Nonetheless, the city is home to one of the BEST skateparks in the State: the appropriately named Pflugerville Skatepark.

At 41,400 square feet, this park is beautifully laid out, clean, plenty of safe parking, super smooth transitions, and perfectly maintained.  The photo I took does NOT do the park justice, so check out what others have posted. I was legit bummed out that it was so damn hot (over 100 F) and that I could only skate for about an hour before heat exhaustion kicked in. If I lived near this skatepark, I would be here as often as possible.  It's so well laid out and beautiful.  I love the two large seperated pools too.

There was a second Pflugerville skatepark (more like a pocket skatepark) that I skated while my girlfriend checked out a connecting trail.

It's called the "Skate Spot" and the connecting trail that links to it is called Bohl's Loop.  The trail is 7 miles long, but the Skate Spot is basically a ramp and a taco with picnic seating nearby. Yeah, it's tiny! On the plus side, it's shaded by the surrounding trees and if you decide to walk / run on Bohl's Loop like Pat did, then you're in luck as the trail is pretty great. 

And now... lemme talk to you about the bike ride I completed in the north Houston area last week.

The Spring Creek Greenway has been a favorite of mine ever since I started seriously riding bikes again in 2020.  This ~ 30 mile trail is a treasure!  Many parts are shaded, includes clearly marked trail markers, nearly 100% is paved, and (when there's not a drought) the meandering creek is a bonus zen experience.

I added ~ 12 miles to my ride by exploring the western side of the trail.  It was interesting to note that much the western portion was not on Google maps. Also, the western portion (noted as "ExxonMobile CityPlace") does not directly link with the rest of the Spring Creek Greenway. Kind of dumb and also kind of dangerous if you're trying to ride the entire route because you have to get onto the parkway and the highway feeder to get to the rest of the trail.

However, this is only a very small section of somewhat risky bike riding... 99% of the rest of the trails are absolutely beautiful. Sometimes, too beautiful. I remember thinking to myself how the beauty of my surroundings were becoming monotonous. When I first dove into the trail, I was stopping often to take photos of the trees, flowers, bugs... but then, it because the same thing over and over again... for miles.  

I had to stop and remind myself that this "monotonous beauty" was exactly what my soul needed.  This is exactly why I'm here!

When I ride on long stretches of road (such as the Hotter'N Hell ride last month) I remember feeling bored... numb... to the cycling experience. Was I so used to being constantly stimulated by technology and my surroundings that a peaceful bike ride - albeit a scorching hot one - was "just not enough"?

When that thought crossed my mind again, I physically stopped, made myself sit down on a bench to drink some water, and told myself to disengage, relax, and appreciate that I am here.

I found that once I let my mind clear itself, I could enjoy the ride more: the humming sound of the tyres against the ground, the steady cadence of my pedaling, the sound of my breathing, and the smells of my surroundings.

It wasn't all peace and love though. After I had made it to the end and was working my way back to my starting point, I found feel a cool breeze on my face.  The smell of rain was in the air and I was two hours away from my starting point!

Lucky for me, it did not rain on the trail area. However, I was pedaling furiously so I could get to a covered area just in case the rain hit.  That hard sprint was for about 30 minutes and THAT seriously drained my energy.

Still, it was a beautiful journey and I relax significantly after I realized the rain wasn't going to hit. The relaxed pace at the end didn't do anything for my average speed / timing... but this was not a race. It was a day off from everything, which means more that the numbers could report.

A Double Shot of Coffee Reviews

Today's post features two coffee offerings as I'm needing to catch up with all the other bags that need to get some blog time.  So... let's begin with a coffee that's a great way to start your day. 

Greater Goods Coffee Company (Austin, TX) - "Take Me Home" blend (Costa Rica)

 I first experienced this coffee when I was in Dallas earlier this year and I loved it. It made such an impact that I've blogged about it twice. Full bodied and slightly sweet, this wonderful morning brew will go well with just about anything. It's delicious for your first cup in the morning as well as an early afternoon brew, but you might not want to drink too much unless you're pulling an all-nighter.

This coffee would pair well with any type of creamers as it has a wonderfully simple but full profile. I'm tasting sweet fruits in the front with a perfect black tea finish.  The product description notes toffee, marzipan, and vanilla... and I think I would mostly agree but it's not as sweet as those notes might indicate. Highly recommended for people who love good coffee.

And no, they are not related to the Greater Goods Company... although they do sell the Greater Goods Gooseneck Kettle at their Austin store. 

Next on the review for today is...

Noble Coffee Roasting (Ashland, OR) - Kenya Muiri Estate Peaberry

With this coffee, my faith in peaberry is restored!

My earlier review of Progress Roasters' Ethiopian Harrar Peaberry was a traumatic experience. So much so that I left the remaining bag of beans in the office for anyone to take.  It was that bad.

But with this outstanding brew - I am back on the peaberry train!  

My awesome girlfriend brought this home from her recent trip to the Northwest US and it has been an outstanding coffee to brew. It has a beautiful, sweet and delicate flavor that play around on your tongue with each sip - typical of a great peaberry roast.  It's a light roast coffee with an interesting lemongrass like essence at first sip.  But that gives way to a nice spice ending... like allspice (as noted on the label).  This coffee received 92 points from Coffee Review, which I had never heard of... but looks like a fantastic resource for people like you and me when it comes to all things coffee!

While the Noble Coffee Roasting's Muiri Estate Peaberry is no longer directly available (as of this post), I see it mentioned on their site in other places -- so maybe it's a seasonal offering?  If so, keep tabs on this one as it's a great coffee to have on hand for an impressive afternoon brew with friends or even on a chill day on your own.

Details on the Muiri estate beans

But Did You Die?

No, I didn't die... but I did feel disappointment for not completing 100 miles like I had planned.  Nonetheless, 89 miles* in 100+ degree heat is an accomplishment that I had (up until now) only dared to consider.

The Hotter'n Hell 100 bike ride was a ride that I had my sights on for a while as it seemed like such a ludicrous proposition that only true pros would dare to enter (and finish).  Over the last few months - I focused on doing up to 60 squats daily, regularly using 10 to 12 pound free weights for my biceps, and practice rides in the mornings and early afternoons during June, July, and August.

Even though I had a pretty nasty wreck 10 days BEFORE the ride, I recovered quickly and stayed on course with my exercises to ultimately compete.  The main reason why I didn't get to do the full 100 miles was that the temperature that day got above 107 degrees (F) and the ride organizers made the call to close off the 100 mile course and let riders complete the 100 KM course instead.  The news often cited the "wet-bulb" temperatures as the reason for closing off the 100 mile course earlier.

I didn't realize the 100 mile course was closed off until well after the 50 mile mark... so I was kinda bummed when I found out I wouldn't be able to reach my goal... but hey, at least I endeavored to try!

Should I try again next year?! 

* 77 miles on the official course and an additional 12 miles on the Wichita River Trail (also highly recommended)