With one sip you can be whisked away to a crisp autumn day at an apple orchard or to a cozy fireside winter night. Crescent Simples’ simple syrups are magic in a bottle, transporting taste buds to different seasons and destinations; something especially noticeable with their limited-time autumn releases apple spice and cranberry ginger which debuted this year.
“Everything is fresh and made from raw sugar, water, fruits and herbs — that’s it,” says Megan Miller, co-founder who runs the business with husband Bill.
Apple spice, a returning favorite, is concocted from Granny Smith and Gala apples sourced from Charlottesville’s Carter Mountain Orchard and infused with cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves. It’s perfect for dark liquors, like dark rum and bourbon, or even splashed in a hot toddy or cup of chai.
“I love it in my latte in the morning,” says Bill. “The flavor profile is like apple pie in a bottle. That with a splash of milk – it’s a fantastic way to start the day.” Richmond’s Perk! Coffee & Lunchbox also uses it in their Virginia Fog tea latte.
The newest offering, cranberry ginger, was about two years in the making. “Cranberry and ginger are the two most requested [flavors] outside of what we already have,” says Bill.
The two spent time brainstorming on the perfect combination. Should it feature ginger? Sage? If ginger, how could they safely do so with Bill’s severe allergy to it? “Last fall Cirrus Vodka asked if we could make a cranberry ginger for their holiday mules,” says Bill. “It kind of just solidified that was going to be our next flavor.”
The sharp, spicy syrup with hints of tartness has quickly become one of their top sellers. Ideal for mules and cosmos, they’ve also found it to be popular in another drink – matcha lattes. Canary Yellow, a coffee shop in Wilmington, North Carolina, incorporates cranberry ginger into a cold foam for their matcha lattes and it’s been a huge hit.
Crescent Simples officially got started in 2019 but its essence had already been brewing a short time before.
“We were both working for a distillery in New Orleans and one of the bartenders there was in a cocktail-making competition doing strawberry basil gin smashes,” says Megan. “It got to the point in the competition where she needed to make 200 really quickly for a party. She had originally been muddling fresh strawberries and basil for the drink and obviously couldn’t manage it for that many people.”
This started the search for a simple syrup that could be relied on instead. Megan, who was the distillery’s general manager at the time, searched for fresh, preservative-free options but wasn’t satisfied with what was on the market.
“Through this whole process I realized we’re not the only people with this problem. There’s an opportunity here to make a really high-quality product from real ingredients,” she says.
After experimenting and developing a few recipes, the couple moved back to Charlottesville to be closer to family while working to grow their brand. The two started selling at a local farmer’s market and discovered there was indeed demand. An area distillery soon purchased their simple syrups to use in cocktails and the two began looking into wholesale. “It just exploded from there,” she says.
In 2020, the couple moved to Richmond to partake in Hatch Kitchen. In 2024, they moved to a production facility on East Main Street and have since expanded to be a nationwide seller. Today, their lineup currently has a dozen flavors ranging from peach hibiscus and old fashioned to blackberry vanilla and grapefruit rosemary.
The secret to Crescent’s success? Its openness and quality ingredients, they say. “There’s not always a lot of clarity in beverage flavorings,” says Megan. “A lot of it just says natural flavors or citric acid. The biggest thing is making sure we’re very transparent and using real ingredients.”
And many of these ingredients are locally grown. Apart from Carter Mountain apples, they collect peaches from Chiles Peach Orchard to make their peach hibiscus and also collaborate with Hanover’s Agriberry. The move not only celebrates Virginia’s harvest but prevents food waste by incorporating bruised, misshapen fruit usually overlooked by customers.
However, this also means they’re at the whim of Mother Nature. Environmental factors like rain and fluctuating temperatures can alter fruit flavors, abundance and when fruit needs to be collected. “The peach season [at Chiles] ended much earlier this year than expected because of weather patterns,” says Megan. “We need to work around them.”
But don’t think these simple syrups are exclusive for drinks. They can be drizzled over yogurt, used in icings (especially buttercream) or even to enhance ice cream. “One thing that’s fun when making a product and putting it out in the world is people creating crazy ideas with it you never thought of,” says Megan.
Crescent Simples’ products can be found throughout Richmond, including at Lineage, Cirrus Vodka, Union Market and Point 5. They can also be bought on their site. Prices range from $10 for four ounces to $16 for eight ounces. Their autumn seasonal three-pack, featuring four-ounce bottles of apple spice, cranberry ginger and old fashioned, is $30.
