Our story begins not very long ago. Kim Creekmore and Brittany Schaeffer make up Curious Juniper. Like so many people, 2020 really threw us for a loop. We were both in jobs that were shuttered due to the pandemic. We made it through 2020, skinned up but surviving. We had been in each other’s bubble, a few families we trusted. Bonding over the year but also feeling light years apart. After new years, we wanted a girls night, socially distanced at the Oasis. It was all innocent enough, Kim had gotten a cocktail book from a friend and was weirdly excited to share. Brittany arrived at Kim’s home first and as we were thumbing through the book deciding what cocktails to make, we stumbled on the syrups laid out in the beginning. They were simple syrups, a demerara, a lavender, nothing fancy, Kim said to Brittany, “we could make cocktail syrups like this and sell them”
Within a week we had developed several complex flavored {not so} simple syrups, a brand name, website, logo and an opportunity to do a tasting for a new bar that opens in June 2021.
It was like this seemingly innocent idea grew legs and had momentum all on its own.
We had no idea what was ahead of us, but we both knew that we were invested into our new endeavor 100% and no matter what would get things figured out. There was no turning back, we needed this to work.
Like any food business, we dove into the world of the health department, the FDA, licensing and all the accoutrements that go into it. We had a timeline, May 10th was the magic number and the day our first order was supposed to make its way to the new bar. By the skin of our teeth our licensing was finalized on May 6th.
We have developed a brand of {not so} simple syrups. They are complex in flavor, meaning, you don’t need a lot of extra ingredients to create a beautiful cocktail or mocktail. We have blended flavors from our home town, like tamarind+chili+lime for a nod to the hispanic heritage that San Diego is home to. We’ve made an intoxicating charcoal+grapefruit+jalapeño that is hauntingly black and bitter. Perfect with a smoky Mezcal or Tequila.
Our most popular flavors are the hibiscus+lemon+mint, with its vibrant red tones and tart, minty flavors that truly takes you away to a sandy spot by the water. And our nod to San Diego with our pineapple+hops. This syrup always surprises the senses. The sweet pineapple with the addition of the juicy tropical hops, makes for a perfect match to any IPA lover who might want a cocktail instead of a beer.
There are a lot of syrup companies out there. A growing number of small batch fruit syrups that are local to different areas. But I think what we are most proud of is the fact that we’ve created something that doesn’t exist on the market at this scope. We are proud to present these syrups to San Diego and beyond, and even prouder that bars and restaurants are seeing how they can support local, lower their overhead and offer fantastic cocktails and mocktails using our syrups. They truly are {not so} simple syrups.