Myrcia inconspicua L. Kollmann & Sobral, a new species from montane forests of the Brazilian state of Espírito Santo, is described and illustrated. The species is characterized by solitary, axillary flowers, an uncommon feature in the genus, and by its shrubby habit and dense red-brown indument of branches and leaves. It is tentatively related to Myrcia anomala Cambessèdes, a subshrub from southern and central Brazil that occasionally bears solitary flowers.