Vimto

Ingredients

The drink

• 250 mlVimto cordial concentrate
• 1.75 litrescold water, still
• Ice cubes, plenty

The Ramadan table version

• 1orange, segmented and cut into pieces
• 1banana, sliced
• 150 gfresh strawberries, quartered
• 150 gmango, diced
• 2 tbspbasil seeds (tukhum rehan or sabja), soaked 20 min in 200 ml water until they swell into a jelly
• 1 tbsplemon juice
• A few mint leaves

Directions

1. Know what you are pouring: Vimto is a British cordial invented in Manchester in 1908 by John Nichols, made from a concentrated blend of grape, blackcurrant and raspberry juices with an infusion of herbs and spices. It has been imported to the Gulf since 1928 and is bottled under licence in Saudi Arabia, where the concentrate sold is noticeably sweeter and more heavily fruited than the British one.
2. Chill everything first. Vimto at iftar is drunk very cold, and diluting with cold water rather than adding lots of ice keeps the flavour from thinning as the ice melts.
3. Pour the cordial into a large jug: the standard dilution is 1 part cordial to 7 parts water, which is roughly 30 ml of cordial per 250 ml glass.
4. Add the water in a steady stream and stir well with a long spoon for 20 seconds. The concentrate is dense and will sit at the bottom of the jug if you do not.
5. Taste it. Gulf palates run sweeter and many families go as strong as 1 to 5; if it tastes like flat berry squash, add more concentrate rather than more sugar.
6. For the fruit version that appears on almost every Saudi iftar table in Ramadan, stir the soaked basil seeds, the chopped fruit and the lemon juice into the jug and refrigerate 1 hour so the fruit macerates and the seeds hydrate fully.
7. Stir again just before serving, as the basil seeds sink.
8. Serve in tall glasses over a few cubes of ice, with a spoon if the fruit version, immediately after the maghrib call to prayer and traditionally after the first dates and water.

Technique

• Vimto’s place in Saudi Ramadan is genuine and enormous: Aujan Industries, the licensed bottler, sells several million bottles in the month, and shops stack the crates by the door from the first day of the fast.
• The name is a contraction of Vim-tonic, and it began life as a health tonic rather than a soft drink. The original recipe is still a trade secret; the herb and spice infusion is what gives it the slightly medicinal, aniseed-and-berry edge that no generic berry cordial has.
• Basil seeds are not chia seeds. They swell faster, into a looser jelly, and they are the traditional Gulf addition; chia is a modern substitute with a firmer texture.
• Do not add sugar. If it is not sweet enough, the fault is the dilution ratio, and adding sugar just makes it cloying without adding fruit flavour.

Substitutions

• No Vimto? A mix of blackcurrant cordial with a splash of grape juice and 2 drops of rose water gets somewhere near, though the herbal note is impossible to fake.
• Sparkling water in place of still makes a lighter drink that some households prefer, and is how it is sometimes served to children.
• Chia seeds can replace basil seeds at the same volume; soak them for 30 minutes rather than 20.

Variations

• Vimto with soaked qamar al-din (apricot leather) blended in, a heavier iftar drink common in the Hijaz.
• A frozen slush version, blended with ice, sold at Ramadan tents.
• Vimto float, poured over vanilla ice cream, popular with children at Eid.

History

A British cordial exported since the 1920s that became the fixed Ramadan drink of Saudi and Gulf tables.

Frequently asked questions

What is Vimto?

Vimto is a drink from Saudi Arabia: dark berry cordial mixed with cold water, poured to break the Ramadan fast. A British cordial exported since the 1920s that became the fixed Ramadan drink of Saudi and Gulf tables.

How long does Vimto take to make?

Vimto takes 5 min of preparation and 1 hr chilling of cooking. The recipe makes 8 glasses (about 2 litres). It is rated easy to make.

What can I substitute in Vimto?

Yes, within limits. No Vimto? A mix of blackcurrant cordial with a splash of grape juice and 2 drops of rose water gets somewhere near, though the herbal note is impossible to fake. Sparkling water in place of still makes a lighter drink that some households prefer, and is how it is sometimes served to children. Chia seeds can replace basil seeds at the same volume; soak them for 30 minutes rather than 20.

What is the most important thing to get right in Vimto?

Chill everything first. Vimto at iftar is drunk very cold, and diluting with cold water rather than adding lots of ice keeps the flavour from thinning as the ice melts.