Ramadan's Unofficial Drink · Fruit Cordial
Vimto
Photo: Mx. Granger / Wikimedia Commons · CC0
A British cordial invented in Manchester in 1908 now sells over 25 million bottles a year in the region during Ramadan alone, with Saudi Arabia among its biggest markets.
Vimto is a purple, fruit-and-herb-flavored cordial mixed with water and served over ice, its sweetness prized for the quick energy boost it gives after a day of fasting. It's sold everywhere from supermarkets to street carts, stacked especially high in the run-up to Ramadan.
Why it's made this way: Introduced to the region in the 1920s and embraced under Saudi Arabia's alcohol restrictions, it became a fasting-season staple as culturally fixed as dates and lentil soup.
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