Cheeky Vimto

Cheeky Vimto

Type	Mixed drink
Served	neat or with ice
Standard drinkware	Pub glass
Commonly used ingredients	275ml blue WKD 50ml port

A Cheeky Vimto is an alcoholic cocktail. Primarily drunk in nightclubs rather than bars,^[1] the "Cheeky Vimto" is a popular drink among Britain's younger population

Ingredients

Despite the name, the soft drink Vimto is not part of the cocktail. Instead it is made up of one or two shots of ruby port and one 275ml bottle of Blue WKD. However, the resulting mixture does taste very much like a regular Vimto; hence the name "Cheeky Vimto". Many establishments call it by other names, such as 'cheeky V', in order to avoid breaching the copyright of the soft drink..

The use of the word 'cheeky' is most likely a reference to the fact that though tasting like a regular Vimto, the drink has a strong "kick" when swallowed. Cheeky could also refer to the English understated way of having an alcoholic beverage—"to go for a cheeky half". This phrase actually indicates that one isn't going to have a half (pint), but is receptive to a few drinks that are not in aid of anything, shouldn't lead on to an occasion, but should be quite fun. The double shot of port and bottle of WKD would therefore qualify as being "cheeky".

Dirty Vimto

There is a variant on the cheeky Vimto known as the 'dirty Vimto'. This version replaces the port with Buckfast Tonic Wine. Although Buckfast has a lesser alcohol content (15% compared to 20% in ruby port), it has a high caffeine content and thereby gives a greater 'kick' than the cheeky Vimto. A common addition to this variant is two shots of vodka.

The use of 'dirty' refers to the fact that this cocktail combines two drinks that some people regard as containing chemicals that cause notably rowdy behaviour.

References

1. British Drinks and Distilleries